Praise for C-Dory boats

[DayBreak]

Today we went 2 miles out and 7 miles south from Newport, Oregon. At the end of our trip we re-fueled at the fuel dock in the Newport Marina. The guy who runs the fuel dock (a retired Commercial Shrimp and Tuna boat Captain) complimented us about C-Dory boats. He said, "C-Dory boats are good solid boats and are very safe." I thanked him for this compliment knowing that it was made with honesty and especially coming from someone with his experience.

While we were out today the ocean conditions were more severe that what NOAA had predicted. While returning and wanting to cross the bar at 3pm, we met up with a Coast Guard Ship checking on the ocean conditions. Listening to VHF, we heard the upgraded ocean conditions and were glad to hear that the bar was still open for us to get back to Newport. We followed the big ship across the bar in his wake which made for easy travel. Good timing for us to be there while they were in the area! Wind waves were bigger than originally predicted, up to 4', and more than we wanted for our 2nd trip over the bar! Swells were 5' and off the beam at the entrance, so it was a rough ride. It was really cool to watch the C-Dory handle the ocean as we cut through the water/spray. We felt totally safe in our C-Dory knowing that it was a solid boat.

 

[South of Heaven]

Nice job Captain! Stay vigilant.

 

[hardee]

I have been doing some version of Safety Boat Service for almost 10 years now. It involves rowing clubs, kayak groups, even an international rowing race championship held at Port Townsend and the Race to Alaska for the last 4 years. It is very common that when the coordinators find out I am running a C-Dory 22 they say" Oh good we can put you ....... (wherever they think the roughest conditions will be), because you can handle that water. And yes, the C-Dory can do it. Just the other day I was told by one of the R2AK racers that he was glad to see me come out to where he was to check on him because "the boats are afraid to get into the water I am in" which was a big tide rip washing machine with 4 - 6 foot slop coming at him from every direction.

The bottom always stays down and the top up. I guess that is the important stuff.

Harvey
SleepyC :moon

 

[JamesTXSD]

Here's a blast from the near past regarding these boats. We traveled all around with our CD-25. BUT, rarely on a schedule. The first three years I drove commercial whale watch boats (32' to 55') in Friday Harbor, Bill Carli was out there daily doing 6-pac charters with his CD-25. Going on a schedule means you don't get to pick your weather. Bill and I would relate sea conditions - and he rarely cancelled trips. I saw him out there in conditions I would have avoided with our CD-25. He sold the boat and the business a few years ago. Tough boat.

 

[Tippy Canoe]

Gary - so glad that you are out with your boat and sharing your adventures with us here! We have not had a chance to get out with ours yet but we are getting ready. Took our Boater Education class and got our crab pots. Hoping to hit Newport by fall!

Paul and Vicky

 

[DayBreak]

Good news Paul and Vicky. It would be great seeing you both again. Good timing for you to get those crab pots. Crabbing is just starting to get good in Newport Bay. We can set the pots and head upriver together for a fun adventure with the C-Dorys and then collect all of those Dungeness crabs Gary and Colleen

 

[pcg]

Today we went 2 miles out and 7 miles south from Newport, Oregon.

I can surely relate to the "south" part of your voyage. I’m not a C-Dory owner yet, but I have a Newport story to tell on myself.

Years ago I took our little 16’ Skagit out from Depoe Bay (12 mi. north of Newport) to go salmon fishing with two friends. I had a compass, charts, and extra fuel, and had ventured out across a couple bars before, but never far out into the Pacific. We followed the commercial fleet out in the dark and after a couple hours decided it was time to fish. 1-1/2 hours later we had our limit of silvers and everyone was gravely sea sick as the swells were scary big. We turned around and headed back “towards the coast” which was easy to see (when we were up on a swell) because it was one big fog bank. When I got into the fog the first thing I saw was a light house. There is no light house at Depoe Bay and after looking at the chart I realized we were ten miles south at Yaquina Head, almost to Newport! I was not aware of the strong current that races to the south. Fortunately the extra fuel enabled us to motor north against the current, past Otter Rocks and back to Depoe Bay.

When we arrived at the bar it was closed and a Coast Guard cutter was standing watch preventing boats from crossing. However, they allowed us to attempt to get back in and that’s where the fun began. I knew the current was ripping south so I got way north of the cutter and turned east, aiming for the buoy that marks the narrow rocky channel leading into Depoe Bay. I did not, however, sufficiently compensate for the current and was immediately swept south and missed a collision with a U.S. Coast Guard cutter by just a few yards. I was rewarded for this brilliant display of seamanship by a round of applause and laughter from a half dozen sailors leaning over the edge of the ship. Second attempt I managed to nail it. Today it makes a good story, but at the time I failed to see the humor, although I was grateful for a lesson learned with only my ego damaged.

 

[DayBreak]

Paul, what a story. Thank you. Glad you and your passengers made it home safely and with your catch of coho. We went out of Newport this past Thursday and fished near Depot Bay. It was foggy all day and we kept the Radar on all day to keep track of boats that we could not see. We used the chart plotter to get us back to the bar and as we could not see the jetty until we were just 100 yards or so from the rocks. I just cant imagine what you went through that day doing it the old fashioned way with just a paper chart.

 

[Foggy]

Kudos for C-Dory owners who are impressed with the sea worthiness of their
vessels.

snip

The bottom always stays down and the top up. I guess that is the important stuff.

Harvey
SleepyC :moon

That is important for sure. But what about boarding seas? Like getting 'poo-poo'd'
is one thing but getting pooped is another.

I never worried about seas getting the best of me in my 26 Venture but then I was
never in or never was caught in anything like severe conditions in that boat.
Had that occurred, what would have bothered me was the non self bailing cockpit
having to rely on the bilge pump. My understanding is some models have them,
some don't. Wonder why that is?

I won't go back to a vessel w/o a self bailing cockpit. Why worry?

Aye.

 

[colbysmith]

I won't go back to a vessel w/o a self bailing cockpit. Why worry?

And yet, that self bailing is what bothers me about the 25. There are two great C-Brat couples I have enjoyed traveling with on the water. Both with 25's that seem to let water in with a sufficient amount of weight in the cockpit. I don't have that issue with my 22, and the bilge pumps work great when I do get some water in the boat. Colby

 

[hardee]

Kudos for C-Dory owners who are impressed with the sea worthiness of their
vessels.

snip

The bottom always stays down and the top up. I guess that is the important stuff.

Harvey
SleepyC :moon

That is important for sure. But what about boarding seas? Like getting 'poo-poo'd'
is one thing but getting pooped is another.

I never worried about seas getting the best of me in my 26 Venture but then I was
never in or never was caught in anything like severe conditions in that boat.
Had that occurred, what would have bothered me was the non self bailing cockpit
having to rely on the bilge pump. My understanding is some models have them,
some don't. Wonder why that is?

I won't go back to a vessel w/o a self bailing cockpit. Why worry?

Aye.

Foggy, On my first trip to Princess Louisa I got caught in Georgia Strait. We had following seas, 8 - 10 feet, quartering off the port aft. It was my fault, in buddy boating and not making the no go decision on my own. We were traveling with a couple on a 23 foot B-Boat, Deep V, with a I-O drive and they literally ran off and left us when I called and said it was too rough and needed to slow. That was when the waves were 4-5 feet and I didn't want to pound so hard, so I slowed to just ahead of the wave speed, mostly surfing down the fronts. It was a real test, because at leas half of the waves were breaking over the tops. Real motivation to stay ahead of the curl. We survived by racing the waves, Ride the back as close to the top as we could, then go over on the round part before it started to curl and break, surf with a slight twist to port to avoid running into the shore a half mile to starboard. There were some waves that broke early, and the white water would chase us, but I had enough power to stay ahead of that. (Don't want to be in that white stuff, less buoyancy there.) I never had anything serious, but I'm very thankful my twin Yami's didn't take a powder. This situation lasted about an hour, until I could turn out of Georgia and got up into some protection in the Channel of the Strait. Didn't get pooped, but amazed at how quick the stern would raise as the following waves come up. I have been in steeper, shorter waves in Juan de Fuca, tidal washing machine stuff, and the water in the cockpit, which was all from splash over the gunnel due to the side wind, was readily dispatched by the bilge pumps (2), a 2000 and a 1500.

In one case we had a CBGT at Sequim Bay State park and one of the 22's tied to the dock facing down wind filled the splash well to where it was running over the transom after the wave would hit, but it didn't go into the cockpit. About as close to getting pooped as I have seen on a C-Dory.

Harvey
SleepyC :moon

 

[Foggy]

Colby, granted some CD models are aft heavy especially with twin OBs + full of
fuel or improperly trimmed underway in heavy breaking following seas. In
severe conditions I doubt a a couple 2K gph bilge pumps will give you peace
of mind while less than severe or minimal, as you described, would be just fine.

Being aft heavy to start, imagine taking a few cubic meters of sea water over your
stern bearing in mind each cubic meter weighs about a ton. And you're in your
cute little seaworthy C-Dory...

Harvey, again kudos. I'm not ready to make your single rough water experience
in following seas change my mind about the advantage of a self bailing vessel
vs non self bailing.

Another factor about severe conditions, poop and all that, is there's differences
in salt vs fresh water wave characteristics while in the nasties. I've been in both.
Large swells with large waves breaking on the the swell crests are different
critters than the steep "square breaking waves" I've had to deal with in the Great
Lakes. Ocean swells can be significantly further apart, crest to crest, giving some
advantage to the mariner and vessel vs the shorter square fresh water types. In
other words a 12' ocean wave, and larger, may not equate to the similar Lake
Michigan wave.

It's my opinion (I hate these from others) and many who have been on both waters
in heavy conditions, the fresh water severe condition is much less preferable.
Those strict about having self bailing cockpits get into disagreements but it's not
about whether or not to have same but just how many and how large they should be.

Aye.

 

[Marco Flamingo]

Something I've become more vigilant about is making sure that little scraps of stuff don't end up on the cockpit sole as that could cause a problem if washed back to the bilge pump. On the 16, the helm is basically an extension of the cockpit. A little piece of candy bar wrapper, a zip tie, or any little piece of plastic could jam the pump. It's the little stuff. An empty candy bar wrapper isn't a problem, it's the little piece torn off when opening the wrapper.

I also track a lot of stuff into the cockpit when the boat is on the trailer. Needles and leaves, mostly. I've thought about making a polyester batting "filter sock" to go around the bilge pump. I've never had a problem so far, but I've never had the whole cockpit awash and been dependent on the bilge pump. It's possible that should the entire cockpit be washed clean, including the rubber floor mats that generally trap a lot of stuff, it could overwhelm the screen area on the pump.

Coming back in to Kyuquot Sound one afternoon, the wind picked up and the tide was ebbing. I could see that we had a mile of steep quartering seas to cross. I had just put in a suction cup "shower stall" handle for my wife. She told me that she didn't have anything to hold onto when sitting in the passenger seat and she thought that is the main cause of her anxiety when in rough conditions. I had the wheel so I didn't feel like I was getting knocked around when the boat was getting knocked around. We crossed without her even commenting on the conditions, other than saying she really liked the handle.

Mark

 

[Foggy]

Yup, junk can kill bilge pump function as can electrical failure
(with battery compartment flooding).

Pet hair is another pump clogger.

I've seen docked boats sunk tied in their slip due to pump failure
maybe just from a lot of rain.

All points to the importance of self bailing cockpit design if
you ever experience a volume water dump unexpectedly.

Aye.

 

[colbysmith]

Maintenance is a big factor in all of this. I regularly clean my cockpit floor, and the bilge area. I also have two larger bilge pumps, each wired to separate batteries. Foggy is right about our Great Lakes wave action. 4-5 footers in the ocean may be nothing. Here, those 4-5 footers are usually no farther apart than that. Last time I got into 6-8 foot seas in the North Channel of Lake Huron, I was taking water over the bow, at 3 kts! Simply because those waves weren't much farther apart than their height. I would prefer a self-bailing cockpit. But with drains high enough not to be in the water themselves with a little bit of a load! And large enough to dump water quickly. But in that same breath, if not properly sealed, can let in just as much water! Colby

 

[Hunkydory]

Yes Foggy, getting pooped is a consideration on a 22 CD, but it’s just one of many factors to consider if wanting to cruise. I’m one of several who have really tested the seaworthiness of a CD22 over thousands of miles & multiple encounters with varying degrees of rough water without ever even coming close to getting a wave up & over the transom & into the cockpit, in-fact not even into the well let alone into the cockpit. I’m not saying it can’t happen, but think there are many other possibilities that could occur with higher likely hood of sinking a 22 foot boat. I’d like to view a short list from you of 22 foot boats that have scuppers & still match or exceed the other capabilities of a CD 22 in a somewhat equal price range. In 12,000 miles cruising SE Alaska & visiting most all of the marinas there, I’ve yet to come across its same size equal for doing the type cruising we do.

Large mountain lakes like Yellowstone Lake & the large lakes in the Yukon can create the close spaced very steep waves as does the PNW Inland Chanel area where tide rips & other wind/tide conditions can also produce some extreme close spaced wave conditions. I’ve seen & been in many of these in a CD22 without fearing for us or the boat, but getting knocked about plenty.

Jay

 

[DayBreak]

Scuppers are a good thing but a well maintained bilge pump is also a good thing. There is no right or wrong between choosing a bilge pump or a scupper. Each is a personal choice depending on the use of your boat.

 

[DayBreak]

Oops, double post.

 

[hardee]

Right now, the New Dungeness buoy report is showing:
Wind: 22mph Gusts to 25
Wave height: 3.28 ft
Wave period: 3.8 seconds
Wind direction: W - 260*

It is dark out there right now, and I'm not at the buoy, but those are pretty steep, square waves and they aren't even very big, yet.

Can't say I have boated on the Great Lakes, although a year in school in Chicago gave me plenty of opportunity to observe the lake in multiple conditions including iced.

I don't by that there is a significant difference between salt and fresh water in wave basics, propagation or travel. (Consider the Beaufort Scale, it is one scale, and for wind speed, but the wind speed is provided based on the observations of waves on the water.) There is not a separate scale for fresh water and one for salt water. Wave generation is based on physics, wind and water movement.

I may be wrong here but the laws of physics are pretty much always in effect.

Yup, getting pooped is possible, but as Jay said, not likely. I have had water go over the bow all the way to the cockpit on a couple of occasions, and I have had the bow stuffed into the forward wave more times than I can count, water up to the forward hatch many times, and the bow always comes up, the pumps keep the cockpit clear, and as I said, it always comes up and stays right side up. I should say I don't go looking for those situations, and in reality, they are rare. I do know, the C-Dory when rightly driven, will do big seas and not pound, and the cockpit will stay pretty dry unless there is a strong side wind, taking the spray over the gunnels.

Harvey
SleepyC :moon

 

[ssobol]

The only time I've gotten water in the aft well is when stopping quickly. The wake catches up to the boat about the same time the stern settles.