New Member from AK

Hello All,

Just joined your forum a few days ago. I have pulled out some useful info from your discussions in the past and wanted to have full access.

My wife Ashley and I live in Alaska and have been looking around for the right Willard to buy for the last year or so. It was through this search that I first became aware of this forum. We have a few boats in our sights but haven't got the indication that things are right yet. Once we pull the trigger I'm sure I will be here on a regular basis getting some advise from all the old salts that seam to comment.

Be well,


Tamar Young

Welcome and enjoy the forum! I too am partial to Willard boats.

tamaryoung said:

Hello All,

Just joined your forum a few days ago. I have pulled out some useful info from your discussions in the past and wanted to have full access.

My wife Ashley and I live in Alaska and have been looking around for the right Willard to buy for the last year or so. It was through this search that I first became aware of this forum. We have a few boats in our sights but haven't got the indication that things are right yet. Once we pull the trigger I'm sure I will be here on a regular basis getting some advise from all the old salts that seam to comment.

Be well,


Tamar Young

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What part of AK? I am home based out of Wrangell.

Welcome aboard.

I grew up in Port Alexander. I work seasonally out of Fairbanks as I smokejumper. Its a 6 month commitment that ends in September. I dive cucumbers in the fall all over SE and then spend deep winter in Port Alexander and Hyder AK.

You will have seen the Willard that travels between Thorne Bay and Puget, on Craigslist. Don’t know anything about her other than she looks good in photos. One of the smaller 30 pilot houses.

Welcome, I made a trip from KTN to Port Alex a couple of summers
ago, had a nice stay.

Alaskaflyer, Thanks for the heads up, I did see that and just spoke with the owner a few days ago, Hes 81 has traveled all over on that vessel and is sharp as a tack.

Welcome aboard from the Gulf Coast, Tamar. Wish I had your weather right now!

Welcome---
I was a jumper in SF years ago--- had a friend from Oregon who started smoke jumping when he got out---long time ago--
How many jumps total???

tamaryoung said:

I grew up in Port Alexander. I work seasonally out of Fairbanks as I smokejumper. Its a 6 month commitment that ends in September....

Click to expand...

Had to search "smokejumper". We call them "remote area firefighters", 2 years back they were helicoptered in to protect surviving prehistoric wollemi pine trees. Like commandos fighting behind enemy lines.

tamaryoung said:

I grew up in Port Alexander. I work seasonally out of Fairbanks as I smokejumper. Its a 6 month commitment that ends in September. I dive cucumbers in the fall all over SE and then spend deep winter in Port Alexander and Hyder AK.

Click to expand...

I think we know each other, I fished our of PA for many summers in the 90's. friends with Molly Pete and Sue, etc.

new member from AK

Hi, I just joined this site and not only don't know what I am doing but need my Grand Kids to assist since I am a Grumpy old man who doesn't do the computer well. We have cruised the Pacific N/W and S.E. AK for years on a fine 53' Nordlund which has taken us from San Francisco to Skagway and she is now for sale.. Glad to have found the Forum.. believe we will enjoy it.

Welcome to TF, and good luck with your sale.

Thanks...I will try to add a pic of our "CAMAI" soon.

tamaryoung said:

I grew up in Port Alexander. I work seasonally out of Fairbanks as I smokejumper. Its a 6 month commitment that ends in September. I dive cucumbers in the fall all over SE and then spend deep winter in Port Alexander and Hyder AK.

Click to expand...

nice, i was born and raised in sitka, fished all over se with my family. i miss those days, such a simple time.

Pete and Sue still spend the summers there and Molly has two kids and lives full time. PA would still be about the same if you came back for a visit.

Welcome. I keep a 34' C&C in Thomas Basin Ketchikan for summer and a 52 ft Ocean Alexander in the Sea of Cortez for winter.

movinon said:

Hi, I just joined this site and not only don't know what I am doing but need my Grand Kids to assist since I am a Grumpy old man who doesn't do the computer well. We have cruised the Pacific N/W and S.E. AK for years on a fine 53' Nordlund which has taken us from San Francisco to Skagway and she is now for sale.. Glad to have found the Forum.. believe we will enjoy it.

Click to expand...

Interested in learning more about Camai. We are in the market and actively looking now in the PNW.

movinon said:

Hi, I just joined this site and not only don't know what I am doing but need my Grand Kids to assist since I am a Grumpy old man who doesn't do the computer well. We have cruised the Pacific N/W and S.E. AK for years on a fine 53' Nordlund which has taken us from San Francisco to Skagway and she is now for sale.. Glad to have found the Forum.. believe we will enjoy it.

Click to expand...

You don't know what you're doing? That's a good one with your background.:lol:

I just spoke to the poster called Movinon on the phone. Or more accurately his wife. The boat sold quickly. Too bad for me but great for someone.

Welcome aboard! Be sure to join the Willard owners group as well, there is a lot of information there and owners often post their boat there for sale before advertising them or going to a broker. Love my Willard

Hello Tanmar,
Alaskan here .. Eric. Born Juneau (39) worked at placer dredging in Western Alaska in Goodnews Bay and Nyac both near Bethel. Lived in Anchorage one winter .. returning to Juneau. After a few years moving so. to Wash. Then back to Juneau. Then Bancouver BC, New Westminister and then Massset both BC. Now we’re in Concrete (solid community).

Why do you want a Willard? The one time we tried to go somewhere and couldn't do it was from Coffman Cove to Petersburg. The tide and daylight hours wouldn’t allow a daytime passage. Have you ever seen the nav-lights in Wrangle Narrows at night? Rode out a gale and went back to Thorne Bay. Not enough daylight in winter to go very far at 6 knots.
If you had a boat twice as fast much more could be done.

I really loved my Willard but 6 knots is slow. But the above event was the only time Willy (the boat) wouldn’t deliver. My first rec-trawler was an Albin 25. She’d cruise at 8.5 knots. Just that little bit of extra speed would have delivered us safely to Petersburg. Most other rec-trawlers could have too.
As to seaworthyness I have no complaints …. just stay 25 degrees from parallel to seas and a W30 will deliver.

My favorite rec-trawler would be the 32 NT, 32 GB or comparable boat. Honestly I was considering getting a longer boat before we left Alaska. The combination of a bit longer length and a SD hull gets you up to about 8.5 knots w reasonable fuel burn. You’ll notice sooner or later “fuel burn” is probably the most often talked about topic on TF.

Here are pics of our W30. I would rather have had a Voyager but the aft cockpit is quite small. However living space is much better.

Eric

NT32's idle at 6 knots at 1 gph, if you want to troll you will need to do something about that. They are capable of going much faster if speed in transit is what you're looking for.

My Willard is the fish catching'est boat I ever owned, trolls down to just under two knots and tops out at 7 knots at 1 gph. With my 150 gallon fuel tank, that's 1000 miles of range, and you never even wonder about fuel if you top it off when you do your 150 hour oil changes.

The swim platform on a NT is nice, but the stern and platform makes the boat handle very poorly in a following sea. I spent quite a bit of time on my friends NT32, so I can testify to that!

No such thing as a perfect boat, but I adore my boat!