Hunter 375

[DanBR]

I am considering a mid 90's Hunter 375 wing keel. Any opinions on this boat good or bad? Also I noticed it PHRF was averaged below 120 is that right? Is this a good boat for cruising from south Florida to the Bahamas?

[123456Wannasail654321]

From what I've read (no practical experience) Hunters in general are not blue water cruising type boats. They are more a a lightweight coastal cruiser at best and more of an inland sailing boat (Inland being lakes and sheltered waters)

However soon there will be the obligatory "I've circumnavigated the world via the southern ocean beating to windward in a constant gale with my hunter."

I'd start here:

Atom Voyages | Voyages Aboard the Sailboat Atom -* Good Old Boats List - choosing a* small voyaging sailboat

Found this:

http://www.sailnet.com/forums/boat-r.../> owners.html

and this:

http://www.sailnet.com/forums/boat-r...t-quality.html

[DanBR]

Is it really necessary to have a "blue water" sailboat just to sail from south Florida to the Bahamas? I believe the trip is only 50-60 miles. How would the 37.5 do on this type of trip and when we are just day sailing is this a fun and fast boat to sail?

[123456Wannasail654321]

I've never done it. However my instinct would say that when crossing the gulf stream its better to have more boat then too little. The gulf stream is considered to be one of the black holes that is to be respected.

From my reading it appears that Hunters are lightly stayed and that could be a problem out in the deep blue should a bit of a blow come up.

So my opinion is that the window to cross the gulf in a Hunter safely is pretty narrow and precise. I'd prefer an broader window that is given by a more sturdy boat, and one that could handle any wild cards that mother nature is prone to throw every so often without warning.

In one of those threads I listed there is a person who says he he travels in his Hunter to the Bahamas and has no issues

The other black holes I can remember are.

These places include the Agulhas current in the Mozambique Channel,
The Agulhas Plateau,
The Gulf Stream,
The no mans land between New Zealand and the South Pacific,
The Tasman Sea.


I got the black hole thing from this site.

Welcome to Maxing Out

anyway good luck.

[WDS123]

Painfully slow -

[Melrna]

Here we go again on this forum of bluewater vs coastal cruising.
Going to the Bahamas from Florida or anywhere from the East Coast of US is done by mostly what most here consider coastal cruising boats. Having just spent this spring in the Bahamas on my Hunter, my boat was the majority not the minority of boats there.
Lets talked about the Gulf Stream (dirty patch of water). 99% of the sailboats either bulewater or coastal never cross when it rears it's ugly head with anything over 5' seas. This happens when the wind blows out of any northing or when the wind gets over 15 knots constantly. Going east from the east coast is a beating, with the wind predominately out of the east on a good day and a motorsail at that. 3-4 days a month the wind swings around the south to west during a frontal passage if one is lucky enough to have the time to wait for the weather gods for a sail across. I have done the crossing on my Hunter in both big seas and becalm weather. While the beating I got in 5' plus seas was unpleasant, the boat did better than me. She handled it well.
The biggest factor when cruising south Florida and the Bahamas is water depth or the lack there-of. Anything over 6' draft on a sailboat will limit on where you can go or have to wait for high tide to get into and out anchorages. Depending on the tide cycle this can limit your day. The average tide in the Bahamas is around 2.5-3 feet. So one must always pay attention if your draft limits you.

[joeybkcmo]

Great reply Melrna

[armandolio]

What is the implication of "lightly stayed". Is it to imply that in a blow the rigging could be at risk?

[jerryRiggin]

All other opinions aside... just from my experience... I've done many a crossing in a 30' Hunter from FL to Bahamas and around the Keys. Great boats! Very safe and reliable. Just be smart (as any sailor should with any boat). If there's a hurricane out there don't attempt the crossing.