Cruising World - Hunter 49: The Queen of the Fleet = Takes a Tour

It was on the C&D Canal = just past=20 Chesapeake City, Maryland, when it became apparent = that this=20 get-acquainted sail on the new Hunter 49 was about to = become a=20 road trip. With an early start and fair current up the = Chesapeake, motorsailing at 7 to 8 knots had us ahead = of=20 schedule, and Steve Pettengill, Hunter Marine's = director of=20 offshore testing, was poking around on the digital = charts in=20 hopes of finding a marina for the night. Apparently, = though,=20 other seabound traffic headed for Cape May had no need = to=20 linger, because there was nary a slip to be found on = either=20 shore of Delaware Bay.

And that wasn't = necessarily a=20 bad thing. This new offering by Glenn Henderson and = the Hunter=20 design team isn't your standard-issue floating = equivalent of=20 Uncle Fred's Chevrolet. No, it's definitely intended = for a=20 more discerning traveler=97a Buick Roadmaster for the = sea,=20 perhaps, and the ride is comfortable.

With my = feet up=20 on the Corian-topped table, and shaded by the bimini = against=20 the early June sun, I settled in against the cockpit's = high=20 coaming. The low, marshy Delaware countryside crowded = the=20 banks to either side. Hull number one is loaded with=20 electronics, solid through the water, and, on this = afternoon,=20 promised to be easily handled by a single crew on = watch,=20 making an evening on the water something to = anticipate,=20 especially since it would likely include sea tales = from=20 Pettengill, a singlehanding legend and a=20 clipper-ship-record-bustin' multihull = sailor.

The=20 sailboat was easy enough to spot at the dock at = Tidewater=20 Marina, on Back Creek: It's big for its size. The 49 = is=20 actually 49 feet 11 inches LOA, with a 14-foot-5-inch = beam and=20 freeboard high enough to make 6-foot-9-inch headroom = possible=20 under a low coachroof.

Once aboard, with my = travel bag=20 barely tossed below, Pettengill walked the deck = describing=20 systems (many), sails (we got the upgraded package on = this=20 baby), the anchor locker (to be enlarged a bit on the = next=20 hull), the dual bow rollers, the B&R backstay-less = rig=20 with double spreaders, the generator (a beefy = 12-kilowatt=20 Fisher Panda=97got to be able to run everything at = once), and,=20 thankfully, breakfast.

Below, we settled in at = the=20 wide, solid teak table to enjoy one of several tasty = meals=20 supplied by Grog & Gruel Provisioning, in = Annapolis,=20 Maryland. Eggs and home fries, like lunch and dinner, = were=20 prepared and stored in individually frozen packets, = then kept=20 cold in the top-loading freezer located just to = starboard and=20 at the foot of the companionway's wide steps. Dip them = into=20 the pan of boiling water on top of the gimbaled, = three-burner=20 Seaward Princess stove and oven on the other side of = the=20 L-shaped galley, and bon appetit.

Other galley=20 equipment aboard the 49 includes a Kenmore microwave = oven with=20 built-in coffeemaker over the stove; forward is a deep = double=20 sink and front-loading fridge. The latter had fiddles = on the=20 shelves that caused a bit of fumbling during a night = watch,=20 but they kept things put while under way. Throughout = the=20 galley, Corian countertops with rounded, high fiddles = are=20 flanked by ample storage areas and even an attractive, = glass-fronted china cabinet.

Forward of the = galley, the=20 dining table offers plenty of seating for the crowd = you'd be=20 tempted to invite aboard. The outboard settee doubles = as an=20 adequate place to nap while under way, and a midships = ottoman=20 hides the battery bank (three 8Ds) located under the = cabin=20 sole.

Opposite and aft of an ample settee, a=20 forward-facing nav table with captain's chair offers = more than=20 enough space to file away the paper charts you'd = seldom need,=20 thanks to the array of Raymarine instruments that can = serve up=20 chart, radar, and GPS data in about any combination = you'd=20 want. This same information can also appear on the = 23-inch=20 flat-panel screen on the saloon bulkhead and on the = display=20 screen in the cockpit between the helm stations. The = flat=20 panel and another 15-inch screen in the owner's cabin = also tie=20 into the Bose 321 onboard entertainment center. =

The 49=20 comes in a four-cabin charter layout or in one of a = pair of=20 three-cabin owner configurations. Hull number one has = twin aft=20 cabins. To starboard, there's a double with a hanging = locker,=20 a seat, and a compartment that can be used for pantry = or other=20 storage or for a washer and dryer. A second layout = option=20 replaces the storage area with room for a workbench or = desk.=20 To port, there's an athwartships double, a large = hanging=20 locker, shelving and storage, and an en-suite head and = shower=20 that also opens to the main saloon. Between the aft = cabins is=20 a kick-out panel that offers an additional means of = egress in=20 an emergency. Innerspring mattresses are found on both = berths.
Forward, "spacious" comes up short when = describing=20 the owner's cabin on hull number one. An island queen = with a=20 memory-foam mattress is flanked by a seat and a = cedar-lined=20 hanging locker to port, with a shower compartment just = aft. To=20 starboard, there's a vanity, head, and a second = cedar-lined=20 hanging locker. Certainly comfortable at dock or = mooring, an=20 owner might, under way, look for a more suitable sea = berth=20 farther aft, where the ride would be smoother and = there'd be=20 something to lean against while = heeled.

Furniture=20 throughout the boat is covered in light-colored,=20 low-maintenance Ultraleather upholstery, which, with = the=20 light-colored teak woodwork, makes the interior = bright. The=20 cabin sole is low-maintenance as well, made from = Everwear=20 gloss teak-and-holly laminate. Pettengill said people = buying=20 this boat aren't looking to spend a lot of time = keeping up the=20 woodwork underfoot. But in the same breath, he also = took note=20 of the finger holes in many of the floor panels; when = lifted,=20 the panels provide access to under-floor tankage, = systems, and=20 storage, and Pettengill wondered out loud if there = might not=20 be a better design in the offing.

A decade-long = veteran=20 with the company and a straight talker, he's not = bashful when=20 it comes to pointing out room for improvement. = Additional=20 stainless-steel grabrails will be added to the sides = of the=20 companionway, for instance, and the control lever for = the=20 electronic gearshift in the cockpit will be shortened = or=20 repositioned so it won't catch on every pocket passing = by.=20

Pettengill's attention isn't focused just on = cosmetic=20 details, though. He is, after all, the guy the = company's hired=20 to beat and bash early hull numbers so later ones can = take a=20 licking. Like most later-day Hunters, the 49, when it = was=20 fresh out of the shop, was strapped down and its = rigging=20 yanked hard by a crane. For the record, nothing moved, = or=20 popped.

And when a suitably windy day presented = itself,=20 Pettengill headed out in the 49 and drove it hard up = onto the=20 beach on an incoming Florida tide just to see if the = keel=20 would budge. It didn't, and so while pounding into the = Delaware Bay in chop kicked up by an opposing 15-knot = breeze=20 and current, there wasn't a squeak or peep below, = under power,=20 or later under mainsail and genoa.

Topsides, = the=20 all-white hull and deck promises the same low = maintenance as=20 the interior. The only material resembling wood to be = found is=20 Flexiteek, a PVC-based composite applied to the seats = and=20 transom areas. The cockpit is wide and roomy and has = an open=20 transom with swim platform, hot and cold shower, a = telescoping=20 swim ladder, and panels that swing shut to keep things = from=20 being lost off the stern. A pair of Hunter-made davits = suspends a dinghy overhead so that even a tall = crewmember can=20 pass astern without ducking. Like its predecessors, = the 49=20 sports a stainless-steel arch over the cockpit that = puts the=20 mainsheet traveler overhead and out of the way. The = arch,=20 Pettengill says with some authority, is tough enough = for any=20 crash jibing you'd care to do and does double duty as = a bimini=20 frame. A split mainsheet can be trimmed by using = either a=20 self-tailing Lewmar 44 winch mounted on the cabin top = or a=20 hefty Lewmar 54 self-tailer located at the = helm.

The=20 basic 49 comes with a main and a self-tacking = 90-percent jib=20 and just the two winches, which, in theory, are = adequate,=20 thanks to a brace of line stoppers on either side of = the cabin=20 top. Hull number one, however, has been fully tricked = out and=20 comes with a beefed-up optional sail package that = includes an=20 overlapping 110-percent genoa set on a Harken = roller-furler, a=20 staysail, and a full vertical-batten main with = Seld=E9n in-mast=20 furling. The Lewmar 44 on the cabin top is augmented = with a=20 Lewmar 44 (electric), making halyard work and furling = a=20 breeze. At both helm stations, there are Lewmar 54E = winches to=20 trim the genoa (and, thanks to a line stopper, the = main to=20 starboard) and an additional manual 54 to starboard to = handle=20 the spinnaker gear.

A large dodger covers the = long=20 companionway entrance, but on this boat it stopped = just short=20 of the cockpit seats and did relatively little to = block the=20 wind. The bimini that extends forward to meet it made = it a tad=20 difficult to step across the wide coamings and onto a = side=20 deck that's only about a foot's-width wide, part of = the=20 compromise involved in pushing the cabin top out to = maximize=20 interior volume.

Farther forward, stays and=20 chainplates are located so that you have to squeeze = outside or=20 take a step up onto the cabin top when going forward. = Below,=20 the uppers are anchored to pads glassed into the hull; = lowers=20 connect via tie-rods into the boat's frame. =

The bottom=20 of the hull is solid laminate using epoxy resin in the = skim=20 coat for blister protection. The sides are balsa = cored, and=20 two layers of a knitted Kevlar fabric run from the = keel sump=20 to the stem, where it's overlapped to create four = layers.=20 Hunter uses this technique on all boats over 33 feet = for extra=20 puncture resistance. Hull number one has a shoal draft = of 5=20 feet 6 inches and a 12,600-pound keel with wings that = reflect=20 Pettengill's beach-testing program: They're raised=20 approximately 5 inches so the boat can be heeled and = rocked=20 off an obstruction once grounded. A deep-draft model = with a=20 7-foot keel is also available.

A 100-horsepower = Yanmar=20 easily pushes the boat at close to 7 knots at 2,500 = rpm and=20 half a knot faster at 3,000 rpm. When motorsailing, = our pace=20 was a bit better than 8 knots. Engine controls=97a = Lewmar Mamba=20 gearbox-and-shaft-steering linkage system=97are = located to port,=20 but a second control can be installed to starboard, = too. The=20 100-amp optional alternator is intended to keep the = battery=20 bank topped off so that, in Pettengill's words, you = can always=20 plug in the hair dryer.

In designing the 49, = Hunter's=20 Henderson says the challenge was to create a large,=20 long-distance cruiser with high stability and = seakindliness.=20 He wanted it to be easily handled, hence the simple = sail plan,=20 keel, and highly balanced rudder, and limited in mast = height=20 to accommodate for bridge clearances.
A=20 Performer Under Sail
Late in the evening, = and well=20 down Delaware Bay, we finally changed course enough = for=20 Pettengill to roll out the sails. Napping below, I hit = the=20 deck when I heard the winches start to grind. A stiff = boat,=20 the 49 heeled just moderately in 15-plus knots of wind = as we=20 scooted north along the New Jersey shore. The high,=20 4-foot-8-inch freeboard makes boarding from a floating = dock a=20 challenge (Pettengill bought a small step stool to = keep=20 aboard), but it ensures a dry cockpit, even when the = breeze=20 pipes up. Sitting to leeward on a seat designed to let = the=20 helmsman lean back against the lifelines and pushpit = with feet=20 inboard and a knee on either side of the wheel, I = found the=20 boat a pleasure to sail. The helm was balanced, and = the boat=20 tracked nicely on a close reach through confused seas = with the=20 GPS at 7 knots and better in about 17 knots of true=20 wind.

With a base price of $319,000 (this = tricked-out=20 version checked in near $420,000), the Hunter 49 = provides a=20 heck of a lot of boat for the buck. As we headed north = along=20 the New Jersey shore, with the sun coming up and a = gusty=20 breeze pushing us along, about the only thing missing = on this=20 road trip was a good Bruce Springsteen CD for a little = traveling music.

Hunter=20 49 Specs

LOA: 49' 11" (15.21 m.)
LWL: = 43' 10"=20 (13.36 m.)
Beam: 14' 5" (4.39 m.)
Draft = (shoal/deep): 5'=20 6"/7' 0" (1.68 m./2.13 m.)
Sail Area (100%): = 1,013.9 sq.=20 ft. (94.2 sq. m.)
Ballast (shoal/deep): = 12,544/11,216 lb.=20 (5,690/5,088 kg.)
Displacement (shoal/deep): = 32,813/32,485=20 lb. (14,884/14,735 kg.)
Ballast/D (shoal/deep):=20 .38/.35
D/L (shoal/deep): 174/172
SA/D = (shoal/deep):=20 15.8/15.9
Water: 200 gal. (757 l.)
Fuel: 150 = gal. (568=20 l.)
Mast Height: 63' 4" (19.30 m.)
Engine: = 75-hp. or=20 optional 100-hp. Yanmar
Designer: Glenn Henderson = and the=20 Hunter Design Team
Base Price: $319,000
Hunter = Marine,=20 (386) 462-307, www.huntermarine.com

Mark Pillsbury is Cruising World's = senior=20 editor.