Whip Posted July 14, 2019 Share Posted July 14, 2019 Could be too much Travis McGee... Anyone ever live on a house boat? If so Where? Lake? Ocean? What was it like? Link to comment
szurszewski Posted July 14, 2019 Share Posted July 14, 2019 Boat, yes. A few. Puget Sound and less protected parts of the Pacific along the north parts of the west coast. Actual houseboat - no. Neither the kind that are really houses floating on barges/logs (not mobile unless towed) nor the kind, like in your picture, which are more like flat bottom boats with small mobile homes stuck on top (sort of limitedly mobile under their own power). What are you thinking about? Sounds fun - is it too early to plan a visit? Best part of living on the water: you're on the water, and I love the way that feels, sounds and smells. If you don't like those things it is very unpleasant. Worst part: no extra space. Also things tend to be perpetually damp unless you are living in someplace really arid (like Lave Havasu or whatever). Don't drop your keys getting on/off the boat/house - ask my mom, it's a hassle! Link to comment
taylor1 Posted July 15, 2019 Share Posted July 15, 2019 I have a friend here on the Island that grew up and has been on the water his whole life. Retired from the NPS after 35 years from CapeLookout National Seashore. Anyway, he decided to sell his home and live permanently on his house boat. Told me he had plenty of family to stay with if he needed a break. After a little over a year , he has now built a new small home and uses that as his base. He does spent most of his time in the summer on it shuffling between the barrier islands , but told me this winter he will either tie or anchor up. Don't know if its the cold nor'easters or the cramped quarters with his wife LOL Link to comment
Bill_Walker Posted July 21, 2019 Share Posted July 21, 2019 Houseboats, like RVs, tend to be poorly insulated, which makes them a lousy place to stay in a cold winter (assuming you're someplace you don't have to haul it out for the winter). You know the two happiest days in a boat owner's life, right? The day he buys it, and the day he sells it. Also, a boat is a hole in the water, surrounded by fiberglass, into which you pour money. That being said, as Rat said to Mole in "The Wind in the Willows": "Believe me, my young friend, there is nothing — absolutely nothing — half so much worth doing as simply messing about in boats." 1 Link to comment
Bud Posted July 21, 2019 Share Posted July 21, 2019 You know the two happiest days in a BMW motorcycle owner's life, right? The day he buys it, and the day he sells it Link to comment
Endobob Posted July 22, 2019 Share Posted July 22, 2019 2 hours ago, Bud said: You know the two happiest days in a BMW motorcycle owner's life, right? The day he buys it, and the day he sells it 2 hours ago, Bud said: You know the two happiest days in a BMW motorcycle owner's life, right? The day he buys it, and the day he sells it You then have had many happy days!😂 2 Link to comment
eddd Posted July 22, 2019 Share Posted July 22, 2019 https://www.wuwm.com/post/milwaukee-boat-house-has-been-symbol-nonconformity-100-years 3 Link to comment
Bud Posted July 22, 2019 Share Posted July 22, 2019 11 hours ago, Endobobdds said: You then have had many happy days!😂 And many sad days as well. Link to comment
Bill_Walker Posted July 22, 2019 Share Posted July 22, 2019 Maybe one of these? You won't have to deal with all that floaty stuff. Link to comment
Whip Posted July 22, 2019 Author Share Posted July 22, 2019 I remember seeing those with StanF Link to comment
Whip Posted July 22, 2019 Author Share Posted July 22, 2019 So, no one here has ever lived on or owned a house boat??? I have questions? How do ya empty the black water tank? Is there fresh water hook ups at the slips? ....electricity? Where would I have to park my bike(s)? How much maintenance is involved? I think I may rent one for a week. Link to comment
Bill_Walker Posted July 23, 2019 Share Posted July 23, 2019 Most marinas, in my experience, have water and electricity available at each slip, at least for "permanent" slips (as opposed to guest slips). I think for pump-out of the holding tank, you generally have to go to a pump-out dock (I've seen them), but I think I recall seeing that some places have mobile pump-out services. You'd have to park in a publicly accessible parking lot, most likely. Most marinas of my acquaintance (mostly in California) have a wide-open parking lot, but have locked gates protecting access to the docks. Maintenance will vary depending on type (or presence) of propulsion system and other equipment, and whether you're in fresh or salt water. As a BMW owner, you're already used to dealing with boat-like service and parts costs, but I think they do tend to scale up with the size of the boat. Link to comment
greiffster Posted July 23, 2019 Share Posted July 23, 2019 2 hours ago, Whip said: So, no one here has ever lived on or owned a house boat??? No, but I've spent some time in a marina. I have questions? How do ya empty the black water tank? Like Bill said, pump out near/at the permanent slips. Also, mobile service available. Really not much of an issue. Even the overnight slips/dock has the service for transients. Is there fresh water hook ups at the slips? Yup, everywhere I've seen ....electricity? Absolutely. 30, 50 amp service depending on size. Many with cable as well. Where would I have to park my bike(s)? That's really dependent upon the marina. BUT, marinas are some of the most accommodating people on the planet. (at least in my part of the world) How much maintenance is involved? lol. not touching this one. I think I may rent one for a week. Link to comment
szurszewski Posted July 23, 2019 Share Posted July 23, 2019 There are houseboat specific marinas - at those they either have black/waste water runs to the slips OR there will be a mobile pumpout vessel/barge that comes around; typically you'll pay them per visit. You never answered my clarifying question - are we talking about an actual boat with a motor or some sort of house structure on a float/barge/etc. Maintenance will depend on that - if it's just a floating house, normal house stuff plus occasionally (like over the course of a decade or more) you'll need float work or replacement. If it's an actual boat, all the stuff you do to maintain a house, plus all the stuff you do to maintain a not that reliable car, plus imagine your foundation is trying to leak...all the time. Most marinas I've lived in/stayed in are as described above - open parking lots with no gates, but gates to get to your boat. One we were at for a long time did have limited storage lockers that were not large enough for a car but made a fine garage for a bike (maybe two if they were narrow). Link to comment
roadscholar Posted July 23, 2019 Share Posted July 23, 2019 Saw this awhile back, think I'd like it for the waterways around here.. Link to comment
Whip Posted July 23, 2019 Author Share Posted July 23, 2019 53 minutes ago, szurszewski said: There are houseboat specific marinas - at those they either have black/waste water runs to the slips OR there will be a mobile pumpout vessel/barge that comes around; typically you'll pay them per visit. You never answered my clarifying question - are we talking about an actual boat with a motor or some sort of house structure on a float/barge/etc. Maintenance will depend on that - if it's just a floating house, normal house stuff plus occasionally (like over the course of a decade or more) you'll need float work or replacement. If it's an actual boat, all the stuff you do to maintain a house, plus all the stuff you do to maintain a not that reliable car, plus imagine your foundation is trying to leak...all the time. Most marinas I've lived in/stayed in are as described above - open parking lots with no gates, but gates to get to your boat. One we were at for a long time did have limited storage lockers that were not large enough for a car but made a fine garage for a bike (maybe two if they were narrow). Sorry. I don’t know? I am thinking a barge type houseboat and maybe a runabout for fishing and fun. 1 Link to comment
Whip Posted July 23, 2019 Author Share Posted July 23, 2019 Bill, I am thinking something much bigger. 40-50 foot. 1 Link to comment
roadscholar Posted July 23, 2019 Share Posted July 23, 2019 I probably shoulda known that, maybe something along these lines? : ) 1 Link to comment
John Ranalletta Posted July 23, 2019 Share Posted July 23, 2019 Does the garage have a m/c lift? 2 Link to comment
BrianM Posted July 23, 2019 Share Posted July 23, 2019 On 7/22/2019 at 5:27 AM, eddd said: https://www.wuwm.com/post/milwaukee-boat-house-has-been-symbol-nonconformity-100-years Drove by that house many times on the way to school (UWM). Bought my first boat (18 ft bow rider), people told me how expensive boats were. I told them I raced for 29 years (road raced the last 18). My TZ250 cost more than $6 per mile to ride. Single lap of Road America was $24, rode more than 2000 laps there. Include entry fees and travel on top of that. Oh yeah, don't crash - $$$$. Boat - yearly maintenance/winterizing $380. Rest is gas and launch fees. Boating is cheap. Link to comment
szurszewski Posted July 23, 2019 Share Posted July 23, 2019 Where’s this thing gonna be floating? Link to comment
TEWKS Posted July 23, 2019 Share Posted July 23, 2019 33 minutes ago, szurszewski said: Where’s this thing gonna be floating? You thinking what I'm thinking... "We all came out to MontreuxOn the Lake Geneva shoreline" "UnRally on the water, riders on the fly" 2 Link to comment
RandyShields Posted July 24, 2019 Share Posted July 24, 2019 I would have thought Deep Purple was before your time! Link to comment
TEWKS Posted July 24, 2019 Share Posted July 24, 2019 1 hour ago, RandyShields said: I would have thought Deep Purple was before your time! Randy, the forest is older than it appears! I was actually eight when that song came out but an older brother & sisters with control of the radio stations, shaped my taste in music. 1 Link to comment
Bill_Walker Posted July 25, 2019 Share Posted July 25, 2019 BTW, many books have been written on living aboard boats. They're more often aimed at sailboats than houseboats, but most of the same principles apply. Search "living aboard" on Amazon. Heck, I just realized I've got one, even though I've never lived aboard: "The Intricate Art of Living Afloat", by Clare Allcard. Link to comment
BrianT Posted August 3, 2019 Share Posted August 3, 2019 "SKIPEEERRRRRR!" My father lived on a 30 foot sailboat for 10 years in an ocean marina. As someone else said, he described the boat as a "hole in the water you just keep throwing money into." Something always needed to be maintained or repaired. Might be different on house boats on a lake or interior waterway. His only other complaints were #1 no place for your stuff such as closets, so he had to cut things down to the bare essentials, sort of like living off a motorcycle and #2 having to use the dockside facilities for shower and toilet so he wouldn't fill up his blackwater tank. Eventually the boat had engine problems he couldn't repair. If it was a car he would've junked it. But boats being fiberglass are basically hazmat and you have to pay to scrap them. He had a hard time giving it away and after 2 years of trying, finally found someone to just take it for free as a repair project. His boat slip had shore power, like an RV hookup would. There was a water hose spigot he could fill his water tank with, but you wouldn't want to drink that. Marina had a private parking lot he could park his car and motorcycle. To me it seemed very RV like in that in short doses or trips its fine to live aboard and lets you stay in different places like an RV does. But not sure I'd want to permanently live on one. Only tempting ones I've seen are the literal small houses on water like in Seattle where they don't have a motor and aren't boats. 1 Link to comment
Whip Posted August 5, 2019 Author Share Posted August 5, 2019 I rented a house boat for a week in January. We shall see Link to comment
terryofperry Posted August 5, 2019 Share Posted August 5, 2019 9 hours ago, Whip said: I rented a house boat for a week in January. We shall see Cross Country Camping and now this.......hmm...... Looking forward to this Winter Tale On The Water........ Terry 4 Link to comment
Bill_Walker Posted August 5, 2019 Share Posted August 5, 2019 14 hours ago, Whip said: I rented a house boat for a week in January. We shall see Hmm. Not typically houseboat season in most places I know. Where are you renting? Link to comment
Bill_Walker Posted August 5, 2019 Share Posted August 5, 2019 Also, do you have any experience with boats? Rental houseboats used to be common on the Sacramento Delta where I grew up waterskiing, and we got lots of laughs watching the stupid things the inexperienced boat drivers did. Back then, they were mostly pontoon boats with a box cabin that looked like an RV trailer, with a totally inadequate 40-horse Homelite outboard motor. Wind was their nemesis. And often their captains were unaware that the Delta rivers were close enough to SF Bay to have tides, so high-and-dry houseboats were pretty common. Link to comment
TEWKS Posted August 5, 2019 Share Posted August 5, 2019 25 minutes ago, Whip said: Key West Hmm a houseboat, hmm Key West, hmm January, I don't see that sucking at all! Link to comment
Marty Hill Posted August 5, 2019 Share Posted August 5, 2019 Key West is wonderful that time but a bit crowded. Many house boats moored there. Several very good restaurants. 1 1 Link to comment
TEWKS Posted August 5, 2019 Share Posted August 5, 2019 Loved the El Siboney Restaurant on Catherine St. when I was there a few years back. Edit...My dish, well actually their dish but it's what I had. Pretty weird that I can remember stuff like this. 1 Link to comment
Marty Hill Posted August 5, 2019 Share Posted August 5, 2019 Not weird. Tummy should never forget good food. 1 Link to comment
RandyShields Posted August 5, 2019 Share Posted August 5, 2019 Quote: Loved the El Siboney Restaurant on Catherine St. when I was there a few years back. Very interesting. In October, when I raced down to Key West to capture corner no. 2 of my (now delayed) 4-corners ride, I had a G&T at happy hour on Duval Street, did some quick research on the best restaurants nearby, and walked there for dinner. Very authentic Cuban food that fit the bill perfectly for a hungry rider! 2 Link to comment
John Ranalletta Posted August 6, 2019 Share Posted August 6, 2019 23 hours ago, Whip said: Key West So, what's the slip #? Be kind to the roosters or invite bad luck... 1 Link to comment
Marty Hill Posted August 6, 2019 Share Posted August 6, 2019 Key West. Dad took me there at 6 to fly to Havana. USN Anti Sub Warfare School in '55 for 6 months. IBM sent me there since I was the junior rep and the old guys didn't want to drive for 3 hours each way. I enjoyed the moaning when the Navy started buying from me. It was less than 40 minutes in my plane. 1 Link to comment
greiffster Posted August 6, 2019 Share Posted August 6, 2019 On 8/5/2019 at 10:51 AM, Whip said: Key West good times with good friends...stumbled out of Rick's Bar after too many picklebacks. 2 Link to comment
Endobob Posted August 6, 2019 Share Posted August 6, 2019 On 8/5/2019 at 11:51 AM, Whip said: Key West @Whip - Key West in January - What week? Would be nice if it was the same week as Cedar Key. You might get some visitors. @Tallman: Friday 24 January 2020, 11:00 AM until Sunday 26 January 2020, 12:00 PM ...We meet in CedarKey, Florida, one of the coolest old Florida coastal communties. Meet and greet for lunch on the Saturday before the Super Bowl. Many stay for the weekend. This event began in 2005 as a way for fellow riders to start the year with friends in a beautiful setting.... Link to comment
Marty Hill Posted August 7, 2019 Share Posted August 7, 2019 I always leave cedar key and head to everglades city for a night or two. Fave hotel and restaurant 1 block apart. Then I wander down to key west and stay on the base for a few days. Good friends in homestead so I bum a night or two with them before heading back home. 1 Link to comment
Groanup Posted August 7, 2019 Share Posted August 7, 2019 I spent a week on a houseboat in Lake Mead once. All I really remember about that week is, wind is bad... I know... I'm no help. I used to drink a bit, and, it was a while ago. 1 Link to comment
Bill_Walker Posted August 7, 2019 Share Posted August 7, 2019 On 8/5/2019 at 8:51 AM, Whip said: Key West What, not Cedar Key? What would McGee say? Link to comment
Marty Hill Posted August 7, 2019 Share Posted August 7, 2019 Key west is 100 times better with a lot more to do when on land. I've been going to both for many years as have many others on the board. 2 Link to comment
roadscholar Posted August 8, 2019 Share Posted August 8, 2019 On 8/6/2019 at 8:10 PM, Marty Hill said: I always leave cedar key and head to everglades city for a night or two. Fave hotel and restaurant 1 block apart. Then I wander down to key west and stay on the base for a few days. Good friends in homestead so I bum a night or two with them before heading back home. Tell me about Everglades City Marty, my dirt route down the peninsula ends there. Wondered if there was a decent motel and restaurant, haven't ever been there.. Also I'd agree Cedar Key may be semi-quaint but not a whole lot going on, if at this end of the state I'd pick St. Augustine anytime, far more to see and do with plenty of good restaurants and watering holes. Link to comment
Bill_Walker Posted August 8, 2019 Share Posted August 8, 2019 I guess I have to explain. My reference to Cedar Key was a reference to the Travis McGee novels written by John MacDonald, which I know Whip has read. It was not a recommendation. I've never been to Florida. Link to comment
Marty Hill Posted August 8, 2019 Share Posted August 8, 2019 Everglades city. Nicest hotel with indoor pool is Ivey House. I go there every year after Cedar Key. Just around the corner is the Camillia Street Grill. Indoor or on the water seating. You and friend will enjoy both! Bill W, Kali is great but there is a whole other world out there by bike or car. 1 Link to comment
Marty Hill Posted August 8, 2019 Share Posted August 8, 2019 Bill, there isn't much to do in EC. I usually go to the airport but never see much. Enjoy the pool, the food and the quiet. I usually head to key west from there and stay on the Navy base and enjoy good food for a couple of days. Link to comment
John Ranalletta Posted August 8, 2019 Share Posted August 8, 2019 Everglades City is a favorite stop when in so FL with an interesting if not checkered history. It's as close to "old Florida" as is left IMO. Susceptibility to tidal surge I think accounts for not much new development. Lust after house on water where the one family (Uline?) buys up adjacent property as it comes for sale. 1 Link to comment
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