RyanB
Active member
- Joined
- Aug 27, 2020
- Messages
- 123
- Status
- OWNER - I own a Hatteras Yacht
- Hatteras Model
- 36' SEDAN (1985 - 1987)
My wife and I are pretty excited to be the new owners of a 36 Series II Sedan. I know this is a baby Hatt, compared to most, but its our first "big" boat that we're going to fish with our young family on. Due to Covid, the trip home was much longer than it really needed to be. Being that we were unable to use the Welland Canal to reach Lake Ontario, we had to take the long route. It seemed pretty simple at first.....
Leaving MI we crossed lake Erie in two days. The first day was supposed to be 5-10 knots of wind with 1-3 waves, which ended up being 25-30, gusting to 35, and waves at 6-8'+ which were stacked on top of each other. The 36 handled them well, running 12 mph for 105 miles to Cleveland for fuel and sleep. Even though the boat handled the rough conditions better than most of the crew, there were a few times where I questioned my decision to keep going in such weather. You have to experience the rathe that the Great Lakes can brew up, to appreciate it. I hope to never hear the sound and vibrations of props coming out of the water again! The second day was perfect, with a flat lake and blue skies. We were able to play with all the instruments and determine that everything worked as it should. We made great time, getting into Buffalo, NY around 9pm, only stopping in Erie, PA to fill the tank (...again).
We had to then leave the boat in a slip at the start of the Erie canal, in Tonawanda, NY, to get back to work. I decided to skip hiring a captain to take the boat through the Welland, and instead I took my 5 year old son and my father along for a trip down the historic Erie Canal. 4 days, 18 locks and god only knows how many small town lift bridges, we arrived in Oswego International Harbor. Not knowing what we would encounter in Lake Ontario, we had my son picked up and then crossed the 116 miles of Lake Ontario, to Wilson, NY. This crossing couldn't given us a better weather window, so we decided to push the envelope and continue the last 4 hours through the night to get home. (My wife appreciated the efforts being that she had my 3 year old and new born daughters at home this entire time.)
Before this trip, I had never operated a twin screw boat, never operator a boat large than 26', heck I'd never even stepped foot on a fly bridge. The maiden voyage was over 665 miles, and one hell, and expensive (she's a gasser), of an experience.
I'm sure I'm going to have a ton of questions, so I appreciate the future help. Glad to be home and couldn't be happier with the decision to purchase the Hatteras over the other options we looked at.
***Any idea how to add more than 3 pics to a post? I was going to add a few pics of the trip home but keep getting blocked at only 3.
Leaving MI we crossed lake Erie in two days. The first day was supposed to be 5-10 knots of wind with 1-3 waves, which ended up being 25-30, gusting to 35, and waves at 6-8'+ which were stacked on top of each other. The 36 handled them well, running 12 mph for 105 miles to Cleveland for fuel and sleep. Even though the boat handled the rough conditions better than most of the crew, there were a few times where I questioned my decision to keep going in such weather. You have to experience the rathe that the Great Lakes can brew up, to appreciate it. I hope to never hear the sound and vibrations of props coming out of the water again! The second day was perfect, with a flat lake and blue skies. We were able to play with all the instruments and determine that everything worked as it should. We made great time, getting into Buffalo, NY around 9pm, only stopping in Erie, PA to fill the tank (...again).
We had to then leave the boat in a slip at the start of the Erie canal, in Tonawanda, NY, to get back to work. I decided to skip hiring a captain to take the boat through the Welland, and instead I took my 5 year old son and my father along for a trip down the historic Erie Canal. 4 days, 18 locks and god only knows how many small town lift bridges, we arrived in Oswego International Harbor. Not knowing what we would encounter in Lake Ontario, we had my son picked up and then crossed the 116 miles of Lake Ontario, to Wilson, NY. This crossing couldn't given us a better weather window, so we decided to push the envelope and continue the last 4 hours through the night to get home. (My wife appreciated the efforts being that she had my 3 year old and new born daughters at home this entire time.)
Before this trip, I had never operated a twin screw boat, never operator a boat large than 26', heck I'd never even stepped foot on a fly bridge. The maiden voyage was over 665 miles, and one hell, and expensive (she's a gasser), of an experience.
I'm sure I'm going to have a ton of questions, so I appreciate the future help. Glad to be home and couldn't be happier with the decision to purchase the Hatteras over the other options we looked at.
***Any idea how to add more than 3 pics to a post? I was going to add a few pics of the trip home but keep getting blocked at only 3.
