The Cruising Life: A Commonsense Guide for the Would-Be Voyager [Hardcover]

Jim Trefethen (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: December 31, 1998

The Cruising Life: A Commonsense Guide for the Would-Be Voyager, Jim Trefethen. The funniest, drollest, wisest book on the shelf for the would-be cruiser. Trefethen pulls no punchesÑhe tells you just what will be involved if you and your family decide to "let slip the surly bonds of earth" and set sail. How to get ready, how to finance the voyage, how to live on your boat with maximum peace of mind and minimum hassle, and what equipment you do and don't need. (What you don't need may surprise you.)

Editorial Reviews

From the Back Cover

How to make your dream of voyaging come true (without winning the lottery).

No, you don't need to be rich to sail around the world. You don't even need to have a boat (yet!). What you need most is to know what you don't need--if and when you and your family decide to "let slip the surly bonds of earth" and set sail.

So says the author of the droll, practical, and highly enjoyable Cruising Life: A Commonsense Guide for the Would-Be Voyager. And he speaks from personal experience.

Jim Trefethen tells how his family managed to simplify their life, cut shore ties within just two years, and sail around the world. You too can realize your dream, he says, one step at a time. He tells you exactly how to

• Get the money for your "cruising kitty," and determine how much you'll need
• Find out if the cruising life is right for you--before you go
• Pick the best boat for you, and sort out real value from misleading claims
• Live aboard comfortably--tips and tricks that will save you headaches
• Find out what you need (and what you don't need) aboard your vessel

and much more. Jim Trefethen's wise and funny account of his own voyage is full of instructive anecdotes about his family's adventures aboard their 40-foot ketch Sultana. Most important, he says, successful cruising means embracing the joys of the simple life.

About the Author

Jim Trefethen is the author of Wooden Boat Renovation (International Marine, 1992) and Inflatable Boats (International Marine, 1996). In 1993 he, his wife Susan, and their two children cut the cord and went cruising. Currently they are in New Zealand.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 256 pages
• Publisher: International Marine/Ragged Mountain Press; 1 edition (December 31, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0070653607
• ISBN-13: 978-0070653603
• Product Dimensions: 9.7 x 6.4 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.3 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (30 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #516,506 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #43 in Books > Sports & Outdoors > Outdoor Recreation > Sailing > Excursion Guides

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

25 of 25 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars "Boat - check, Money - check, Reality - check...", August 22, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: The Cruising Life: A Commonsense Guide for the Would-Be Voyager (Hardcover)

My wife and I recently began seriously considering cruising as a way to depart from the 9-5 working world, before we were too old to enjoy it. In addition to doing a lot of sailing since these societally mutinous thoughts have entered our heads, we've read a lot of books on cruising.

If you want a comprehensive reference book on all things sailing, get The Annapolis Book of Seamanship. If you want drama and a lesson in the harshest of realities, read The Perfect Storm and pray you can avoid that kind of experience at all costs.

The Cruising Life is a practical, tasteful overview of how to start cruising, and my opinion is that this appears to be a reasonable approach to the pursuit of happiness in warmer (or colder) climes on a sailboat. Sometimes I wanted a lot more information than I got here, but that wasn't the point...

The author offers frank, balanced treatment of all topics - and admits his opinions are his. For example, he offers a great account of what passes for a bluewater capable cruising boat (smaller may be better than larger, and older, well-used boats are best).

My thanks to Mr. Trefethan for fanning the flames of our cruising ambitions.

15 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars I wish I bought it before I bought my boat, September 7, 2002

By 

Ewen Wallace (Sydney, NSW Australia) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Cruising Life: A Commonsense Guide for the Would-Be Voyager (Hardcover)

This is the book you should read before you buy a boat, before you make up your mind to go sailing, before you take that job and shove it.

I like Jim's book a lot. It is opinionated - good, I was looking for opinions. He does favour the old woodies but that is because he has a lot of experience with them. My boat is "plastic" and I'm sure he wouldn't fire torpedoes at me if I were to offer cocktails.

It is good about the philosphy of why you should go, or stay, and good with how to stash the necessary loot. I find most of these books biased towards the reasonably established crowd - 40-ish. Most of the books don't consider the cut-price option of shoe-horning yourself into a small, sturdy boat and roughing it a little. You don't need $100k+ to do this. It all depends on how much luxury you are prepared to sacrifice for your cause.

Like most would-be cruisers, I thought owning the boat is the most important part of cruising. Wrong, wrong ... at least I like my boat but has sunk more money than it should have.

I went cruising ... with about US$15k (give or take) of floating equity . We had a few problems in the 2 months or so we managed to sail for but it was all a hoot (except getting the engine out). The last problem put us ashore for the next year or so but it is entirely unrelated to cruising so we can't begrudge the boat for that one. We will be back.

Terry from WA - the wiring diagrams are fine - get a fire extinguisher &/or electrician if you are a boat owner ;-).

fair winds

17 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars If you need help 'getting gone', start here., November 1, 2001

By 

James Carter (Castro Valley, CA United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Cruising Life: A Commonsense Guide for the Would-Be Voyager (Hardcover)

I bought this book when my wife and I were selected to crew on an 80 ft motorsailer for two years, which was to be our honeymoon. We had only six months to pay off our debt and have enough money for two years. This book helped us do it. It helped us a little with financial planning, but mostly kept us focused on what was important and that if we put a plan together and stuck with it, we would make it.

The real value of this book is that is makes the goal of cruising achievable. This is a book that helps you plan your dream of cruising and making it happen, but this is one book you can leave at home. It has some technical information and some liveaboard information, but don't buy it for that, as there are many other, better books that cover those subjects.

Buy the book to help you 'get gone' and you will not be disappointed. It will also help keep you motivated and working toward your goal of cruising.

One last benefit of the book is that the principles discussed apply to many other aspects of life. Since my wife and I have come back, we have continued to live the cuising life on shore and we live much more simply and spend much less money.