Tabla de contenidos para November/December 2021 en PassageMaker

After hours at Gannon & Benjamin Marine Railway on Martha’s Vineyard, Massachusetts, finds a rebuild of the 32-foot Brownell bass boat Souvenir in progress. Established in 1980, Gannon & Benjamin has built over 70 vessels in the traditional plank-on-frame construction method. Every step of the wooden boat building process is either done in-house or in close collaboration with other specialty craftsmen, pooling the talents of local shipwrights, riggers, cabinetmakers, painters, mechanics, patternmakers, metal and foundry workers, sailmakers and more.…

When I first painted the hull of my boat, the bottom job was long overdue (and had been since before I bought her four years earlier). I blushed with embarrassment as the Travelift revealed her sea-worm and barnacle-encrusted state to passersby. Like many newbies, I was book smart, but not boatyard seasoned about the job at hand. I did know that a main active antifouling ingredient in most bottom paints is copper, but I was in Washington, a state that enacted a law to ban copper-based antifouling paints. The ban was supposed to take effect 2021, the following year. With my boat up on jack stands, I zipped up my coveralls and gave the label on my paint can one last scan. Its contents did, indeed, contain copper. How Did…

Salmon, mushroom and wild rice soup is that cozy, healthy bowl of deliciousness we’re all going to be reaching for during the colder months ahead. It’s destined to become a new, easy family favorite. It’s definitely one of mine. Every spoonful is warm, creamy and flavorful, loaded with juicy salmon, hearty wild rice, mushrooms, onions and celery for a symphony of texture. This recipe is also extremely versatile and pantry-friendly; you can swap the wild rice for brown rice, and the salmon for shredded chicken. Wild rice is a fickle little grain, but if you cook it properly, the result is a wonderful, deep, earthy flavor that is perfect for this soup. Cook it up the night before for a jump-start the next day. In a medium stock pot, combine…

Clear vinyl enclosures, Bimini tops, seat cushions, and covers for the dinghy, windshield and cockpit live a miserable life. This is true no matter what size or brand of yacht you tool around in. On the job 24/7, these durable goods endure unmitigated sunlight, abrasive saltwater spray, acid rain, fallout grit from air pollution, and bird droppings—all while protecting you, your boat and its equipment. Talk about taking one for the team. While these items typically get some attention when you soap and rinse the boat after a day on the water, they will survive years longer if you devote specific cleaning and maintenance sessions to them periodically. If you think it’s OK to skip these tasks, then call a canvas outfitter and ask for a replacement cost quote. You…

A call from an old friend and former customer stimulated this latest journey into my cluttered mind as a boat designer and builder. Scott has owned several Devlin designs over the years, but has also strayed several times into the morass of fat, bulky, production-white, bathtub-style offerings that are so common on our waters these days. I wanted him back as a customer and knew that time was on my side. His circumstances and desires had matured over the years, and yes, he was back in the hunt for the perfect boat. He had decided that long and lean was the current best-case scenario for his cruising. I worked up this Blue Fin 42 for him and his son to cruise on. We have 1,000 miles of water between the…

Low engine hours potentially bode well for engine longevity, provided the boat has been maintained well and run primarily at the rated recreational performance load. Engine brand and model matters. Some engines have been designed for relatively low hours between rebuilds (6,000 hours, for example), while others have been engineered for much higher spans (10,000 hours, for example). But exceptionally low engine hours tell another story, one about a boat that has had very light use. During the first few months to a year of ownership with a former “marina queen,” you should be prepared for sporadic failures of system components: head vacuum pump, air conditioning condenser, generator exhaust riser and so on. Previous light use doesn’t mean you shouldn’t buy the boat, but it does mean you will need…

Always apply clear enclosure polish and wax in the shade—never in direct sunlight. Use a clean applicator, sponge or pad. When it becomes soiled or dirty, replace it. Toss it immediately if it falls on the ground. Buff clear panels with a clean microfiber cloth, and have plenty of them standing by. Never use paper towels on clear enclosure panels. Paper comes from trees, and even the softest paper towels will scratch the surface. Always rinse the enclosure zippers from both sides to remove salt. Exercise the zippers regularly to keep the tracks clean. Occasionally apply zipper wax or Vaseline to lubricate the teeth. At the dock, you can increase the airflow in enclosed areas by partially unzipping the panels. Be sure to keep the fasteners secure. Enclosure panels do…

The success of Beneteau’s Swift Trawler line can be measured by the fact that some 1,300 have been built so far. With trawler styling on a true planing hull, these boats offer space, practicality and a useful turn of speed. The shipyard’s flagship Grand Trawler, however, is not just a bigger Swift Trawler. With a voluminous, full-body displacement hull that carries its 17-foot, 10-inch beam well forward, the new Grand Trawler 62 has dockside presence and purposeful styling. It looks like a serious, weighty cruising boat, ready to go places. “This hull is optimized for 9 knots,” says Justin Joyner, powerboat manager at Beneteau America. “Sure, it can go at 20 knots, but that’s just because of speed anxiety.” Speed anxiety, he adds with a smile, afflicts trawler owners who…

Professional mariner Capt. Jack Molan spent his 34-year career driving vessels of all types in the northern latitudes. When it came time to go cruising, Molan and his wife, Joanne, settled on a wood-hulled, William Garden-designed passagemaker. As with many owners of classic cruisers, they feel that their boat, JoAhna K, found them. BEGINNINGS I’ve been on the water my whole life, surfing, sailing, fishing. My adventurous Swedish wife and I were looking for a converted fishboat when we stumbled on this unique vessel. Knowing boats, I called on friends in the profession to keep me grounded. I was looking for a good boat, not necessarily a wood boat. The boat has had great care over the years and is perfect for us. THE BOAT Our JoAhna K (originally Beagle…

For many years, my wife has been trying to get a scientific grant. About what, you ask? Well, she doesn’t really care, except that she has two essential criteria. First, it has to be a really big grant. Think something along the lines of the biggest Powerball lotto ever won. Second, it has to be really easy. Something requiring, oh, 15 minutes a day would be acceptable. My wife has, I’m sorry to report, missed out on several great opportunities. She missed getting the grant that proved conclusively that smokers have less money because they buy cigarettes. I’m cutting her some slack on that one because she doesn’t smoke. She also didn’t get the grant to study women’s sexuality in biblical times, which is a topic of concern among many…

This summer’s Olympics in Tokyo introduced us to a phenomenon called “the twisties,” which sidelined star gymnast Simone Biles. The condition occurs when a gymnast or high-diver can’t tell where his or her body is while spinning through the air. Airplane pilots and underwater divers can experience a similar condition, called spatial disorientation. They lose the ability to determine up from down. Anytime our bodies experience motion in multiple directions simultaneously, it is easy to become disoriented or confused. A subtle form of spatial disorientation called somatogyral disorientation can also affect boaters, especially in docking situations. You can lose the ability to detect movement, or can perceive movement in a different (mostly opposite) direction to reality. The final phase of docking a boat involves a multitude of actions. One of…

The historic Robert Beebe-designed Passagemaker was the culmination of a gallant quest for an ocean-crossing cruising powerboat. Built in Singapore in 1963 of 1¾-inch Burmese teak planking and chengal frames, Passagemaker, for many cruising enthusiasts, stood as a beacon of revolutionary boat design and workmanship. She logged countless crossings under her hull in the decades that followed—not to mention inspiring the name of our magazine. Since the death of her most recent owner, Peter Quentrall-Thomas, in December 2019, the boat had been slowly sinking on her mooring in Trinidad. Enter long-range cruising couple and refit connoisseurs Laura and Chris Remacle, who purchased her for $2,000 with the help of Chris’ brother, Didier, a longtime resident of Trinidad. They have since begun the significant task of bringing Passagemaker back to form.…