Floating bug out

[mongrel]

Just a thought, living as I do in the Scottish Highlands, all the towns are on the shore, all have small harbours. We have hundreds of sea lochs many with safe harbours. Given the cost of land and buildings compared to a small boat has anybody thought about a wee boat as a bug out?
Given you could pick up something nice for under £10,000 with cramp but liveable space, Islands a plenty to moor at inhabited or not, a stash could be placed anywhere round the coast.

Just a thought, strikes me as worth thinking about

What do you think?

[archer1958]

Good idea Mongrel and it is a natural defence

[Arzosah]

I love this idea! If I was going to be nomadic, this would be the way to go for me, rather than a vehicle - there'd be a lot of skills to learn, of course. I've started wondering about doing this anyway, to fund the gap between when I want to retire, and when my state pension will/might become available to me (if there's no total societal collapse, I mean!). Live on a boat, rent out my house ...

[simonB]

This is something on my 'to look at list'.

We have just started the ball rolling on moving house, for lots of reasons,
but ultimately if plans work out, we'll be 30 mins from the coast.

Doubt there will a lot in the budget for boats, and likely the only option for the foreseeable would be a basic and not 'normally habitable'.
Still, I'm convinced that this would be a massive boost for our options in a critical situation.
From fishing, to escaping hoarding mobs, but maybe most advantageous - being able to join up with other boaters who might have medical, communications and other things to share/trade.

My only regret is that I can't see us having the finances for anything that would get us to another country safely, should that be a desired path at the time.

[MickyP]

One good point is that you dont have to have the money to buy a boat to learn the skills to sail one. There are many good practical sailing courses that are run on a regular basis that are quite cheap. Once you gain some basic skills you will meet sailors at the clubs where you do your training and you will often be invited out on other peoples boats where you can get more practice.

By joining a club which isnt that expensive either you will also get the chance to use some of the clubs boats for pottering around on

[Lucky Jim]

I actually seriously looked into buying a small cabin cruiser to live in on the English river/canal system about 20 years ago but was put off because the Brit Waterways Board wouldn't allow people to permanently live on anything that isn't officially classed as a houseboat; so you'd have to buy something like a proper expensive residential canal barge, then buy a whopping great BWB annual residential licence on top, both of which were well out of my price range!
I considered getting round all that by buying a cheap little cabin cruiser and a relatively cheap compulsory 'pleasure boat' licence to go with it, then keeping on the move around the waterway system so as not to look like I was permanently living aboard moored in one spot.
But I realised I'd be forever looking over my shoulder like Butch and Sundance on the run from suspicious BWB inspectors demanding to see my licence, and i didn't want that hassle!
Also there would have been the hassle of electricity, where the heck would i have plugged in my TV, computer and got internet access?
This below was my dream, (but I'd have painted the boat a nice environmentally-blending dark green) then just moored in a nice spot a mile away from a pleasant little village and shop, moving on every few weeks to moor somewhere else.
Hey, in a SHTF world with no BWB posses around, I might yet end up in a boat..