It seems that living aboard a houseboat in some places is difficult
because there aren't enough slips available. My question is, what
if I don't care if I'm near shore. Can I just drop anchor
someplace and then kayak to and from my boat?



I can't imagine that this is allowed, but how do I find out what the
regulations are? Can I drop anchor in the middle of San Francisco
bay and just live out there for years at a time? How about the
Charles River in Boston?



Of course utilities like electricity, water, and sewage will be more
difficult if I'm not connected to shore...but those problems can be
overcome.



I'm sure you can tell from my questions that I don't have any clue what
I'm talking about....but I'm hoping some of you can enlighten me.



Thanks.

Start by reviewing old posts. There are hundreds of them in several catagorys.

Thanks for your response. I used the search function, searching
for words in the body of messages in all categories. I did 6
seperate searchs, searching for the following words:



anchor

regulations

law

mooring

San Francisco

Boston



I did not come up with any messages that related to my question.
Do you have any suggestions for search terms I can use to find out
about regulations regarding living aboard boats that are anchored, not
docked, in places like San Francisco Bay and Boston Harbor?



Thanks for your help.

I am not exactly sure how serious you might be with your inquiry but even idle questions asked in curiosity can spark some interesting discussions. I know that you cannot just anchor anywhere indefinately, especially in a navigation channel. And the Corps of Engineers or even property owners with a view of your anchored boat might be able to cause you trouble. However, there are many places where mooring buoys are commonly used and people go ashore in tenders or dinghys. Catalina Island comes to mind, but you do pay a fee there. The coast of NEW England is loaded with mooring buoys. So why can't you just change your anchor point every few days so that you cannot be accused of just squatting on a spot? Of course you would burn a lot of fuel and eventually wear out a generator living 24/7 on a hook. And you would have to pump out on some regular schedule or else the swarms of catfish around your anchorage and the foul bacteria in the water would give you away. Remember, someone always owns that land under the water and you are subject to that intervention if you make a nuisance of yourself. Usually that owner is the government.   

To the Judge I thought it was a great question and I thought you came up with a great answer. You see I am very seious about living aboard a houseboat fulltime and you brought up things I had not thought about, like the catfish part. I do have a question that does kind of scare me though, I am serious about this. Do snakes get onboard the boat ?

Dolphin

In the East, at least, mooring buoys are put there for people who pay a fee to use them and keep their boat(s) moored there. It isn't considered good etiquette to simply tie up there without first getting permission from whomever has the rights to it. There are issues of damage to the securing lines, insurance, etc. Also, if the permit holder pulls up with his boat, wanting to tie up, and you're there, he ain't gonna be exactly happy to see you. Emergency cases are another thing - I doubt anybody'd cry too loudly if you were there for a day or so, with a dead engine. But to simply tie up and squat there, isn't going to make you any friends.

And, as has been noted earlier, there are pumpout issues for holding tanks, a means of refueling your genset, getting pure water aboard for drinking, showering, etc., a means of heating the boat during cold weather, doing laundry onboard, and a host of other concerns that need to be considered.

You'd be best advised to find somebody who is already doing it (if some such person [i]can be found) and learn from him/her.
Vic Willman38848.2791550926

Fact is, "WE" are being zoned, ruled, regulated & charged $$$, out of existence!
SO... It depends on how bad you want to liveaboard. Bad enough to move? bad enough to upgrade equipment (out tech the regs)? Bad enough to find loopholes and exploit them?
Here is an example; sewage. Years ago a simple holding tank was adequate, now there are tons of restrictions. Our solution was to buy a propane toilet. initiall cost was steep, daily operation is more, BUT, it solved a number of other issues. To us it was wirth it.
We also moved to a state that was more receptive to living on the water.
Where there's a will, there's a way.

Very few places left to live on the Hook. You can do it but you would have to move once a week, as you would be as the good judge pointed out reported to whoever enforced that type law in that area. Best thing would be to rent a place at someones pier or buy a small lot and get your electricity etc. Most navigable bodies of water you can use a type one or two MSD and not have to fool with a holding tank.