Florida to California

[blefever]

Hello:

This is my first post but I have been a long time lurker.

My wife and I have boated all our life both sail and power and have plenty of time on the water.

We are considering buying a boat in Florida and cruising it to our home state of California.

The boat would be a capable trawler for long range passages. The route would most likely be cruise the Florida Keys and then head down the island chain to the BVI. From BVI cross to Puerto Rico for some time and then head to Panama for a trip thru the canal, and up the coast to home with stops along the way not yet decided.

Has anyone here done this? Any thoughts from anyone?

 

[RT Firefly]

Greetings,
Welcome aboard.

 

[Swa]

No but it sounds like fun. Welcome to TF You should get some great imput here

 

[Giggitoni]

A few on this forum have. The most recent is Richard on Dauntless. His forum handle is Wxx3. Look him up to follow his adventure. Good Luck!

https://www.trawlerforum.com/forums/members/wxx3-4737.html

 

[mvweebles]

Have made this trip in the other direction, California to Fort Lauderdale, but was a delivery so a fast trip and 16 years ago. Getting ready to cruise our Willard 36 from California to our home in Florida. Had planned this year but will now be next year. Open ended trip, but expect it to take a leisurely two years or so. I have a fair amount of coastal experience having delivered many trawler style boats between Alaska and Mexico.

Planning is fun, but not straight forward. For me, ideally, boat should have at least 1500 nm range. It can be done with less - a lot less, but that's my number. It's approximately the distance between Panama Canal and Florida, and Panama Canal and Acapulco.

For me, boat has to have some form of stabilization. Our boat has active fins, but paravanes would work too. Gyros are not financially practical for anything in my price range.

Route planning. There are seasonal considerations, hurricane/insurance considerations, and geo political considerations (reports of piracy off Nicaraguan coast). All that gets layered onto where you want to visit. Your proposed destinations is the eastern Caribbean route so you would meander through the Bahamas and Turks/Caicos and then south. Port Antonio on northeast end of Jamaica is a decent jumping off point to head to Panama, or you can continue through the islands. Your insurance will dictate you to be well south by June 1, which is fortunately a good time weather wise to move a boat.

This is a great trip. If your goal is to have a memorable trip, great. If your goal is to buy a boat in Florida because they are less expensive than California, well, that's a different thread.

 

[GregBrannon]

Welcome and good luck with your search for a vessel to realize your plans!


Greg.

 

[FF]

From the BVI to the Windwards is all up hill.

From Panama to Seattle is mostly uphill.

If you have the legs Florida to Bermuda to the Windwards is longer but smoother .Visit PR ,and Hispanolia and Jamaica on the way to Panama.

From Panama 1/2 way to Hawaii then to Seattle , same longer but soother.

Get a copy of Ocean Passages for the World , for route planning.


Or a CD of Victory at Sea,,, Dance of the North Atlantic , and enjoy.

 

[Alaskan Sea-Duction]

Welcome. Send a PM to Crusty Chief. He has done the Portland to Mexico so far and plans to do the canal next year?

 

[blefever]

Have made this trip in the other direction, California to Fort Lauderdale, but was a delivery so a fast trip and 16 years ago. Getting ready to cruise our Willard 36 from California to our home in Florida. Had planned this year but will now be next year. Open ended trip, but expect it to take a leisurely two years or so. I have a fair amount of coastal experience having delivered many trawler style boats between Alaska and Mexico.

Planning is fun, but not straight forward. For me, ideally, boat should have at least 1500 nm range. It can be done with less - a lot less, but that's my number. It's approximately the distance between Panama Canal and Florida, and Panama Canal and Acapulco.

For me, boat has to have some form of stabilization. Our boat has active fins, but paravanes would work too. Gyros are not financially practical for anything in my price range.

Route planning. There are seasonal considerations, hurricane/insurance considerations, and geo political considerations (reports of piracy off Nicaraguan coast). All that gets layered onto where you want to visit. Your proposed destinations is the eastern Caribbean route so you would meander through the Bahamas and Turks/Caicos and then south. Port Antonio on northeast end of Jamaica is a decent jumping off point to head to Panama, or you can continue through the islands. Your insurance will dictate you to be well south by June 1, which is fortunately a good time weather wise to move a boat.

This is a great trip. If your goal is to have a memorable trip, great. If your goal is to buy a boat in Florida because they are less expensive than California, well, that's a different thread.

This is good information. Thank you for taking the time to reply. I have been looking at boats on the West Coast primarily Southern California to head to the PNW and maybe Alaska, but I found a boat in Florida that checked all the boxes and then some and yes, the price was right (and right now a lower offer may be welcome) but that is not the whole story. We have been thru the canal on a cruise ship but I have always wanted to do it on my own bottom and that is part of the long range cruising plan, so this boat got me to thinking why not do the canal now and PNW later, hence my original question. Thanks again.

 

[READY]

Unless you really cannot find a west coast boat or you REALLY want to do a serious passage I would advise against it. I had my former 58 Hatteras moved by a captain from San Diego to the Carolinas and even that was an ordeal.

If you are dead set on buying in FL you should expect to spend at least 6 months in FL getting to know the boat and doing some significant cruising. Get all the maintenance done, buy lots of spare parts and learn everything possible about the boat.
Remember that this trip will add a lot if engine hours (reducing boat value) and burn a lot of fuel. Plus your travel back and forth plus marina and transit fees. You also have to hire crew and/or find 3-4 friends who can make this trip. And one or more will back out and leave you short. I considered using one of the shipping options and in hindsight that would have been better. It is not cheap but it is a single known fixed cost and no stress.
I am all for adventure and I do plan to take my new to me Hatteras to the east coast in a few years so I am just trying to share from my experience both with the delivery as well as a number of passages between San Francisco and San Diego.

 

[blefever]

Unless you really cannot find a west coast boat or you REALLY want to do a serious passage I would advise against it. I had my former 58 Hatteras moved by a captain from San Diego to the Carolinas and even that was an ordeal.

If you are dead set on buying in FL you should expect to spend at least 6 months in FL getting to know the boat and doing some significant cruising. Get all the maintenance done, buy lots of spare parts and learn everything possible about the boat.
Remember that this trip will add a lot if engine hours (reducing boat value) and burn a lot of fuel. Plus your travel back and forth plus marina and transit fees. You also have to hire crew and/or find 3-4 friends who can make this trip. And one or more will back out and leave you short. I considered using one of the shipping options and in hindsight that would have been better. It is not cheap but it is a single known fixed cost and no stress.
I am all for adventure and I do plan to take my new to me Hatteras to the east coast in a few years so I am just trying to share from my experience both with the delivery as well as a number of passages between San Francisco and San Diego.

Thank you for the information. Not dead set on buying on the East Coast. Just really liked a boat in Florida that I think is priced really right, I also do like the the idea of cruising the keys and the trip down the island chain and top it off with the canal passage. Not looking forward to the uphill ride from Panama to CA. but I could hire a captain or ship the boat from there. Just looking at all the possibilities. It really makes most sense to buy on the West Coast and that is what may happen. I really appreciate first hand knowledge and that is why I posted here so Thanks again for the input.

 

[PM]

I've said it before and I'll say it again..

Buy a boat close to home, never more than 500 miles from your home port.

There was a recent thread from a fellow who was looking at a boat in England with his ultimate destination being somewhere on the West Coast (if memory serves). Really, really an expensive situation. I pointed out that beyond a shipping fee of maybe $50,000 he would have at least another $20,000 in related expenses like buying trips, loading help, sales tax issues and lawyers.

So my advice is "Don't even look at the advertising for boats on opposite coasts" you might be tempted to "just take a look" and before you know it you are investigating logistics of getting it home.

Florida to california is almost a "You can't get there from here" situation. I know people have done it but for every person who has actually made the trip I bet there are several thousand who looked into it and gave up on the idea.

Good Luck either way though.

pete

 

[otnot]

I've been contemplating a similar adventure but from Florida to Alaska where I live. If I end up doing it I'm going to take my time and enjoy it. If it takes me two years oh well it will be time well spent exploring new waters and meeting new friends. If you've got the time I've got the beer. LOL

 

[High Wire]

Check on the restrictions of private boat traffic through the Panama Canal with CV-19 going on. I read somewhere recently it was closed to private boats.

 

[mvweebles]

I've said it before and I'll say it again..

Buy a boat close to home, never more than 500 miles from your home port

I'm going to differ a bit with you Pete. There are at least two situations where this makes sense: First, where the OP has identified a fairly specialized and/or expensive vessel category/type such that location is less important than condition. Second, where the buyer's cruising plan has flexibility to accommodate the trip. OP indicates a thumbs-up on both counts, and I take him at his word that he has experience.

But, back to the original question by the OP - is the trip feasible? Absolutely! It's not without risk and there will be rough patches. Spend the winter and spring months in Bahamas/Turks & Caicos, then plan the 550 nms trek from Port Antonio Jamaica to Panama Canal sometime in May/June which coincides with seasonally good weather for the crossing. Down-side is summer is the rainy season, and it can rain hard - hot and buggy too.

Yachts can be shipped out of Golfito CR (Caribbean side) or as far south as Manzanillo MX, which is about 400 nms north of Acapulco, about 2000 nms north of the Panama Canal, but lops off 2500 nms of transit to Seattle.

The northward bash along the Pacific is manageable, but timing is important, but you must be mindful of hurricanes as the get stronger in late season - October storms can be brutal. It's a little tricky to get north quickly from Mazatlan or so, but the sooner the better - seas are often damn flat in October, but hurricane season doesn't officially end until Nov 1.

I will agree that this is an oft-dreamed about trip and that relatively few pull it off. It's expensive and takes a committed crew, and a decent boat.

Peter

 

[blefever]

I've been contemplating a similar adventure but from Florida to Alaska where I live. If I end up doing it I'm going to take my time and enjoy it. If it takes me two years oh well it will be time well spent exploring new waters and meeting new friends. If you've got the time I've got the beer. LOL

Do it. Looks like you already have the boat so you're a step ahead of me.

 

[blefever]

Check on the restrictions of private boat traffic through the Panama Canal with CV-19 going on. I read somewhere recently it was closed to private boats.

Thank you. I'm hoping that this Covid deal is over by the end of the year, which is about my time line to cast off the lines.

 

[PM]

Great additional point blefever, I have listed a few of the negatives of buying a boat from far away. I forgot one of the big ones. Covid-19. In some instances it may be plain impossible to shop or buy a boat from Europe or other closer far away places until all the Covid-19 stuff is gone.

There is still talk of the virus being able to live for literally months on some soft surfaces. I guess I would want to know more about the previous occupants of any boat before I went looking and climbing over it.

Lets get back to more positive thoughts, like right now Northern Wisconsin looks like a winter wonderland!

pete

 

[Larry M]

I've been contemplating a similar adventure but from Florida to Alaska where I live. If I end up doing it I'm going to take my time and enjoy it. If it takes me two years oh well it will be time well spent exploring new waters and meeting new friends. If you've got the time I've got the beer. LOL

Otnot has the right idea, take your time. We did the reverse trip from Alaska to Florida. The San Diego to Florida leg took us 4 years and 9 months. Watching the seasons will allow for mostly comfortable passages particularly up the west side. Just be careful that you don’t spend too much time in one spot. You may not leave.

 

[otnot]

Otnot has the right idea, take your time. We did the reverse trip from Alaska to Florida. The San Diego to Florida leg took us 4 years and 9 months. Watching the seasons will allow for mostly comfortable passages particularly up the west side. Just be careful that you don’t spend too much time in one spot. You may not leave.

Larry after 55 winters in Alaska I doubt I will be in a hurry to return. Hell I might just make a left turn after Panama and head south, just not too far south.

 

[guy with a boat]

We live in California and bought our boat in Florida. We wanted a specific model and there weren’t many choices of boats for sale. After looking at everything (2) on the west coast, I saw a nice example in Florida for a good price. The numbers worked well enough that I knew we could pay to ship it and still be in it for no more than we would be for the west coast boats.

We closed the purchase 18 months ago and, after a couple of months of learning the boat, took it to the Bahamas for the winter. That was a great move (based on suggestions from east coast TF’rs) on we are very happy we did it. We flew back and forth for a series of 10-day trips that we loved.

Our intended destination for the boat was always PNW/BC. I did the math on how many miles, days, and engine hours it would take to make the trip, and decided to put it on a freighter from FLL to Victoria, BC. It was expensive, but not bad compared to the alternative. That run is either a grueling grind of a delivery trip, or a couple-years long adventure to places that weren’t at the top of our priorities list.

We put it on a freighter, went to Europe on an unrelated vacation, and then went up to meet the ship at Victoria. That was Spring 2019 and we had a spectacular season cruising BC.

The bottom line is that, for us, it worked well to buy on the other coast. We got the boat we wanted, saved a little money even including shipping, and had a good adventure in the process.

 

[blefever]

We live in California and bought our boat in Florida. We wanted a specific model and there weren’t many choices of boats for sale. After looking at everything (2) on the west coast, I saw a nice example in Florida for a good price. The numbers worked well enough that I knew we could pay to ship it and still be in it for no more than we would be for the west coast boats.

We closed the purchase 18 months ago and, after a couple of months of learning the boat, took it to the Bahamas for the winter. That was a great move (based on suggestions from east coast TF’rs) on we are very happy we did it. We flew back and forth for a series of 10-day trips that we loved.

Our intended destination for the boat was always PNW/BC. I did the math on how many miles, days, and engine hours it would take to make the trip, and decided to put it on a freighter from FLL to Victoria, BC. It was expensive, but not bad compared to the alternative. That run is either a grueling grind of a delivery trip, or a couple-years long adventure to places that weren’t at the top of our priorities list.

We put it on a freighter, went to Europe on an unrelated vacation, and then went up to meet the ship at Victoria. That was Spring 2019 and we had a spectacular season cruising BC.

The bottom line is that, for us, it worked well to buy on the other coast. We got the boat we wanted, saved a little money even including shipping, and had a good adventure in the process.

Guy with a Boat: "You're killin me" lol You have a beautiful boat and I love the Nordhavn's. Your story is pretty close to what I was considering and experiencing. We found the right boat on the wrong coast, but I have never been one to cave easily. I too want to cruise the Keys and the Bahamas with the main end game being the canal on our own bottom. So we are considering shipping or hiring a delivery captain from Panama to Southern California. Like you the coast from Panama to California is not on the top of our list. In fact PNW is the first destination once we find the boat and after the check out and local Florida cursing. If I may ask, what was the cost from FL to PNW to ship your boat? We would be less (I would think) at 42' and not the same distance but it would give me a better idea to have a comparison. Thank you for your reply.

 

[DDW]

You might consider going the other way around. You'd have to truck it from western Lake Superior to the head of navigation in the Snake, but crossing only 3 northern states and only about 1000 miles it is easier and cheaper than the normal east coast -> west coast trip.

 

[AlanT]

One point that I do not think has been addressed yet but which caused me to rethink and eventually abort a FL to Seattle WA purchase/delivery, is that a typical FL boat will have lots of A/C on board which you may or may not choose to have at your West Coast location and more importantly is very unlikely to have diesel or hydronic heat which is IMO essential for comfortable winter cruising.

 

[guy with a boat]

Blefever, I priced the cost of shipping from Fort Lauderdale, and also from BVI and somewhere down by the canal. The thought was to take it part way and put it on the ship from there. The cost was almost the same to go from Panama to Victoria as it was to go from FLL to Victoria, mostly because the big offload and loading is done in FLL (PEV). Moving a boat by freighter made sense for us this time and I would do it again in the same situation, but I hope to not need to do it again in the future. It is expensive, the contracts are horrible, the schedules are sometimes very uncertain, and the potential for damage is real. PM me if you would like specific cost numbers.

Cruising your way to and through the canal, and then handing it off to a captain could be a good plan. Don’t underestimate the time you want to spend in the locations you are visiting. I could easily spend a month or more in the Bahamas and the same in the BVI without it feeling like its a day too long. Learn your way around, meet a few locals, learn when you can visit the popular spots without a crowd, and its a whole new experience. It takes some time to absorb the rhythm of a place and that’s when it really gets good.

Not sure what your timing is, but it might be worth planning a full year on that side of the continent if you start off there with a boat. Don’t hurry out of there; its one of the great cruising parts of the world.

 

[blefever]

Blefever, I priced the cost of shipping from Fort Lauderdale, and also from BVI and somewhere down by the canal. The thought was to take it part way and put it on the ship from there. The cost was almost the same to go from Panama to Victoria as it was to go from FLL to Victoria, mostly because the big offload and loading is done in FLL (PEV). Moving a boat by freighter made sense for us this time and I would do it again in the same situation, but I hope to not need to do it again in the future. It is expensive, the contracts are horrible, the schedules are sometimes very uncertain, and the potential for damage is real. PM me if you would like specific cost numbers.

Cruising your way to and through the canal, and then handing it off to a captain could be a good plan. Don’t underestimate the time you want to spend in the locations you are visiting. I could easily spend a month or more in the Bahamas and the same in the BVI without it feeling like its a day too long. Learn your way around, meet a few locals, learn when you can visit the popular spots without a crowd, and its a whole new experience. It takes some time to absorb the rhythm of a place and that’s when it really gets good.

Not sure what your timing is, but it might be worth planning a full year on that side of the continent if you start off there with a boat. Don’t hurry out of there; its one of the great cruising parts of the world.

More really good information and it seems like we both have the same train of thought. Love the BVI and would like to spend at least a month on my own boat. I do have a Request for Quote into Seven Seas Yacht Transport, but if I do go this route a delivery captain may be the best choice to bring the boat North. I could easily buy a boat in Ca and go from CA to the canal and out to the islands but then I would have to come back the same way. With the current virus deal my timeline has been pushed forward and the boat that started this may be gone anyway by the time I'm ready to move. Thanks again for your thoughts.

 

[sledge]

If you do end up buying in Florida, before you head west have you considered exploring the East since you’re there anyway? If you haven’t done it, you could check several places off the bucket list like the Chesapeake, Newport, even Nova Scotia....?

 

[blefever]

If you do end up buying in Florida, before you head west have you considered exploring the East since you’re there anyway? If you haven’t done it, you could check several places off the bucket list like the Chesapeake, Newport, even Nova Scotia....?

The loop is on the list along with the places you mentioned. Would love to do it all, but we do have a 1 year old only grand daughter so length of time away is a consideration as well. We do expect some fly in and out cruising. Thanks for the suggestion.

 

[South of Heaven]

How big is the boat?

 

[blefever]

How big is the boat?

42'.