West coast vs East coast.

[RoseLoper48]

Pros and Cons

I've boated in the Puget Sound and north areas for 20+ years. If you love Alaska you will like the PNW inland waters. And I just completed 3 years of cruising up and down the US East Coast.

PNW: your son will need school. Basing in Friday Harbor, WA or Bellingham will give you a more relaxed environment. If you want to ski, then the mainland WA is best (Bellingham, LaConnor, Everett, Paulsbo) offer good schools and access to skiing. The more northern you base in WA the more often you can enjoy the San Juan Islands and the Gulf Islands. Desolation sound and even Alaska are reachable in the summer.

East Coast: Selecting NC is a good option, but so is SC which is a bit warmer in the winter. NC has Beaufort and Oriental bot great boating communities. SC has Georgetown and Beaufort bot great boating communities. Living and schooling your son in the Carolinas gives you the options of cruising in Maine all summer and you will love it. The East Coast also provides access to American History by boat and car that will give your son a real appreciation of what our founding fathers and later did to make our nation a great democracy. Places like Savanna, Charleston, Norfolk, Washington DC, Getteysburg, New York, Newport, Cape Cod and the islands, Boston and many more.

You can't go wrong with either coast. Just involve your family in the decision.

Rose Loper
Kady Krogen 42
Catharine

 

[MVDarlin]

Best cruising, folks and weather is in the Sea of Cortez, Baja Ca, MX. Excellent purchase options as well. Take a trip to Loteto and visit Puerto Escondido and La Paz. Beautiful waters, good fishing and excellent cruising opportunities.

 

[CharlieO.]

Best cruising, folks and weather is in the Sea of Cortez, Baja Ca, MX. Excellent purchase options as well. Take a trip to Loteto and visit Puerto Escondido and La Paz. Beautiful waters, good fishing and excellent cruising opportunities.

Purchase options for vessels? Or property?

 

[Marco Flamingo]

I've lived in and boated around So Cal, Whidbey Island/Puget Sound/San Juans, Coastal NC, Jacksonville, Fl, Pensacola, Fl and points in between. All have their plusses and minuses. The white sands of the Fl Panhandle are beautiful. The ICW on the Gulf Coast and the East Coast is fantastic, in terms of cruising destinations and safety. Pamlico Sound, Albemarle Sound and the Outer Banks can't be beat. You could spend the rest of your life cruising from the Va/NC border to the NC/SC border and never see everything. However, all of these areas are catcher's mitts for hurricanes and you will have to deal with them, repeatedly, if you live/cruise in this area.

If I were in a position to start from a blank slate, here's what I'd do, knowing what I know now:

I'd go to Oak Harbor, Whidbey Island, Wa and buy a 32/34/36' Trawler then I'd buy one of the small condos about 5 minutes from the marina that face the water or a small house in Oak Harbor so that I'd have a permanent home to dry out, entertain and relax in and then I'd spend all the time I wanted living on my Trawler and cruising the Puget Sound/San Juan Island area. The beauty is phenomenal. Coopeville, Oak Harbor, Anacortes, Friday Harbor and more are great places to visit. The other option would be Cap Sante Marina in Anacortes which is on Fidalgo Island (just north of Whidbey Island, connected by the Deception Pass Bridge). Anacortes has more to offer and is a little more "quaint" than Oak Harbor but it's also more expensive. A hidden benefit of this area is that there is no shortage of diesel mechs, Marine electricians, plumbers, carpenters etc and boat yards. Hell, they build America's Cup boats here. Summers are gorgeous and winters are mild and as long as you can give up swimming in warm water, the entire package of living there is worth the down side of the long, dark winters. You are close to several very good ski areas. An added benefit of Whidbey Island is that it is in a "rain shadow" from the mountains and receives significant'y less rain than Seattle.
Happy Hunting!

Shut up, man! The East Coast is where it's at. Marinas every 100 yards. Mechanics (HVAC/air conditioning experts) on every finger pier. Blue crabs are everywhere (I had them in college, but a special soap cleared them up). Yah mon, stay on the East Coast. Don't come out here, it's horrible. I wish I was in Fartle Beach or Slymami, where the "in" crowd is.

Mark

Footnote: 3rd glass of wine

 

[Bryant]

East coast West Coast.

Shut up, man! The East Coast is where it's at. Marinas every 100 yards. Mechanics (HVAC/air conditioning experts) on every finger pier. Blue crabs are everywhere (I had them in college, but a special soap cleared them up). Yah mon, stay on the East Coast. Don't come out here, it's horrible. I wish I was in Fartle Beach or Slymami, where the "in" crowd is.

Mark

Footnote: 3rd glass of wine

Been on the Ganga huh? Go away kid, this is an adult site.

 

[OldDan1943]

Been on the Ganga huh? Go away kid, this is an adult site.

Daymn, there's that word again, "adult".
We used to hear, "Wait till you grow up and you can do whatever you want." Yea sure, 9pm I am too tired to do whatever I want, even if I could remember what it was.

 

[Bryant]

East coast

Daymn, there's that word again, "adult".
We used to hear, "Wait till you grow up and you can do whatever you want." Yea sure, 9pm I am too tired to do whatever I want, even if I could remember what it was.

Lol. No response.