Tacomasailor
Veteran Member
QUESTION: Is a fly bridge and big aft cockpit essential for fulltime live aboard comfort and enjoyment of life in the tropics and SE US cruising? Fly bridge appears in most of the “Top Five Items” thread from February so I want to narrow the discussion to full time live aboard in the tropics.
CURRENT TRAWLER CANDIDATES: Nordhavn 50 and Selene 53, which are almost exactly the same price, age, and engine hours.
PLAN – Buy a trawler on US West Coast and slowly make our way thru Panama Canal and on to SW Florida where our families have lived for 35-years. The boat will be our only home for the next several years. We’ll eventually purchase a waterfront home and continue to cruise Florida, Bahamas, Turks & Caicos, and US East Coast, hopefully as far as Maine or eastern Canada.
US – Experienced long distance cruisers in sailboats up to 42’ with 4-years of full time live aboard experience in the tropics. We currently live aboard in San Diego and own no shore side property.
The Nordhavn is the cleanest and best maintained boat I have ever been on. She has almost everything my wife and I want. We like everything about the Norhavn Except – NO FLYBRIDGE and little easily accessed outside living area on the boat deck. The only practical way to the boat deck, behind the dry stack, is thru the raised pilothouse and then outside on the port walkway aft and up some narrow stairs.
And, the aft cockpit area in the Nordhavn is smaller than my wife wants.
The Selene is also a very nice boat but is almost 60’ LOA, which makes it much more expensive to operate. The Selene slip in our marina is $490/month more than for the Nordhavn and $215/month more in Marina La Paz. But, the Selene has a much larger aft cockpit and a super fly bridge that is easy to get to and use. It seems to us the Selene has much more useful and liveable outdoor space.
We love being outside and when living on our sailboat in the tropics we spent about 15-hours a day in the cockpit or the foredeck. We cruised year ‘round for 20+ years in Puget Sound and north of there and know a whole bunch about cool and cold weather boating. I am not concerned about the fly bridge when the temperature drops below 65.
The 53’ trawler I served on in the tropics had an easily accessed fly bridge and we used it a lot.
Those of you with experience living aboard a trawler in the tropics – how important is the fly bridge for comfort and pleasure?
- underway in coastal waters
- underway offshore
- at anchor in the bright warm sunshine
Can we be happy with no upper outside living space? I think not; but I do love every other aspect of the Nordhavn 50.
The aft cockpit issue is a little more problematic. My wife loves to fish and spends most of the time underway with a line in the water. She wants a big fishing cleaning sink and work counter/space at the sink. She also wants a table that will seat four with good walk around area. The Selene has it all, except the sink, and the Nordhavn none.
I feel that a 16’ wide and 6’ deep cockpit on the Nordhavn is plenty of space but the wife wants more space if we are going to be living aboard for the next four to six years.
Do you tropical live aboard cruisers having thoughts about the necessary size of an aft cockpit?
I really like the Nordhavn layout, especially the easy access to the owner’s stateroom, when compared to the Selene. The Nordavn is the boat we want but the lack of a fly bridge is almost a show stopper for us.
I know it is a tough choice Selene–vs-Nordhavn but the lack of a fly bridge has really gotten me nervous.
Thanks for any opinions you want to share.
CURRENT TRAWLER CANDIDATES: Nordhavn 50 and Selene 53, which are almost exactly the same price, age, and engine hours.
PLAN – Buy a trawler on US West Coast and slowly make our way thru Panama Canal and on to SW Florida where our families have lived for 35-years. The boat will be our only home for the next several years. We’ll eventually purchase a waterfront home and continue to cruise Florida, Bahamas, Turks & Caicos, and US East Coast, hopefully as far as Maine or eastern Canada.
US – Experienced long distance cruisers in sailboats up to 42’ with 4-years of full time live aboard experience in the tropics. We currently live aboard in San Diego and own no shore side property.
The Nordhavn is the cleanest and best maintained boat I have ever been on. She has almost everything my wife and I want. We like everything about the Norhavn Except – NO FLYBRIDGE and little easily accessed outside living area on the boat deck. The only practical way to the boat deck, behind the dry stack, is thru the raised pilothouse and then outside on the port walkway aft and up some narrow stairs.
And, the aft cockpit area in the Nordhavn is smaller than my wife wants.
The Selene is also a very nice boat but is almost 60’ LOA, which makes it much more expensive to operate. The Selene slip in our marina is $490/month more than for the Nordhavn and $215/month more in Marina La Paz. But, the Selene has a much larger aft cockpit and a super fly bridge that is easy to get to and use. It seems to us the Selene has much more useful and liveable outdoor space.
We love being outside and when living on our sailboat in the tropics we spent about 15-hours a day in the cockpit or the foredeck. We cruised year ‘round for 20+ years in Puget Sound and north of there and know a whole bunch about cool and cold weather boating. I am not concerned about the fly bridge when the temperature drops below 65.
The 53’ trawler I served on in the tropics had an easily accessed fly bridge and we used it a lot.
Those of you with experience living aboard a trawler in the tropics – how important is the fly bridge for comfort and pleasure?
- underway in coastal waters
- underway offshore
- at anchor in the bright warm sunshine
Can we be happy with no upper outside living space? I think not; but I do love every other aspect of the Nordhavn 50.
The aft cockpit issue is a little more problematic. My wife loves to fish and spends most of the time underway with a line in the water. She wants a big fishing cleaning sink and work counter/space at the sink. She also wants a table that will seat four with good walk around area. The Selene has it all, except the sink, and the Nordhavn none.
I feel that a 16’ wide and 6’ deep cockpit on the Nordhavn is plenty of space but the wife wants more space if we are going to be living aboard for the next four to six years.
Do you tropical live aboard cruisers having thoughts about the necessary size of an aft cockpit?
I really like the Nordhavn layout, especially the easy access to the owner’s stateroom, when compared to the Selene. The Nordavn is the boat we want but the lack of a fly bridge is almost a show stopper for us.
I know it is a tough choice Selene–vs-Nordhavn but the lack of a fly bridge has really gotten me nervous.
Thanks for any opinions you want to share.