Hey! New to the Forum

[RumbleFish]

Hello! Long time sailor here and now without a boat for the first time since forever... the trimaran we had just got to be a bit much – too wet, too spartan, too exhausting. Sold it off about a month ago. We're in our mid 70s now. So I'm in the hunt for a small trawler. I particularly like the looks and idea of the Willard 30s. Also looking at things from the Albin 27 up to the Eagle 32. The Nimble Wanderer 32 seems interesting. Why are all the best and most interesting boats at least a 1000 miles away LOL ? I want to cruise in the mid and lower Chesapeake Bay (home waters) some ICW and maybe even cross from West Palm to the Bahamas. Thanks for this wonderful resource! Hope to see you out there. Van

 

[Comodave]

Welcome aboard. Boats are far away many times. We have done as long as 45 days bringing one home and 20+ days on a different boat. But the good news about the smaller boats is over the road transport to bring it home. Good luck.

 

[Gdavid]

Welcome aboard. If you are looking for a project, there is a free Willard 36 being offered up in Solomons, MD. Not too far from you but sounds like it needs an entire refit. I have no affiliation, just happened to see it listed on Facebook this morning.

 

[RumbleFish]

Yes I saw that 36 listing too. Wow, so tempting! I have done that before and I wrote a letter to myself about 8 years later that I would not do that again. Even though I totally enjoy the process and have the time and money and skill (mostly) – the rare trifecta that eludes most younger fellows – at this point I just want to be out on the water with my girl and not in my shop, so am looking for turnkey or near to. But that kind of mention is exactly what's so helpful about this forum. Thank you Gdavid. Van

 

[Frosty]

Welcome!

Why are all the best and most interesting boats at least a 1000 miles away LOL ?

It's a rule.

 

[SteveK]

Welcome. I can see a similarity in the boats of interest to you.
They are all far away? I was wondering if those boats are seen in marinas near you but not for sale at this time. Just wondering if there is a different style preference in your area.
My visit to the east coast Canada, I was surprised not to see familiar boats. Do each areas gather certain brands or models?

 

[RumbleFish]

I really don't know how it works but suspect simple logistics is part of it. The Willards were made in California and most of them are on the west coast. I have looked into moving one across country and it's a pretty significant expense. Thus, they stay local, or move on their own bottom. But I really don't know and am curious about this myself. It may have cost less 40 years ago to truck one across country...? There is a partial registry on the Willard Owners site. I wonder if anyone has done a sort of distribution graphic. It seems like the Pacific NW has all the boats I really admire.

 

[SteveK]

Yes that is what I was thinking. And we host many boats here for long distance owners.

 

[Carriem1102]

Hello! Long time sailor here and now without a boat for the first time since forever... the trimaran we had just got to be a bit much – too wet, too spartan, too exhausting. Sold it off about a month ago. We're in our mid 70s now. So I'm in the hunt for a small trawler. I particularly like the looks and idea of the Willard 30s. Also looking at things from the Albin 27 up to the Eagle 32. The Nimble Wanderer 32 seems interesting. Why are all the best and most interesting boats at least a 1000 miles away LOL ? I want to cruise in the mid and lower Chesapeake Bay (home waters) some ICW and maybe even cross from West Palm to the Bahamas. Thanks for this wonderful resource! Hope to see you out there. Van

 

[Carriem1102]

We are up in north Lake Huron and having sold our 31ft sailboat that we had down south for the winters, had the same idea. Problem was we couldn't find anything in our price range that was even vaguely fit to buy. Too many old Taiwan boats with leaky windows, rotten stringers, rusty engines etc so settled for a Carver 37 with twin gas engines. To get a diesel to save fuel $ firstly was not available anywhere close by and secondly the additional 30K for a typical boat with a diesel, buys a lot of gas for our short summer seasons and at 74, how many seasons are left? Who knows. One thing we found about powerboats is that those darn windows make the boats like a greenhouse in summer, far more than any sailboats that sit lower in the water and with small ports. Therefore be prepared to run one or even two air conditioners at the marina and have plenty of light colored canvas or phifertex covers on the windshield and ports. The flybridge on the boat is a lovely place to hang out, as is our small back cockpit that we have put a bimini on to shield the sliding glass doors from direct sun. The boat works well, but i miss the sailboat 100 per cent.

 

[Trisailor382]

Welcome aboard. We too are former lifelong trimaran sailors that made the switch to a pocket trawler. We found solace in an Albin 28TE Flush Deck. This has been a bullet proof selection for a senior couple whose age is catching up. We have used this boat for training purposes for our ultimate goal of purchasing a 40 ft plus trawler to do America's Great Loop which will be at the end of this season. The Albin is built like a brick S-house and is perfect for transitioning sailors.
We wish you luck with your future purchase.

 

[RumbleFish]

Trisailer — interesting. Thanks for those comments. I am going to reconsider going fast. I think the 28TE is a very handsome vessel. I really like the look, and esp the flush deck variation; and the quarter berth is a nice feature. My initial thought was for a trawler that would be a 6 or 7 knot boat (efficiency, comfort, space, easy for my dogs) so there were/are many nice boats that never made it to my short list, like the 28TE. I am not knowledgeable about going slow with the larger engines... of course you can, but the hull and engines and gearing and prop are all set up to do a certain thing: go fast. I suppose one could get that sorted. Do you find that you use all the available speed a lot? (If you all were tri sailors you are probably always racing about LOL and wanting to get there fast). And the fuel burn at that speed too? Boats like the W30 or the smaller Albins like the 27 burn less than a gallon an hour at their slow cruise speed. That is very appealing. But the available speed and torque for manuvering etc is appealing too the more I think about it.

 

[Frosty]

@RumbleFish I'll throw in a few comments, now that you mention speeds. Background: Sailing in a slow monohull. Had some speedboats in the salad days but only as day boats.

If I were (will be?) buying a 40' trawler, I would probably just look for a "slow" trawler. I like protected running gear, and probably wouldn't use faster speed that much. Of course I'd have to see what was available at the time.

But for something around 30', speed (to be used at specific times, not all the time) sounds more interesting to me. Thinking of the Chesapeake and maybe the Bahamas, the first thing that comes to my mind is shallow draft. I like to gunkhole and I like to poke into shallow, well-protected anchorages. So shallow draft would be important.

Back to speed though: I ended up with a boat that can go 20 knots. I still cruise at 6 knots most of the time, but the speed can be really handy. For example:

1) To make up for the "less seaworthiness" (or just the less comfortable ride in seas) of the boat (so this is a bit of a "cycle" since the boat is less "seaworthy" because of the design factors of being smaller and capable of going faster). I don't mean that I go out into wild seas or bad forecasts; but for example I can slip across a sound or part of a great lake during an early morning calm weather window in much less time going 18-20 knots than I would at 6 knots. Gives me options.

2) To spend part of the day doing other things, knowing I can get to my anchorage before dark just by going a little faster. This works especially well if I have a known anchorage to head for (I can spend the day on a hike or swimming or reading, knowing I only need an hour or so to get to the anchorage, not 4-5 hours.)

3) If cruising from a fixed base (slip), it allows exploring new areas more often (larger range).

I still trawl along most of the time though, sipping fuel and enjoying the slow pace

Of course there is no free lunch; my boat is decidedly smaller and less comfortable than a larger trawler. But that's down to boat design and there are plenty of larger, more comfortable boats that can still go fast, or fast-ish. I still think if I were going full big trawler, I'd just plan on 8 knots or whatever. But in the 30' range, I would consider some speed. At least as an option when looking at potential boats.

 

[Trisailor382]

Trisailer — interesting. Thanks for those comments. I am going to reconsider going fast. I think the 28TE is a very handsome vessel. I really like the look, and esp the flush deck variation; and the quarter berth is a nice feature. My initial thought was for a trawler that would be a 6 or 7 knot boat (efficiency, comfort, space, easy for my dogs) so there were/are many nice boats that never made it to my short list, like the 28TE. I am not knowledgeable about going slow with the larger engines... of course you can, but the hull and engines and gearing and prop are all set up to do a certain thing: go fast. I suppose one could get that sorted. Do you find that you use all the available speed a lot? (If you all were tri sailors you are probably always racing about LOL and wanting to get there fast). And the fuel burn at that speed too? Boats like the W30 or the smaller Albins like the 27 burn less than a gallon an hour at their slow cruise speed. That is very appealing. But the available speed and torque for manuvering etc is appealing too the more I think about it.

As a Tri sailor speed always took precedent. As a racing sailor winning usually came with speed. As we age, we get slower but the Trimaran remains fast. Our desire for speed will never diminish.
Making the change to power boating for us required the ability to heat it up when the desire arose as well as having a Bluewater boat that was bulletproof. When cruising at 1800 rpm the 315 hp Yanmar sips diesel and is very economical, but wot it is not so much. Wot still gives me the speed and exhilaration of the Trimaran when desired or needed. She's been an awesome boat to transition from sailing fast.
Very soon it will be time to move up to our loop boat which will be another transition to a slower but more comfortable boat for living aboard. Life contantly changes and we always need to adapt to those changes. Having fun along the way is a necessity.