Moving SO 379 to Gig Harbor WA from Houston TX

[rapide]

Hi, we may be moving to Gig Harbor and would probably like to try to have our 379 transported cross country. So we really have several questions.
1. Have any of you had your sailboat transported cross country? If so, what sort of experience did you have: Would really like to know how well the boat traveled, How to keep it from damage during transport, which carrier you used, and cost.
2. Since we have only lived in Texas we are interested in what the sailing is like in the Gig Harbor area. Is sailing popular? Any anecdotal information would be greatly appreciated. I'm thinking there are many places to sail to.
3. Any particular marina(s) you would recommend for keeping the boat?
Any information you can provide would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks very much.

[MartyB]

Gig Harbor itself is rather small to sail, but outside in the sails sea, you can be gone for months and be happy all the way north to Alaska and back.
Gig Harbor marina has a very good repair group. They can 're rig your boat once it is here. Olympia about 5 hrs south motoring boat, an hour via freeway, has a place that us good. CSR yards in Des Moines or Seattle are great to work with, as is Marine Servicenter in Anacortes, a 10-12 hour boat trip north, local Jeanneau dealer yard. They hold a on water rendezvous third weekend in June, another dinner in Seattle during the January boat show.
Winds are typically are out of north 5-15 in summer, south in winter about the same, although winter storms can be in the 20-40 knot related. Occasional winds to 60 for a few hours.
Probably cooler all year around by 10-15F than Huston. Shoal draft boats are not needed! You'll be in 200-1200+ feet of water with a few hundred yes of shore most places. That's not to say there are not shoal areas.....

Marty

[jdl01]

Hi Rapide,
Welcome to the pacific northwest. For shipping make sure they wrap and seal your mast and boom. Otherwise all the systems at the masthead, boom reefing, etc. will end up full of road grit which can become damaging an affect future performance.
For the same reason remove or cover and seal deck gear like traveller cars, blocks, winches etc. Fill gap at top of companionway door to keep out dackdraft dust from going below.
Check vertical height of boat and trailer once loaded and have shipper confirm that all bridge/overpass clearances will be ok. I have had shippers crudely remove pulpit to achieve clearance while simply cutting electrical connections, damaging thru deck bolt holes.
Make sure tie downs are buffered where they cross deck edges and could damage the faux teak rails.
Remove and store helm wheels below.
Pick a known, reputable hauler with purpose built trailers and cushioned suspension.
Get a policy rider from your insurance company to cover the trip including loading and unloading.
Costs for Toronto/ Vancouver haul ten years ago were about $15,000.
If shipping during winter - not recommended - make sure all water is drained and with antifreeze replacing raw water in heat exchanger.

[rapide]

MartyB and jdl01,
Thank you both for the great info. Do the rudders somehow get blocked so they don't move? I'm not sure it is possible but should I try to get the boat shrink wrapped once everything is immobilized? Do the movers move the mast and stow it for travel or do I get a rigging company to do that?
And Rapide is shoal draft because we sail mostly in Galveston Bay which can be 3-6 feet below out 4'11" keel.
Thanks again.

[johannes]

Shrink wrapping the boat is getting more and more popular here for winter lay-up, so it can be done. If done right, it should hold for winter storms 60-70 knots, so it should hold for road transport speeds.

[rene460]

Hi Rapide, that’s a big move, but better by truck than any of the obvious sailing routes.  Not sure that the NW passage is even reliably open yet.

Our boat was delivered from France, so truck to the port, sea cargo to Melbourne, then truck to the marina where the agent was based, and finally sailed to the Lakes as the specified final destination.  I had asked for trucking, as while only 300 nm, it is an unfriendly waterway, but was talked out of it.  Weather windows caused such delays that the agent wished he had trucked it.  But it arrived safely.

It was shrink wrapped by Jeanneau, even had a zip in the back for customs inspections.  The shrink wrap and the boat were all undamaged on arrival.  So if you can get it done, I would go for it.  As already said, some protection against stones and dust inevitably encountered on such a trip.  It was mounted on a purpose built cradle.  Apparently the cradle goes to scrap after delivery as it is not economical to return it, and not often enough needed to justify storage.   But your nearest Jeanneau agent may have one coming in, so worth asking a dealer in your area.   Though a truck normally engaged in boat transport should have appropriate chocks props and tie downs, so you probably don’t need something special.  And you do have the option to see it loaded and check that it is well supported.  I noticed other larger boats arriving with the keel horizontal on a palette which was bolted into the cradle, but these had never been installed at the factory, so did not have to be removed.  Ours is also shoal draft, but only 0.85 draft, and was shipped with the keel already installed in France..  With around five feet, it will be high on the truck, but I have seen some of our ocean racing yachts on the road, probably going Adelaide to Sydney, so also a decent distance.  They still had keels attached, but the trucking company will know what height they can handle and what height limits would apply on the intended route.

The mast was totally wrapped in bubble wrap.  Metres and metres of the stuff, fixed with duct tape in good McGuyver style.  Obviously wind instruments etc removed.  Jib furler was not assembled, and was packed in sections in the cabin.  I can’t remember if the mast was also on a frame, but properly supported and tied down I would expect it to be Ok.  If three supports, make sure the centre one is significantly off centre.  If four supports, make them uneven spacing.  Any rigging extending below the foot of the mast when it is laid out needs to be coiled and protected from kinking.  Possibly removed altogether and coiled and wrapped inside the cabin.  Again I am not sure what was done for our delivery, I will look through and see if I can find a photo.

Hopefully some idea of what is done from the factory will help with decision making.

My observation is that the truckies secure the load and drive the trucks, the yard at each end provides crane and rigging services, but hard to tell what is done in another country, or even another yard for that matter.  I would talk to them as part of the preparation.

rene460

[puravida35]

We moved our previous boat (SO35) to the Clearlake area about 5 years ago from a north Texas lake. We were lucky to be on the same lake that housed the Valiant factory at the time so we contracted them to decommission and pack up the boat. As they were very experienced in shipping new boats they did an excellent job with ours. The trucking company was not involved in the packing, just securing the load and over the road travel.

I would think that enough boats come and go in the Clearlake market that you shouldn’t have any problem finding a rigger experienced in packing a boat for shipment (Bahama Rigging, Stix & Rigging, Hayes Rigging come to mind). The better the packing on the shipping end, the easier the commissioning on the receiving end.

As mentioned by others, wrapping up the mast and exposed hardware is important. It is also important that all rigging be wrapped up, secured from movement and accurately labeled. We also removed as much stuff from inside the boat as possible to avoid the possibility of stuff coming loose and rolling around during the trip.

[rapide]

I think I have a fairly complete picture of what to do thanks to the thorough information from each of your responses. Now to find the right people to do the work!
Thank You All

[jdl01]

Hi Rapide,
Locking the rudders with the wheel break is normally enough for travel purposes. Depending on the hiways traveled, cleanup can be a big job, so look at the shrinkwrap cost in that light. After you pick a boat moving company, ask them if they have a preferred wrapper with experience in more than in situ winter covers. Wrapping of gear responsibility will vary depending on whom you hire. I have had both haulers or riggers do the job on different occasions. A hauler with dedicated boat moving gear is more likely to offer the service. I have always stripped, coiled and stored all rigging and removed instruments, antennae etc from the mast. Pole mounted radar will probably have to come down for clearance purposes, but I have no experience whether it is delicate enough to remove from the mast and store separately.

[pfppete]

I have a custom fitted cover 2 yrs old for your SO-379 as you may need for the winter lay-up...

[rapide]

I was wondering who might be best to wrap the boat for travel. Didn't realize the transporter might do that. Is it cold enough in the Seattle area to not sail the boat during the winter? Does snow I guess. Thanks for offering the availability of the cover. Had not thought about that, but I will now.
Thank you.

[jdl01]

Sorry Rapide,
I did not mean to imply that haulers could shrink wrap the whole boat - some can do the bubble wrapping on masts and booms and seal winches etc. However, the hauler may be able to advise who does the best shrink wrap job in terms of secureness-
from experience with past deliveries.

[rapide]

OK. I'll be talking more with the transporter about prep, so good to know. Thanks

[MartyB]

Fist Saturday in December is Tacoma yacht club around fashion, 1st Saturday after new years is 2nd south sound series race, Desmoines to squeamish head, west to west side of sound, back to Des Moines.
3rd us presidents weekend out of Olympia, last is out of Gig Harbor YC 3rd weekend in March.
Lake Union has the Sunday Frostbite, much.like a Tuesday evening summer duck dodge.
Shilshoal bay YC has monthly races from November to February maybe March.
Sloop Tavern YC has a race in January....
December all over the sound their are lighted boat tours.........
But your right, nothing to do around here in them supposed cold winter months. Lolol!
Marty

[MartyB]

If you go to janspix on smugmug, you'll find a few of the round Fashion races being done with snow flurries.

Marty

[optimystic]

We go to gig harbor often and live close by. I recommend tounsecure a marina slip asap. There are not many sports in the harbor.  Lots of great sailing in the area. Very fun place. 

[horksnog]

I've had mine towed by a company, a-1 auto transport, a good ways across the country. It was pretty simple in my opinion. They seemed to know what they were doing - wrapping the mast and boom as someone else suggested is a good idea and they did that for me. As far as how it handled the trip, it was about 850 miles and didn't have any sort of damage. Weather could play a factor if you plan on moving it this time of year. 

[ForGrinsToo]

My experience with two moves, the yard that does the haulout typically prepares the boat for the hauler, and you will pay them for however you want the boat prepared, including a shrinkwrap (we abstained - but these were just 1 or 2 days in transit). The hauler makes sure everything is secured to his trailer, and should have a bond to cover his responsibility for damage to the boat while in his possession. If he is unable to inspect due to shrinkwrap, you can anticipate some flak. The receiving yard will either provide a travel lift and place your boat in the water or on the hard (much better for an inspection). In both cases, the cost was reasonable and each of the three yards was as good as hoped.

You can go to something like yachtworld.com to get an idea of what a hauler is likely to charge. Just say you're buying a boat in Houston and want it trucked to Gig Harbor. You can find recommended haulers there as well as reviews.

Having had those experiences, several years ago we contemplated a move from near Cleveland to near Blaine, WA, but decided the cost to move a 36i was prohibitive given that we weren't planning a full-time move for ourselves as well. We expect to charter instead. Honestly, it would have made more sense financially to sell our 36i and buy another. But then there are all the other things...

The tides and currents are far greater than you are used to, but the scenery is incredible. I am envious.

Geoff

[jfjeanes]

Hi there, this is my first post so hear it goes. 
Just wondering if you have moved your boat and how it went. We have just purchased a SO389 in Kemah and will be making the same move. To Seattle and then North to Vancouver Island.  Any info would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks

[MartyB]

Dec 19, 2019 5:34:28 GMT jfjeanes said:

Hi there, this is my first post so hear it goes. 
Just wondering if you have moved your boat and how it went. We have just purchased a SO389 in Kemah and will be making the same move. To Seattle and then North to Vancouver Island.  Any info would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks

Two thoughts on this.

Truck boat to Olympia, ie closed point in Salish Sea to launch, then take a 2-3 day trip to border. Then farther north to its final place.

OR

Truck to farthest point in Washingtons part of salish sea, launch and move north across boarder in a few hours......

OR, option three as I am typing. It might be also better to truck into vancouver, launch and take to your final mooring spot.

Good places in Washington,
Swantown in Olympia
Gig Harbor Marina yard in Gig Harbor
CSR in either Des Moines or Seattle
Marine Servicenter in Anacortes, also local Jeanneau Dealer
There is a place in Blaine, not sure if it can handle putting up masts etc.
Bellingham has Sea View Yard, as is one in Seattle.
One or two+ other yards in Bellingham and Anacortes, Not as familiar with them.
Now that I am rereading and seeing Vancouver Island.....Depending upon where on island. Sea Marine in Port Townsend might be another option close to border on Washington side, if going to Victoria, west and North on pacific side. Or depending upon how far north from Victoria too.

Marty

[2953]

Recent transport experience with a SO 35.
Type/age of trailer is important, as is experience of carrier. Keel supported with hydraulic balance preferred.
For reference, see greatlakesmarineservices.com as I believe they have photos of their equipment on their website.
I doubt that above would transport to Washington as this is way out of their geography, but I highly recommend them. Jim Burt was very professional, and is a sailor.
My ride was an approximate $3,500 for 225 miles.
Carrier should be responsible (fees) for route and permits.
Good point to confirm insurance and that of carrier.
Agree with suggestion to wrap mast and other entrance points to minimize filth entering.
Confirm transport of cradle, if applicable. Suggest not transporting boat on cradle.  In my case, trailer (and boat size) enabled transport of both boat and cradle on the same piece of equipment.
Diesel may be required to be removed from boat.
Propane canisters may be gnarly on locker if not padded/secured.
Shrink wrap was not installed prior to transport in my case, as they claimed it would blow off. Not sure I would agree as I see lots of           boats/equipment on the road under shrink-wrap.
Imagine the jarring a boat and its interior will receive while traveling distance on most deteriorated interstates; suggest all interior, all equipment, personal items be lashed/taped/removed as they will otherwise bounce and rub against interior.
Covers on instruments should be taped so they don't blow off.
Whisker/spinnaker poles securely padded and secured.
Anything above lifelines and stanchions removed; antennae, gps receiver, etc.
Jeanneau dealer could likely prepare boat for transport as they have plenty of experience with road transported boats, new and used.
In my case, Jeanneau dealer was ~$150 to prepare for transport.