New Members here.

[Sea Horse]

Hi to all you tug owners. My Wife and I are new members, Sue and Rick. We curently own a 43 ft Tiera Convertable. We are tired of getting beat around on the flying bridge. Getting too old for that. We have been looking at the 27 and 29 ft as possible replacements because we are looking at crusing the PNW. There is a big difference between towing the 27 and 29. There are so many interesting places to take a towable boat that is sea worthy. We would be interested in hearing some feed back from people that have towed especially in California. I don't really want to get a class 1 liscence. Thanks in advance.

 

[sportner]

Sue and Rick, welcome aboard.

Toni and I have trailered our R27 over 4,000 miles with our chev. 3/4 ton w/Duramax. We spent over two months living on it in RV parks and over three months on the water.Its a bit tight but quite doable for a couple. We hope to be back aboard within a month and cruise the east coast through the summer then back to the northwest for early fall. Next year... the inside passage to Alaska. So much water, so little time.

 

[Levitation]

Many Tugnuts live for a period of time on the 25... Tight and needs planning and tolerance... Shucks, we have folks who cruise on the 21...

Going down from your size of boat is going to be real sea change... If you are adventurous I would suggest you buy a used 25 and give it a try... If within a few months it is not for you then the boat and trailer can be sold easily... If it is for you then you can consider either a 27 or 29...

 

[Sea Horse]

Thank you for the responses. We know a 29' would be nicer however our question and concern was on trailering. Before we purchased our 43' we were considering a 30' that had a 10' beam and weighed close to 15,000 lbs. We went to the CHP (California Highway Patrol) office close to Pasadena and they said we did not need a special license just a wide load sign and permits to drive a route. I had read what I could find on line and I thought we would need a non-commercial Class A license and insisted that I thought we needed a special license. They even called Sacramento to find out and we never heard back from them - I guess they don't run into too many people towing boats.

Our question is if we purchased a 29', filled it with fuel, groceries, clothing and water, trailered around the state of California towing our boat which now weighed over 10,000 lbs, is 10' wide - 1) do we need a non-commercial Class A drivers license - are they difficult to get - we are both in our 60's but have driven large 4 horse trailers with dressing rooms and a 44' school bus? 2) Do we need a permit to tow the boat from our property in Burbank and drop it in the water in Huntington Beach? 3) Do you have to have your trip planned ahead of time in order to get a permit from the CHP?

Another possibility is purchasing a 5th wheel trailer to tow the boat instead of a bumper pull - then you can go up to 15,000 GVW and only need the wide load sign on the back - am I correct?

 

[sportner]

You should not need a special license to tow your recreational boat or trailer that is 10' wide or less. An over width permit will be necessary anytime you are on a public road if the load is over 8'-6". In Washington state you can purchase an annual over width permit which covers you in that state for the year. There usually is a state patrol office that you can call that will answer your questions or direct you to someone that can for your state.

 

[Levitation]

Check the archives... There are a couple of 29 owners on here who have trailered extensively... Their opinion seems to boil down to, 'piece of cake'...