Paradise, palm trees, rum punch, white sandy beaches, warm water, cool breeze and tans. Living on a boat sounds like a dream. Why would anyone not like it.
The open ocean, no one in sight, swells, unpredictable waves, storms, crashing, rolling, while everything breaks. Dead batteries, no power, no way to start an engine, no solar, no hot water, or any water…bordom, lack of friends or personal space and disappointments one after the other.
A new way of life, away from the rat race and routine. There is always something to work on, as something is always needing fixing. It doesn’t matter if your boat is old or new, at some point you’ll need to fix something. But what if you don’t know how, or have the part on hand?
There are a lot of negatives living in a boat. Many no one tells you about. But it’s also the most rewarding thing in the world. To push yourself past your comfort zone, to face fear head on and accomplish something extraordinary. Only a few can say they ever did it.
We bought a boat because we were travelling to Honduras and saw a young girl in the poor village looking for fresh water to drink. As a tourist, I would return to my luxury suite and waste water later that same day. However, it got our minds spinning. We caught the bug. We wanted to travel and share the journey with our kids. But not just 1 island all of them. To see other cultures, to expose our boys to the overindulgence of American. To grow a love for people and cultures different than our own, and be exposed to a whole new world outside our American bubble.
It’s for that reason you should buy a boat. Not for the glamour of it, but the adventure and the journey you will find.
Wandering Knapps 