Houseboat Questions (noob)

[Robby662]

I was cruising around in the Tennessee-tombigbee river yesterday. My girlfriend was with me and we decide to cruise around the marina and look at all the beautiful boats. We are in north Mississippi and although I did not think it was rare, there were a lot of boats docked that were from all over the United States. I am sure some could be locally owned but not all of them. She kept asking me questions I could not answer. How do these people get to the grocery store? How much does it cost to dock here. What does gas cost on a daily bases? Do you have to be a millionaire to do this type of boating? I am curious myself.

 

[flashback]

Re: Houseboat Questions (noob)

Well Rob, to make a long story short, If you can afford the house boat, you can probably afford to operate it.. I have done some limited cruising on the Tennessee from watts bar up to telico and also down to nickajac in a 27ft sailboat.. I usually anchor in out of the way spots at night to avoid slip rent. I'll stop at a bigger marina to get food and beverages and maybe a shower. Also if your in a large town say like Chattanooga, you can catch a taxi to a super market or walmart...of course I sleep on the boat and stay out of the marina lounges.. I guess you could say I do it the poor man's way, but I have a good time and that's all that counts IMHO.......by the way, if the wind is blowing from the right direction, I use very little gas..is it slow? sure. that's what makes it peaceful...

 

[QC]

Re: Houseboat Questions (noob)

Sometimes you can find older Houseboats for pretty cheap. If you consider slip fees for liveaborads as rent and have full hookups for electrical, then there is theoretically no fuel bills if you stay put. Also, some Marinas have Grocery services for a 10% fee. They deliver etc right to the boat.

 

[KRS]

Re: Houseboat Questions (noob)

And, ... all the fish you can eat !