New Member in Japan

[hosman]

Hi Members,

I've been living in Japan for about 15yrs and am just starting to put together plans to return to the US, with family (wife & 2 boys), after such a long time away. Destination still not 100% fixed, but a waterfront Cheasapeake lot is looking increasingly likely.

Part of the moving plans are to acquire a 28TE, a boat I've loved every since I first climbed on one here (there are a few in Japan!) several years ago.

Hope it's OK for a (technical) non-owner to participate, though I'm already one of you in spirit and plan to be one in fact as soon as I can. The more info I can gather in advance of the big purchase, the better!

Thanks to all of you in advance for all the great info and ideas on this site.

Hosman

[jcollins]

Hosman,
Welcome to the group! You don't have to own an Albin to hang around here. The transition back to Maryland will be a challenge I'm sure. Things have changed in Maryland in the past 15 years but then again they stay the same. The Chesapeake is still very beautiful and one of the largest bays in the country. The weather is the same, the names and faces in government have changed but the complaints are pretty much the same. The Governor in 1993 was Baltimore's own William Donald Shaeffer. Now it's Martin O'Malley. Since this is not a political forum I guess I'll keep my thoughts to myself.
We do have quite a few Chesapeake members and I'm sure others will jump in here and offer any help we can.

Did you boat in Japan? If so, let us know what it's like.

[hosman]

Thanks for the greeting, jcollins.

Boating in Japan? Yes, I've done a fair amount--my Japanese father-in-law has a sadly underused boat (26ft Yamaha) he keeps at Hayama, just south of Tokyo on the Sagami Bay (you may want to pull out a map at this point!) that I use when I have the time, though not nearly as much as I'd like due to a heavy work and travel schedule.

I also fish when I get the chance with friends in Tokyo bay (for Japanese sea bass) and off the coast of Chiba prefecture (mostly for yellowtail and hirame, a Japanese flounder).

Salt water, fresh air and fish are generally enough to keep me happy, so I shouldn't complain too much about boating here, but it is expensive (fuel is more than double the US cost; and the dry-storage runs about 18k/yr, so you can imagine what a fully equipped slip would cost), marinas can get extremely crowded (and be a nightmare to navigate on a sunny weekend when the wind is up), and traffic to-from the boating experience can test your nerves and waste precious time.

What can you expect, I guess, living in a city of 30 million people?

Japan's rocky coastline and crowds also mean that there are really no secluded estuaries or quiet inlets where one can anchor and fish, soak up the sun, much less overnight, in idyllic solitude.

Basically, boating in Japan is a pretty far cry from boating on the east coast of the US.

[Mariner]

Too many people...
Minimal destinations aside from deep-sea fishing...
Expensive moorage...
Horendous traffic...

...Sounds like boating in Southern California!