Well, I am settled in from my adventure to Oxford Maryland, back and running my own sailing charters at not quite full throttle but busy enough. Paul Myers was my only client this past Saturday for the Basic Sailing class.
On Sunday Linda Dulong took her family out for a Family Hands On Learn to Sail trip very relaxing both days for Captain Ed with steady light breezes and again smooth seas.
I know I am always saying to those that will listen, that owning any boat especially a sail boat is a very expensive proposition and with the average times a boat owner will use there boat being just around 10 times the cost of owning a 26ft boat is going to cost you about $600 for each trip. That being said I would always recommend to charter a boat a few times and spend the money you save to take a nice winter vacation some where.
One of my clients has done exactly that, with the money that he saved by not owning a boat this year he is taking his whole family to the Virgin Islands.
Now for the flip side of owning a boat. If you think of a boat as a vacation home on the water that you can visit anytime you like whether it is across the country or across the street from your house, a place you can go and sit on for a few hours a day if you'd like, or to take cruising any where that water permits. You now have a place o the water that can go to beaches, anchorages, and docks at places at your own whim. The nomadic experience of boating is probably the biggest attraction to owning a boat, of at least having the possibility of upping and moving along when you want.
If you are interested in buying a sailboat, I have some clients that are interested in selling their sail boats. The prices range from $5000.00 to over $80,000. The boat in the $5000 range is a 28ft O'Day needs some work. There is also a Ft 34 Catalina totally rebuilt everything on the boat include engine and sails he wants around $40,000 for it. Again he put a lot of work into the boat and decided sailing was not for him, so this boat is a bargain. Jay Lasinski At Merri-Mar Yaght Basin has a Shannon and a Moody for sale, both proven boats for sale that the owners are now thinking of doing other things with their lives.
So bottom line is this. I am always going to try to talk you out of buying a boat, but urge may be more than you can handle, and there are plenty of boats out there for sale, including possibly the Bella Donna. Many you have sailed on the Bella Donna and it is getting a bit tired so if I can get the right price for it I may sell it for September 1 so you will have around 45 days of actual use to her, though she is also going to need some tender care this winter. She is sailing fine right now, so if owning a boat is not your thing sign up for a sailing class or a Family Learn to Sail class and come on out sailing these great days of summer are not going to be around for ever.
Keep in mind I watch the weather constantly and do my best not to take any one out in less than favorable conditions.
This week the tides are also in our favor going out all morning then coming in for the evening, so we should be able to pick our times.
Some folk have been wanting to buy gift certificates, or to pay with a credit card, so with this newsletter I am now trying to offer away to buy sailing lessons and packages on line through PayPal. The coupons are at the bottom of the page if you are interested.
So to wrap up this newsletter, you can now buy sailing packages on line, summer is not over yet. With plenty of daylight for an evening sail, what a relaxing way to spend an evening after work.
I am ready to start bringing the Bella Donna to the town dock for rope handling and navigation lessons.
Make sure to sign up for Captain Ed's Facebook page to stay in that loop. 
If you are interested in getting in a sail this weekend give me a call at 508-451-0431 or email me at Captain Ed's Sailing
Many of you know that I have to follow the weather very closely and during the sailing season I get up in the middle of the night to check the RADAR and weather reports especially the Passage Weather site. The passage weather site is a site that we used, and found extremely accurate for the trip we made to the Virgin Islands in 2010. The passage weather site gives a seven day forecast but I think it is most accurate for a three day forecast. Pecking around the Passage weather site will give you a great idea what the weather anywhere is doing. The other site that I like to use is Maine Harbors, locally (New England) it will give an excellent report as well as tides and temperatures.
