Sailboat Shopping in Newfoundland

This is where it all began. Well sort of. The sailboat shopping part of this dream, of a vision of a lifestyle.

After many years of backpacking around the world or moving our home from one coast of Canada to another we wanted something more. Having all your belongings in a home which could be moved anywhere was very appealing. Tired of this landscape? No problem lets hoist the sails and head to another anchorage. Sure backpacking allows you the same freedom. But you can't carry your rock climbing gear or surf board and camping equipment since you would need multiple bags to achieve this. Thus the sailboat came into the picture after thoughts of renovating a school bus, building a earthship, or a cabin in the woods. Sailboats are cheaper on gas and cover more ground with free anchorage. Meaning no searching parking, no campsites, and definitely no staying in one spot.

Which is why we started sailboat shopping in the rugged West Coast of Newfoundland. Sounds like a great idea with the only hick-up being that there are way more fishing boats compared to sailboats. Nevertheless we scoured the whole island from online adds to word of mouth and hours wandering around marinas and meeting incredible people. The marina life or boater's life was already growing on us.

Sailboat Shopping in Lewisporte

First sailboat shopping destination, Lewisporte. Located in Central Newfoundland, right along iceberg alley it was a perfect destination to head to in early spring. Boats weren't in the water yet with all the packed ice which made it easier to inspect them. Also allowing us some exploration time along the hiking trails near Twillingate where dozens of gigantic icebergs were.

There we met Peter which turned out to be extremely friendly and knowledgeable of the area and sailboats. He showed us around a few sailboats talking in details about their different features and performance. After visiting a beautiful steel-hull 40 foot Bruce-Roberts we came to the conclusion that it would be hard to inspect steel and opted to stick to fiberglass sailboats.

An O'Day 36 with center cockpit had a very attractive layout. However there was so much water intrusion and we weren't ready for that big of a project. After all this was only our first sailboat ever.

Finally we fell in love with the classic look of a Bayfield 32C and even put in an offer. We were looking for a liveaboard sailboat, something big enough for the two of us and our many outdoor equipment to be on. Unfortunately the deal fell through. Slightly over our budget.

Sailboat Shopping and learning the ropes in Corner Brook

The sailboat shopping adventure carried on in our home town of Corner Brook where we looked at a Hunter 30 as well as a Corbin 39. The Hunter was too small for our liking although being extremely fun to sail. We had the opportunity to try it and learn a few sailing tips with Craig. And the Corbin 39, after further inspection would have being a huge project to tackle.

The marina here offered us great grounds to learn how to sail. From going out on a Mirage 27 with Brian or sailing with Nick on a Bayfield 25 it was all new and exciting for us.

Here the Bay of Islands offered shelter yet plenty of space to learn the ropes and get familiar with the sailboats' lingo.

Sailboat Shopping around St. John's

A long drive across the island to the East Coast of Newfoundland home of it's capital St. John's was the next stop on the sailboat shopping journey. With most of the population living there and a few marinas around we had high hopes. Especially that we drove all the way to the CBS marina to look at a C&C 34.

We did a quick stop on the way across to check out a Catalina 30 which was a disaster. The poor sailboat had survived through storms attached at a fishing dock and had seen better days. Too bad because the inside was extremely roomy and offered plenty of headroom for Cory.

Excited for the viewing of the C&C 34 we showed up early and wandered around the marina checking out the "For Sale" signs and scribbling down phone numbers. As soon as we stepped in the boat it felt like it was the one meant for us. And the more we talked with the owner the more convinced we became that it would be a great fit for us. That evening at a coffee shop we were looking up boat surveyor and received a phone call. To our disbelief the sailboat was no longer for sale. The owner couldn't part with it and this is where we realize how much attachment sailboat owners had with the boat, as if it was a child.

So the search carried on with checking out two C&C 35 in CBS and Holyrood. We met Stephen, a friendly surveyor who felt bad for our misfortune and guided us towards other sailboats.

None of them worked out, which was probably for the best. However we learned so many tips on what to look for and visited many different sailboats with various layouts. Furthermore we realized that you cannot trust all surveys. We met someone who was both a broker and a surveyor which created some conflict of interest.

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Aspire!

Wildly Intrepid