Just wondering if anyone has done any inland waters cruising in a Hunter 23 without the mast. I would like to try it for a weekend but not if it is going to be a horrible experience in terms of boat motion.
Cruising without the mast
- Thread starter decktosser
- Start date
We did about a 40 mile trip on KY lake one day that was all motoring no wind. We left sails down in the morning. In the afternoon when there were a lot of boats on the water with wakes we raised the main to help the motion. The motion wasn't bad without but a lot more steering without than with the main. Hope that helps.
Our experience on our h27 (going to another port for specialized repairs) and our friends’ h30 (a week on the Trent Severn, crossing Lake Ontario, and a couple of days on the Erie Canal):
The long mast has a lot of angular momentum, and significantly reduces boat motion. Most noticeable was increased rolling. Any amount of waves will soon make the ride quite uncomfortable. A hour in 2-4 footers on our port quarter was about as much as I could take. Luckily, Lake Ontario’s was pretty flat the day we crossed.
You would be fine on a day with light winds, or in sheltered waters.
The long mast has a lot of angular momentum, and significantly reduces boat motion. Most noticeable was increased rolling. Any amount of waves will soon make the ride quite uncomfortable. A hour in 2-4 footers on our port quarter was about as much as I could take. Luckily, Lake Ontario’s was pretty flat the day we crossed.
You would be fine on a day with light winds, or in sheltered waters.
That is exactly the type of experience I was looking for and what I guessed the answer might be. I was thinking of motoring around Lake Francis Case (a very large lake on the Missouri in South Dakota) but there is likely to be wind and waves. So, I think I will keep the mast up...