Cruising with a Hunter Passage 42?

[CruisingDream]

Hi everyone,
My girlfriend and I are planning to go cruising in two years. We would really love to do this with a Hunter Passage 42. We’ve been reading about different experiences with what we think is an amazing boat. Are there any owners or experienced sailors here who can reassure us about pursuing this dream with the Hunter Passage 42?

Thanks in advance!
Greetings from the Netherlands.

 

[kappykaplan]

Welcome to the forum!

Do a search on this site for postings by "Sequitur". He and his wife sailed from Vancouver to FL, rounding Cape Horn, in a Hunter 49 (I know you said Hunter 42). Their blogs are still at Leaving Sequitur

 

[Don S/V ILLusion]

Nice boat! The biggest limiting factors when cruising are storage space and tank capacity for water and fuel. Both of which can be insignificant or problematic depending on your cruising range but neither are insurmountable.

 

[shemandr]

The Leaving Sequitur thread is an excellent blog of what can be done cruising wise on a production boat. Very adventurous people. Well worth reading.

 

[Stu Jackson]

Nice boat! The biggest limiting factors when cruising are storage space and tank capacity for water and fuel. Both of which can be insignificant or problematic depending on your cruising range but neither are insurmountable.

Must add: electrical power to these must haves...

 

[marcham]

I like the U shaped galley in these.... but on a long passage in rough seas, there are not enough hand grips in the wide saloon to move around safely. Personally, for a boat with 2 heads, I would prefer having one to port, one to starboard, that way there's always one that's easier to use under sail... How many people? During a passage, the V-Birth will likely be the only "safe" birth, but you'd get a bit beat up in rough seas...The aft cabin would be just as uncomfortable when healing. Can you make two sea births with lee cloths in the saloon ???

If equipped with the Yanmar 4JH, that's a great engine. About 4L/ hr at cruising RPM.

People have crossed oceans with small water tanks and little fuel .... that should not be the limiting factor. How comfortable is the boat when sailing for a week, 2 weeks, 3 weeks without stopping? Sleeping? Cooking? Using the head? Unless sticking to the Med or Caribbean, those are important considerations.

 

[jssailem]

not enough hand grips in the wide saloon

In three foot or more seas (think oceans) a lack of hand holds will find you and the crew crawling on the floor to move about in the boat. Large open saloons can be dangerous in a small boat.

V-Birth will likely be the only "safe" birth

Bow and stern berths can find you flying in the air as the boat rides up and down on the waves. Safest place to sleep is in the center of the boat, on the floor.

two sea births with lee cloths in the saloon

Lee cloths are a great resource to get some secure sleep.

 

[Terry Cox]

Are there any owners or experienced sailors here who can reassure us about pursuing this dream with the Hunter Passage 42?

Paul Cossman has been cruising on their P42 for years. A private message to him might be helpful. We've been doing the same for years all over PNW waters., several over two months duration, but no ocean crossings. A delightful boat, fast, stiff and comfortable, with no regrets. An ocean crossing would require several upgrades to our 1991 P42, sails, standing rigging, etc.

 

[sailor832]

I own a 1996 hunter 42 passage and brought from St augustine to Beaufort Sc on the outside and and through a storm motored and sailed in upto 25knots of wind and 10 foot swells as for lack of water mine holds 150 gallons of water and 75 gallons of diesel. as for hand holds there are fiddles on the cabinets plus there is a center line on the ceiling hand hold you can reach from the stair rail to this hand hold the to the mast and then the cabinet just before the head and V berth. I have no intention of crossing oceans although sailing jibsea did it twice before they bought their aluminum hulled boat

 

[MFD]

I have a Hunter 41DS, primary use as a coastal cruiser and liveaboard but had some concerns about handholds from prior experience.

I managed to solve the many of the problems of handholds and interior storage by replacing what was essentially a couch on the starboard side of the main cabin with a large cabinet with drawers, partial lift-up lid and a 1.5” stainless hand rail running its full length.

If you are reasonably tall, it is possible to move forward/aft inside the boat and have something sturdy to hold on to.

140gal water in two tanks with 3/4 full Jerry can for emergency with a 50 foot lanyard to ideally attach to the life raft helps there.

Fuel is only 54gal, and there are factory specs for an 18gal secondary tank that would be straightforward to do. A few Jerry cans securely stowed below deck in the very large port lazarette worked fine and the Yanmar at 1500rpm is amazingly fuel efficient for 5kn when becalmed.

My biggest concern, and rightfully so given problems, is the quality of the build and the continuous wear & tear and working of the hull, bulkheads, tabbing, etc when offshore in moderate weather. In all honesty my boat was built ~2008 so I think some of the issues there may not be representative of the entire production run.

Anyway, my 2-cents. Lots of people cruise with ‘production’ boats after putting some time & effort into them.

Oh - other things like fasteners for the companion way stairs/engine cover, no fasteners/latches for any of the floor hatches or locker lids under seat cushions, etc - if you happen to go upside down or severely sideways for a bit…