How to Get a Free Yacht

Sound impossible? It's not.
Before long you'll be giving them away yourself.

Here's the table of contents of the whole saga:
Chapter 1: How to Get a Free Yacht
Chapter 2: Maiden Voyage of the Free Yacht
Chapter 3: Fix Broken Stix and other Trix
Chapter 4: Outboard Motor Mutilates Foot
Chapter 5: It's sinking and it's on Fire.
Chapter 6: How To Give Away a Free Yacht
Chapter 7: Get an Even Better One and Fabulize it.
Chapter 8: Celebrate Freedom
Chapter 9: Technicolor Dreamboat
Chapter 10: Privateer Knot
Chapter 11: Dismasted!
Chapter 12: Kiteboat!
Chapter 13: Mast Raising

Step 1: Get the Free Yacht

This is the easy part.
"Wooden Boat" magazine has a "free boats" section in every issue.
Any harbormaster can show you some free boats.
They're especially plentiful in the northeast in the fall.
Divorce season, whenever that is, produces lots of project boats that
"must be removed from my yard before such-and-such a date".

My friend Patrick and I got the beauty seen here from an ad in the free section of craigslist.com.
Here's how our baby looked in "Latitude 38" magazine in December of 2004.

Step 2: Rent a Marina Slip

That's where you'll put your new boat.
Our slip costs $200 a month because it's a 30 foot slip.
Our bowsprit is a lot of that length. We could saw it off to save rent, but it's a great thing to ride on.
Some marinas don't allow wooden boats because they don't like beauty or suffering.
Or boats older than ten years, or worth less than 40 grand or somesuch because they worship Moloch.
We found the Emeryville Marina, which is a righteous place.
Here's the application we filled out to get in.
It requires insurance, which in turn asks what marina the boat is in, which is a catch-22.

Step 3: Get Insurance

In order to rent your marina slip you have to get insurance.
Get whatever the marina requires/recommends.
The following companies wouldn't sell us us a policy because the boat is too old.
Geico, West Marine, BoatUS which is the same thing, United Marine Underwriters.
Progressive insurance did it online with no hassles. Yay! It costs about $300 a year.
that's progressivedirect.com
I'm told www.hagerty.com is also good for insuring weird old boats, cars, etc.

Step 4: Get It Ready to Move

We swam around the boat with spatulas and brushes, scraping off the seafood that was thriving on the bottom.
When we were done the boat sat an inch or so higher in the water.
The diesel engine runs great, but the RUBBER exhaust hose leaked and had to be replaced.
There's a pump that sprays water into the exhaust pipe cooling the hot gas just as it hits the rubber hose going out the back of the boat.
That's apparently the usual way of doing it. We went to West Marine and bought a new one.
The sticker said "$7.71" and I thought that was very reasonable. We also got some flares which the coastguard, the DMV or somesuch requires.
The price on the hose was PER FOOT. $85.00 got us a rubber hose and four highway flares.
Definition of boat: "A hole in the water into which you pour money".
Here's Patrick harvesting seaweed and crustaceans off our hull.

Step 5: To Be Continued...

Continued at: Maiden Voyage of the Free Yacht

Here's the table of contents of the whole saga:
Chapter 1: How to Get a Free Yacht
Chapter 2: Maiden Voyage of the Free Yacht
Chapter 3: Fix Broken Stix and other Trix
Chapter 4: Outboard Motor Mutilates Foot
Chapter 5: It's sinking and it's on Fire.
Chapter 6: How To Give Away a Free Yacht
Chapter 7: Get an Even Better One and Fabulize it.
Chapter 8: Celebrate Freedom
Chapter 9: Technicolor Dreamboat
Chapter 10: Privateer Knot
Chapter 11: Dismasted!
Chapter 12: Kiteboat!
Chapter 13: Mast Raising

Comments

[ClaybornL]

If anybody out there knows where there's a free older yacht , or houseboat ...I'm a 67 year old man handicapped, in a wheelchair .looking for a boat to live on... I can still move around and work on stuff. it's just harder than it would be for a normal person. so I want something that actually runs, but if it needs TLC I can give it that. I can sand and paint still saw and screw and drill stuff like that .. I just can't climb around in engine holes, and shit like that .pardon the language.. but I could sure use a boat to live on... I can get out of these cold Winters ,and go back to Florida in the winter.. and come .back up here in the Summers in my boat..

[ClaybornL]

Boat stands for (b)ust (o)ut (a)nother (t)housand

[teacher632001]

Need a houseboat or sailboat near charleston. The larger the better. I need to be closer to my son.

[kennyisnothere]

You know you would have to pay for the marina fees and upkeep, right? It's not free free.

[Skai]

damn i dont want to have to pay anymore rent

[kennyisnothere]

You don't have a choice though. You can't park your boat in a marina for free, lol.

[lostranger]

hi i live in ohio and would love to live on the water if anyone on here want,s to get rid of there 30 -?? sailboat for free ill take it period if you cant afford the dock fees or the monthly payment or upkeep ill take it off your hands for free i just want to sail around and live abord it if its sea worthy ill take it period no questions asked !!! you can get a hold of me at [e-mail] and tell me were she,s mored at my bags are packed and weighting for my new home .

[kennyisnothere]

OK, um, you do understand that if a person can't afford their payment on their boat, that they can't just give it to you for free, right? lol You would have to take over the loan and pay for the boat in monthly payments, on top of the marina fees and upkeep.

[mozyclaws]

I friggen love your sense of humor. I have no idea why I started reading this, but dang it I’m so glad I did! Step 4 had my sides hurting. Thank you for this.

[judyr48]

Hi,

My name is Jules and I saw this and said, why worry about auctions on ebay that I never win and ask people for a boat like this? I would love a boat. I do not mind being a river rat either. Did that in the Florida Keys and loved it.

[DavidC613]

If. Any one has a good vesle I can get. Please call 229-410-9253

[peanut315]

I change my number229-331-4587

[Debbieofnatives]

I have 3rd stage colon cancer I have worked hard all of my life several jobs at the time I was a single parent my job of 36 years terminated my employment after finding out I had cancer two days after I asked off for the surgery to remove my colon if there is any soul out there that has a boat a large boat as possible when I can live on I would like to live on a boat before I leave this world that has always been my dream I'm not new to boats I know what it takes I know what the cheapest I know what the fees are please contact me at [e-mail]. please contact me please any shape size condition all I'm willing to work on and I'm willing to fix it I would prefer one that's ready to go as I am medically has a disadvantage but please it doesn't matter contact me and let me know if you know of anything or if you have one you're just tired of yours you want to tax write-off whatever please call me text me email me email me for the phone number to call or text I'm a real person thank you so much God bless

[fat basterd]

Looking for a free house boat in Ar, to restore. Or any small boat that nobody wants for a good home.

[vodafonesertac]

Free full movie for Patrick

[VincentJ2]

Remember what b-o-a-t stands for... Break Out Another Thousand!

[Dunk seymour]

will this work in the U.K. THAT is my question ?

[alaskabill]

Looking for a 60' plus .., already have engines.. West coast..

[alaskabill]

Steel or fiberglass preferable

[lesstripinmoresailin]

Another cool helping each other boat finding or sharing could be if you got a boat and need help with it yet you own a farm or other land that we would be working on it, is that you share let others fix their boats there and help you in exchange for letting them work on theirs on your property. You can get a release signed from anyone who wants to be part of the barter, so you don't have to worry about someone falling etc. We could start a fleet or remember the convoy song ?