We head for the Abacos aboard a Great Harbour N47 to meet up with a group of boat owners who have the cruising life all figured out.
By George Sass Sr.
People think you need a house," said Sue Graham, standing aboard Odyssey, a Great Harbour GH37. "They think you have to have dirt. Well, they're wrong. We sold our house to buy this boat, and we've never looked back."
I met Sue and her husband, Paul, at the Abaco Beach Resort & Boat Harbour in Marsh Harbour in the Abacos. They were spending the winter in the Bahamas alongside other Great Harbour trawlers. In fact, the dock looked like a Great Harbour rendezvous. There were six sitting at the resort alone, and two more, part of the company's growing charter fleet, were moored at another anchorage nearby.
Across from the Grahams were Wink and Wilma Thornton aboard John Henry, their Great Harbour GH47. "We still own a condo in Sarasota [Florida], but we're hardly ever there," said Wink. "We'll spend the winter here in the Abacos and then continue to cruise in the States. If we could sell our condo, we would."
In truth, these folks are living lives most of us only dream about. But what struck me was that neither of these couples had the high level of boating experience or rarified financial means often associated with such enviable lifestyles. According to Eric Kraft, Great Harbour's effervescent and congenial sales manager, Great Harbours are often sold to couples with modest boating experience and average means. They've simply figured out the secret to full-time cruising.
I have met people like the Thorntons and Grahams in the past, and I've sensed that part of their secret to the good life is their choice of boat. Great Harbours — built by Mirage Manufacturing in Gainesville, Florida — feature wide, hard-chined, full-displacement hulls that deliver good initial stability without the need for stabilizer systems. Each of the company's four models have wood-free exteriors that require little maintenance. In addition, the interiors are very homelike, utilizing full-size household appliances. To test my theory, I offered to help Kraft deliver a new Great Harbour N47, Spoonbill, to Marsh Harbour, where it would join the company's charter fleet. Ken Fickett, the owner and president of Mirage Manufacturing, arranged to meet me in Marsh Harbour and introduce me to his customers, who were all eager to share their live-aboard stories with me.
Kraft and I left Fort Lauderdale at midnight to make the 65-mile crossing of the Gulf Stream and to pass West End, Abacos, at daybreak. The N47, like all Great Harbour trawlers, is a true, full-displacement, twin-engine vessel, and it can run seemingly forever at 8 knots. We experienced moderate 2- to 5-foot seas on the nose with an occasional slammer, but the vessel's form-stable hull, sans stabilizers, performed as advertised. Although nursing a severely sprained back, Kraft's wife, Cinda, slept through the entire crossing in the forward owner's cabin.
As the sun rose, we entered the shallows of the Little Bahamas Bank, running along effortlessly, marveling at the clear, aquariumlike waters beneath us. We arrived at Great Sale Cay, 49 miles from West End, early in the afternoon. There, we anchored and waited for Semper Fi, a Great Harbour N37, to join us.
Also part of the Great Harbour charter fleet, Semper Fi had run virtually nonstop from Green Cove Springs, Florida, to Jacksonville, down the 225-mile coastline to Fort Pierce and then across to the Bahamas.
This was my first night on the hook aboard Spoonbill, and I noticed how its hull design provided an unusually stable platform, even though a chop had come up during the night. I began to familiarize myself with the ship's systems and noticed how simple they were to master. For example, an "auto-run" electrical power system sensed when the large house batteries — running twin, synchronized inverters — reached a preset, low-voltage level, initiating an automatic start of the AC generator. After the batteries recharged, the generator shut down. Power management doesn't get any easier.
The next morning both boats proceeded to Spanish Cay, where we checked in at customs. From Spanish Cay, Semper Fi continued to Marsh Harbour while the Krafts and I took a more leisurely route, stopping overnight to enjoy the cruiser-friendly ambience and good food at the Green Turtle Resort Club and Marina.
Anxious to better understand the attraction to these arguably odd-looking boats, I saw how easy Spoonbill is to dock using its twin engines and bow thruster. Its robust, black, rubberized rub rail may not look "yachty," but it sure takes the pressure off when approaching barnacle-encrusted pilings. Best of all, the wide side decks and flush deck make it easy to get from one end of this 47-footer to the other when handling lines. With an absence of exterior brightwork and teak decking, the boat requires just a quick wash-down to look shipshape. I was beginning to understand why these Great Harbour owners seemed to play more and work less.
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Dropping the hook off nearby New Plymouth, we went ashore to explore this tiny, tidy settlement. Kraft, a talented artist and model maker, bought a beautiful ship's model from a local shop, and we had lunch at the popular Laura's Kitchen. A cozy inn and several charming cottages are available for rent on the island for non-boaters, and a ferry provides service to other islands.
As we approached Whale Cay Passage, the ocean pass that separates the central and southern Abacos, we could see "dancing elephants" on the horizon. With the wind blowing 25 knots and the seas breaking over the outlying rocks, Kraft decided to attempt the seldom-used Don't Rock inside passage across an expanse of sandy shoals. The charts show 3 feet at MLW (the N47 draws 2 feet 10 inches), and since it was low tide and the sandy bottom is constantly shifting, this would be a nail-biting experience.
Sure enough, we hit bottom three times, but the ocean surge from Whale Cay lifted us off each time until we finally reached deeper water. "I wouldn't try that in any other boat," said Kraft as we bounced off the final shoal spot. It was the first and only time I saw a serious look on his face. "Don't worry, these boats are built to take a beating," he said. "And besides, we were on a rising tide." Thankfully, Great Harbours feature sturdy twin keels to protect their props and shafts.
There are few places in the world better suited for unwinding than Great Guana Cay, as it is often referred to as the party island. We dropped the hook in Fishers Bay and hiked across the island to lick our bottom-bouncing wounds at Nippers, the icon of Bahamian bars. After a couple platters of conch fritters washed down with Kaliks, we were ready to continue our Abacos adventure.
The next day we arrived in Marsh Harbour to meet up with Fickett and to visit Great Harbour owners. It was hard not to feel a tinge of envy while talking to these people, who seemed so removed from the malaise overtaking most of us back in the States. The stock market was in a steady freefall, unemployment was getting worse and the media had nothing but negative news to report. Yet these folks were happy, healthy, positive and very busy.
"Some days I get up and hope there's nothing to do, because we're always so busy fishing, diving for lobster or going to a dance or party," said Wink. "Occasionally, I could use a break from all this fun and activity!"
Like the Thorntons and others at Boat Harbour marina, the Grahams belong to the Royal Marsh Harbour Yacht Club, which provides a social network for cruisers in the Abacos. Sue has been coming here every winter for the past seven years, and she extols the virtues of the Bahamas. "If I lived to be 200," she said. "I'd come back here every year."
The Grahams are full-time live-aboards, having sold their home and household possessions. They've done the Great Loop twice and will return to the States for the summer. "There's no such thing as the perfect boat for everyone," said Paul, "but this boat is right for us. I wanted Sue to be comfortable, and I wanted a boat that could handle the seas and had the redundancy of twin engines." Sue added: "I love having a washer and dryer and a real kitchen. Best of all, there's so much light on this boat; we never feel closed in."
Both the Thorntons and Grahams rattled off a list of activities they had planned for the rest of their winter, many of which included other members of the yacht club and family. Looking out at the aqua-blue water, the white sandy beaches and the resort amenities included with their slip rental, I had no doubt these folks had found the secret to the good life.
Kraft must have noticed my wanderlust expression after speaking with these owners. He graciously offered to run Spoonbill down to Little Harbour, home of Pete's Pub and Gallery, one of my all-time favorite gunkholes and watering holes. Yes, life seems pretty great on a Great Harbour Trawler. And it's even better in the Bahamas.
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