Anyone have a C-Dory 25 cruiser near Wilmington, NC

[mcauliffesean]

My family and I are trying to decide between the 22 and 25 cruiser. We have been able to visit a local member with a 22 but have yet to see a 25. Anyone around my North Carolina area willing to give us a tour? I am leaning towards the 25 but need to see if the size is worth the difference in price. We currently own a 16 cruiser.
Thanks,
Sean

[ssobol]

Keep in mind that a 25 will require a bigger tow vehicle than a 22. You may already be covered in this regard, but if not you may need to budget for that as well. Could throw the advantage to the 22, all things considered.

[srbaum]

Sean,
I'm a bit of a drive from you, but use my boat year-round and it is always available to look at and take a ride.
My boat is the 26, but I have lots of time on 25's and owned a 22 for ten years, so can share the information on the real differences.

[mcauliffesean]

My truck is rated for 12k pounds so I should be fine there. It is a tough call between the 22 and the 25 as many have had to decide. Thank you for the offer to see your 26. We may make a trip to DC in the next few months and will get in touch if we do.

[JamesTXSD]

When we first considered a C-Dory, I was pretty sure the 22 would be our choice; my wife wanted to see a 25 before committing. In 2006, C-Dory had a significant presence at the Seattle Boat Show, and we flew up there from Texas to see the entire line. After first walking through the 22, we went into the 25... Joan said, "This is the one." And, she was right: it was the boat that would be suit the way we would travel with it.

A lot of people seem to think it all boils down to the 25 having an enclosed head... but, it is SO much more. For a bit over 10% in additional length, the 25 has more than 30% more interior volume. The dinette will seat 4 normal size people. The aisle is wide enough for two people to pass each other (and that IS a big deal when spending extended time aboard). More storage. A larger V-berth. A 30 amp electrical system with a battery charger. A fridge (small, but enough - we could even make a tray of ice cubes for our daily adult beverage). Hot and cold pressure water (including a water heater). And, of course the stand-up height enclosed head with a shower (as long as you are OK with a toilet sprayer being called a shower). You sit on the toilet to shower, and it works fine. A windlass. A significantly larger cockpit. Self-bailing cockpit (mostly).

The 25 weighs more than a ton more than the 22 - arguably, the 25 has a better ride because of that extra hull size and displacement. The 25 needs a bigger tow vehicle - my recommendation has been a 3/4 ton diesel, but some of the new 1/2 trucks have increased towing capacity (I still think bigger/heavier is better). The 25 will burn more fuel on the water... but, it has a 100 gallon fuel tank; if you are willing to run at displacement speed, you can get more range with a comfortable reserve than the 22.

We spent up to 6 months at a time in our 25, onboard every night. Coast to coast to coast. It was a comfortable home away from home on the water for us.

You mentioned "family." It was always just the two of us and a cat in our travels with the CD-25. There are tales here of people who would cruise with 4 or 5 on a 22, but that is going to be real tight... there is a limit to how much togetherness I would be able to take on a small boat... especially if a middle of the night need for the porta-potty was required. The most we ever day-tripped on our 25 was 5 adults (and that was a rarity for us); and the boat felt the extra weight.

As far as each of launch and retrieve, when I was called away for a family emergency, my wife retrieved the 25 on her own. With the 2 of us doing the launch/retrieve, it was no stress (wind dependent).

Good luck with the decisions.

Jim B.

[South of Heaven]

Hi Sean. I would definitely go with the 25. Enclosed head, bigger beam, more space, bigger motor(s).

Yes, the price difference is very large.... but life is short. 🙂

[colbysmith]

I owned a 22 for 10 years, and finally upgraded to the 25 four seasons ago. No arguments with most of what others have been saying, except that I don't feel the 25 offers any better ride than the 22. I've had both boats in rough chop and they both pound. The 25 is more stable with regards to listing side to side with movement inside the cabin or cockpit. I loved the 22, and both my wife and I are 6' tall and a bit, shall we say, robust. We still bump passing in the aisle in the 25, just not as hard. There is definitely more room at the dinette and in the V-berth. The enclosed head is nice. I now have a composting airhead, which is much better than the original MSD or the Porta Potti. I set it up with a small platform of it's own, so I can remove it when we desire to shower. I also use solar shower bags on the roof, to conserve our potable water, but the head's shower works great when we use it. At hull speed, both the 22 and 25 use about the same fuel. On plane, with the 115 on my 22, I got around 3.1, with the 150 on my 25, I get about 2.0. On their respective trailers, the 22 weighed in at 5,100 lbs, the 25 at 8,300 lbs. That's with water and fuel. The 22 held 40 gals, the 25, 100 gal. So distance between fuel stops is another advantage with the 25. If I had it to do all over again, would I upgrade to the 25? In all honesty, I don't know. As I said, I loved my 22, and my wife was fine on it. In fact, she finds the one disadvantage of the 25 is that she doesn't feel as safe sitting back on the cockpit. The 25 has a higher cockpit floor, and even with the railing, she feels less secure than she did on the 22. Cost wise, the 22 is probably going to be a little cheaper to operate. If the marina doesn't have a 25' or longer minimum, your slip fees will be less. There are a number of smaller SUV's rated to tow 5,000 lbs that can do fine towing the 22. You can tuck into some smaller places both on the water and on the trailer. The 25 has a self bailing cockpit, but most of us need scupper plugs, as the scuppers are usually under water when fully loaded, or more than one person back in the cockpit while not underway. I've spent just as much time during a trip on both boats, and was comfortable. I had the 22 when I did Alaska's Inside Passage. With just my wife and I, or I by myself, the boat was comfortable. The 25 is bigger and yes, a bit more comfortable, especially if entertaining guests. You are doing the right thing by looking at both boats. If possible, also try to get out for a ride on the water in both. Most wives prefer the enclosed head. Some, such as mine, were ok with the porta potti. (We had curtains, and at night would put the potti in front of the back door.) Good luck deciding. Colby

[Foggy]

Most people, new to boating and considered 'younger', buy a smaller boat. As
experience and needs increase, they buy successively larger ones. This makes
some sense.

Project half a lifetime later, older buys start to buy smaller boats. Reasons vary
from have in been a lot of places to being less venturesome and more cautious
having experienced unpleasant weather conditions. This latter situation
has caused some to quit boating altogether. Or to limit their boating to more
inland and protected waters which is conducive to a smaller boat. Sometimes
buying smaller is for increasing or limited physical mobility and/or health reasons.

I know you are not most people. You are you. And you will most likely do what
seems best for you at the time. Then, maybe sometime later reflecting on your
boating experience(s), you'll find you are very much ike most people.

Aye.

[thataway]

My opinion is that side by side the 25 rides better than the 22 by a slight amount. I had an opportunity to check that out when the owner of C Dory 25 Hallelujah had been taken out by life flight from Oak Creek Canyon on Lake Powell. We told them we would get their boat safely on the trailer at Antelope Point Marina. I drove Hallelujah and Marie drove our 22 side by side, from in front and in back so I could watch how the 22 rode and Marie's assessment as well as mine on the two boats.

Yes they do both pound if not driven properly or too fast. But I feel that there is a slight advantage to the 25's ride, as the 25 has both more weight and longer water line.

[Foggy]

On the water, length is ride.

Aye.

[Dora~Jean]

I can add a little to the discussion regarding some pros and cons (mostly positive) of the CD25 (which I’ve owned for 20 yrs since new). I’ve never owned a CD22, but have compared some aspects of performance while boating with groups of CD22’s and having ridden a few CD22’s on day trips.
I have twin engines, which could affect some of my observations. The 22’s with their sharper entry chine, seem to handle going into chop better, I have to run slower than the 22’s even with my Permatrims and trim tabs. But that same feature works against the 22’s when going in following seas. The 22’s seem to have a tendency to broach at the same speed that I’m able to mush through the waves with nice control. I’ve observed this many times, and does, of course, depend on the abilities of the skipper and how adept he/she is with the performance of their particular vessel.
I’m probably the exception here, but I regularly have 4-6 people on board for 2-3 day trips. At first, I was very apprehensive with that many people to assure all of their safety. But later became quite accustomed to it, including eating and sleeping arrangements. The enclosed head is extremely desirable for us especially with mixed company on board (nieces, nephews, grandchildren, etc). Not only does it afford good privacy as a bathroom, but also as a changing room, especially when you “arrive” and everybody wants to change into their bathing suits at the same time.
With typical fair seas, I tend to average 2.75 nm/gal. I do trim the boat for optimal performance depending on the sea-state and loading. The only other aspect of my particular 2003 CD25 that I can think of that allows such good performance, is I believe it is lighter than the later models; but then again, that goes out the window because I tend to carry more people (and their gear) than most.
As far as towing, I’ve towed it well over 10,000 miles with only one tow vehicle, a 2003 Ford Expedition 4x4. That vehicle is on a 1/2 ton chassis, and rated to tow 8,900 lbs, but reduced to 8,700 lbs for 4WD. My boat with trailer weighed in at 7,400 lbs with 50 gals of gas, full water tank and supplies for a weekend trip (ice chest). With the number of people I generally take (and their gear), I’m very close to the upper towing limit. I drive conservatively and have had a few quick reactions needed on our So. Calif. freeways, they were manageable. I can see that a 3/4 ton (or larger) chassis would provide a better margin of safety, but I’ve been satisfied with my vehicle, which I also use for family vacations, camping trips and the occasional Home Depot visit where I need the space either inside or on the roof. I consistently get about 10-11 mpg towing and 16-18 non-towing on the highway.

[colbysmith]

Sean, I'm curious. What reasons are you looking to upgrade from your 16 to a 22 or 25? That probably makes a difference in choice as well. With the 22, you will be getting 6 more feet of boat. With the 25, 9 feet more. And of course a little more width in both. If you've been pretty happy with the 16, and it's more or less served you well, the 22 is going to give you a lot more than what you have, for less money than a 25. Unless you are looking at the enclosed head and a lot more space, I think you'd be quite happy with the 22. Not trying to talk you out of the 25, as they are a nice boat. Earlier I said I'm not sure I would upgrade again if I had to do it all over. Here's a few reasons why. The 25 does start to size you out of some smaller lakes and launch ramps. I've launched on one lake, where the deeper ramp is in a very tight cove that I barely had room to launch the 22, but not enough room to launch the 25. That has required me to launch at it's other ramp along the shore, but it's much shallower and becomes an issue at low water levels. That extra 3 feet with the 25 has also been a bit of an issue on smaller docks or when less space exists for docking. And in turning around in narrow channels. The visibility on the 25 is not quite as good as on the 22 either, when it comes to backing into slips. And with the 25, my cockpit helm has been a real necessity when docking by myself with any wind or current off the dock. (That extra 3 feet of space to get back from the cabin helm, and the step up out of the cabin can sometimes mean the difference between getting on the dock yourself, or needing some help to catch the cleats. I see only 3 advantages with the 25 over the 22. The enclosed head, more space and longer cruising range. Disadvantages would be takes up more space, operating cost a bit higher, and need something capable of towing up to 9000 lbs. And as I single hand a lot, it is just a little more work to single hand. Not much more, but noticeable. Unless you go with a composting toilet, pumpouts are a bigger pain than the porta potti, unless you have easy access to a working pumpout. A lot of folks don't use their showers anyway, and pull the large 6 gal water heater out for more space. You can put in a 2 gal heater if you still want hot water. I used the solar shower bags on the 22 also, and rigged up privacy towels in the back when we weren't in a private cove somewhere. BTW, I spend most my summer on the boat, so yeah, having the extra space over the 22, and the enclosed head, has been a nice comfort. But I spent a lot of time on the 22 during the summers as well. Again, good luck with your decision. Either boat will be a nice upgrade from the 16. Colby

[mcauliffesean]

The only thing harder than deciding between the 22 and the 25 is actually finding a decent boat at a reasonable price. At this point I am open to either one and l do believe I will be happy with either. I will be using it with my wife, two boys (15 and 12) and probably our dog. We will be doing weekend trips on the water, hope to spend a week here and there exploring Florida and more. I see no issues towing with my F150 3.5 eco boost with a max tow rate of 12k pounds. We tow a 30ft travel trailer now. We are located in Wilmington, NC so have a lot to do here as well. Our 16 c-dory has been a lot of fun but it is not practical for family overnight trips. I can see the advantages of both boats and all of your input and years of searching this site have been great. I want them both! I know the added size, bathroom, front facing copilot’s seat and range of the 25 would be an advantage and open the possibility for a trip to the Bahamas. Thank you all again for your insight and I will continue my daily search and education.

[thataway]

With 2 boys that age, I would get the 25 without any question. Yes we know of people who have "cruised" with 3 teenagers, but that meant that at least two of them slept on the beach--or the cockpit was full of bodies at night...

The immediate plus is that 4 can be seated (but crowded) at the table of a 25, only two on a. 22.

[mcauliffesean]

I want to thank everyone for their input. Another member has invited me to visit his 25 C-Dory in the next few weeks. I look forward to meeting him and having the opportunity to compare boats. If anyone is thinking of selling their 25 please let me know.