Boat Show featuring boats & suppliers

June 9, 2024June 22, 2024

SoFlo Boat Show 2024

A few weeks ago, Scott and I headed to the SoFlo Boat Show in Miami. This was the 2nd annual show and it was located at the historic Miami Marine Stadium. Nestled on Virginia Key, the Miami Marine Stadium has a rich history dating back to 1963, renowned for its iconic modernist design by architect Hilario Candela. Originally built for powerboat racing, it quickly became a versatile venue hosting concerts, sporting events, and more. After decades of disuse and a successful restoration effort, the stadium now serves as a vibrant hub for events like the So Flo Boat Show, attracting boating enthusiasts from around the world to explore the latest in maritime technology and watercraft.

The SoFlo Boat Show Set-up

The show ended up being much bigger than we expected. They had a large indoor tent, which was air conditioned and much needed as the real-feel for that day was about 105 degrees!

Inside they had your boat accessories and run about boats under 42′. Outside, they had a huge selection of food vendors, plus others miscellaneous vendors including clothing, grills and much more.

Yachts on the Docks

There were about six finger piers with about 20 boats on each dock in the marina. Scott and I headed over to the first dock to work our way to the other end. Along the way, we found these awesome floating chairs. I should have caught the name of the manufacturer, but I forgot to.

The first two yachts we looked at were the Okean 57 and the 52. Okean Yachts, renowned for their innovative design and superior craftsmanship, are revolutionizing the luxury yacht market. With a commitment to blending contemporary aesthetics with functionality, Okean Yachts offer unparalleled open-space concepts and seamless integration with the ocean environment. These Brazilian-built yachts are celebrated for their expansive deck areas, innovative fold-out terraces, and luxurious interiors, making them a top choice for discerning boating enthusiasts. Experience the ultimate in maritime elegance and cutting-edge design with Okean Yachts, where every voyage becomes an extraordinary adventure.

What to Expect at SoFlo

Most of the boats in the marina were under 40′ and were center consoles or runabouts. It was so hot that we could barely stay outside. In addition, since we had to remove our shoes to tour most of the boats, our feet were burning from the teak or synthetic teak in the sun.

On Display Inside the Tent

Thank God the A/C was on full blast as everyone was dripping wet walking around outside. Scott and I have not spent much time on any center console, and we were able to tour a gorgeous Bahama Boat Works 41GT center console. Be sure to tune in to our YouTube channel for that tour!

We did tour an NX 360 cruiser, which reminded us a little bit of a Regal or Sea Ray Sundancer. The finishes were not quite the quality though.

At the end of the day, we’re glad we checked it out. We were there about 2 hours, enjoyed a great lunch and learned something new (Miami Marine Stadium) once again. If you’re in the market for a center console, this is a great show to attend. They were providing sea trials for serious buyers too.

As always, thank you for following blog. Please be sure to follow us on our YouTube channel (link below) and on social @BoatingJourney #BoatingJourney.

Cheers, Scott and Ally

February 21, 2021February 26, 2021

Bayliner 4788 Tour at Fisherman’s Terminal

Scott and I finally toured a 1998 Bayliner 4788 MY last week. Since we have owned two Bayliners many people told us to look into a 4788. This boat is currently moored at Fisherman’s Terminal in Ballard and we spent the afternoon exploring the marina as well.

The tour was impromptu and so we didn’t get a chance to take our time taking professional photos. The broker did tell us that the owner has added many upgrades to this Bayliner 4788, including a camera system to help him easily navigate and dock the boat.

Interior Upgrades

One thing you’ll notice immediately upon entering the salon is the upholstery and carpet are new. The two chairs are original to the boat and have not been redone. The salon has the same granite counter our 4087 had, but the wood is much lighter than what we had. This is because the owner also had all of the wood refinished.

The galley has decent counter space, similar to our 4087. It has an upgraded SeaFreeze fridge that is nice and roomy. The shades are all electric and move up and down with a press of a button! How cool is that?! The stovetop / oven is a Princess, the same model we had on our boat. You know how picky we are about the sink and this boat has two sinks, one of which is decent size. At least you can get a pan in it!

Drinks anyone? Check out the “wet bar”. Next to the sink, is a countertop blender! Haven’t see one of those in years.

The Two Helm Stations

A few steps up from the salon area, is the interior bridge. I was shocked by how great the visibility was from this bridge. Normally, we never use the interior helm station, but in this case you would want to. The captain’s chairs (upper and lower) were both recently upgraded and the best part is you can move it around (it’s not anchored to the floor). These chairs are very nice upgrades to the boat.

You can access the upper fly bridge from either the stern (via a ladder) or from the interior bridge. I was disappointed that the upper bridge didn’t have a table or a good area for entertaining. A large portion of the upper deck is used to hold the crane and dinghy.

For us, entertaining outside is important and we definitely want an area that has a table with seating so we can enjoy the outdoors during the summer.

The Sleeping Quarters & Heads

As you move down the hall, you’ll find one stateroom on your port side and the day head on the starboard side. Straight ahead is the master stateroom.

The first stateroom has a great design, as the bed is not on the ground level (like many aft berths). This makes it much easier to get in and out of bed.

The day head had lots of storage space and it did have a separate shower, which we like. I wasn’t too keen on the lip of the day head or shower in it. I would definitely trip on both of them.

As you move down the hall, you’ll find the washer / dryer combo. This is a definite must for a liveaboard boat.

The master stateroom is actually an island berth in the forward cabin. I don’t know what I was expecting, but that wasn’t it. I need a full walk around bed, so I was bummed to see that this was the design.

Apparently, the Bayliner 4788 was designed so that you could remove the partition between the master stateroom and the guest room with the bunk beds. That is exactly what this owner did and for privacy he put up a curtain. They use it primarily for extra storage, so this made a lot of sense.

I was also amazed by how much storage the master stateroom offered!

The master head has plenty of room, but we were shocked to see it has a bathtub! Now that’s a liveaboard boat!

Overall Impression

This particular Bayliner 4788 is beautiful and comes with a lot of great upgrades. The owner has taken really good care of this yacht and it shows. Is it what we are looking for? Unfortunately, no.

I really want a FULL walk around bed that I don’t have to hop into every night (remember, we’re living on this boat). While I love the entertainment space on the inside, there really isn’t any outside. The cockpit is too small for a table and chairs and the upper helm only has seating. Those are my two “must haves” for a liveaboard. If you want more information on this Bayliner 4788, please email us and we’ll send you the link. Many people ask us why we don’t include it in our blog or vlog and that’s because the link will become invalid when the boat sells. We don’t want to have any links on our website, that don’t go anywhere 😉

Fisherman’s Terminal

Fisherman’s Terminal opened in 1914. This marina is open to both pleasure craft and commercial vessels. Look for celebrity ships from Deadliest Catch! One caveat about this marina is it is not secured. The docks are open to the public.

The Seattle Fisherman’s Memorial memorializes more than 670 local commercial fishermen and women who have been lost at sea since the beginning of the 20th century.

Scott and I love that Fisherman’s Terminal is so close to us. If you recall from our previous blogs, we often buy our seafood from the Wild Salmon Seafood Market, located at Fisherman’s Terminal. There are also three restaurants and a gift shop at the terminal. Be sure to check it out next time you are in Seattle!

As always, thank you for following our journey. Next week, we sit down with you and share our thoughts on what’s happening in regards to our blog and vlog, and our search for a liveaboard boat. Follow us on social @BoatingJourney and please subscribe to our YouTube channel, by clicking on the video below and hitting “subscribe”. Cheers, Scott & Ally

February 1, 2021February 1, 2021

Tour a 2018 Sea Ray L590 Fly Yacht

The Seattle Boat Show was this week and everyone loves to tour the yachts during a show. This week, we take you on a tour of a brand new (executive demo) 2018 Sea Ray L590 Fly yacht.

Sea Ray stopped building boats over 40′ in 2019 and they only made a limited number of Sea Ray L590 Fly yachts. This is the only new L590 on the west coast and a really beautiful yacht. With a full enclosure, it is perfect for cruising in comfort in the Pacific Northwest, especially because every level has heating and air conditioning.

Entertaining in Style

This yacht has plenty of room for entertaining. The cockpit has seating for over 6 people and it comes with a fridge, icemaker and grill! Plus the joy stick controls are located on the port side for easy docking from the stern.

The interior offers a large open salon with plenty of entertaining space. This includes a comfy couch, ottomans, large flat screen tv and a built in bar. Plus the “up galley” allows the chef to mingle with guests while prepping dinner. The settee offers seating for 6 people comfortably too.

More Entertaining Space!

If that’s not enough entertaining space for you, check out the fly bridge. It has seating for 12 plus people (pre-covid of course), a fridge, a grill and sun pads to relax on.

Liveaboard Comfort

When I think about living on a boat, I wonder how we can make the transition from a home to a boat comfortably – especially here in the PNW. Taking a tour of this yacht, I would have no issues! The master stateroom has plenty of headroom, lots of storage, a full walk around bed, a desk/makeup station, a large flat screen tv and a comfy lounge area. The closet even has an icemaker in it! This is nicer than our condo.

What I love about this yacht, is that Sea Ray put so much thought into the design and texture of the interior. It truly reminds me of a luxury home without being “gawdy”. The master head is beautiful and the shower offers plenty of room for a 6′ person!

There are two other staterooms on this yacht, including a double bunk room. This room has plenty of storage space plus the washer and dryer!

The VIP V Berth

It seems like every v berth we see, the bed is about 4′ high and for me (Ally) who is only 5’3″, it’s a chore to “hop into bed”. What I love about this v berth, is the bed is lower and it has two steps on either side, to easily climb into bed. This stateroom offers tons of storage and another big cedar closet!

The day head has access from the hallway and the v berth. It offers the same space and details as the master head.

The Helm Stations

There are two helm stations on this Sea Ray L590 Fly yacht. The interior helm offers two VERY NICE captain’s chairs with a fantastic navigation center. Sea Ray did not skimp here either, offering leather console and storage compartments in the bridge.

The helm station on the fly bridge has great visibility for easy navigation and docking. The Zeus pod joy stick controls help navigate this yacht through tight fairways and makes docking much easier than you would expect. Two large SmartCraft Vessel View display screens feature provide all the information you need for operating this yacht.

This yacht is equipped with triple Zeus Cummins engines. For info on this propulsion, check out this link: https://www.cummins.com/engines/zeus-and-cummins-inboard-joystick.

Cruising in comfort and luxury

Sea Ray is known for their high quality vessels and attention to detail. This Sea Ray L590 Fly yacht is a great example of that. With less than 60 hours and with a full factory warranty, this yacht is ready to cruise the Pacific Northwest. For more information or a tour, visit Union Marine on Lake Union in Seattle.

As always, thanks for following our blog! For a full tour of this yacht, please watch our YouTube episode below and please subscribe for future episodes. Be sure to follow us on social @BoatingJourney. Stay tuned for next week, as we take you on a tour of a Boston Whaler 325 Conquest Pilothouse. Cheers, Ally & Scott

January 25, 2021January 25, 2021

Seattle Virtual Boat Show 2021

Scott and I have attended the Seattle Boat Show for the past 20 years. This year the show will be a virtual boat show and quite different thanks to the pandemic. The organizers of the show NMTA, have launched a fantastic website at www.seattleboatshow.com. Here you can buy different ticket levels, which gain you access to many features, including four days of virtual seminars (83 to choose from) January 28 – 31.

This will be the largest virtual boat show in the country and already they have sold tickets in over 40 states. There are over 600 boats featured on the website ranging from $1400 to $3.6million.

Going from 35,000 sq ft

As many of you know, I am head of marketing for Union Marine and the annual boat show is one of my biggest tasks each year. Normally the show takes up over 200,000 sq feet at the convention center at Century Link and my company normally has over 35,000 sq ft of that space.

Like many boat dealers, we are not only doing a virtual boat show, but we’re also hosting an open house at two of our locations in Seattle and Fife. To try and squeeze in a show of this size into two local showrooms is definitely a challenge, but I feel good about our accomplishment.

Hosting a Virtual Boat Show

No other organization has ever put together a show of this size and honestly, none of us know what to expect. One very cool feature of the show, is many dealers chose to do a 3D virtual walk-thru tour of their showrooms. You can see the two virtual boat show displays for Union Marine on our website. These tours are real life videos of our actual show rooms. You can click on specific targets and get information about a brand, including a brand video, build a boat or see our inventory.

The question still remains, how many people will shop virtually versus in-person? Guess we will have to wait and see. Just like a car, everyone loves to touch and see a boat up close and in person. Scott and I put a quick video together to give you an inside peek of the show both in-person and virtually – so check it out below.

This year, we hope to get to the Annapolis and/or Fort Lauderdale shows, so be sure to subscribe to our channel for upcoming episodes.

As always, thank you for following our blog! Be sure to follow us on social media @BoatingJourney too. Next week, we’ll take you on a tour of a brand new Sea Ray L590 Fly Motor Yacht.
Cheers, Scott and Ally

January 10, 2021January 10, 2021

Check out this 2000 Silverton 392 MY

This Silverton 392 motor yacht has an awesome layout and really could make for a great live aboard. Scott and I toured this yacht at Union Marine back in November and we were very surprised to see how much space it has.

The owners have put in some custom cutting boards in the cockpit above the refrigerator, which allows for great entertaining on the stern. We love how much open space there is in the cockpit for relaxing.

The Fly Bridge

The fly bridge on this Silverton 392 offers great visibility. One thing I noticed right away (and I think it’s a great idea), is the owner put labels everywhere to help who ever is operating the boat.

We also noticed that on the bridge, there were switches for engine fire extinguishers. How cool is that?!

The Silverton 392 Motor Yacht, with its innovative “SideWalk” flybridge steps, offers much improvement in safety, space utilization, and mobility. Never before has going forward been so easy and so safe.

The Interior

Compared to our Bayliner 4087, the salon offered much more space for entertaining. You could easily seat 6 or 8 people around the settee. For relaxing at night, the couch was directly across of the tv and it also has a reversible ottoman.

There is tons of storage space under the couch cushions, plus plenty more in the built-in cabinet under the tv.

With the galley just steps away from the salon, you can easily cook and entertain at the same time. There is a lot of storage space and I love that the stove top and oven are electric. Be sure to watch our YouTube episode, for a closeup tour (link at the end of this blog). For some reason, I hate propane ovens/stoves. I know they are the most practical for cruising, but if you are at the dock with shore power, I’ll take electric any day.

Two staterooms

Unlike our Bayliner 4087 that had three staterooms, this Silverton 392 only has two staterooms. However, someone could sleep on the couch, but that wouldn’t offer any privacy. The forward cabin has a double size bed and has plenty of drawers for storage.

There are two heads on this yacht and each has a VacuFlush toilet. The guest head does have a separate shower stall, which is a major plus. On our Bayliner, you had to use a shower curtain in the bathroom when you showered and things still got wet.

The main stateroom is an aft cabin, much like our Bayliner 4087. I feel this cabin is slightly smaller, but Scott disagrees with me. What do you think? I think that our bed was longer than the Silverton making the room bigger?

About our second boat — Main stateroom on our Bayliner 4087

The main head was a little smaller that I expected, but still offered everything you would need.

The Engine Room

This Silverton 392 MY comes with twin Caterpillar 3116 diesel engines which have a combined 740hp and they only have 150 hours of use! Access to the engine room is in the main salon.

This boat comes with a Kohler Generator and also has an oil change extractor! Super cool, especially if you have ever pumped out your oil manually.

Upgrades also include a WalVac system (a must!!), Inverter and an AB dinghy with a Honda 15hp outboard motor.

Overall Impression

Scott and I were pleasantly surprised by this yacht. It has a great layout, it’s comfortable and comes with many upgrades. While we loved our Bayliner 4087, had we looked at both boats at the same time, chances are we would have picked the Silverton.

Would it make a good liveaboard? Any boat can be a good liveaboard – check out our episode about living on a 32′ Nordic Tug. But in the end, we’re looking for a boat that’s a bit bigger with more storage. If you are looking for a great cruiser for the Northwest, be sure to check out this yacht. You will be impressed.

As always, thank you for following our journey! 2021 has a lot in store for us, including our (hopefully) upcoming bare boat charter on a power catamaran in the British Virgin Islands in April. If we can’t find the perfect liveaboard (or slip to go with it), we may decide to buy a smaller boat just to be able to get back on the water this year. Stay tuned! In the meantime, we hope you all have a fantastic New Year and we hope to see you on the water! See the full tour in the YouTube episode below.

Cheers, Scott and Ally

November 16, 2020November 17, 2020

Tour a 1995 Sea Ray 550 Sedan Bridge

As most of you know, Scott and I are looking for a liveaboard boat, and in this week’s blog, we take a tour of a 1995 Sea Ray 550 Sedan Bridge. Sea Ray has a long history of producing beautiful yachts going back to the 1980’s. Then in 2018, Sea Ray announced that they were no longer going to produce any boat over 35′.

The Sea Ray Sundancer has been an iconic brand among cruisers. With roomy interiors and fast motors, they quickly became the perfect vessel for families and for entertaining. This 1995 Sea Ray has all of the original features, so it was fun to go back in time and check it out.

Classic design of the 550 Sedan Bridge

Though this motor yacht is 25 years old, it still has a classic design. The exterior is sleek and is in great shape.

The cockpit has plenty of seating and comes with seat covers that look practically brand new. Enter the salon through the large sliding glass door (a feature we love). On our Bayliner 4087, we had to go down a set of stairs to get into the salon and we like this setup much better.

1995 Upgrades

The first thing you will notice when you enter the salon on this 550 Sedan Bridge, is the dining room table. This is actually a plexi-glass table and chairs, which was an upgrade option in the day.

We love the comfy couch and all of the extra room you have to entertain in the salon. The bar stools are original and fit perfectly!

The galley has all of the original equipment, including a built-in coffee maker, icemaker, microwave, liquor cabinet and stovetop. Considering when this was built, the backsplash is still very up to date!

If you love old movies, you’re in luck! This yacht also comes with a VHS & DVD player. Just like our Bayliner, this yacht offers a lower helm, which we never used.

Living Quarters

All of the sleeping berths are down in the forward section of the yacht. The master stateroom is in the V berth, which offers a queen size bed. Plus it comes with a fun quirky rug!

It had plenty of storage for clothes, plus a make-up vanity. I suppose you could use it as a desk, but you would be staring at yourself all of the time!

The master head was nice and roomy, with a separate shower and a vacuflush toilet.

But wait! There’s more!

There are also two more staterooms off of the hallway. One has bunkbeds and the other has a day bed with a vanity. Again, you could use that as an office possibly. The bunkbed stateroom, is where the washer/dry combo is located. Both staterooms share a fairly large head, which has a separate shower (a big plus for us!)

Plus the day bed stateroom also came with a built-in tv.

The Fly Bridge & Engine Room on the 550 Sedan Bridge

One thing that does give me pause on this boat is the stairs up to the bridge. A deal breaker for me, is any sort of ladder. But once you get up there, it’s awesome! There’s lots of seating for entertaining, plus built-in cup holders and a mini fridge.

The helm has B & G with Raymarine electronics and has great visibility for docking and cruising.

The engine room was pretty roomy with access from the cockpit. This Sea Ray comes with twin Caterpillar 3406 diesel engines that have less than 1500 hours. Diesel engines typically are good up to 5000 hours, so this boat has a long life left in it.

So did we make an offer?

This 1995 Sea Ray 550 Sedan Bridge is a great boat, but for us to consider it as a liveaboard, we would need to give it a cosmetic facelift. Unfortunately, we’re not looking for a fixer upper, as we want something that is turnkey. But it does have everything we are looking for (except a walk around bed too).

If you are looking for a great cruising boat for the PNW, this is a fantastic yacht and it’s ready! This boat was actually in the Tri-Cities and the owner cruised it down the Columbia River to the Pacific Ocean, up around Neah Bay and to Lake Union! That’s pretty impressive!

If you would like to check this boat out, please visit Union Marine at Lake Union in Seattle!

As always, thank you for following our journey! Please be sure to subscribe to our blog and YouTube channel (link at the end of this blog). You can follow us on social media @BoatingJourney.

Next week, we’ll take you on a tour of a 2005 Sea Ray 550 Sedan Bridge. This will be a fun comparison of the 1995! Stay tuned! You can view the boat (until it’s sold) here: www.unionmarine.com . Check out our YouTube episode below.

February 4, 2020February 4, 2020

Seattle Boat Show 2020

Scott and I have attended the Seattle Boat Show for the past fifteen years. Originally we attended just to have something fun to do. Eventually, we caught the bug and we started boat shopping and we bought our first boat in 2017. Yep, it took us twelve years to finally make the decision.

Now that I’m in the boat business, I wonder if that falls true for other people? What are their reasons for attending? Then you have to ask, “well, if you already own a boat, why go to the boat show?” One of the main reasons, is there is so much more than just new boats at the show. Every year, the Seattle Boat Show has two floors (and a tunnel) of marine industry vendors ranging from Canadian marinas and electronics to accessories and supplies.

Touring the boat show with a plan

I will admit, since this was my second year working the Seattle Boat Show (nine long days in a row), I wasn’t in the mindset of touring new boats in the show. Instead, we were focused on what we need for the boat. As we talked about in our New Year’s Resolutions blog, we plan on doing some remodeling and also visit some new marinas around Puget Sound. So our plan for the show was to look for a sink, faucet, new canvas and talk to new marinas.

Surprisingly, we didn’t accomplish any of the remodeling task – there were no vendors at the show that supplied those items. As we walked the show, we did get a chance to say “hi” to some of the vendors we have used, including Color Glo, Elliott Bay Marina, Pacific Fiberglass and Global Marine Insurance.

One fun thing we saw at the Elliott Bay Marina booth, was our boat is in the aerial photo in the booth!

Union Marine – the largest boat display in the show

As the Marketing Manager at Union Marine, part of my job is to ensure that we have a fantastic display. I’ve toured our booth every year and I have to say that we had the best display that I have ever seen. Of course, I’m biased, but it really flowed well and was the center of the show.

Dog Day at the Seattle Boat Show

This year, the show added “Dogs on Deck” and on Thursday folks could bring their dogs to the show. Of course I was in heaven with all of the four legged fur balls running around. Surprisingly, they were all very well behaved and we didn’t experience any doggy accidents.

Fun surprises at the show

Even though we have a great following on our blog and social channels, it still humbles us when people know who we are. We had a few people come up to us while we were touring the show and say “hey, I know you guys. You’re Ally and Scott of Boating Journey – I follow you.” One guy I met, Kyle knew our channel so well, that when he was describing it to his friend, he included our old boat, how we bought this one in a snow storm, that we had holding tank issues and we’re off to the BVIs. It was so awesome and this really is super cool to us.

I had also talked to another fellow boater, Jeff from M/V Why Knot, who we follow on Instagram about the show early in the week. On the last day, he walked right up to me to say hi. We’re hoping to do a meet up with a bunch of us local boaters who follow each other.

Meeting VIP’s

When I’m working the show, I typically work in an office, so many times one of my team members would come and get me to say someone was looking for me. One time, I asked who it was and they replied “they said they were VIP’s”. ?? Who could these people be, I wondered. So I headed up to our Sea Ray ramp, only to find our close friends Nick and Michelle, who now live in Arizona. They came by to surprise me! You might remember, that we used to attend the Anacortes Boat Show with them every year!

The Seattle Boat Show consumes the first four weeks of the year and now that it’s over, Scott and I can start working on all of our boating resolutions. This also includes anchoring and staying on the boat one night before our trip! Of course it’s still winter here in the PNW and we’ll be waiting for warmer weather to do that. Next week, we’re having a planning meeting with Ben and Maria to go over our BVI itinerary and provisioning plan. So stay tuned for our next project!

As always, thank you for following us! Find us on social media on Facebook , Twitter and Instagram @BoatingJourney. We finally tested out our new drone, so look for our maiden voyage posts. Be sure to also check out our YouTube channel at @BoatingJourney and subscribe for future episodes.

Cheers, Scott and Ally

October 1, 2019October 1, 2019

Boats Afloat Show – Where it all began!

It was at the Boats Afloat Show in 2010 where it all began! Scott and I had owned The Wine Alley since 2005 and we decided to head to the show for something to do. As we admired all of the beautiful yachts, we knew those were not in our future. Then headed to the sailing dock and toured a 35′ Lagoon Catamaran. All of a sudden, we knew we would someday retire on a boat.

After the show, we spent time with a local charter company and actually considered investing in a new Lagoon. Thanks to the recession and the fact that we still owned a business, that wasn’t going to happen. So, in the meantime, all we could do is attend shows and work towards our dream. After we sold the wine shop, we started searching for our first boat and bought Kokomo in 2017.

What are we looking for at the Boats Afloat Show?

Now that we own a boat, you might be asking why are we at the Boats Afloat Show? Scott and I are not looking for another boat, but there’s a lot of things we can do to remodel our current boat. Time to look for ideas! In addition, we have found a few of our vendors (Lending Associates, Global Marine Insurance, Color Glo Marine & Pacific Fiberglass) at the show, so it’s a great place to connect with people.

Let’s start with the carpet. Our boat, a 2002 Bayliner 4087 Aft Cabin M/Y has the original carpet and it needs to be replaced. We have talked about replacing it with a wood laminate and it wouldn’t be too costly, except for the stairs. Then we toured the Aquila 44 at the show. How ironic, because that’s what we are chartering in April in the BVI’s!

I immediately noticed that they had Snap-in Carpet for the interior. Interesting. Thoughts anyone?

Scott and I have also been talking seriously about the possibility of living on THIS boat. That was never in the plans, but I would consider it to save money. However, we would need to make some changes to make it more livable and user friendly. Check out these table designs. It would be great if we could lower our dinette table so we could easily relax on the seat and watch t.v.

Galley Remodel

While we wont’ be remodeling our galley anytime soon, it’s on the list if we end up living on it. Here are the list of things we need to change:

Swap out the double sink for a single
Replace the faucet with a smaller, taller, skinnier faucet
Replace the microwave with a microwave/convection oven
Remove the propane stove top and replace with an electric stove top.
Remove the oven and replace with cupboards

Why? Well, we can’t fit pots or pans in the sink. The faucet is so low and huge, it practically is in the sink. To use the stove top and oven, we have to turn on the gas at the tank, turn on the switch at the electrical panel, turn on the switch in the galley and then light it with a lighter! No thanks.

The question will be, is can we find a small enough microwave/convection oven? We have a pretty tiny microwave.

On one sailboat, they had a pretty cool set up for their bbq, but I’m not sure how you could do that after market for a boat like ours.

Check out the galley on this catamaran!

As we toured the sailboat row, Scott and I stumbled upon a peculiar looking catamaran. It was a brand I have not heard AND it was very green. This is a Baracuda X 2013 Chris White Atlantic 47 Catamaran.

At first, I didn’t want to go on it, but am I glad I did. They thought of everything on this boat!

The galley is not on the main level, but down below (similar to the Antares). It’s also massive! There’s more counter space here than my condo has.

Then they built in a “shop” on the other side, where there’s the engine access and the washer and dryer!

By the initial looks of this boat, you could easily do some off-shore cruising. The craziest thing about this catamaran is has patented Chris White Designs MastFoil™. This is a unique combination of modern rigid airfoil technology with proven soft sails.

Other cool things at the Boats Afloat Show

New to the market is the center console from Ocean Alexander. I’ve read about it in magazines, but to see it in person was unreal. Who owns a boat like this? Has to be some huge yacht and they use this as their tender! We saw plenty of them in St. Barths.

With four 350hp engines, this boat can easily go over 50mph! Crazy.

Then we toured a 1990 yacht that is moored in our marina. Everything about this yacht was unique and eccentric. So we had to check out the bridge. Is this a boat or a helicopter?

Check out this Life Proof Boat! It’s made out of a patented Styrofoam. You can stab it with a knife and the pontoons will not deflate!

That’s a wrap of the boat show! What’s next for us?

It was a quick tour of the boat show. When you work the boat show as an occupation, it’s not as fun to tour it anymore. Next up for us is to figure out our leaking holding tank situation. Since we’re hauling out in a couple of weeks, now is the time to fix it. We’re also gathering information for our Moorings BVI bareboat charter, so if you have any tips or suggestions for an itinerary, please reach out.

As always, thanks for following our blog! Please subscribe to our social channels too, on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter and YouTube. Not only do we want to share our story & experience with you, we also want to hear from you too! We’re learning everyday!

Cheers,

Scott & Ally

@boatingjourney #boatingjourney

May 25, 2019June 3, 2019

Anacortes Boat & Yacht Show 2019

Last weekend Scott and I attended the Anacortes Boat & Yacht show, up at Cap Sante Marina. As you know, we have attended this show many times and this year was a bit different since I was also working during part of it.

My boss and I arrived on Wednesday, May 15th to set up the POP materials and I needed to decorate the yachts. Our company (Union Marine) had some trailer boats on land and eight boats on the water. Anacortes is Boston Whaler country and the Pilothouse models were a hit of the show. If you want a safe, reliable, comfortable and fast moving boat for the PNW, Boston Whaler is your boat!

We also brought up our Sea Ray Yachts (the L590, 510 Sundancer, 460 Sundancer and the 350 Coupe). What a lot of people don’t realize, is we moved these boats from Seattle. Our poor crew had really rough conditions earlier in the week getting to Anacortes. But our fleet cruised into Anacortes with no issues!

510 Sundancer

The Anacortes Boat and Yacht show has had a slight makeover from years past. This is the 2nd year that NMTA has ran the show. Prior to that it was a free boat display of used sail and trawler boats. Since we want to live aboard & travel the world some day, we are always looking to see what is out there. Scott and I toured the show as “civilians” and checked out some long range cruisers.

A Must See Yacht!

We looked at a few possible liveaboards, but nothing struck us. So we wandered down to the end of C dock and noticed a brand new 76′ yacht by Offshore Yachts. I had never heard of them before, so we jumped on board. Scott and I were immediately taken away by the details and craftsmanship of this vessel.

These are custom yachts from Taiwan and they take about 18 months to build. The story behind this particular yacht, is the owner fell in love at first sight with another Offshore Yacht and wanted to buy it. That owner said no, so he immediately called Best Day Yacht Sales and had one built!

What I love about this yacht, is the owner included so many traditional, but new maritime pieces throughout. My pictures don’t do it justice, so hopefully the video tour does better.

It has a cruising range of 1800 miles at 10 knots. Check out the bridge! I wouldn’t know what to do with all of those electronics! I took video of the electronic switches above, but failed to get a photo. This yacht also comes with an boat indicator alarm system (not sure if that’s the exact name for it, but it is a really cool feature.)

The Comforts of Home on a Yacht

When you tour larger yachts, you’ll notice a few things right away. Hallways are narrow, staircases are steep & skinny and some just are not practical. As I mentioned, this yacht is meant for long range off-shore cruising. What that means, is this is great for traveling up and down the coast line from Alaska to Mexico (not necessarily for crossing oceans). They designed this yacht with all of the comforts of home in mind. As you will see in the video, it has nice wide hallways and spacious living areas.

The upper deck was awesome too!

With joysticks on both the port and starboard side, this can easily be docked with just two people.

The engine room was big enough to do yoga or a have a cocktail party! LOL It had great crew quarters just off of the shop next to the engine room too.

If we win the lottery, this will be our dream boat of choice! Safe, durable, stylish and comfortable with long range offshore capabilities.

What Else Was Cool At The Show?

I love to find the obscure cool things at boat shows and Anacortes didn’t disappoint. First up was the inflatable amphibious boat by SeaLegs. For a mere $100k you too can have this on your private beach. Be sure to check out the footage in our next episode.

Then check out this davit system. I shared it on social media and folks are asking me who the manufacturer is. I didn’t get that info, as it was just a dinghy included with a boat for sale. Bummer. So if you happen to know who makes this, please let us know.

There was another big yacht on display (sorry, didn’t catch what kind), but if you need a foyer with a large porcelain piece and a fur blanket – I don’t think offshore cruising is for you. LOL

Where to Eat (or not to eat) in Anacortes

It seems every year we eat at the same restaurants (Union Tavern, Brown Lantern, Dad’s Diner), so I vowed to mix it up this year. Scott and I went to the north end of Anacortes and decided to have lunch at the Secret Cove Restaurant. Perhaps it was an off day for them, but let’s just say we won’t be back. While the vistas are cool, so was the food. But while we were waiting (and I mean waiting) for our lunch, a ferry boat arrived to pick up a house! We watched the crew for about 20 minutes and then we needed to head back.

Notice the golden retriever! He was helping his dad supervise the entire time!

Fantastic breakfast!

I had read that Mary Ann’s Kitchen was fantastic for breakfast, so we decided to try it out. The restaurant is actually an old house and Mary Ann is the cook. She cooks each order, one at a time. Give yourself plenty of time, but it’s worth it!! It was definitely the best breakfast Scott and I have had in a very long time. She’s not open on Sundays, so make a note.

I ended up being in Anacortes for five days. Working from my hotel room and walking back and forth to the show, I was exhausted when it was all over. The funny thing about being in the boat business now, is my life is now nothing but boats, boats and boats. I market boats during the day and come home and work on the blog. Now with a new boat, we’re busy doing boat projects. And I love every minute of it!

This weekend is Memorial Day weekend and it’s dreary today (Saturday). Scott is busy running new cable for the stereo system and I’m catching up on our blogs and YouTube episodes. Tomorrow is forecasted to be warm and sunny and we’re taking the boat out with family and friends. Since we have to get used to living on a boat, we’ll head down there tonight, make dinner and stay for the weekend. So stay tuned for our next blog as we get new cockpit carpet!

As always, thank you for following our blog! Be sure to subscribe and also follow us on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and YouTube. @BoatingJourney #BoatingJourney

Cheers, Scott and Ally

February 4, 2019March 7, 2019

2019 Seattle Boat Show

A Tour of the 2019 Seattle Boat Show

This year’s boat show was a completely different experience for Scott and I. As you all know, I joined Lake Union Sea Ray in September and my company is the largest boat dealer on the west coast. Our portfolio includes Sea Ray, Bayliner, Heyday, Boston Whaler, Lowe, Monte Carlo Yachts, Nautique and MasterCraft. Our 34,000 square foot exhibit was the largest in boat show history by any single dealer featuring over 90 boats. The setup for this show takes five days and as the Marketing Manager, I was definitely busy! The Seattle Boat Show is a nine day event at the Century Link Field Event Center and at South Lake Union.

What’s really impressive is the amount of work that goes into setting up a boat show!

Walking the show

Each year, Scott and I walk the show with a plan – we’re either looking for a boat, researching a marina or buying supplies. This year we only had a limited time to walk it, since I was working the entire time. I did take my badge off, so I wasn’t a dealer walking through other dealer’s display. Not owning a boat right now, we really don’t have a need for any supplies. But we did look at a boat a week ago and if we buy it, we’ll need a few things.

At Century Link Event Center, they have two floors of exhibits. Whether you are looking for a new toilet, anchor, electronics, charter companies or boats, you’ll find it at the Seattle Boat Show. One of my favorite vendors is NautiGirl Apparel – I buy a couple of shirts every year.

What? We looked at a boat last week?

Yes, you heard that right. We’re going back this week to take a second look with Steve Thoreson, our broker from Lake Union Sea Ray. If we feel good about it, we’ll make an offer! But more about that, next time.

Scott and I did check out a few mattress vendors and dinghys. The boat we are looking at, has a heavy duty davit system and the dinghy is stored horizontally. With a 5’ beam, that extends our LOA and slip size requirements. We thought about getting a new system to store it vertically, allowing us in a smaller slip, but it’s not really feasible. I did learn that inflatable dinghies come in two different types of materials – synthetic rubber (Hypalon or neoprene) or plastic polymers (PVC or urethane). Synthetic rubber will last much longer as it is more UV resistant than plastic polymers, but they are twice the price. One dinghy we liked from Waypoint Marine Group was the Highfield Classic 340 Hypalon, regularly $5490.

Dinghy Shopping

I also priced out dinghy motors at the Seattle Boat Show. Our old dinghy only had a 4 hp motor and you can go up to 9.9hp without having to register the boat. Turns out that a motor with an electric starter isn’t that much more than a manual starter. Either way, we’re still looking at spending at least $2000 on a motor. Why all this dinghy shopping? Because the boat we’re looking at comes with this tricked out dinghy that with the motor weighs over 700lbs! We’re a little worried about the aft weight and we’ll see how it cruises during the sea trial.

The funny thing is that this dinghy not only has a tower, but it comes with GPS, VHF and a stereo with a CD Player! Imagine what our marina neighbors will think as we cruise around! Guess we’ll wait until we cross that bridge.

South Lake Union Boats Afloat Display

After checking out a few boats at Century Link, we headed down to South Lake Union. Of course I’m a bit biased as I think we had the best display on the lake! We had six of our larger Sea Rays on the water, including our L590 Fly, 510 Sundancer, 460 Sundancer, 400 Sundancer and the 330 Sundancer.

Sea Ray L590 Yacht

One yacht that stood out, was a Sea Spirit trawler. This was a beautiful classically built boat. Every detail was thought out. The cruising range on this boat is 3800 miles! If we won the lottery, I would consider buying this beauty.

The coolest thing on this Sea Spirit was the flag feature – they have a flag for all of the major countries! If you aren’t familiar with flag etiquette, here’s a great link from our friends at S/V Totem.

It can be yours for only $17,000 per month

Okay, let’s be real. If you need to know what your monthly payment is with financing on a $3m yacht, you probably shouldn’t be spending that kind of money. We thought it was hilarious that this 75′ yacht had a price sign showing its monthly payment of only $17,000 per month! While it was nice, it was not warm and cozy to us.

Coolest feature on a Trawler!

We also checked out Sea Bear a Swift Trawler. While we are not big fans of trawlers, Sea Bear was nicely designed. In fact, it even had a dumb waiter for drinks up to the bridge!

The weather this year, was fantastic for most of the boat show! Imagine doing an on the water boat display in January in Seattle! We were so lucky to have sunny days for most of the show.

Catamarans

It was seven years ago, when Scott and I first toured a catamaran at the Seattle Boat Show. It was a 35′ Lagoon and we were hooked. Since then, we have checked out other catamarans at the Miami and the Annapolis Boat Shows. There just are not that many cats in the PNW – probably because they require such a wide slip.

This year, they had three cats at the show. The first one we toured was the Lagoon. After being on so many cats over the years, this is not our favorite anymore. The cabin/cockpit seems to shallow and small for us.

The next cat we toured was the Nautitech Open 40 which was set up as an “owner’s version”. An “owner’s version” has a full stateroom and head on one side, versus two staterooms. That’s called a “charter version”. It was fairly roomy, but again, I probably would remove the couch feature. This was our favorite cat in the show.