Switching between a lifelong aviation experience to boating

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Lolenzo

Lolenzo

Member
Joined
Oct 1, 2024
Messages
13
Location
Pennsylvania
Hello everyone,
My name is Eric and my wife’s name is Jessica. We live with our two standard poodles Enzo and Lola (Lolenzo user name😉) in bucks county Pennsylvania about an hour North of Philadelphia and 30 minutes from the Delaware River.
I have been a private pilot and airplanes owner for the last 25 years. I always have been fascinated with navigation, weather, flight planning, the pure excitement of planing trips, figuring out the best airports to refuel and so on.
Jess and I have very little experience in boating but I have been telling people for years who are afraid of flying that air to an airplane is like water to a boat and will effected the same way, sometimes you have smooth water, other times you have choppy water and sometimes you have oh crap water 😂..
Jessica and I have just signed up to take a week long class in the BVI in April renting a power cat from the mooring with an instructor.
Jess have been telling me about the great loop and how fun it would be to do that eventually. Well, now I am completely obsessed with the lifestyle and what could be the next chapter in my journey. I found this forum by accident and couldn’t wait to join it. I have so much to learn, but I believe that some of my aviation experience will cross over.
Any guidance, advices or simply telling me the brutal facts of boating would be appreciated.
Thank you.
 

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Seems a lot of trawler owners we know have an aviation background, either private, professional, or military. You'll find that many of the skills you have developed and enjoy will serve you well in the cruising world.
 
Eric,
Welcome to the world of trawlerforum.com. A few things come to mind about coming from flight to float. The weather, navigation and course planning will be easy to you. Some things will be different, our way points are big Steel bouys not electronic points in the sky, we move mostly without traffic control direction, we carry our beds, food, and liquor cabinet with us and we travel in two dimensions so WE DO NOT FALL.
Try out a bunch of boats and ask a lot of questions before buying. A lot of folks on the forum have a lot of experience, do not hesitate to ask.
Cheers
 
Welcome.

There are a lot of similarities between flying and boating, but one big set of differences- the pilot of an airplane can’t pull over, tie up to what a cloud, then fix dinner, sleep overnight, get up the next morning and continue his journey.

Much of the extra stuff on a cruising boat- anchor, galley, head, sleeping cabin, etc. relates to those differences.

Like you, I became a private pilot long before I became a cruising boater. Dealing with weather and navigation on a cruising boat was a piece of cake using the airplane pilot experience.

David
 
You've got a lot of the "hard stuff" already nailed. One of the most difficult things to get used to though, is that compared to flying, Boat Stuff can happen so SO slowly! Best of luck in your future watery endeavors.
 
Commercial pilot here turned trawler captain. You are exactly correct about aviation experiences assisting with situations on the water. I learned early on that tumultuous waves, a little more than frisky waves are akin to turbulence. In order to keep things from breaking or flying around in the cabin or salon power adjustments are required until reaching calm air or water. Much prefer sliding down backside of wave than losing hundreds of feet in altitude.
 
danderer said:
Seems a lot of trawler owners we know have an aviation background, either private, professional, or military. You'll find that many of the skills you have developed and enjoy will serve you well in the cruising world.
Click to expand...
I am really looking forward to exploring this world.
Thank you for your time.
 
AnsleyS said:
Eric,
Welcome to the world of trawlerforum.com. A few things come to mind about coming from flight to float. The weather, navigation and course planning will be easy to you. Some things will be different, our way points are big Steel bouys not electronic points in the sky, we move mostly without traffic control direction, we carry our beds, food, and liquor cabinet with us and we travel in two dimensions so WE DO NOT FALL.
Try out a bunch of boats and ask a lot of questions before buying. A lot of folks on the forum have a lot of experience, do not hesitate to ask.
Cheers
Click to expand...
So, you’re saying don’t go over your waypoints 😝 thank you for the great insight, I will definitely take my time.
 
snowskierandpilot said:
Commercial pilot here turned trawler captain. You are exactly correct about aviation experiences assisting with situations on the water. I learned early on that tumultuous waves, a little more than frisky waves are akin to turbulence. In order to keep things from breaking or flying around in the cabin or salon power adjustments are required until reaching calm air or water. Much prefer sliding down backside of wave than losing hundreds of feet in altitude.
Click to expand...
Maneuvering speed brother, keep everything from coming apart. Snow skier, I am actually replying you from our mountain home in Vermont looking at the slopes as we speak. The leaves are looking amazing right now.
 
slowgoesit said:
You've got a lot of the "hard stuff" already nailed. One of the most difficult things to get used to though, is that compared to flying, Boat Stuff can happen so SO slowly! Best of luck in your future watery endeavors.
Click to expand...
Thank you very much. Slow is good
 
DavidM said:
Welcome.

There are a lot of similarities between flying and boating, but one big set of differences- the pilot of an airplane can’t pull over, tie up to what a cloud, then fix dinner, sleep overnight, get up the next morning and continue his journey.

Much of the extra stuff on a cruising boat- anchor, galley, head, sleeping cabin, etc. relates to those differences.

Like you, I became a private pilot long before I became a cruising boater. Dealing with weather and navigation on a cruising boat was a piece of cake using the airplane pilot experience.

David
Click to expand...
Thanks David,
I am really looking forward to this next chapter in my life.
 
Welcome! I have always thought doing the Loop would be a great experience.

I grew up a sailor, then spent a some times as a private pilot, then went back to boating as my wife doesn't like flying. You will find that your experience flying will help you tremendously. Docking a boat dealing with wind and current uses the same fundamental principles as a cross-wind landing. Everything will just seem a lot slower.

Trawler Forum can be a great resource. There are lots of very experienced and helpful folks here. Many are not only very good mariners but some are very good aviators as well. I am neither so I pay attention to them.
 
Lolenzo said:
Maneuvering speed brother, keep everything from coming apart. Snow skier, I am actually replying you from our mountain home in Vermont looking at the slopes as we speak. The leaves are looking amazing right now.
Click to expand...
Sounds like we have a lot in common. Your pilot experience will make navigation an armchair exercise. I am writing this from my home in a fly-in subdivision called Sky Park (15G) 40 miles SW of Cleveland OH. Plane was C337P. I am a top level alpine/telemark skier and have the required prissy poodle with a full poodle cut but she is less than 5 pounds.
 
Lolenzo said:
Maneuvering speed brother, keep everything from coming apart. Snow skier, I am actually replying you from our mountain home in Vermont looking at the slopes as we speak. The leaves are looking amazing right now.
Click to expand...
Our winter travels will take us to New Hampshire, Vermont, and Maine this year. Looking forward to the trip. I enjoy sliding down the backside of any mountain. Mind sharing what VT. Mountain?
 
PierreR said:
Sounds like we have a lot in common. Your pilot experience will make navigation an armchair exercise. I am writing this from my home in a fly-in subdivision called Sky Park (15G) 40 miles SW of Cleveland OH. Plane was C337P. I am a top level alpine/telemark skier and have the required prissy poodle with a full poodle cut but she is less than 5 pounds.
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That’s so funny and on top of that you have a French name. Everyone calls me Frenchy btw.
 
The Frenchy is sweet
Pierre Rideau
 
Welcome Aboard! Your idea to charter with a Captain for instructions is exactly the right thing to do. It will be a lot of fun. One tip to dealing with all the nut jobs here on Trawler Forum, never ask which anchor is best! The rule here is you have the wrong anchor, it’s too small and you don’t have enough chain.
 
HopCar said:
Welcome Aboard! Your idea to charter with a Captain for instructions is exactly the right thing to do. It will be a lot of fun. One tip to dealing with all the nut jobs here on Trawler Forum, never ask which anchor is best! The rule here is you have the wrong anchor, it’s too small and you don’t have enough chain.
Click to expand...
It is just like pilots 😝
 
Might I suggest that a Grumman Albatross might be a good boat for you. Jimmy Buffet had one.
 
Oh no! An Albatross is beautiful! Plenty of room for bunks, a galley and a head with shower. When I was a kid learning to sail, the Coast Guard operated Albatross out of Dinner Key where I was sailing. As they taxied to open water I’d sail behind them and the prop blast would make me go real fast or knock me over. Inspired me to get a pilot license with a seaplane endorsement.
IMG_0216.jpeg
 
My wife and i are both helicopter pilots and the disciplines experienced with air flight are very similar . Reading charts and plotting course are close to the same. reading the weather and making the go no go decision is used frequently .We also use the same checklist format so things are the same. You will have fun and the gang here love to help with no judgement .
 
HopCar said:
Oh no! An Albatross is beautiful! Plenty of room for bunks, a galley and a head with shower. When I was a kid learning to sail, the Coast Guard operated Albatross out of Dinner Key where I was sailing. As they taxied to open water I’d sail behind them and the prop blast would make me go real fast or knock me over. Inspired me to get a pilot license with a seaplane endorsement.
Click to expand...
I am with you on the Albatross. Had a great photo of (I believe) the last 7 USCG departing on their retirement flight out of Airsta Miami (Opa Locka). They left the week before I was transferred there in 1979.

Like the HH-52 Sea Guard helo.... just about the last of the amphib aircraft. While their amphib cababilities were becoming less important with time.... landing on the water was always a hoot! When saving someone.... I know a lot of people think their job is great.... but that made the water landing on a lifesaving mission something magical about the job. Something very few people did in more recent times.

Beauty to me is way more than looks....boats included..... :)
 
Last edited:
Given the disagreement I looked up the Albatross. The years go by and my thoughts get confused. I was thinking of the Sea Bee RC-3 instead of the Albatross.
 
magna 6882 said:
the disciplines experienced with air flight are very similar . Reading charts and plotting course are close to the same. reading the weather and making the go no go decision is used frequently.
Click to expand...

Aerodynamics too. When I was racing sailboats, potential crew with aviation background were most teachable. Explaining that a "luff" was just a stall and could be relieved by changing either the angle of attack, or the angle of incidence.
 
Jimmy Buffet’s Albatross
IMG_0184.jpeg
 
Most important you know and have lived with the need for prep and checks. You’ve lived it a world where it has to work when there’s no redundancy or fallback. You can’t argue with the air and can’t argue with the ocean. Both don’t care.
So you will be a great boater and have big fun. YOLO.
 
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