That is a real beauty of a boat Irishguy.
As a relatively new bee keeper let me say that the best investment you can make is to join the local association. You will meet local beekeepers and invariably get a chance to visit an apiary and get stung! That was my first objective before buying anything because if you have a bad reaction to bee stings it's best to find out before investing in bees and hives etc.
It is always good to have other beekeepers you can contact or seek help from if you have a problem, i.e. one day you open up your hive and see something different and don't know if it is disease or something simple like chalk brood.
Even doing an artificial swarm is much easier done after watching an experienced beekeeper do it rather than trying to remember what you have read in a text book or seen on YouTube
Best advice I had was start with two hives, that way if one doesn't make it over winter at least you have something left for the next season, but the bit I wasn't aware of was that for every hive you really should have another ready to do swarm control
If you need to feed on beekeeping info now the best book I have read is "Guide to Bees & Honey" by Ted Hooper. I think most on here will regard it as a classic reference guide.
Good luck!
