Tug 23 -27 for Boston Harbor to PTown?

[Heidicyr]

Good Morning,
Starting to look at the Tug 23 or 27 (not sure I can swing the price of the 27') for Boston Harbor cruising and overnight trips to PTown/North Shore area of Boston.
For boaters that have traveled in the harbor on the weekend we all now that it turns out to be a washer machine out there.
I would love to hear people's experiences with their Tugs in chop. We would love to do overnights from Boston to PTown or up to Marblehead. How do the Tugs do on longer trips offshore?
We also have dogs so we will need to bring these four legged family members along as well.
New to the Tugs, saw them at the Boston Boat Show and I fell in love with the overall design and use of space, but I have no idea how they handle offshore and less than ideal weather.
I would opt for the outboard option and not the inboard diesel.
Any input or suggestions are welcomed and appreciated.
H

 

[knotflying]

The bigger the boat the better the occupant will handle the seas. We have the 27 inboard and have survives some big stuff, very rough and in excess of 4 feet. We have a friend that transitioned from the 27 to a 23. He says it handles well, but he has to be more cautious than with the 27. The routes you speak of can, as you say, become pretty well churned up. In any case you have to pick your days and be more picky with the smaller boat.

 

[dclagett]

I would suggest you try and get a ride with someone, in the washing machine, before you make your decision. Comfort to one may be sheer terror to another. Looking at the specs on the 23 it is somewhat light and the hull design is unique. Most offshore outboard boats in my area are mostly over 30 foot, heavy and have a dead rise starting at about 40 degrees at the bow and taper to about 20 degrees or more at the stern. The RT23 dead rise is 22 degrees at the bow, 11 degrees about 1/3 of the way back and 24 degrees at the stern. This design along with the reverse chines is unique and may provide the comfort level you are looking for. Keep us posted I am very interested in how these new RT perform.

 

[baz]

I've had my 2018 R-27/OB in 2-3 feet waves with a period of maybe 20 feet and a port bow wind of 20 mph. Running at maybe 8 to 12 kts and aiming the boat at around 30º to the waves hitting the port bow the ride was very similar to what I experienced in my R-25 Classic. Bouncy and water slapping noises would be my way of categorizing the ride.

As with any boat, as the seas get rougher and rougher one simply slows down to harmonize the ride with the waves, wind and swells.... and of course aiming the boat appropriately for a more comfortable ride for passengers etc.

 

[CobyF]

We have an R23 outboard and have had it in some significant chop and rollers without ever feeling unsafe. It does however, take spray over the hardtop. If you are willing to do a full clean up from top to bottom you should consider the R23, we love ours. Sips fuel, amazing use of space, and fun to own.

 

[Barry Cohen]

We travel from Lynn to Marblehead, Boston Harbor, Worlds End and Scituate all the time. Take it up the Annisquam River. We spend two weeks in the summer down the Cape. Have not run into problems.

The trip from Lynn to P-Town can be a crap shoot, but in my experience, the boat can handle the conditions much better than the crew can.

Keep in touch if you would like a test ride. We have a 2011 R-27 (inboard).

 

[jes1949]

Thanks all for the posts on this topic. We have our R23 (new this year) in Charlestown, MA. I agree that on weekends the Boston side of the Harbor can be choppy from boat traffic. The Quincy / Hull side is a little better. Also agree a lot of feeling safe is relative. Our last boat was an 18' center console that jumped around in the harbor chop like a jack rabbit. I don't think my wife ever felt totally comfortable. The R23 feels like a Rolls Royce by comparison. We took delivery of the boat in Salem, MA and took it down to Boston on a windy day with a 2 1/2 to 3 foot chop. Wind was blowing spray over the top of the boat. A few loud bumps but she (the boat) handled conditions well at about 14 knots. 20 and up felt a little bumpier than we liked. Planning on going to P Town and south shore locations so I'll post updates soon.

 

[Brunski]

I'm upgrading from a 23' center console to a C-242, looking to do much the same things. The CC is a great fishing/day boat, but in less than ideal conditions it's just not for the family. I boat out of Marina Bay in Quincy. This weekend I saw an R-23 there. Anyone know who that is? Stopped by, but no one was home.

 

[jes1949]

Just an update. We completed our trip from Boston to Provincetown for Labor Day weekend. We we're scheduled to leave Friday morning but got a late start. Off the dock at 1:30 we hit 4 to 6 foot seas leaving Boston Harbor. I think would could have ground it out but at about 8 to 10 MPH we would have arrived in Provincetown after dark. We headed back to Charlestown and re-tried Saturday. Rewarded with 1 to 2 foot seas and a nice ride docking in about 3 hours and 20 minutes. After a fun weekend a "quick" trip home in about 3 hours and 5 minutes. Great ride both ways. Recommend
the trip assuming good conditions.

 

[Brian B]

Reminds me of my trip from Block Island, RI to Warwick, RI in Narragansett Bay last week in our 25SC, total trip is 32NM. Marine forecast was for 2-3' seas with NE winds about 10. This was our window to make the trip as the coming days sea conditions deteriorated.
North end of Block Island seas started to build to 4', this is the area of the North Rip so it was expected. After clearing the North Rip area we were in 6' (conservative estimate) seas for 20 NM. Seas were very confused, very close, heading bow in then one would come on the starboard quarter. One time the prop came out of the water, when the boat came off a wave my cell phone which was at the helm was airborne on the way down. Sure glad I was in a Ranger Tug, she didn't miss a beat with white water coming over the cabin frequently. I always tell people the boat can take more than I can.

 

[allanrs74@gmail.com]

Good Morning,
I have been very, very pleased at how my R-27 Classic handles all sea conditions. As others have said, the speed of the vessel needs to be adjusted upward or downward in some conditions to obtain the most comfortable ride. In June, I completed a 1650 +/- mile adventure on Annie M from Anacortes, WA to Seward, AK including crossing the Gulf go Alaska. The seas encountered along the way varied from 'mill pond' smooth in some parts of the Inside Passage to 8-12 foot long period beam swells combined with 4-6 wind waves from the stern during the Elfin Cove to Yakutat, AK leg. As others have stated, your comfort and competency level needs to be matched with the expected sea conditions. But from my experiences this summer the R-27 is able to handle what you are willing to throw at her.

Bob Allan
Annie M