Table of contents for Mar/Apr 2020 in PassageMaker

In 2008, after the world economy took a nosedive, the boating industry faced several challenges. One of the most serious was an epidemic of abandoned or derelict vessels (ADVs). Many boaters in sudden financial straits were panicked about continuing boat payments or maintenance and dockage costs. Perhaps intimidated by the glut of used vessels suddenly hitting the market, some took the “easy” way out—opening seacocks in less-traveled waterways, or simply rowing away from the headache bobbing at the mooring. ADVs continue to be a problem, especially in Florida, which has the greatest number of registered boats and is regularly hit by tropical storms and hurricanes. Severe weather events can rip vessels from docks and moorings, inflicting expensive damage and sometimes sinking boats. Is there a sadder sight than a derelict…

It was sort of a spring housecleaning. No, to be honest, it was really just the annual spring ultimatum from my wife: Get rid of all that &$%@boat junk scattered around the house and garage. As a result, I was rummaging around the far dark corner of a closet, and I came across a tightly rolled tube that I couldn’t immediately identify. On closer inspection, it turned out to be some old charts I’d taken off our boat. All skippers are pack rats to some extent, and in the new world of chartplotters, I’d forgotten about them. They were creased and spotted—stained in that peculiar way that charts get after they’ve been used in times of great concentration. One bore a ring that was certainly from a cup of coffee;…

When cruising in the Pacific Northwest, I’m never at a loss for fresh, wild-caught salmon, rather, fresh ways to prepare it. So when I received my first set of cedar planks as a Christmas gift, I was quickly inclined to give them a whirl. I found two things to be true. One, the delicious and easy recipe you’re about to obtain belongs in a Michelin-star restaurant as much as it does in your galley; and two, few truly great things in life come easily, but one of those things is grilled cedar plank salmon. It replicates a technique that was pioneered by Native Americans, who roasted fish and game on aromatic wood planks. If you’ve never cooked with cedar planks, you’ve been missing out. They’re an affordable solution to creating…

Drawing Board Aspen Unveils New C108 Aspen Power Catamarans has launched the newest member in its proa series, the 35-foot C108. Inspired by the unequally sized hulls of early Polynesian sailing catamarans, Aspen’s outboard boats adhere to the concept by employing asymmetrical twin outboards for propulsion. The C108 salon is extended by 2 feet from previous interior layouts on other cruiser models, and the overall beam is increased 8 inches to 10 feet 8 inches. Still trailerable, the C108’s expanded space allows larger accommodations, with greater speed and stability. aspenpowercatamarans.com Waypoints Charter Brazil The Moorings has announced its newest yacht charter base in Paraty, Brazil. Located between Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo, Paraty’s cruising grounds feature towering jungles plummeting into the waters of Baia Carioca. Backed by mountains on…

Few passages are more significant to a boater than ocean inlets. They are a gateway to adventure, or they can mean you’ve safely returned to port after a day on the ocean. Whether it’s the end of a simple run down the coast or the momentous finish to an ocean passage, the outer sea buoy and channel markers leading you in are a welcome sight. Even experienced boaters know, though, that this last stretch can ask the most of a boater’s skills. Inlets may welcome you home, but they can do it with teeth that will bite the unaware or unprepared. Transiting inlets doesn’t have to result in a harrowing tale. A little knowledge and preparation can keep yours from being the next story told. Let’s first understand the dynamics…

Hollandboat’s Atlantic Motoryachts is a Dutch builder of traditional, composite cruising yachts. Now, the company is adding the Atlantic A500 with a new hull design, lightweight (and recyclable) aluminium construction and a practical layout that makes it one of the most interesting yachts of the past year. The A500 is based on the Slide Hull concept from Dutch design firm Vripack. It is a modified deep-V with the chine turning into embryo side hulls that start around amidships. The hull shape helps to keep the bow down, and helps the boat to run level without affecting seagoing ability. Vripack has moved the center of gravity farther forward, making the boat less responsive to wave action. According to Hollandboat, the result is not only a smoother ride, but also a 20…

‘We came up with 32 solutions to common problems that most boaters wouldn’t even know they have. You never realize the things you’ve been missing until you actually have them.’—Bob Johnstone, founder of MJM When it comes to deciding whether or not a boat is right for Passagemaker, I generally look for one of two criteria: Could I take my family on this boat across a vast stretch of open water with confidence, or could I see myself enjoying this boat for months at a time around the Great Loop? In my experience on the MJM 53z, the answer is yes on both counts. I spent some time on Breeze, the builder’s first 53z model, with MJM founder Bob Johnstone. He started the company in 2002 after 25 years at…

It wasn’t a dark and stormy night. It was just plain dark. Heading home to our marina about 20 miles away, it was blacker than an undertaker’s overcoat. But, no worries, the pale green digits on the GPS showed that I was on track for my home waypoint. All was right with the world. That is, until the midway point, when the GPS went blank. No amount of jiggling (or swearing) would bring it back to life. Fog, dark of night, foul weather—these are the times that try a skipper’s soul. For those of us who didn’t achieve much success in high school mathematics, the thought of losing a GPS and having to work out complicated navigational formulas by hand is enough to raise the hackles on our necks and…

I won’t say where this story actually happened, just in case the statute of limitations has not yet run its course. When I cruise on other people’s boats, I usually pack what we in Florida call a Cuban reel. It’s really just a well-designed, circular hand line for fishing. I bring a couple good trolling lures, too. As kids on Cape Cod in Massachusetts, we called them drop lines and caught lots of flounder using them with squid for bait. Cruising, I’ve trolled without a rod numerous times, catching bluefish, jacks, yellowfin tuna, many dorado and one—very much unwanted—sailfish. So, back to my story. We’re down island, underway in deep water, and the chart indicates that we are about to pass over Kingfish Bank. Hmmm … never caught one of…

Team Grand Banks continues on its new ley line as it nears completion of its flagship GB85. According to CEO Mark Richards, the concept is a 30-knot boat with tiny-ish (twin 1,000-hp) engines, which if executed would be impressive for an 85-footer. Richards might have also mentioned an “amazingly fuel efficient long-range cruising speed of 21 knots.” And at 10 knots? “The range will be phenomenal,” he says. And the new flagship is only part of the big year that Grand Banks is planning, with the company having completed a four-year investment in its Malaysia and Australia shipyard facilities, doubling its undercover manufacturing capacity in the former to 550,000 square feet, adding 184 skilled staff to the workforce of now 900, and installing robotics technology to accelerate product development. “It’s…

Smartphones have enough processing power, sensors and capabilities to augment or even replace navigation equipment. While I still believe boats should have at least one dedicated display—mobile devices are susceptible to moisture, heat, dead batteries and falling overboard—the list of mobile apps is extremely long, with more coming out every day. Today’s navigation apps, for instance, have features and functions that rival, and in some cases beat, those that come with dedicated hardware. One of the biggest advantages a mobile device has is an (almost) always available internet connection. This connection makes updating charts and other data easier and more frequent. Here’s a look at three of the leading navigation apps available for onboard use right now. NAVIONICS BOATING This navigation app has features like dock-to-dock auto-routing, community-sourced SonarChart, and…

I’ll admit that when I hear the words vintage or classic used to describe a boat, I picture an impeccably refinished Chris-Craft runabout from the 1940s, mahogany and stainless gleaming. I think of an antique that’s been painstakingly preserved. I don’t think of a racing-class sailboat or a 1930s motoryacht repowered with pod drives. And I certainly don’t think of the yachting equivalent of a hot rod: a classic hull repowered with modern technology and redone with new materials that show the owner’s personal style. Bill Morong is trying to change all that. The founder of Yachting Solutions, an all-purpose marine services provider in Maine, Morong is an enthusiastic evangelist for restomods, a term borrowed from the car world. Though his team members are involved in all types of custom…

Jason Dunbar, who is vice president at Luke Brown Yachts in Fort Lauderdale, has been thinking lately about a boat out of time. Since the 1960s, when the Grand Banks 42 first appeared as a wooden boat, more than 1,500 of the hulls have been built in that material and in fiberglass. The model had a four-decade-long production run, with modifications that largely stuck to the original’s layout and features. To cruising yachtsmen who love the trawler lifestyle, the Grand Banks 42 might as well be the logo on the club T-shirt worldwide. “The Grand Banks 42 is arguably one of the most successful designs ever created,” Dunbar says. “If the Grand Banks 42 were designed and built today for the first time, I suspect that it would not have…