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To live aboard a Tandem Island
http://www.hobie.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=70&t=43984		 Page 1 of 1
Author:  Hobie Crafte [ Thu Jul 19, 2012 5:47 am ]
Post subject:  To live aboard a Tandem Island
I don't see much problem in living aboard a Hobie Island, except for the fact that there are very few places in the world that have a pleasant climate all year around. That means one might have to move with the seasons. Which certainly is easier said than done, as you might have to cross big waters and are not allowed to stay more than a few months in a country that isn't your own.

I am a Swede and thus also a citizen in the European Union. I am not sure if I should try to travel between northern Europe and southern Europe/northern Africa twice every year, if I should try to stay in the Canary Islands all year around or if I should pick a route between Canada, the US and the Bahamas or Mexico. One could also imagine seasonal routes in South America or East Asia. Possibly I could own TIs at different places, but I certainly would prefer sailing to flying.

Maybe you can give me some good feed-back? Do I have to get myself a "real" sailing-boat or can the TI do it?
Author:  tonystott [ Thu Jul 19, 2012 6:08 am ]
Post subject:  Re: To live aboard a Tandem Island
There are plenty of people who live aboard sailing boats on the east coast of Australia, heading north in winter and south in summer, but I am not sure if you are seriously suggesting literally living aboard a TI. I think they are a bit sparse in terms of amenities!

Josh Holmes of yakass.net fame is currently on a 1,000km journey from Yeppoon to Townsville living on his AI and hopefully on a mostly freshly caught fish diet. (your can follow his epic journey at http://modernkayakfishing.com/)
Author:  Hobie Crafte [ Thu Jul 19, 2012 6:36 am ]
Post subject:  Re: To live aboard a Tandem Island
Well, I am serious. I dont need a lot of amenities and I love having a simple life in contact with nature. The TI can take a lot of equipment including a notebook and a tent. I dont need a lot of stuff to be happy. I´d rather do without a lot of stuff.

Australia might be too hot for me in the warmer parts of the years. I´m glad if temperature seldom goes much higher than 27 degrees celsius. So Australia in winter might fit me better than Australia in summer. Northern China or southeast Russia seems more appropriate to me in the summertime!
Author:  Hobie Crafte [ Thu Jul 19, 2012 9:03 am ]
Post subject:  Re: To live aboard a Tandem Island
What about going from the Gulf of Mexico to Lake Michigan or Lake Erie via Mississippi? Is it something you Americans could dream about? Will it be too troublesome? Can it be done in two or three months? Would it be difficult to do it in late spring as temperatures rise? Is it more reasonable to take the same route in the opposite direction in the autumn?
Author:  kayakman7 [ Thu Jul 19, 2012 7:11 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: To live aboard a Tandem Island
Hobie Crafte wrote:
What about going from the Gulf of Mexico to Lake Michigan or Lake Erie via Mississippi? Is it something you Americans could dream about? Will it be too troublesome? Can it be done in two or three months? Would it be difficult to do it in late spring as temperatures rise? Is it more reasonable to take the same route in the opposite direction in the autumn?


Hi,
You are referring to the "Great Circle Route" and it is best done counter-clockwise. In the spring boats head south from the Great Lakes; Lake Michigan, Chicago River, Illinois River, Mississippi River (here you have a choice: continue south or head east, up the Ohio River, Tennessee River, Cumberland River, Tenn–Tom Waterway, Alabama River, coming out in the Gulf of Mexico 500 miles further east.) Once in the Gulf, you go round Florida (or across it via Lake Okeechobee) and head north up the Eastern Seaboard on the Inter-coastal Waterway; heading back to the Great Lakes via the Hudson River to the Erie Canal (or Hudson River to Lake Champlain to the St. Lawrence Seaway) or continue north, rounding Newfoundland and take the St. Lawrence Seaway to the Great Lakes. Once in the Lakes, you can take the Welland Canal or the Trent-Severn Waterway.

Some of these rivers and canals are very commercially orientated, with almost no amenities for private vessels for hundreds of miles and LOTS of commercial traffic. Mostly I'm referring to the Lower Mississippi, but the Ohio River, Welland Canal, and the St. Lawrence are heavily commercial. The Mississippi and Ohio Rivers normally flow at 5 to 6 mph, increasing to 7 to 9 (or more during floods) in the spring. It would not be possible to go upstream for any distance in a TI. The upstream section on the Ohio is fairly brief, under 30 miles.

I've done most of the route by large powerboat and I want to eventually do the full circle in my TI.

cheers,

j
Author:  Hobie Crafte [ Thu Jul 19, 2012 10:38 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: To live aboard a Tandem Island
Thanks j, that is a lot of valuable information. There is some alternatives I had not seen before. I Will study them.

Is there any good way to take the TI to the Bahamas for a few months, if the authorities won´t let me stay in the US any longer? I guess it is possible to sail, but preferably not alone.

Will the authorities get fed up with me If I keep returning to the US over and over again after being in Canada, Bahamas and/or Mexico for a while?
Author:  PassWind [ Fri Jul 20, 2012 8:15 am ]
Post subject:  Re: To live aboard a Tandem Island
Hard core ... to the extreme. I'd need a proper place to clean my scupper every few days/weeks

Most I ever did was 3 weeks in a canoe up in Canada. I came out of the it almost 15lbs lighter ... mostly from black flies chewing away my hide.

... if it were me I'd spend a year or 3 in the Hawaiin islands string.
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