Best way to move Catalina 27'

[pduncanson]

Hi,

I've got a Catalina 27' that I want to move from Brisbane, CA to Long Beach, CA. I've found a mover that will do the job for $1300. Is this the best approach? Is there a place to rent a sailboat trailer for the Catalina 27 where I can simply do this myself or maybe someone has one I can borrow/rent? I could sail it down but, the seas have been a bit rough lately and the time off from work has an opportunity cost. All the same, I've heard that early October is a good time for this sail and a week off of work would be nice. Please provide your thoughts.

Regards

 

[caguy]

Is it a fin keel? $1300 doesn't sound so bad given gas prices in California. I towed mine from Pennsylvania in 2010 and spent about that much.

 

[Chief RA]

Sail it as soon as is practical. Chief

 

[Scott B]

All depends on how much time and crew you have and if you want to spend your vacation time moving the boat. Its 400 miles as the crow flies, which works out to 100 hrs. at 5 knots, very rough math, or 4 1/2 days non-stop. Add in weather, wind, waves etc. etc. not sure you could get it done in a week..... then you have to think what do you do at the end of the week and if you're not there....

 

[pduncanson]

All depends on how much time and crew you have and if you want to spend your vacation time moving the boat. Its 400 miles as the crow flies, which works out to 100 hrs. at 5 knots, very rough math, or 4 1/2 days non-stop. Add in weather, wind, waves etc. etc. not sure you could get it done in a week..... then you have to think what do you do at the end of the week and if you're not there....

Thank you, Scott. It helps putting numbers to the logic to refine the approach as you've presented. I guess $1300 is not a bad deal when viewing it this way. The experience of the sailing adventure could be priceless and maybe that's what's blinding my thinking a bit.

 

[pduncanson]

Is it a fin keel? $1300 doesn't sound so bad given gas prices in California. I towed mine from Pennsylvania in 2010 and spent about that much.

Yes, it's a fin keel. Here's the specs http://sailboatdata.com/viewrecord.asp?class_id=814. Your question is in regards to this design being a bit more complicated to trailer I presume. Thanks for your feedback/insight.

 

[Stu Jackson]

If you have the time, sail it. All you need going downwind is a jib anyway.

 

[CloudDiver]

I've never sailed a boat that size myself or on that intended course, so don't listen to me over the other more experienced sailors but I would agree with what others have said that you should go ahead and sail it. If the boat and rigging are sound, you have the vacation days to use, then why not? $1300 can go to other more important boat maintenance or equipment repairs/upgrades.

On the flip side, where I do have professional experience, is in logistics... So if you decide to move it over the road; $1300 is a reasonable fee to have a professional do it, let them take on the liability. If you were to rent a trailer (assuming you could), I doubt there would be any real savings considering your investment in time and the chances of anything going sideways.

 

[pduncanson]

I've never sailed a boat that size myself or on that intended course, so don't listen to me over the other more experienced sailors but I would agree with what others have said that you should go ahead and sail it. If the boat and rigging are sound, you have the vacation days to use, then why not? $1300 can go to other more important boat maintenance or equipment repairs/upgrades.

On the flip side, where I do have professional experience, is in logistics... So if you decide to move it over the road; $1300 is a reasonable fee to have a professional do it, let them take on the liability. If you were to rent a trailer (assuming you could), I doubt there would be any real savings considering your investment in time and the chances of anything going sideways.

The boat and rigging are pretty sound. I spent the weekend with my wife and son on the boat checking things out. The extent of my sailing experience is from Long Beach to Catalina and back a few times on mid-sized sail boats like the C27 so, I would still consider myself a beginner. The San Francisco bay has honed some of my skills with the need for reefing and the like as the wind conditions can change dramatically (i.e. 5 to 30 kts within a 1/2 nm) in the S.F. bay. I've learned to watch the water surface and neighboring terrain to predict potential gusty wind issues. Spoke with some more experienced sailors in Brisbane this weekend that basically said I could do the trip with day sails on the weekend over the period of a month. There's an all-nighter that one has to deal with and some areas along the coast that one will need to be concerned about (i.e. Large swells along the coast at places like Mustangs and getting around Point Conception before entering Long Beach harbor). Thank you everyone for your take on this. I'll look at the charts and actually plan the trip with day sails to refine the effort and post my evolving approach here for your insight/feedback. Regards, Paul

 

[Meriachee]

Day sails or not, make sure you pack enough supplies for at least a couple of days in case you get holed up someplace.