Yo Steve.....when were you at the NAB marina??? We lived at slip F=18
for three years.
On Sun, 15 Feb 2004 13:09:39 -0800, "Steve" wrote:

NewPort where??

Different rules in different locations.

Often times the moorings belong to the port authority.. Or a mooring may
only put down with the permission and at the direction of the port
authority.. Once down this authority may maintain jurisdiction over it.

I don't think there is any area in the US left where you can just put a
mooring down without a permit.. Otherwise the coves and waterways would be
clogged with mooring (seems that way already in some areas)..

In some of the more popular areas (Catalina Is. ) the mooring are owned and
maintained by private sailing/cruising or yacht club. The port capt. has
authority to assign them to individuals if there not scheduled for club use.

If you find a mooring forsale, verify that the seller has the right to sell
it or can even convy ownership to you.. Often times this has to be approved
by the port authority that permited the mooring.. And if it's a popular
area, the port authority may have a waiting list for the next mooring for
sale.. (SanDiego Harbor use to be that way with private moorings) As a rule
mooring stay under family ownership for generations..

Once you find a mooring legitimately for sale, then you can start asking
about public docks where you can land and keep you dingy.. If the mooring
field is a publicly owned mooring field, then they usually have a dingy dock
and a parking lot.. In San Diego harbor, there is a dingy dock but the
parking is metered.. However, in the few areas where there are private
moorings, the shoreline is 100% privately owned and you will never get
permission to land your dingy cross their property..

Doesn't sound encouraging and it isn't. I lived on a mooring at a US Navy
marina in SD and really enjoyed it. At that time they had a dingy dock and
other than it being a wet ride in the morning, there was no problem..
However that marina is now under new jurisdiction and no one is allowed to
live onboard at the moorings. In fact they have totally eliminated the dingy
dock and those who have a boat on the moorings now must remove their dingys
from the water each time they land and pay for dingy dry storage on the
docks.

The public preception of living aboard at a mooring or at anchor is that
you will be dumping your sewage overboard (and it happens).. Liveaboards at
the dock have easy and free access to the shoreside heads or porta potty
dumps. From my personal experience, I came into the dock about once a week
and pumped out (matter or record) however there were another half dozen
mooring liveaboard who never pumped out and claimed they always used the
shoreside facilities (yah, right!).

So the biggest draw back, once you find a mooring, will be dingy access,
parking, holding tank pumpout and the public perception that you a bum and
live on a boat so you can smoke your pot unmolested..


--
My opinion and experience. FWIW

Steve
s/v Good Intentions