Provisioning is where a great cruise is won or lost before you ever cast off. Run out of fresh water on day three or realize you’ve got no coffee at anchor a long way from a dock, and the whole mood of the trip changes. A little planning up front means you spend the cruise enjoying the water instead of rationing it.
Start with water, because it’s the one thing you can’t improvise. Figure roughly a gallon per person per day for drinking and cooking as a planning baseline, then add a healthy margin — more in hot weather, more if anyone aboard is very active. Know your tank capacity, top off completely before you leave, and carry backup jugs. If you’ve got a watermaker, great, but plan as if it might quit. Water is non-negotiable.
Food: plan your meals by day before you shop, not the other way around. Lean on things that keep without much refrigeration for the back half of the trip — canned and dry goods, hard cheeses, cured meats, eggs (which last longer than people think), sturdy vegetables like cabbage, carrots, and onions. Eat your most perishable, best stuff first while it’s fresh, and let the shelf-stable provisions carry you home. Pack a few easy one-pot meals for rough days when nobody wants to cook a feast in a pitching galley.
Fuel is the third leg. Calculate your range honestly at cruising speed, know where the fuel stops are along your route and their hours, and never plan to arrive on fumes. The old delivery-Captain rule is a thirds: a third of your fuel to go out, a third to get back, and a third in reserve. Adjust for headwinds, current, and any side trips.
Don’t forget the unglamorous essentials: a stocked first-aid kit, any prescriptions in surplus, sunscreen, seasickness remedies, spare batteries, a real paper chart as backup, basic spares and tools, and enough trash storage to carry out everything you carry in.
Training & safety note: File a float plan with someone reliable ashore before you leave — where you’re going, your route, who’s aboard, and when you expect to be back — and a way for them to raise the alarm if you don’t check in. Carry and know how to use your safety gear (life jackets for everyone, signaling devices, VHF), and check the marine forecast for your whole window, not just departure day. Provisioning isn’t just about comfort; running out of water, fuel, or daylight is how comfortable cruises turn into emergencies.
Plan the boring stuff well and the fun stuff takes care of itself.
By The Saltwater Insider Crew
See you on the water.