The boat rocked slightly throughout the night. Except for the squawking of the occasional seagull and the sporadic sound of a diesel generator firing on in one of the many boats in the marina, Tucker’s 28 foot Newport felt a lot like my camper. Tired from the days drive, I slept soundly in my down sleeping bag. The sun rose over the Oakland hill shortly before seven and illuminated the cabin. A small 12v fan circulated air as the fiberglass hull warmed up.
“Tucker…you up mon?”
“Good morninggg Vietnam!” He responded after a few groggy seconds.
“Ohh someone is a lil twwiired. Haha Lets get some coffee started in a few?”
“I’m up, I’m up,” Tucker replied.
Within minutes, the kettle was boiling on the electric hot plate in the cabin. Crawling out of my sleeping bag, I rotated around on my hip in the tight space of the ship’s birth and walked hunched over to the couch that converts into a full size bed. The quarters were tight, but certainly livable, at 6’3, I found the headroom a little low, but manageable. A few 12v air circulators kept the fresh air from the bay moving around. The space felt homey.
“This is great. I see why you’re so pumped on living in a boat. It’s just like a van, but more spacious.”
“It’s been one of the best decisions I’ve ever made.”
“Sure Seems like it.”
I first met Tucker 8 years ago when we were freshmen in college. We became fast friends and spent the majority of the next three years of college hanging out together. Tucker, a Maine native, came west for the first time with me two years ago on a road trip from Portland to San Francisco. A year later, he packed up his belongings into a van and moved out to Oakland. He now lives on his boat and works as a designer/carpenter and works out of his Astro van around the Bay Area. The low overhead afforded by living on a boat lets Tucker be selective with the kind of projects he works on as well as giving him the freedom to travel whenever he wants.
Tucker’s simple kitchen runs off of shore power 120v.
Opening up the hatch for some added headroom.
Succulents in the port window.
The same succulents, but viewed from the ship’s cabin.
Greg and Emily. They live one boat down on a 29 footer. Greg and Tucker are partners in a design build business called Perspective Design Build.
The V-Berth.
Tucker making coffee.
Tucker enjoying a breakfast burrito.
After half an hour of enjoying coffee and breakfast, I grabbed my sleeping bag and backpack and crawled out of Tucker’s boat onto the dock. At 7:40, the marina was still asleep, as we headed past a handful of other pleasure boats and live-aboards.
“This is a pretty crazy set up,” I said as we passed through the gate on onto dry land.
“Next time we’ll go for a sail around The Bay.”
“Deal. I’m baking Boatlife.”
Here are some more links,
