Living on the Lake @ A Boat Slip?

[JasonG]

My wife & i were tossing around how to stay up there for an extended time for a reasonable price these days. One thing she mentioned is to buy a 27' cuddy ( which we plan on doing anyway ), and renting a boat slip year round. We will always have a place to go to.

However, I can think of problems on many levels. One is our 3 kids + 2 dogs. Even if it is to just crash for 1 night. Two, how many places have good facilities for recreation? Space on the dock for the BBQ, etc? Third, did I mention 3 kids and 2 dogs?

Thoughts?

[Airwaves]

Not to go legal on you, but IIRC NH law prohibits "houseboats". And as I read the act, it means we can't stay on a boat overnight, at anchor, or on a slip.

BTW, on a 27' boat, where are you going to keep 3 kids and 2 dogs?

Now, I could be wrong but, I certainly won't tell if you don't!

[Paugus Bay Resident]

Lots of people at Mountain View spend weekends or longer on their boats. One of our neighbors has a 40 +/- houseboat that they spend all summer on. Another neighbor spends all summer on their boat as well. Ditto at West Alton, etc.

A 27 may be a bit tight. I know it would be for my wife and I

[jrc]

Legally it's not a problem, as long as you own or rent a slip or a mooring. Thousands of people do it for weekends and longer all summer.

My parents went to their boat every Friday night from May to October for at least twelve years. They usually came home on Sunday night, but during there summer vacation they would spend a week or two there.

They started off with a 19' cuddy cabin in Back Bay and moved up to their "huge" 22.5' cuddy at Melvin Village. Eventually they ended up at West Alton Marina and stayed there until my Dad's health gave out. As you can guess with a boat that size, usually it was just the two of them. My sister and I would spend a weekends on the fold out seats. As we were teenagers, we outgrew that pretty fast.

This season will be my first, with my wife, at Mountain View. We have no kids and no animals, plus we're getting a bigger boat than they had. My generation is a little wimpier than they were.

You said year round, as far as I know that's impractical on Winnipesaukee. In theory you could have dock bubblers or something to keep your slip ice-free, but it's not going to happen.

BTW If you decide to do this, you should seriouly consider buying the boat on the lake from a dealer that will get you a slip. Slips set up for overnighting are not always easy to find.

Just to get a feel for what it's like check out www.mvyc.biz or http://www.spinnakercoveyachtclub.com/
I think the rules are on the sites

[ThePlut]

Don't think you'd be happy with a cuddy, even a 27' one. I'd be thinking a cruiser (there's a new 24' Sea Ray cruiser that I'd choose over a 27' cuddy of any model) with more cabin space. A real toilet and an aft cabin at minimum...

West Alton Marina in a really nice place, hard to get into (waiting list), but has all the facilities I'd want if I were going to do what you want to do.

Downside is, the slips are pricey. I got my slip (which isn't as fancy, and the facilities aren't the best for overnighting, for less than 1/2 price. In fact, my yearly slip, plus my 1 week rental of a cottage is still less than a slip at WAM.

Also, keep in mind that with the right equipment, the boat can count as a second home, with tax deducations. I forget the exact criteria, but a small cruiser would probably cut it, a big cuddy, might not...

[Aquadeziac]

I would have to agree with an aft cabin. A cuddy would just be too crowded. We have a 26' and can sleep 5 in the cabin. If you have the camper canvass it would open up the cockpit area for better useage possibly sleeping two more and a place for the pets out of the way. We stay on ours 3+ days a week during July and Aug and long weekends the rest of the summer. The better Yacht Clubs will have showers and rec rooms and a small area at your dock for picnic table and gas grille and lawn chairs. We are at GYC and there are people there that live on their boat full time from April to November and rent a condo or apt for the winter. I only wish I could afford to do that myself. I equate what we do with RVing, with the added benefit that I can unplug my RV and drive across the lake. What more could you ask for?

[Lakewinniboater]

I am not sure what was being referred to about not being able to live on your boat on Winnipesaukee.

You can't anchor or beach the boat for the night ... this is true.

However, West Alton Marina is a FABULOUS marina for dogs and kids. We are on our 4th year there. The bath house is brand new... has a laundry facility, indoor and outdoor showers. Ample parking and lots to camp on for a minimal fee for members and their friends.

Very friendly place. However, if you are trying to find a place for this year.... you will be hard pressed for ANY marina to have openings.

As for the boat. I think that a cuddy will be difficult. I had one the first year up there and it was just me and two kids. Great boat... not enough room. Kept it 6 months and went to a small cruiser with a full bath, two births, flat screen tv, cable, stove, small fridge, storage, heat and storage.

If you are able to get a slip like mine.... I have a 10'x10' screen house behind the slip with a storage locker and patio table w/four chairs and a gas grille. Makes it very comfortable and enjoyable.

I did that for 2 years and then bought a small house. However, it is a great experience and lets you get a feel for the lake to see if it is the place for you. We loved it so much we now have the house and come up all year long.

Downfall with the cruiser..... HIGH GAS PRICES. A bit more knowledge is needed for manuverability than the smaller cuddies.

[Cal]

My wife and I have overnighted on our 27 Formula (with full canvas and air and/or screens for the sides). Not too bad for two people...add 3 kids and 2 dogs , lets just say , you better have a really close family.
The canvas does , more than double your useable space

[Mee-n-Mac]

As said previously ... I think you'll need a bigger, different boat. I don't know of a cuddy that'll sleep 2 adults + 3 kids. You'd might, maybe get away with an express (mid-cabin) cruiser of that size but even then it would be too tight for my liking. Consider that you'd typically have 2 berths in a cruiser that size, each one sleeping 2 adults closely in a full-to-queen sized bed. Could you stick 3 kids in a berth ... maybe if they all get along and are the right ages / sexes (you didn't mention their ages). In a cuddy the head is usually a pull out porti-potty in the main cabin. In a cruiser you alway have a separate, doored (small) bathroom. On a rainy night you don't want to have to exit the cabin to go use the marina's facilities. I'm not sure what you'd do with dogs in either (cuddy or cruiser) case. You first need to find a dog friendly marina (wasn't there a recent thread on this ?) and then perhaps they could stay above deck, under the canvas if they're good (non-barkers) about such things.

One possibility that possibility that occurs to me is that perhaps a pontoon boat / cruiser hybrid might work for you. I've seen a couple of 'toons (? Sun Tracker ?) that had a "hard cabin" covering the aft 1/3 of the boat. I'm just guessing but I think that would be a separate, enclosed head as well as 1 berth and a galley. You get a lot of deck space (assuming full camper canvas) on a 'toon when compared to other boats of similar LOA and just maybe this is an option to consider. They're also less $$ to purchase. They are other 'toon owners that frequent the forum who can tell you how well such boats handle the lake. I can't speak from experience re: pontoons, we ended up with a mini-cruiser (24') ourselves. It's comfortable enough to overnight on, when we have guests at our mini-cabin or when we stay at a friends dock, but I wouldn't want to be spending a rainy week onboard.

Lastly, depending on how you define "affordable", an aft cabin cruiser like a Carver or Silverton would certainly work but I don't think they come quite that small. A larger express cruiser would also work spacewise.

Check out the boat dealer websites on the homepage links page. Silver Sands has both new and used boats listed, carries both express cruisers and aft cabin yachts. Not sure who carries what for pontoon boats.

EDIT: URL to recent post re: marinas and dogs http://www.winnipesaukee.com/forums/...ead.php?t=2989

[JasonG]

Hey cal, where is the boat parked? I dont recognize it on Lake Winni.

[Cal]

It's not . Just look at the water. It's a weekend at the Chesapeake Inn. It was just to demonstrate the advantage of a small cabin with canvas

[Lakewinniboater]

the 28' did well for us. Sea Ray is my favorite.... but Four Winns, Cruiser, Larson, etc are also nice.

See if there are still any boat shows around. I know that they are generally in the winter/spring but you might get lucky.

There are a few that the Aft Berth is open and has a king size fill in or two twins..... also the kitchen sitting area has a filler cushion for another bed. However, the price is about double what you were originally talking about.

Also, consider that the financing on these Yachts/Cruisers is much longer than some of the smaller boats. Mine was amortized for 12 years at 6.25%.

Not bad for being able to be away every weekend and a couple of weeks a year. However, you have to really love it to get into that kind of money.

There are plenty of people that are day trippers with the boats and either rent cabins or go to the camp grounds at night with either a small trailer or pop up. Might be a good option for the first year.

If you chose to overnight in camper/trailer you could valet your boat just about anywhere for reasonable costs. Then you don't have the hassle of putting it in and out on your own each day.

I know that there are some camp areas that let you rent for the season as well..... that way you dont need to pack up every weekend.

Don't know.... just thought I would try some alternative idea's to enable you to try the lake out to see if it is for you before sinking big money into a large boat. You can always trade in the small boat if you decide that you love the lake. Or even get into the real estate market here and buy. (there are some great properties available.)

[Misty Blue]

Jason:

You and the family are going to have a great time on the Lake! But do you get the message from the other members? With your family situation a cuddy is not only a difficult situation but a serious financial hit.

The used boat market is full of two kinds of boats; Ones that are under powered (the salesman said that it would save gas, the reality is that it won't get on plane with four adults on board) and ones that are too small.

You can play the camper top game and try to convience yourself that "Roughing it just a bit" is worth the money but in the end you will end up either selling and buying a bigger boat (Wopper of a financial loss) or selling out and getting out of the scene (again a whopper of a financial loss and worse you are off of the Lake).

Since you asked for advice I will offer you two pieces.

#1 Buy a boat that you, the wife, the kids and the dogs will be comfortable in on a rainy weekend.

#2 Buy a slip at a yacht club or marina. They are out there. They are also pricey. But I can't think of a better long term invensment. The boat will lose value with the years (the price you pay for one of the best experiances of your lives) but that slip will only grow in value. There are websites to search and the members here are always ready to help. The money may be tight now but when the kids are talking Ivy League in a few years having that slip in your back pocket may be the difference between MIT and Empire Beauty School!

Any way, Welcome and good luck.

Misty Blue

[jrc]

A used boat is not a bad idea. Sure some are underpowered and some are too small. Very few boats are so underpowered that they can't plane well, and if they are, then that will show up pretty quick at the test ride. All boats are too small for someone and too big for someone else. The good thing about buying a used boat is value. If Jason and his family find out they bought the wrong size boat, they can get out quickly without the new boat depreciation.

With a family of five, I personally wouldn’t size my boat for a rainy day hangout. There isn’t a boat that big. If the weather sucks go home and boat another day.

Finally, I hate to give real estate advice, but slip prices can easily match boat prices, especially if you consider used boats. I'm renting until things sort out.

[tmm366]

If you plan to use your new boat only on Winni and not trailer it than I agree that a properly powered aft cabin cruiser is the way to go. Last year I purchased a Formula 37pc from Lakeport that had 18 hours on it. The boat was expensive but I saved a fortune compared to a new one. The previous owner was fairly new to boating and the 37 was just too big and therefore spent all its time at the marina. The rule for slips at most marinas is that you buy the boat from them, you get a slip. I like being at the marina especially for service although it's a little noisy at times. I like renting also because there are no yacht club dues or RE taxes which to me makes renting a bargain. Good Luck Tom