Where is Halie?

[cephius (Dave)]

I bought my H260 new in 2002. I've been in marinas every year since. We're retired now and doing trailer sailing.

First trip, Rochester MN to Long Beach CA, 2,000 miles! Here we are camping at KOA Flagstaff AZ.

 

[Kermit]

Good deal! We took ours to Smith Mountain Lake, VA. Not as far as your trip but a good start for us.

 

[Picflight]

Good trip Dave, what are you pulling with and do share pictures of how you setup camp.

 

[Chief RA]

Dave: Put her in Sea of Cortez! Hit our member Justsomeguy and he will be able to fill you in. Chief

 

[justsomeguy]

Chief's right about the Sea of Cortez being right.

Turn left!

 

[rgranger]

Good deal! We took ours to Smith Mountain Lake, VA. Not as far as your trip but a good start for us.

Hey Kermit

Nice pic. And how did you get such a fine crew

If you have not already been there...Kerr Reservoir (a.k.a. Bugg's Island) is also a lot of fun and it is a bit closer to you than is SML. Here are some shots of Kerr with my first trailer sailor (a Mac V21). There is a state park there called Hibernia, they let you camp right on shore and and you can wade out to your boat. I slept on the boat but it was nice to roast dogs by the fire too. We had a full moon that entire weekend and I took my first mid-night cruise. It was awesome. There is also a Marina there but I've never used it (except to go get some ice cream)

 

[Kermit]

Hey Kermit Nice pic. And how did you get such a fine crew

By marrying the chick on the left. ;-) The others are her sisters and brother-in-law.
Thanks for the info!

 

[cephius (Dave)]

I tow with a new F150 with max towing. Here is the rig:
http://forums.hunter.sailboatowners.com/picture.php?albumid=2331&pictureid=22515

As for how I set up camp? I pull in, throw an extension cord over the side, and plug in. We do everything onboard, just like when it is in the water. We sit in our cockpit, drinking cocktails and greeting other campers.

The H260 stern allows me to place a four step 'little giant' there for easy access.

 

[Barnacle_Bob]

I tow with a new F150 with max towing. Here is the rig: http://forums.hunter.sailboatowners.com/picture.php?albumid=2331&pictureid=22515 As for how I set up camp? I pull in, throw an extension cord over the side, and plug in. We do everything onboard, just like when it is in the water. We sit in our cockpit, drinking cocktails and greeting other campers. The H260 stern allows me to place a four step 'little giant' there for easy access.

Dave: I know that Flagstaff KOA very well - we spend a few weekends every summer there with our kids, escaping the Phoenix heat. You missed some nice sailing here in Phoenix on Lake Pleasant - great location to spend a few days. Keep us in mind for your next trip through the area.

OK, you are living my retirement dream - trailer sailing! Couple of questions for you:

- I think he Hunter 260 is fairly heavy ~ 6000-lbs? How are its road manners? How is it for sailing and camping? And, I have to ask, but what kind of mileage are you getting when towing?

- how do you like the Hunter 260? That is just about the biggest sailboat that I would be comfortable towing. How does she sail? One H-260 owner told me at they were a bit tender.

- when in a campground, do you find the mast to be intrusive when relaxing in the cockpit?

Thanks for any info that you can share. Let me know if you are headed this way again - I would be happy to introduce you to Lake Pleasant.

- Bob

 

[cephius (Dave)]

- The Ford F150 with max towing is rated for 11,900 lbs. The trailer is two axle. It tows like a dream. At 75 mph I was averaging 7.2 mpg. In CA, where all trailers are limited to 55 mph, I got 11 mpg. The F150 has a 36 gallon tank, so I was going 250 miles between fills. Gas is currently under 3.00 in most states.

- The H260 is very roomy inside and easy to camp in. It is designed as a 'family safe' boat, so don't expect high performance. I've been sailing one for 12 years now, so I handle it well. The beauty of this boat is the simple systems making it easy to maintain. Swing keel and water ballast trailer boats are tender when compared to full keel cruising boats of the same length. That does not make them unsafe or harder to sail.

- Yes, the mast being down is a pain when moving around the cockpit. It prevents using the Bimini and the camping pop-up over the main hatch. It does not get in the way of relaxing in the cockpit.

One tip: I started the journey with the original tires. They had zero wear on them, but have been sitting in the sun for 12 years. The treads pealed off in large strips. They are in very poor condition now. As others have posted, start this type of trip with new tires.

 

[Sumner]

.....- Yes, the mast being down is a pain when moving around the cockpit. It prevents using the Bimini and the camping pop-up over the main hatch. It does not get in the way of relaxing in the cockpit...

Nice report :dance: and have fun.

I raised the mast on ...

...the Mac some so that the pop-top can go us while camping in the boat like you are doing going down the road. Is that an option?

Sumner

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[Daveinet]

This is my preferred method of camping.

Boat cabins are for lunch.

I think if we camped on the boat, the family would tire of it much sooner. Separating the recreation from the living quarters breaks things up a little more.

 

[Barnacle_Bob]

- The Ford F150 with max towing is rated for 11,900 lbs. The trailer is two axle. It tows like a dream. At 75 mph I was averaging 7.2 mpg. In CA, where all trailers are limited to 55 mph, I got 11 mpg. The F150 has a 36 gallon tank, so I was going 250 miles between fills. Gas is currently under 3.00 in most states. - The H260 is very roomy inside and easy to camp in. It is designed as a 'family safe' boat, so don't expect high performance. I've been sailing one for 12 years now, so I handle it well. The beauty of this boat is the simple systems making it easy to maintain. Swing keel and water ballast trailer boats are tender when compared to full keel cruising boats of the same length. That does not make them unsafe or harder to sail. - Yes, the mast being down is a pain when moving around the cockpit. It prevents using the Bimini and the camping pop-up over the main hatch. It does not get in the way of relaxing in the cockpit. One tip: I started the journey with the original tires. They had zero wear on them, but have been sitting in the sun for 12 years. The treads pealed off in large strips. They are in very poor condition now. As others have posted, start this type of trip with new tires.

Dave: thank you very much for the towing and H260 information - greatly appreciated. As I said earlier, I hope to do a lot of extended trailer-sailing beginning in a few years. The H260 is on my short-list of boats (we have a Catalina 22 now, and love it ... ). I need to be planning to purchase both a new tow vehicle and a new boat - your information is very helpful. If you are headed back through Arizona, give me a shout - I think you would like Lake Pleasant for both sailing and camping.

- Bob

 

[cephius (Dave)]

One additional tip. My home cruising grounds is on the upper Mississippi river. It is infested with Zebra mussels. I know I have them on my hull from sitting in a marina slip for 6 months.

At the California border agriculture inspection site they were checking for Quagga and Zebra mussels. They inspected my boat very thoroughly and did find the Zebra mussels. Since my boat had been out of the water for 30 days, and I was headed for the Pacific Ocean, they passed me. Zebra mussels don't live in salt water.

Trailer sailing from infested fresh water areas to pristine fresh water areas does put some responsibility on us to ensure we don't spread exotic invasive species. This is one of the reasons I didn't stop at lakes on the way out. I was surprised to be checked at the border. That I didn't plan for.

Here is a great site for determining the drying time based on air temp:
http://www.100thmeridian.org/Emersion.asp

 

[rgranger]

Cephius

That was an interesting website. Is there a map showing infested waters?

 

[Barnacle_Bob]

Dave: I had never even considered mussel problems when thinking about my retirement trailer sailing plans. Glad you brought it up! It is definitely a concern and a consideration. THANK YOU!

- Bob

 

[Sumner]

Dave: I had never even considered mussel problems when thinking about my retirement trailer sailing plans. Glad you brought it up! It is definitely a concern and a consideration. THANK YOU!

- Bob

Depending when that is it might not be a problem.

We got checked in Idaho and at Lake Powell but as a result of this thread I just checked Lake Powell and it looks like they have admitted to of been defeated and there are zebra muscles there now. All the lakes in AZ have them. I can't see how they won't be in all western lakes withing the next 5-10 years. With all the boats and boaters moving around the country it is just bound to happen. Once they are everywhere then the inspections will probably die away,

Sumner

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Our Endeavour 37

Our MacGregor 26-S Pages

Our Trips to Utah, Idaho, Canada, Florida

Mac-Venture Links[/FONT]

 

[cephius (Dave)]

Infestation maps

Google image has multiple maps available:
https://www.google.com/search?q=zeb...NJ8f2iQLZ1YDwCA&ved=0CCcQsAQ&biw=1578&bih=969

 

[justsomeguy]

The launch ramps are all well marked with warnings about the mussels.

Just keep your eyes open.

 

[Daveinet]

The launch ramps are all well marked with warnings about the mussels.

Just keep your eyes open.

Ya, but for trailer sailors, we have a unique problem. How does one see up inside the centerboard housing? And for water ballast, there is no way one could inspect the inside of the tank? Short of driving through a car wash with an under body spray, it would be difficult to ever inspect the underside.