Costs of Cruising the Sea of Cortez – November 2017
I had decided I’m just going to be at peace with our budget, because it is what it is… until I actually sat down and looked at the November numbers. Arg.
As he always does when I get frustrated with our spending, Rich pointed out all the one-offs we had this month: $1200 for that camera we ordered 2 years ago that just this month shipped; new annual insurance, paid all at once; the fact that Cabo San Lucas is really quite expensive, and we spent an entire week there recuperating from the Ha-Ha; and a $2K prepayment on yard work we’re getting done in December, which will include sanding and repainting the bottom. Just like last month, it’s true that these are all one-offs, but as I mentioned in last month’s budget post, there’s always one-offs. When the one-offs throw off your budget every single month, you have to just admit they’re regulars, not one-offs, right?
So, here’s the budget report, one-offs and all:
| Item | Amount | Notes |
| House/Car Carrying Costs – Net Gain | $ 495.59 | Rental income, less costs for storage with Clutter, HOA dues, property taxes, and insurance. |
| Bank Fees | $ 48.22 | Wells Fargo refunds these for us each month, so this is the net of the new charges this month, plus whatever was refunded to us for the prior month. |
| Cloud Data Storage/Backups | $ 9.99 | iCloud storage. |
| Cord Blood Storage | $ – | Annual cost of $250, paid in August each year. Can’t figure out if I should cancel this. |
| Computer/Phone Upgrades | $ 44.91 | I got my phone on a payment plan. It seemed like a good idea at the time, but I’m not sure I’d do it that way again. |
| Discount Memberships | $ – | |
| Gifts | $ 49.55 | We just *had* to purchase a few copies of our Squid Roe photo! |
| Vacation | $ 1,510.00 | Annual payment for our timeshare. |
| Babysitting | $ 78.00 | We got another kid boat with older kids to babysit while we went to the Baja Ha-Ha party. |
| Software | $ 175.87 | Yoga app, and a photography app for our blog photos. |
| Boat Payment | $ 1,088.94 | Purchased in 2014 with a 20-year mortgage. |
| Vessel Insurance | $ 2,303.15 | This went up $1,000 annually when we added Mexico to our coverage. |
| Mexico Liability Insurance | $ – | Mexican marinas require a special policy issued by a Mexican insurer. For us, it was only about $300 for one year. |
| Life Insurance | $ 200.40 | |
| Health Insurance | $ 645.00 | As soon as I get good enough internet, we’re switching to an international plan that’s closer to $200/month. The expensive plan was necessary while we were still in the US, to provide US coverage. The cheaper international plan provides only limited coverage in the US. |
| Customs/Immigration/Port Agent Fees | $ 388.05 | Doesn’t include our TIP. |
| Prescriptions | $ – | |
| Boat Licensing | $ – | |
| Guest Moorage | $ 875.08 | The marina in Cabo was expensive! |
| Fuel | $ 166.00 | The one number I’m happy with. |
| Groceries | $ 471.59 | I lied, I’m happy with two numbers. |
| Medical Supplies | $ – | |
| Clothing | $ 125.65 | The girls and I needed new swimsuits. |
| Laundry | $ 62.00 | Laundry service prevails in Mexico, so we didn’t do self-serve laundromats. |
| Haircuts | $ 50.00 | Got the girls’ hair braided by a beach vendor. It’s a great way to save hair brushing fights and tears when the girls are swimming and in the wind so often. |
| Tools | $ – | |
| Galley Equipment | $ – | |
| Rigging/Deck | $ – | |
| Cabin Comfort | $ 49.36 | Christmas decorations! |
| Maintenance/ Improvement | $ 2,716.34 | $2000 deposit on new bottom paint when we get to Loreto; $200 for a boat wash in Cabo; $250 for a new joystick for the bow thruster to replace the one that broke; $50 for spare blades for the drone; $75 for an anti-siphon valve to try and fix the “the aft toilet doesn’t flush while underway” problem; and miscellaneous other parts. |
| Electronics | $ 1,150.00 | The fancypants new camera we ordered two years ago. |
| Electrical | $ 111.60 | New fan and wire to try and fix the alternator problem. |
| Safety Equipment | $ – | |
| Airfare | $ – | |
| Postage & Shipping | $ – | |
| Land Transportation | $ 113.62 | Lots of cabs required in Cabo. |
| Restaurants | $ 2,494.88 | Lots of really good restaurants, too. Plus, we were so busy with boat, Baja Ha-Ha, school, and other jobs that I wasn’t able to go grocery shopping for an entire week, so we had to eat out. |
| Coffee Shops | $ – | |
| Fishing Supplies | $ 134.40 | Mexico fishing licenses. |
| Activities & Excursions | $ – | |
| Kids’ Toys & Crafts | $ 8.79 | Morgan earned another Kidz Bop album by powering through her schoolwork several days in a row. |
| Charts & Guides | $ 76.99 | Purchased Mexico charts for my iPad. |
| Media & Entertainment | $ 19.78 | Monthly Nexflix subscription, and an album for the girls. |
| Educational Materials | $ 5.49 | Epic! subscription. |
| Delorme InReach | $ 60.38 | LOVE the unlimited text messaging on this! |
| Farkwar | $ – | |
| Internet | $ 6.00 | Wifi in various places in Cabo. |
| Cell Phone Service | $ 185.45 | |
| Satellite Phone | $ 167.77 | During our offshore passage, one of the crew needed to use the satphone a bunch, so we incurred overages. Normally this is $69/month. |
| Rallies and Clubs | $ 20.00 | We joined Club Cruceros when we arrived in La Paz. It wasn’t required, but I felt bad using their morning net and other resources without joining. |
| TOTAL EXPENDITURES | $ 16,108.84 |
When we started, we’d set up what we thought was a very conservative budget of $10K/month. If the current trend continues, though, we’re up to $15K/month average. So, what does that give us for the future? Less than 12 more months! I take solace in the fact that we’re enjoying the heck out of it, and not having to worry too much about money admittedly makes it more enjoyable.
