There is a group of intrepid people that have shed the shackles of regular life "the Rat Race" in favor of a nomadic lifestyle, crossing oceans and exploring far-flung less traveled places. In the search for inspiration to embark on my own escape, I discovered several Youtube channels where they share the good, the bad, and the ugly of life at sea.
The adventure for many has been years in the making, prior to the big escape, they worked regular jobs, some while fixing their dream boat in preparation for bluewater cruising. The budgets vary greatly also depending on their individual financial abilities, and it is important to note a common trait amongst all these adventurous souls, is that they develop an instinct to manage their budgets and where required they muck in and do the hard work themselves.
These nomadic sailors have taken many paths that lead to the ultimate escape, it is certainly not easy for many but well worth the reward at the end of the day when they reach a secluded anchorage at an island that has seen few tourists or indeed in some cases very few outsiders if any. I have seen some that had zero sailing experience but took on the challenge and learned the hard way along their journey, others have gone to a sailing school and completed the required offshore courses to get certified, prior to setting sail - a more logical strategy.
Make no mistake taking your home on the open ocean is a full-time job, with constant maintenance and repairs required as mother nature is harsh and can batter a yacht and shake, rattle and roll all sorts of equipment onboard. Bluewater cruising offshore can be an unforgiving environment, one that will test every fiber of your being, however, one can argue that the rewards far outweigh the hardships.
So in no particular order here are the channels:
La Vagabonde:
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCZdQjaSoLjIzFnWsDQOv4ww
Sailing Sunday:
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCLtDhypFkM-GHg7AOiW7Qfw
Parlay Revival:
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCYrqanbSklKodK2Onpt6KgA
Millennial Falcon:
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC-e4fYEUg2tVQ0NGL9oD1RQ
Sailing Magic Carpet:
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCF4xKWRRSuOo4pkOgn91Tdg
Sailing Doodles:
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCkDwexrF43p_1QurfKFBCBA
SV Delos:
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCkDwexrF43p_1QurfKFBCBA
Sailing Uma:
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCXbWsGV_cjG3gOsSnNJPVlg
Captain Rick Moore:
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCIcsyW5rnZofseMdrJUKMhQ
Sailing into Freedom:
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCDk8eedXBE7Ohnxoa8vilFw
There are of course many sailing channels on youtube and they cover just about every aspect of sailing and the nomadic lifestyle on the open ocean, there are some that are somewhat boring or lack personality or that special "je ne sais quoi" as mine would probably be if I had a youtube channel, lol - anyway you might not find them all as entertaining as I do, however, each channel has its merits and will appeal to a wide variety of people, just find the ones that you find genuinely engaging/interesting and set your virtual sails on course for a corona binge-watching session. In my humble opinion, these are some of the best on the web.
So as I leave you to discover this alternative lifestyle, I wish your all Fair Winds as the sailors say...
Thanks for engaging and please leave a comment and a thumbs up, if you love this post and have an interest in sailing in general.