Tow a Tandem Island behind a 30'er?

[Madwand]

Hoping I don't get laughed out of here, but I have a 1989 Catalina 30 with a Walker 8 hanging from davits. It's pretty useless for anything but rowing, as any motor you add to it is too heavy and you have to run it from the middle seat.

So I have a 2012 18' Hobie Tandem Island that I was gonna sell for 5k to offset the Catalina's price, but no one can afford it. I was toying with the idea of towing the Hobie (folded) instead of carrying the useless dinghy when I leave in 3 years for the Keys and Bahamas.

It would be a blast to have in the Bahamas and has enough storage to use for local transportation and no engine to worry about. Just don't know how feasible it is to tow it behind a 30' monohull.

[Fiveslide]

You have 3 years, continue to try and sell the cat while shopping for a RIB that can ride on your deck while you move around.

I think the cat would swing, wildly, while being towed without someone on the tiller. It would reduce your speed, make your boat handle like crap. I think you would quickly find it more trouble than it's worth.

[roverhi]

Before you abandon the Hobie try towing it and see how it works. Would be a fun thing to have on a cruise if towing it would work. Other option is a boat large enough to transport the Hobie on deck.

Davits, yuck!!!

[Madwand]

I could possibly detach the amas and carry them on the deck for crossings. Then, I'd only be towing an 18' kayak.

[ArmyDaveNY]

Is it practical to have it shipped instead of towing?


I like Roverhi's suggestion. Try it and see how it works.

[Dave22q]

Not sure I understand your problem. If you have the rudders out of the water your cat should not be a harder tow than most dinghies. You just have to pay attention and adjust your lines as needed. Of course, I would also go the extra mile to avoid inclement weather even it messes up my schedule. Nothing tows well in heavy weather.

[foufou]

I have towed a 17' sailing canoe on open seas but only in moderate weather. I left the dagger board down for roll stability and rudder in place with tiller lashed amidships. It behaved very well. I have no idea what might have happened if the weather kicked up. No doubt that problems would have reared their ugly hides

[Madwand]

Originally Posted by Dave22q

Not sure I understand your problem.

I don't have a problem. I was just wondering if I would be creating one. I'm starting to feel a little optimistic about it now.

[canyonbat]

We have towed our Tandem Island behind our Seaward 25 on Lake Havasu. It isn't ocean wave conditions but we did cross some gnarly boat wakes and it did ok. You need to attach a line between the front of the amas and the hull as, even with the amas swung into the hull they want to splay out when crossing a wave and it causes some weird swings.

You will also want to leash your drives, and anything else that might come out if it flips. I didn't see it want to do that here but, with the amas tucked in tight it isn't real stable. I discovered this a couple of weeks ago while trying to step off of it while loading on the trailer. I went in, the boat flipped and a set of $650 mirage drives disappeared into the water. Luckily I was able to find them after wading up to my neck for about an hour in 52 degree water!

[Madwand]

Thanks! That's really relevant. My boat is 5 feet larger, so that should help. I tether everything, but if I were doing a crossing, I wouldn't have anything installed on the Hobie anyway. Last time I tried to remove the amas, I couldn't because there was some sand in the tube...

[coastalexplorer]

Personally I fail to see what you objection is the the Walkerbay 8? but then upon reflection that would depend entirely on whether or not you have a Hypalon inflatable tube fitted to it?

The Walkerbay 8 came with the yacht purchase So I did not specifically choose it, However I spent about $800 CDN fitting one to ours. and with a 2 Hp Seagull 40 minus. I estimate that my partner and I have voyaged well over 300 miles in it. Admittedly in perhaps 5 to 25 mile stints.

With a combined crew weight of $420 Lbs, plus anchor and chain in the bow and 28 Lbs of the out board on the transom; We are unavoidably over loaded relative to the revised placard weight that the riv tube gives us. So;Yes for our purpose I would swap it for the Walkerbay 10 to have that bit more buoyancy to be able to use the 4.5 Hp Seagull. (37Lbs) But for what it is we have found it quite seaworthy. However put some weight in the bows and the WB.8 should be fine with one person. unless that person is much over 240 Lbs.

I would not go out in one without that inflated tube.

[Tetepare]

I've towed multiple kayaks behind my c30 with surprisingly good results. Also tow an Avon 310 RIB with 15hp. But I won't do it if weather is pending. About 5' seas the Avon starts to get Wiley. The problem comes if the tow vehicle turtles your only choice is to cut it free. I wouldn't do what you r suggesting.

[canyonbat]

Originally Posted by Madwand

Thanks! That's really relevant. My boat is 5 feet larger, so that should help. I tether everything, but if I were doing a crossing, I wouldn't have anything installed on the Hobie anyway. Last time I tried to remove the amas, I couldn't because there was some sand in the tube...

I think that would work fine. I would stow the sail in its bag on the big boat. Put the dagger board down and lock the rudder amidships. Install the drive cavity plugs if you have them. The other thing I would do is look into resealing the hull hatches and put some silicone around where the rudder lines exit the hull. We run our TI with an outboard a lot here and it always takes on water in the main hull. Not a huge problem when we are out for a few hours (except for wet stuff) but on a long passage it might be.

[giant]

I wouldn't tow anything at sea.

A lake is not the ocean.

You could put the Hobie on deck. If you get heavy weather it could be a real hazard or in good weather a inconvenient pain. Your boat is a 30 footer so less is more.

Sell the Hobie (toy) in summer and put the money towards a good dingy with a decent motor (8-15 horsepower) that will get two people and gear on the plane.

Keep the dingy on fore deck or under boom if possible for crossings probably semi deflated and very well secured. Secure engine below or on pushpit.

[canyonbat]

Originally Posted by giant

Towing anything at sea for a crossing is recipe for disaster in my opinion. Sure you might get away with it and it might be fun having it down in the Bahamas if it makes it there but .... Long term it is a major pain in the arse at best, could kill you and others at worst.

Can't remember ever seeing a yacht towing anything ever offshore here in Australia, east coast/ Southern Ocean/Tassie. Have seen commercial fishing boats tow a tender on very short hops not for crossings. Inside parts of Great Barrier Reef people do it for short hops between islands but still wouldn't recommend it.

Sailing in a lake and dealing with a boat wake is nothing like sailing in the ocean.

Even something simple like a bit of rope chaffing could see it disappear without trace.

Like previous posters say, save for a decent dingy or upgrade your present one with inflatable tubes. Wait for summer and sell the Hobie as no motivated buyers around in winter.

A Hobie is a fun toy to have but also a pain to deal with, a good dingy of some king is pretty much a practical necessity.

I pretty much agree with everything you say here. Could it be done? Yes, if you pick a weather window for the short crossing. Would I do it? Probably not.

We have considered taking the TI up to the Pacific Northwest and towing it behind our big boat but the PIA factor is just too much. Getting on and off the TI from the back of the boat is tricky. Taking it into a tight slip would be a nightmare. They would probably make you put it in its own slip so they could charge you twice. We tow an inflatable dinghy now and it is always banging into the boat while we are at anchor. With the TI that soft bump becomes a hard bang. Finally, if things go wonky and you have to cut it loose, it will not sink and will remain a navigation hazard until it washes ashore somewhere.