Boats Back East

On March 28th we flew back to Annapolis, Maryland to look at boats. The first was a 46" Alden named Cara Lynn. While it was a beautiful boat and large and comfortable below, we were concerned with its size and condition. And it has been on the hard for more than 2 years.

Then we drove to Tiverton, Rhode Island and looked at two Shannon 43s: Chance and Ceilidh. Again, they were well built, and comfortable below, but they just didn't thrill us.

Then we drove across the river to Portsmouth, Rhode Island and looked at two more Aldens; a 48' boat named Serenade, and a 44' boat named American Beauty. The 48' Alden has the same hull as the 46', but with an extended transom which provides a larger lazarette. Again, we decided that 46'-48' was just too big. And too expensive; not only to purchase, but to maintain.

However American Beauty, at 44' long, had the best layout ever! A large airy salon accessible from the cockpit, a small quarter cabin to port, galley to starboard, traditional settees with centerline table, double bunk up forward, and a watertight bulkhead between the forward cabin and the chain locker. To access the chain locker, you had to descend a ladder from a deck hatch, but it was a great place to store not only anchors and rode, but other bulky, wet things. And a bright red hull! But they were asking over $300,000 for it so we scratched it off the list. 

After spending the night in Mystic Seaport, we drove to Old Lyme, Connecticut to see the last boat; an Alden 44 named Pilgrim. This boat was affordable, had a newer rig and sails, had been hauled out every winter and professionally maintained, but how would we get it home to California? There are companies that transport boats, but not only is it expensive, it is nerve-wracking to have your boat on the road for a week and there are fees on each end to de-commission and re-commission the boat.

So, in the end, we were happy that we went back and checked on all these boats, but we keep coming back to the 44' Alden in Sausalito.....