Marina, or at anchor?

I've generally found that on a 75' Hatteras I run, the Onan generator 20kw sips about 1gph at night, so figure $3.50 hr for fuel, but then you have maintanence and such (oil changes, replacement, etc....) I'd say $10/hr when you figure in all of the costs associated with maintaining it and putting money away for a rebuild of the electrical end or engine etc.......

it's a lot cheaper on the hook.. These days with fuel under $3 (I paid 2.67 yesterday in RI) you're looking at $36 of fuel for 12 hours. Oil change, figure $40 over 100 hrs... that's 0.40 an hr... so you're looking at $40 altogether. even if you're including a full rebuilt... $8k over 6 to 10 000 hrs... you're at about $50 for your night onthe hook.

as docking it depends where you are... in New england, good luck finding dockage under $3 a ft, plus sometimes $25 to $50 power. or almost $200 a day for power at Samson Cay

staying on the hook is definitely cheaper...

now in places where you dont' need air conditioning, with inverters you can cut down the cost to almost nothing. in the first year after i installed an inverter and inverter bank on my boat, i cut generator usage from 1200 hrs to 300hrs...the inverter and the 8 golf cart batteries paid for themself in 1 year. I ended up running the generator 4 hours a day or so when on the hook and except in summer time, the breeze in so fl was enough to keep cool without air con when anchored.

ask the guy that owns the PARI....

When we cruise, the generator running time is calculated as far as possible to keep fridges etc just right, then turn it off for the night and use the inverter or, with good fridges, they hold their temp for the few hours in the day we turn the gen off.
Never understand boaters who run their gens almost all the time away from dock.

well it depends on the weather and on the boat layout.

for instance, if you take the typical modern boat, even on a mild day (sunny, 70 deg) it will get real hot inside because of poor ventilation. Most modern small yachts, say 50 to 70, have no opening windows...

on the other hand, my old Hatt has pilot house doors and opening side windows in teh saloon which will keep it cool with a light breeze even on a warm day.

Thats it.
All my boats have had opening windows in the salon and portlights in the cabins. Rarely have a problem in the warmer months. But then again, we don't wear more than swimwear most the time...ahh miss that
Rarely a day on the water without a breeze, so there is a lot of logic in the older design layouts, especially Pilothouse, leaking windows, hatches and ports!

Maybe its a personal thing but the idea of overnighting at a marina versus finding a somewhat more discreet spot to comfortably anchor is a 'no brainer' in terms of enjoying the boating life surely? Precious little ambiance or sense of escape available in a marina and you typically wouldn't drop over the side for your evening dip or snorkel, throw a line in the water to catch breakfast etc. as you would do when at anchor. The cost to get to a marina has to include the running cost to and from as well.

Marinas are pretty much the same as large car parks I reckon - don't see too many people driving their cars to one as their preferred destination for the evening!

Marina's have their place also. There are a lot of nice people and friends you make at the various marina's and activities and trips with people you would've met. Anchoring can be nice also, but I never sleep peacefully anchored as knowing the boat is tied to the dock and not listening to the generator going all night.

Perhaps its because we have extensive inlets, harbours and islands along the northern East coast of NZ in particular that marinas empty out during the holiday season and, other than one-base game fishing tournaments or the odd refuelling trip, most boaties wouldn't consider docking at one during their summer cruising. A quite different boating culture probably has evolved due to the availability of sheltered anchorages and the socialising between crews occurs in these bays rather than at marinas. Thankfully a temperate climate doesn't demand airconditioning on most nights so gensets are used only in a limited number of cases. I do think that the 'marina culture' is more common in Australia though, especially NSW.

After a long days game fishing out of a place like Port Stephens (100 miles north of Sydney) its nice to tie the boat up, hose it down, hook up shore power, have a loooong hot shower at the marina, and head off for a steak and a few beers.

Flip side - Chartered a fully crewed boat one year up on the reef to fish for marlin - anchored behind the reef each night. Great when someone else does the cooking and all the work at the end of each day. (We got (released) 6 marlin over 5 days. Largest called at about 950 lbs.

it's nice to combine both i think but if i have a choice i prefer to anchor out. the biggest draw back to marinas is the lack of privacy...last night in nantucket, I was having this same conversation with the owner of the boat i run as she was pointing out that even the the big boats that are med moored often end up within feet of each other with no view, no breeze and no privacy whereas on the mooring, just across from the Boat Basin, we enjoyed the best view in the harbor.

maybe it's different for me because i live on my boat when i'm not working so i'm used to being in a marina and look forward to being on the hook.

It also depends on the set up... some marinas feel like car parks but if are the end of a dock, with mostly smaller boats around or sail boats, you do get a view and breezes...

no clear cut answer, it's all shades of grey!

I feel the same way. I don't mind anchoring 1/2 of the time, but truely never get the same nights sleep as being tied to a dock or a mooring that you know is not going to possibly allow you to move if the anchor slips. Some places I have no worries about anchoring like on the bank in the Bahamas because if you slip you're not going to end up in shallow water. But your best anchorages are always protected by an island or something like thatto block the waves and wind and you're always worried about swinging into other boats (I always anchor a good safe distance from other boats, but you always get that 35' sailboat that has to anchor 100' from you).

50/50 here.

When the kids are with us, we most always tie up. When it's just the 'adults' (and I use that term loosely) we most always set the hook. Sure, you can boil it down to 8 cents for oil, 30 for fuel, maintenance, noise, etc. etc. etc. however I believe at the end of the day, it comes down to preference and needs. In our case, we *need* to tie up to get the kids off the friggin boat so they can go terrorize something on land after being holed up on the lake all day or weekend.

When it's the adults, you set the hook, turn everything off, dim the lights, open a bottle of wine, and tell stores over background jazz and a slow falling sun.

If you compare costs, we can get away with cooking ( also used lightly) light meals on the boat for a fraction of the restaurants around Annapolis or Baltimore or just about any marina I guess.

It is hard to convince my little wife that she wants to cook when "Little Italy" is so close....

Some times it comes down to whether we want to eat like kings for the kings ransom or hang out and quietly relax.

We often put a block or two of ice in the fridge to help hold the cold and only really run the genny for a little while in the morning and evening to chill it down. ( also used as emergency Gin and Tonic ice if the cubes run out )

Admittedly though, my cruising is limited to the Chesapeake and Southern NJ and I am not very worldly........

seems to boil down to whether you are owners or crew....hasn't changed much in 50 years ...

It all seems rather pointless to spend meagre fortunes on a vessel and not use it for its design purpose. Many will have bought the boat loaded with equipment and toys intended to provide independent living and adequate seaworthiness to go exploring and/or fishing for days or even weeks on end and to avoid the need to be attached to a dock or permanent mooring each evening. The anchor is the key to fun afloat IMHO.

Good Man!