We knew going into December that it was going to be an expensive month.  We decided to buy a whisker pole so we could actually sail downwind efficiently, and we bought a flotation collar for the Walker Bay dinghy which had proven to be entirely too tippy without it.  Those two items represent almost 40% of this month’s costs.  We also stocked up on groceries and supplies for our Bahamas trip, and paid for our chart plotter to cover the Caribbean.  All of those items add up but they needed to be purchased.

They say if you want to cruise less expensively you need to get out of the United States.  Our three months in the Bahamas last year were definitely our least expensive months, lending credence to that theory.  When we leave for the Bahamas we won’t be returning to the states on the boat for at least a year, maybe as many as two or three years, so it will be interesting to see what our expenses end up looking like in 2020.

Either way, 2019 proved to be less expensive on a monthly basis than 2018 (although we were only cruising for four months that year), so we are trending in the right direction as we continue to settle in to this lifestyle.

With that said, here we go:

Continue reading “December by the numbers.” →

In November we put the pedal to the metal, going from Beaufort, NC to Vero Beach, FL where we arrived on November 24th and remain to date.  This month we spent quite a bit on marinas (including one payment on November 30th covering the first week of December in Vero Beach).  The weather was not our friend in South Carolina and Georgia, two states not exactly known for an abundance of anchorages with great wind protection, but sometimes that’s the way it goes.

Towards the end of the month we also started stocking up on items that we won’t be easily able to obtain in the Bahamas or perhaps the Dominican Republic.  We know from our experience last year that while we may spend quite a bit up front in provisions, that will be more than offset when we get to the Bahamas and spend very little.

With that said, here we go:

Continue reading “November by the numbers.” →

Not our best month as far as expenses are concerned, but not too bad either.

It was a pretty high month for the restaurant/entertainment category, but we had a lot of fun socializing with other boaters in October, and we also stopped in Belhaven where we tend to eat out several times at our favorite places.  The other two outliers were in the “boat stuff” category where we primarily stocked up on spare engine parts and bought hardware and lines for our drifter, and the purchase of my long-awaited inflatable stand up paddle board at the boat show.

We spent most of October in Annapolis, MD before starting to head south in earnest, landing in Beaufort, NC by the end of the month.

Here we go:

Continue reading “October by the numbers.” →

Another excellent month for the budget!  Can we make it three in a row next month?  We’ll see.

In September we moved from Port Washington, NY to Annapolis, MD where we are settled in for a few weeks.  The plan is to work the entrance gates at the boat shows before we start heading south in earnest.

We read that the anchorages in Annapolis get extremely crowded during the boat shows with employees and attendees, so we found a reasonably priced marina and decided to move into a slip for three weeks.  It’s weird not being at anchor, but it certainly is convenient to be able to step off the dock and take a shower whenever we want!  We also won’t have to worry about other boats dragging into us if the weather pipes up while we are working.  Peace of mind = money well spent.

Here we go:

Continue reading “September by the numbers.” →

 

Wow!  It’s been one year of cruising full-time!  Time flies.

We spent August in Fishers Island Sound and Long Island Sound as we began to work our way south again for the winter, with Pegu Club anchored in Port Washington, NY at the end of the month.  As predicted last month, our expenses were much more reasonable and I do believe that we’ve finally managed to get them well-dialed in.  We’ll want to buy radar and an AIS transponder if we decide to go further afield than between Southern New England and the Bahamas, but nothing has been definitively decided yet on that front.

With that being said, here we go:

Continue reading “August by the numbers.” →

 

We spent the first part of July on the hard before splashing Pegu Club and staying in a  transient slip at Shenny while we hung around for various medical appointments.  Our last appointment was on July 23rd and we wasted no time tossing the dock lines and heading out again on July 24th.

47% of this month’s spending was for medical appointments and related expenses (i.e. rental cars and fuel, hotel rooms, etc), along with haul out, storage, and annual boat maintenance costs.  We put two solid coats of bottom paint on Pegu Club so we are hoping that we can avoid hauling out next year.

Based on how expensive June and July were, Jeff jokes that we aren’t coming up here any more!  Honestly though, our expenses should crash for the foreseeable future – thank goodness!

Days under way since July 24th: 5

Nautical miles covered since July 24th:  26.31

Number of States: 2 (Connecticut and New York thanks to Fishers Island)

Nights at anchor: 16

Nights at a dock: 11

Nights on the hard: 4

Expenses:

Groceries/Non-food Groceries: $621.83

Diesel/Gasoline: $31.10

Medical: $842.40

Rental cars, hotel room, and related expenses for medical appointments: $603.35

Cell phone and internet (2 phones, iPad, iCloud storage, Garmin inReach subscription): $162.50

Laundry: $7.00

Amazon Prime: $12.99

Boat US Towing Membership: $131.77 (West Marine was running a sale, so now we are paid up until April, 2021).

Boat Expenses: $790.91 (haul out and four weeks storage for Pegu Club, gear oil, spark plugs, and zinc for the outboard, food hammocks, windlass parts, new flares to replace expired ones, new vent hose for Nature’s Head, extra flare gun for ditch bag, diesel additives, 2 water jerry jugs, bucket, bungee cords, gloves, paint brushes, tools)

Restaurants/Entertainment: $203.64

New York Times subscription: $20.20

Clothing: $123.32

Life Insurance Premium: $220.75

Subscriptions: $130.30

Random: $776.18 (fishing gear, galley items, Burley trailer, guidebooks, etc.)

Total: $4,678.24

2019 monthly average to date: $3,720.00

2018 monthly average (September – December): $4,465.95

Monthly average since starting to cruise: $3,991.09

Below are the numbers for June, including what we spent.

I’ve frequently read that the first year of cruising tends to be the priciest – at least until big ticket items need to be replaced.  Ten months in (wow – time flies!), I now understand why that’s the case.  We had a few high cost upgrades that we decided would make cruising work better for us AFTER we started cruising (hello roller furling!), and we spent many more nights in a marina heading south down the ICW than we anticipated.

Going forward the only very high cost upgrade I can see us getting is a watermaker, and that will only be if we decide to travel farther afield.  Buying reverse osmosis water in the Bahamas turned out not to be a big deal at all, and only cost us $34 thanks in part to the free r/o water in Georgetown.  As for marinas, after three months in the Bahamas our confidence in anchoring in crappy weather and high winds skyrocketed which equates to fewer marina stops unless we simply want to.  All of this means that as we get better at cruising, our annual average is trending down overall as the months pass (with an occasional blip) – thank goodness.

This month we returned to Connecticut where we immediately hauled Pegu Club to take care of some routine maintenance.  Depending on how long the bottom paint lasts, we may be able to avoid hauling her out next summer.  We also spent two weeks traveling to visit friends and family in Western New York and the West Coast. The upgrades and the traveling are 50% of the month’s expenses.

Here we go:

Days under way: 4

Nautical miles covered: 126

Number of States: 3 (New Jersey, New York, Connecticut)

Nights at anchor: 5

Nights at a dock: 1 (Shenny wash down dock the night before we were hauled out)

Nights on the hard: 24

Expenses:

Groceries/Non-food Groceries: $386.09

Diesel/Gasoline: $65.20

Medical: $116.99

Cell phone and internet (2 phones, iPad, iCloud storage, Garmin inReach subscription): $192.74

Mail: $300 (one time annual payment for our mailbox at the UPS Store)

Amazon Prime: $12.99

Netflix: $13.12 (we have since decided to cancel this again because we aren’t using it enough to justify the cost)

Annual State registration for the boat and dinghy: $135

Boat Items: $2,361.68 (Engel fridge, Pelagic autopilot, club burgee, bottom paint for the boat and the dinghy, boot stripe paint, roller frame, paint brushes, rollers, Waterway guide, epoxy, hardener, epoxy pumps, shaft zinc, two shackles, replacement flag halyards, spare dinghy propeller, replacement Origo gasket, anchor ball)

Restaurants/Entertainment: $111.73

Uber: $30

New York Times subscription: $20.20

Clothing: $276.78

Travel-related expenses to visit friends and family: $853.90

Random: $78.57 (haircuts, galley items)

Total: $4,954.99

2019 monthly average to date: $3,560.30

2018 monthly average (September – December): $4,465.95

Monthly average since starting to cruise: $3,922.38

 

Below are the numbers for May, including what we spent.

In May we reluctantly left the Bahamas and made a bee-line for Connecticut, landing in Cape May, NJ on the last day of the month.  This summer we are planning to visit friends and relatives in Rochester, NY and Southern California.  As a result, our spending was significantly higher in May due to purchasing airplane and train tickets.  Other higher expenses in May included marinas, of which all were planned except for the two days we spent in Jacksonville Beach, FL dealing with our dirty fuel situation.  The dirty fuel also caused a huge spike in fuel costs because we needed to replace it.  Hopefully June’s expenses will be more in keeping with where we prefer them.

Here we go:

Days under way: 22

Overnight passages: 4 (Great Sale Cay to Jacksonville Beach, FL; Jacksonville Beach, FL to Cow House Creek, SC; Hampton, VA to Cape May, NJ; Cape May, NJ to Atlantic Highlands, NJ)

Nautical miles covered: 1,227

Number of countries: 2 (Bahamas, United States)

Number of States: 5 (Florida, South Carolina, North Carolina, Virginia, New Jersey)

Nights underway: 6

Nights at a dock: 11 (2 in Jacksonville Beach, FL; 2 free nights in Oriental, NC; 3 nights in Belhaven, NC; 4 nights in Hampton, VA)

Nights at anchor: 14

Expenses:

Groceries/Non-food Groceries: $464.66

Diesel/Gasoline: $231.40

Propane/Denatured Alcohol: $16.45

Cell phone and internet (2 phones, iCloud storage, Garmin inReach subscription, and myislandwifi because the T-Mobile service is so slow in the Bahamas): $124.12

Mail: $100 (deposit for future costs to forward packages/mail)

Laundry: $13.00

Ice: $9.75

Amazon Prime: $1.99

Restaurants/Entertainment: $376.36

Uber: $9.36

New York Times subscription: $20.20

Marinas: $441.01

Clothing: $64.05

Life Insurance: $767.50 (annual premium)

Plane, train, and bus tickets: $1,084.29

Random: $167.50. (disposable gloves, box of rags, screen material for port in head, DVD’s, dock tips, flyswatter, spatula, ATM withdrawal fee, shower sprayer, funnel, small strainer)

Total: $3,891.64

September, 2018 through May 2019 monthly average: $3,807.85.

Below are the numbers for April, including what we spent.

We have now spent three months in the Bahamas, and while it was still a good month our expenses did creep up thanks to our wanting to replenish some provisions (note to self: bring more snacks next time) and having to pay some taxes on April 15th.  Here we go:

Days under way: 12

Nautical miles covered: 261.63

Number of countries: 1 (Bahamas)

Nights at anchor: 30

Expenses:

Groceries/Non-food Groceries: $454.91

Diesel/Gasoline: $98.00 (15 gallons at $6.53/gallon on Great Guana Cay, the Abacos)

Propane/Denatured Alcohol: $4.29

Medical: $8.97 (prescriptions)

Cell phone and internet (2 phones, iCloud storage, Garmin inReach subscription, and myislandwifi because the T-Mobile service is so slow in the Bahamas): $202.63

Water: $20.00

Laundry: $6.00

Ice: $15.72

Boat US Towing annual membership fee: $151.00

Restaurants/Entertainment: $130.00

New York Times subscription: $20.20

Two nights anchored at the Exumas Land & Sea Park: $30.00

Hair cut: $30.00

Life Insurance: $220.75

10 pack of Chris Parker custom weather forecasts: $250.00

Random: $349.22. (Turbo tax plus state tax owed, conch horn, postcards, grocery bagger and fuel dock tips) 

Total: $1,991.69

September, 2018 through April, 2019 monthly average: $3,797.38.

Below are the numbers for March, including what we spent.  We were in the Bahamas for the entire month.

Yes!  Another low month!  We are loving the Bahamas and are budget is loving it too.  Here we go:

Days under way: 14

Nautical miles covered: 311.89

Number of countries: 1 (Bahamas)

Nights at anchor: 30

Nights on a mooring: 1

Expenses:

Groceries/Non-food Groceries: $175.53

Diesel/Gasoline: $64.00 (15 gallons in Rock Sound, Eleuthera)

Medical: $90.00 (prescriptions)

Cell phone and internet (2 phones, iCloud storage, Garmin inReach subscription, and myislandwifi because the T-Mobile service is so slow in the Bahamas): $219.26.

Ice: $9.00

Restaurants/Entertainment: $118.00

New York Times subscription: $20.20

Mooring ball for one night: $25.00

Non-Owners Auto Insurance policy for six months: $74.80

Random: $22.88.  Trash disposal in Georgetown, one Kindle book, and plastic scrapers.   

Total: $818.64

September, 2018 through March 2019 monthly average: $4,055.33