We have completed our first month as cruisers. Well…almost a month as we started cruising Sep 7 but we turned a page on the old hanging on the fridge calendar so I’m counting it! It’s been a bit of blur. People ask frequently, “how does it feel to be free?” I can say that I don’t feel free. Yet. I just kind of feel like it’s been one long weekend. I say that because every day feels like Saturday. Not vacation. Saturday. Chores need to be done, groceries, kid’s school. It’s on our own time, but it’s definitely life. That said, it feels right. Fellow cruisers have said it takes months to acclimate. I’m not sure; I feel pretty acclimated. The biggest compliment I’ve received in a month was from my good friend Kai, who said we looked really comfortable and like seasoned cruisers.
So now that we are unemployed, we are tracking costs and other key metrics to ensure we live within our means. I’m going to pass along the higher-level stats to give an idea of how this life can work for others.
Here are some stats from our first month cruising:
- Total nautical miles traveled: 662
- Nights spent on a mooring ball: 7
- Nights spent on our anchor: 11
- Nights spent at sea: 4
- Nights spent at a dock: 0
- Monthly cost for dockage (some moorings had charges): $147
We visited:
- Linekin Bay, ME
- Provincetown, MA
- Martha’s Vineyard, MA
- Newport, RI
- New York City
- Sandy Hook, NJ
- Annapolis, MD
We spent just over $2K this month on living expenses such, or what it takes for the day-to-day. This doesn’t count things associated with keeping our home in Maine, insurances, etc.
It’s now mid-October and I’m delayed getting this out, and I can assure you we’ll spend more this month due to the Annapolis Boat Show and some unforeseen maintenance items, but that’ll be for another post!
Some photos from September….
Thank you so much for sharing! We’re not cruising yet, still prepping, but have also recently started tracking our monthly budgets/expenses on our blog. I LOVE when people are willing to open up and share some of the more gory details. I’ll be following along to read every month! Fair winds!
~Your Fellow ‘Voyagers’ at Mosaic Voyage, SV Mosaic, Portland OR
Glad you are making preps and tracking on your blog as well. Everyone is different but it’s good to see how others are doing it. It also holds us accountable a bit; if we have a bad month we can see it and adjust. October’s budget will blow it away as we currently have our mast stepped and are making some repairs.
Awesome post guys!!! Thanks for sharing; I am hanging on to your every word for dear life right now! Getting a lot of comfort from having you guys “pave the way”, so to speak, since we are in such close timelines…love you guys and can’t wait to see you in warmer waters.
Yes! It will be a great day when we meet up in warm waters. You got this!
God its only been a month and I miss you guys already! but what can I say Im so exited for you guys.