Provisioning List: If you don't have it, you Can't eat it.

[Adam]

We had a very low energy budget... basically just LED reading lights and 12v fans (when necessary)... and we ran the engine for an hour or so every few days... house battery was a bank of two regular gel-cell batteries..

Water wasn't a problem, but we never filled more than a few gallons at a time.. otherwise, I think they charged $.10/gallon... gas was easy to find, not so sure about diesel...  take along as much gas as you can though, it was about double the price, everything else was about 30% higher...

[hearsejr]

 I still think the $.10 a gal. is still a decent price considering the price of things.
Pixy Dust, I was thinking you were a west coaster. lol.
I think we need to load up and go raid Adam's refridge, and eat all his left overs and drink all his beer.. lol.
BILL

[Pixie Dust]

Nooo Bill, I am a FL gal.  I agree. $.10/gal.  great price.  My little girl holds 50 gal of water but only 10 of diesal and I carry 2 - 5 gal cans.  In the process of deciding whether to modify this or carry more cans.   
I am pretty energy efficient too.  I just got a 125 watt solar panel.. in process of figuring out mounting technique.  I currently have 2 deep cycle battery bank, but will increase to 2 batteries soon, 2 house, 1 starter.    That should work for my needs.  I am pretty easy going on the energy draw.

[hearsejr]

 I need to consider a solar cell charger. I want to go with a wind generator, solarcell, mini gas powered generator, grill, multi fuel stove, 6-8 6VDC golfcart batteries set up in 2 banks. that way I could use the gas powered generator to charge the batteries when there is no wind, or for emergencies. I figure with the multi fuel stove, and the grill, I can cook most anything, and the preasure cooker will really open up my options.
  now if I could find out what time Pixie will have dinner ready.....lololololololol

[CharlieJ]

I'll agree with the solar power- solar panels are really the way to go on smaller boats. Winbd generators aren't nearly as friewndly aboard our ( as we choose to call them) small cruisers. I had a wind generator on the mizzen mast of my tri- worked fine. BUT, onboard our Meridian 25, there just is NO place to put one, without hanging a whole bunch of poop off the stern. That I refuse to do. Also, a barbque on the stern rail is fine IF you are jusdt sailing local or short coastal trips, DON'T plan for one one the rail should you go offshore on a longer trip- sooner or later it'll get ripped off of there. Just too vulnerable sticking out affrt like that.

Likewise the cooking in the cockpit - that's a wonderful thing to do and we love to do so- but offshore, shou,d you get into some slightly heavier weather it ain't gonna happen. If you plan to cruise the boat, you NEED someplacve below where you can safely prepare hot meals in whatever seastate you find yourself, even if that meal is just a bowl of soup.

One more little bone- those batteries are sure HEAVY- make sure you have  a boat large enough to carry them before you plan for them. Remember- every pound of "stuff" you shove aboard as part of the "needed" gear, is a pound LESS water and food you can tote.

[hearsejr]

 yeah I figured to lose a little weight to the batteries, but I'll be single handed so that gives me a little leeway.  I'll have a single burner prapane stove that uses a tiney green bottle, but that will be my back only. thanks for the tips about the grill.  would they be ok for extended island hopping? I hate to have to remove it for every little jump. I plan on moving only when the weather is good, other wise I'll just stay around the island. as far as I know I will have plenty of room for supplies. if I take the bucc, I know I will have plenty of space, but I was looking at a seafarer 26, that's not quit as roomy, and I don't have a clue about the space on it. ofcourse it's priced right. lol.
Bill

[CharlieJ]

lol- only the offshore jump and the weather can determine that.

Personally any time I go offshore on any passage I want the boat ready for whatever. So if it were me I'd stow something like a grill down below for any passage. Little thunderstorms can kick your butt with little or no warning- doesn't have to be a BIG storm.

[hearsejr]

oh yeah I figured that if the weather starts turning, I'll clean it and stow it in the cabin. the little single burner thing will need to be modified with a spring to keep the pot from sliding off during the rough weather, but I don't like to cook during rough weather anyway.
  I found a 12 V.D.C. coffe maker so on those stormy nights, I could be happy with a hot bowl of water and some noodles. lol. there the best meal you can get on a cold day in rough water. and they are 5 for $1 here. you can get get beef, chicken, or shrimp flavored.
Bill

[skylark]

Does anyone have a shopping list that they use to get the boat ready for a trip?  I am curious about what others choose to eat and how they deal with storage and lack of refrigeration (if that applies to your boat).

As an example, assume that you found out this morning that some previous plans fell through, and you can now take a month to go sailing. Your boat is maintained in good condition, and the boat itself is ready to go, but there are no consumable items on board.  You have one day to put together what you need to spend 30 days on board.  Note that you can stop in harbors and shop for more if you need it, however you will be sailing through some remote areas with no stores or services.  The weather looks perfect tomorrow, your goal is to have the sails up with the morning wind.

Post your list here.  It can be a shopping list, or a checklist of things to do before you take off tomorrow.  The list can be general or it can be as detailed as you have time for.

[skylark]

Here is my first crack at it:

Fill gas tank (6 gallons)
2 – 5 gallon cans of gas
2 gallons mineral spirits (stove and lamps)
2 quarts alcohol (primer)

Fill water tanks
5 cases bottled water (3 or 4 bottles a day)
2 cases beer

2 cans of coffee
coffee filters
tea

10lb apples
5lb potatoes
2 bags carrots
2 bags onions
3 cabbage
6 red peppers
6 tomatoes
dried mushrooms
5lb instant brown rice
5lb raisins
5lb sunflower seeds
5lb rolled oats
3lbs split peas
3lbs navy beans
dried milk
5lb whole wheat flour
instant potatoes (add to soup)
2lb jerky
15 cans soup and stews, assorted
10 cans green beans
2 small pork loins (salted and/or smoked if possible)
8 boxes wheat thins type crackers
4 gouda cheese wax covered
yeast
herbs
salt, spices
brown sugar
olive oil

dish soap
shampoo (also use for washing clothes)
toilet paper
toiletry kit
first aid kit

Here is the general theory of cooking: for breakfast, mix rolled oats, sunflower seeds and raisins, and eat with coffee (this has been my daily breakfast for many years).  For lunch, pea soup or bean soup including carrots, cabbage and onions.  If i have time to make biscuits or bread, all the better. For dinner, many days would be canned soup or stew heated up with instant potatoes added.  Other days would be rice and beans or leftover soup. Snacks are apples, crackers, jerky and cheese.  The pork loins are for special occasions.  Some of the amounts listed are in excess of what is needed, a lot of the amounts are just convenient package sizes to take advantage of bulk food prices.

[Bubba the Pirate]

Nice List! 

There is a good list at www.atomvoyages.com on their recipe and provisioning page.  Similar. 

I hope I will be putting some of both these lists to work next month!


TrT

[Godot]

That's as good a list as any I can think of off the top of my head.  The truth is, if the situation you describe happened to me, I'd be running down the supermarket aisles throwing stuff into a cart until it looked like I had enough for a week or so and then leave, figuring out what I really need on the way.  You did say that I'm allowed to stop, right?  The problem as I see it is that it is way too easy to overplan, and with a one day warning that is barely enough time to get basic stores stowed and everything ready to move.  My laid back plan usually works ok.  I just hope I don't forget the toilet paper.

Oh, which brings me to one of the stores I rarely see mentioned; but which I have been happy to have on my much shorter cruises.... Baby wipes.  They're not just for babies, you know!  When hands and face are dry and salt encrusted they are mahvelous.  The aloe moistened ones feel nice on a sunburn.  And when your bottom gets sore from sitting on a damp cushion (or no cushion) all day long, they are a small piece of heaven when used for their intended purpose. 

Outside of that, throw in an ample supply of sunscreen, replace the beer with gatoraide or similar (not that I'm against beer, it just qualifies as a treat, not basic stores, for me), swap hot chocolate for the coffee, and butane for the mineral spirits, and I think it would get me going.

Actually,  I usually have enough stores on the boat for three or four days at any one time; so I could probably just take off and figure it out later.  I got in this habit after a day sail unexpectedly turned into a full weekend on Narragansett Bay one year.  I got a little hungry.

[Lynx]

Do you have a frig?

If you only have one day to shop you will have to rely on what is in the local stores. Without a BIG frig, that means dried or caned. One would hope that you have already tried some cooking on board.

To be happy, Make a list of what you are eating now and like. Find it in dried or cans.

Min space is 90 - 16oz cans and 30+ gal's of water plus cooking fuel.  About 500 pounds. For one person.

[AdriftAtSea]

If you're planning on going on a longer trip...one thing that is a godsend, and I got one for Christmas...is a vacuum sealer.  Not only can you pre-cook meals and then vacuum seal them for fast, easy preparation...provided you have refrigeation.... it is very useful for sealing up perishable supplies...like toilet paper. 

One of my friends used one to vacuum seal toilet paper, among other things, for an Atlantic crossing she did after removing the core tubes... that way she had dry TP all the way across. :D  I've used it for packaging batteries, emergency electronics and batteries, and a dozen other things.  The main issue you may have is size... the size of the vacuum sealing rolls isn't all that large...

[Captain Smollett]

A poor man's vacuum sealer is the ziploc bag.  In the old hard-core backpacking days, we packed just about everything in them.  You can squeeze all the air out pretty tight; if you do this in a warm room and use them in cooler weather, they are vacuum sealed.   :)

We never did it with precooked foods, though, as carrying a refrigerator on one's back is less than fun, not to mention there was generally nowhere in which to plug it.   ;)

[CharlieJ]

ALL the zip locks we've used lately will leak air. Maybe the older ones were better, but don't try keeping liquids in one now a days.

We also use a vacumn sealer. Laura even seals spare sheets and pillow cases in those and they DO stay dry.  Sweaters ,etc can be sealed in during summer time. Or even during winter if they aren't being used. Takes up LOTS less space that way.

Spark plugs, oil filters, things like that are great vacumn sealed

I know of many cruising boats that carry one for use while at the dock.

We don't usually use them for meals, since we don't usually have food on ice. The only exception is at the start of a longer cruise- we'll make up some meals, freeze them then bag them. The vacumn seal bags then work as boiling bags- no mess. Those we have the first couple of days out.

They will keep extra flour, rice, what have you, dry and safe from bugs also.

[AdriftAtSea]

One other thing I think the vacuum sealer would be really good for.  Dehydrated veggies... the big problem with dehydrated veggies is moisture contamination... and this would allow you to separate dehydrated veggies into smaller, managable portions, and prevent an accident from wiping out a sizeable portion of your food stores.

[Frank]

Folger's 'coffee bags'...cinnomin/apple oatmeal mix and small boxsf raisins.......start the day off right !!

[s/v Faith]

ALL the zip locks we've used lately will leak air. Maybe the older ones were better, but don't try keeping liquids in one now a days.

Yes!

  It seems to me that ziplock bags on a boat (mine at least) ATTRACT moisture!  I have had a couple of occasions where I had things in various types of zpilock bags collect moisture.(I used to buy the freezer bags, but tried a couple of those ziplock bags with the zipper).

  I had a cheap 400w inverter in a locker with no higher moisture then the rest of the boat collect 1/2" of water in teh bottom ???

  I like the vacuum sealer, and plan to take it with me.

[Sonnie]

Also gotta have:
Peanut butter
Honey (Top Quality)
Balsamic/Red wine/white wine vinegar - Just mix any of these w extra virgin for nice dressing
Canned smoked oysters
Whole wheat pasta
Bottle of nice single malt
Small boxes of wine - Don't know if you guys down south got em, but here in CAN you can buy three-packs of 250ml boxes of wine. The adult juice box - Nice when you don't have company and don't wanna pound a full bottle to yourself!

Cheers!