One for The Road

Work on our new “transportable trawler” is underway

Maybe it was the recession, or maybe folks just got tired of owning and maintaining so much stuff. Whatever the reason, the concept of “downsizing” has taken hold in recent years, giving rise to such concepts as the “tiny house” movement. In the nautical realm, this has resulted in a newfound popularity for the so-called “trailer trawler,” a compact cruising boat that can be easily transported over the road, while also providing at least the basic creature comforts needed to live aboard.

A number of our customers have expressed interest these boats. But after being spoiled by the home-like amenities of the GH trawlers, they weren't quite ready to sleep on boat-cushion bunks, cook on built-in camp stoves and resort to portable toilets, which is the level of amenities you'll find on many of these pocket yachts. “Build us a transportable trawler that you can actually live aboard,” became an increasingly common request. A number of designers and builders have taken a stab at this concept, but after studying what is out there, we could find few that hit that “sweet spot” between big enough for comfort and too big for easy and economical overland transport.

We started to jot down a wish list of our own. We first decided that, though the boat would be designed for trailering, keeping to a standard 102-inch beam would be too restrictive. So instead we decided to keep it within the limits of the standard blanket permit for wide loads. This would allow owners to transport the vessel themselves with minimal paperwork and no special licenses, or to hire cost-effective towing services rather than contracting a big rig with a flatbed and hiring a crane to load and unload. Setting the max beam at a bit under 10 feet allowed for a well-proportioned hull in the 35 foot range, with plenty of living space.

The next consideration was weight. We'd looked at several trailerable trawlers in the 30-foot range that came in at well over 10,000 pounds—and that's before taking trailer weight into account. Moving that much mass around requires a very substantial tow rig, and demands a lot more skill on the part of the driver. To lighten things up, we decided to build the entire boat using composite cores. Our target was a 6,000 pound final product, which is achievable when using modern materials and methods. Another key to weight reduction would be the use of outboards rather than an inboard diesel engine. Modern outboard are extremely reliable, economical and quiet. They are also far less complicated to install, and hanging them on the transom frees up a lot of interior volume for other purposes.

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The original "cocktail napkin" sketch of the new trawler

Unlike our larger trawlers, which are strictly displacement speed vessels, we wanted a boat that could run at least into the mid teens, while still delivering good fuel economy. This lead to a hull design with a moderate aft deadrise for lift, and a very fine forward entry to cut through seas with minimal effort. Above the waterline, we decided to go for a classic look. The resulting first-blush profile is something we think papa Hemingway would have been proud to own. 

By early September of this year, we've translated that first sketch into a computer-model, and are now able to begin the process of tweaking, measuring and forecasting that will lead up to the fabrication of a scale model, then full-sized molds. It's still early in the game, with a lot of details to be ironed out, but we can offer a few key points that we feel confident will make it through the design and build process.

Count on sleeping on a real mattress in an adult-sized bed. Expect a spacious bathroom with a shower that's large enough to actually use. Plan for a home-style galley with real appliances, and a social area spacious enough to entertain guest or provide realistic sleeping for children or a second couple. You'll be able to walk safely around the side decks, enter the boat comfortably from docks at any height from water level to six feet, and have plenty of room on the cabin top to mount a tender, kayaks and solar panels. Based on initial calculations, a pair of 60 hp four-stroke outboards should move this boat at cruising speeds in the 14 mph range, and it will handle larger engines and higher speeds for those so desiring. There’s plenty of room in the bilges to include a generator, A/C and heat, a water maker and more. 

The profile comes to life in a computer-modeled rendering

At the factory, we're getting pretty excited about this boat, because it could be a game changer. Here's a reasonably-priced cruiser that you could take into really skinny water, or head offshore and cruise to the islands. Putting it on the hard is as easy as backing a trailer down the ramp, and you could move it from Miami to Seattle in a matter of days. If you really want to get adventurous, put it on a roll-on cargo ship and take it over to Europe to explore the French canals or cruise the Med. For most of us, this is really all the boat you'd ever need to make your cruising dreams come true. Stay tuned for more details.