How to Make Cruising Less Stressful

Cruising seems like an idyllic life– a permanent vacation, right? Ask anyone who’s done it, though, and they say it’s nothing of the sort.

Being on the move, maintaining the boat, and doing all the “normal” stuff can be stressful. Cruising isn’t just cocktails at sunrise. It’s also going to the grocery store, fixing meals, cleaning, doing laundry, and preparing for the next day on the move. When are we supposed to have fun?

For Dave and me, three things really helped lessen the stress:

• Slowing down
• Preparing in advance
• Getting an early start

Admittedly, sometimes weather or other factors don’t make these possible. And sometimes we have several “in transit” days in a row. But as a general rule? Absolutely. These three things have made our cruising much more enjoyable.

Note that every option is related to lessening time pressure. For us, time was one of the biggest stressors, even more so than money. Finally, I’ll suggest a bonus tip at the end.

Slowing Down

Slowing down meant that we didn’t try to pack so much into each day that we became exhausted. If it took an extra day or two to do things in town at a reasonable pace – and enjoy the town – so be it. Working from sun up to sundown day after day is a sure recipe for hating the boat and hating cruising. Yes, some days it may be necessary. But not every day.

We learned that it’s equally counterproductive to run around madly trying to see the sights. It’s easy to get into the “check items off” mindset. We found it much better to either stay somewhere longer to see everything we want to at a pace that lets us enjoy what we’re seeing, or just admit that we can’t see or do everything and pick the things that most appealed to us.

If staying longer meant we missed “our” weather window, there would be another one. That’s one of the real advantages to cruising as a lifestyle and not just as a vacation.

We learned that starting out a trip – even just a 20-mile jump – with both of us well-rested meant that we were in a better mood, had fun on the journey, and did much better dealing with anything that came up along the way – weather, mechanical, or navigational issues.

Prepare in Advance

And that brings the second piece of advice: have everything on the boat ready the night before we intend to leave. Any bigger repairs or maintenance, we began working on shortly after we arrived somewhere. We also made sure to have it done at least a day before we planned to leave. Unless we were planning a very short next step, we tried hard not to have to do any “last morning” things ashore or need to pick something up. Knowing that everything was ready to go when we went to bed the night before, made us both a lot calmer.

And we tried not to leave too much for even the last day. Anything that could be done in advance, we did. Specifically, we fueled up several days in advance, plotted the route, and went over it together. Taking our time in planning and plotting the route also made for fewer errors and less stress. We did laundry and bought provisions/supplies. Then, the day before we left, I’d make any food we wanted to eat underway. Usually that meant breakfast bread or muffins and something for lunch. I’d also prep some fruit to eat underway while Dave did the engine checks. Then, together we’d top up the water tanks if necessary, put the dinghy engine on the stern rail, and hoist the dinghy (usually before dinner).

If there were any problems (once, the dinghy motor’s tilt lock caused the motor to tilt up just a couple inches every time we put it on the stern rail, causing the dinghy to rub), we had time to straighten things out without time pressure. Funny how it’s much easier to figure out a problem when you know you have time!

We were not up past midnight trying to hurriedly fix something . . . which could result in mistakes being made and also a distinct lack of sleep. We’re also not still trying to get ready in the morning . . . and seeing our desired departure time slipping by. And if the day-before prep revealed problems, we could decide to stay another day . . . or several.

Get An Early Start

Finally, within the confines of tides, bridge or lock openings and so on, we tried to leave as early as possible (assuming a one-day trip; overnight trips started later so that we arrive in daylight). On longer trips – 40 or 50 miles – we usually started pulling the anchor just before sunrise. On shorter trips we’d start just after breakfast.

Once again, giving ourselves plenty of time to reach our destination meant that if there was any problem, we’d have time to deal with it without risking coming into an anchorage or marina after dark. Maybe it was something like slowing down to let a squall pass in front of us. Perhaps it was a stronger-than-expected current slowing us down. More than once we had engine problems that forced us to sail in very light winds. If we weren’t stressing about time, we dealt with the issue much better and didn’t take chances.

Finally, I promised one last bonus tip.

You’re Not Alone

Many of us are drawn to the cruising life by a desire to be self-reliant, to enjoy our independence. That means it’s easy to think you need to figure out everything on your own. However, all of us learn, eventually, that cruising means learning from each other.

My desire to pass along many things I’ve learned (through research and from other cruisers) led me to start The Boat Galley website and offer a wide range of courses to help new and experienced cruisers make more of this amazing life. The Basics of Living on a Boat is an easy start for beginners. Get Ready to Cruise the Bahamas helps make that first big trip to the islands easier. And Provisioning and Food Storage offers tips for a coastal cruise or trip across the ocean. These are just a few options available in our All-Access Pass.

Taking advantage is just one more way of being prepared before you set off and helping you avoid stress.

After all, cruising is supposed to be fun!

Some links in this article (including all Amazon links) are affiliate links, meaning that we earn from qualifying purchases.