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Powered by twin 1,800 hp Caterpillar C32 diesels, the Hatteras Yachts GT60 is an angler’s 42-knot dream. Fishing amenities include a freezer forward of the console, a dry box forward, rod stowage beneath settees and options such as a West Coast-style cockpit baitwell. The GT60’s cockpit can also support a fighting chair or a removable rocket launcher. 

This battlewagon can come with four staterooms and three heads, or three staterooms and two heads. As of June, there were two GT60s available, at $1,749,000 and $2,490,000.

From the Archive

“I have never been aboard a Hatteras with anywhere near as much customization as this boat. From the transom livewell to the hydraulically operated tuna tower, this boat has been changed and upgraded dramatically, making an already great ride a really great ride. This project should alert anyone considering the pros and cons of custom versus production that it may just be possible to have a little bit of both.”

— Yachting, August 2010

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Formula Boats 387 Center Console Fish

New Design

For 60-plus years, Formula Boats has been known for creating luxury cruising vessels. The yachtbuilder’s 387 Center Console Fish leverages the company’s extensive experience to create this fishing-focused craft. The 387 CCF starts with the builder’s wave-slicing FAS3Tech hull, a deep-V form with 23 degrees of transom deadrise. A foam-filled structural grid adds strength without excessive weight. The 387 CCF displaces 22,500 pounds, so it’s got the hull form and the heft for rough-water running.

Fishing Mission

Notable equipment includes two 40-gallon pressurized livewells, two in-deck fish boxes with macerators, 18-foot Gemlux telescoping outriggers, a cockpit leaning post with slide-away mezzanine seating, a rigging station, a cutting board, tackle-box organizers and more. An optional Seakeeper 3 gyrostabilizer helps remove roll in big water.

Performance

Power options include triple 300, 350 or 400 hp Mercury Verados, triple 450 hp Mercury 450R racing engines or twin 600 hp V-12 Mercury Verados.

Sōlace 415CS

Efficient Thinking

Sōlace collaborated with Volvo Penta to create the twin-stepped hull 415CS center-console. The goal was to show that when powered with Volvo Penta’s D6-440 diesel Aquamatic drives, the Sōlace 415CS was a more efficient fishing platform than a comparably equipped center-console with outboards.

Did It Work?

According to Volvo Penta, the 415CS with the D6s has a 403-nautical-mile range at a 36.5-knot cruise speed on a 444-gallon fuel capacity, compared with a 221 nm range at the same speed for the same boat powered with quad outboards and a 555-gallon fuel capacity. Range advantage goes to the 415CS diesel boat. Additionally, the design allows for a full-beam swim platform and dual transom doors leading to the cockpit.

At the Helm

The glass-bridge setup has a modern look and provides the helmsman with intuitive functions. Garmin is the electronics package of choice. As shown below, this boat has 360 degrees of fishability and room for an armada of gunwale rod holders for kite-fishing, trolling, drift-fishing and the like.

Scout 260 LXF

Rigged and Ready

The Scout Boats 260 LXF—part of the builder’s 10-model luxury center-console series stretching from 22 to 53 feet length overall—may be on the smaller side of the spectrum, but it has the same stout, hand-laid build as its larger siblings. It also has the same high level of fit and finish, and options for customization.

Singles or Twins?

Maximum horsepower for the 260 LXF is 400, and it comes in the form of single or twin outboards from Mercury or Yamaha. Twin engines start at 150 hp apiece, and a single starts at 300 hp. Notable standard equipment includes a Seakeeper Ride, a Garmin 943xsv display, a fiberglass leaning post with a bait-prep station, tackle drawers, helm seats, a 45-quart Yeti cooler, a windlass and an integrated fiberglass T-top with spreader lights.

Online Shopping

The Scout Boats website lets prospective owners spec and price out a 260 LXF, including hull colors, autopilot, radar, FLIR cameras, VHF radio, outriggers, hardtop rocket launchers, steering upgrades and underwater lighting, to name a few of the available options.

Contender 44FA

Long-Run Comfort

The Contender 44 Fisharound has the type of 360-degree fishability that’s usually found on a traditional center-console, along with the elements-eliminating cabin of an express boat—which should come in handy on overnight excursions and on extended canyon runs for pelagics. The belowdecks berth is queen size. There is also a head with a shower, and a galley with a fridge, freezer and sink.

Out and Back Fast

When powered with triple 425 hp V-8 Yamaha outboards, the 44FA tops out around 58 knots at 6,000 rpm. At 4,000 rpm, fast cruise speed is 34.6 knots. Dial the motors back to 3,500 rpm, and cruise speed is 27.6 knots, which is also the boat’s most efficient velocity with triples. Need more kick? Quads are available. Max total horsepower is 2,000. There are three bolster-style helm seats, along with a second-row bench seat for guests.

Fishing Features

Anglers will find standard amenities, such as a 300-gallon fish box forward, two 100-gallon in-deck fish boxes, twin 55-gallon livewells and four flush-mounted gunwale rod holders.

Intrepid 41 Valor 

Listening First

Intrepid Powerboats is always surveying its owners to find out what they like and what they want. The 41 Valor is a model developed on the basis of customer input.

What’s Different?

The 41 Valor has a new stepped-hull form as well as a wider beam, and it’s penned to accommodate an owner’s desire for a variety of power options, including 425 hp Yamahas or 600 hp Mercury Verados. The builder says it designed the helm for larger electronics displays. Belowdecks are a queen-size berth, a galley and a head with a separate shower for longer trips. The 41 Valor is constructed on a deep-V hull form that is vacuum-bagged, foam-cored and resin-infused. A stringer grid system enhances strength and rigidity for use in tempestuous seas.

Options for Anglers

Because it is a semicustom boat, the 41 Valor is available with angling options such as port and/or starboard cockpit livewells, a helm-seat livewell upgrade, outriggers, gunwale rod holders, a hardtop and a splash well. Spearfishing enthusiasts can add dive tanks.

Jupiter 40

About the Ride

Like all Jupiter models, the super-size Jupiter 40 center-console has the builder’s deep-V hull form with a sharp, 24-degree transom deadrise and a Posi-Stern hull pad. Jupiter says the hull pad “creates a variable dynamic stern lift,” which, in turn, means a flatter running attitude as well as increased overall performance.

Power Play

With regard to performance, the Jupiter 40 accommodates a maximum of 1,350 horsepower, which includes a triple 425 hp Yamaha, triple 400 hp Mercury or twin 600 hp Mercury outboard option.

Pursuing Pelagics

The Jupiter 40 is built with 360 degrees of coaming pads, a design feature that makes fighting a big fish around the boat more comfortable, especially at the rail. Standard angling amenities include two 100-gallon in-sole fish boxes with macerators, a 126-gallon fish box forward, a mezzanine bench seat with a 48-gallon bait freezer, a transom livewell and GEM outrigger bases with 22-foot carbon-fiber poles to optimize the trolling spread. A Seakeeper gyrostabilizer is optional.

Grady-White Canyon 306

Inshore or Offshore

Flexibility is at the heart of Grady-White’s Canyon 306. With a 21-inch draft, this boat is skinny-water accessible for chasing striped bass, redfish and the like. The broad-shouldered, 10-foot-7-inch beam and variable-deadrise SeaV2 hull form let it knock back chop and sprint offshore to pursue tuna and billfish.

Sprint Indeed

The Canyon 306 is designed for a pair of twin 300 hp Yamaha outboards, which provide a top hop of 44 knots and about a 30-knot cruise speed at 4,000 rpm. Dial it back to 3,600 rpm, and cruise speed is 26.2 knots, which is the boat’s most efficient speed with a fuel burn of 18.3 gph. Considering a 10 percent fuel reserve, maximum range at cruise speed is 373 nautical miles.

Angling Arsenal

Standard gear includes a 47-gallon livewell, a rigging station with a sink and an insulated bait box, two in-sole 150-quart fish boxes, a 304-quart transom fish box aft and four rod holders. The casting platform forward converts to seating when extra guests are on board. With a pair of 18-foot T-top-mounted outriggers, the only thing left to consider is where to start fishing.

Pursuit S 328

Underneath It All

The Pursuit S 328 has a deep-V hull form with a 20-degree transom deadrise. The hull is hand-laminated fiberglass reinforced with an infused fiberglass structural grid, as well as a resin-infused transom reinforcement grid to handle the rigors of offshore duty. The Pursuit S 328 comes with a five-year structural hull warranty.

It’s Got Kick

Powered with twin 300 hp Yamahas, the Pursuit S 328 cruises at 28 knots at 4,000 rpm with a 24.5 gph fuel burn. At cruise speed, range is 308 nm considering a 10 percent reserve. Top hop is 43 knots. The S 328 has a knife-like entry to beat back the seas and run to the deep in comfort. There are four seating areas: dual helm seats, a bench seat aft, bench seating forward of the console and bow seating.

Time to Fish

The S 328 is outfitted with a 24-gallon livewell, insulated-sole fish boxes to port and starboard, five transom rod holders, four gunwale rod holders and rod stowage under the hardtop. For anglers who have to navigate under bridges to get to the fishing grounds, clearance with the hardtop is 8 feet, 2 inches.

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My pal Hal has a new neighbor. A lot of us here in South Florida do. People have filtered down to the bottom of the sock for years, but this year, it’s been a bumper crop. These shorebound newcomers are easy to spot. They brave the roadways in golf carts, providing blurry targets for those who came before them. Some, like Hal’s new neighbor, take to the water.

This particular fellow washed ashore from a dried-up state in the Southwest. His new waterfront palace next door to Hal came with a dock, so a boat seemed to be a logical accessory.

Location is everything; he was fortunate to meet Hal across the fence and mention his interest in the water. Hal is a veteran of the marine industry and has owned at least 50 boats. “Coyle, I’m trying to help the guy, but he just won’t listen,” Hal grumbled.

A few years back, I had the same experience with a new neighbor who had emigrated from a home on the range. We exchanged names across the fence. “You’re Jay Coyle, Yachting magazine. I’ve followed you for years,” he gushed before explaining he’d always dreamed of parking a fishing boat behind a house in Florida. He had the house, and now all he needed was the boat. I recall recommending that he start off small with a 25-foot center-console.

A month later, I heard a commotion in the backyard and spotted my new neighbor attempting to lasso his dock from his new 40-foot convertible. My recommendation had been simple math. The more length overall, the less time it takes for a new recruit to realize the pastime is draining his wallet. A center-console would’ve been the perfect gateway drug, but my neighbor ignored me.

Read More from Jay Coyle: Tell Tales

I’m used to it. As a boat designer, I discovered that successful folks who accumulate enough coin to take to the water typically aren’t great listeners.

Developers, for example, often treat designers like subcontractors: You’re simply executing a task they’d do themselves if they weren’t so busy noodling with cost-saving workarounds. Executive types have new ideas that a designer could never imagine, and they can be impatient in terms of enthusiastic responses and results. Doctors and pilots are often the least likely to listen. This seems understandable, given that the risk of boat design pales in comparison to removing organs or keeping hundreds of people aloft. Lawyers, no offense—my defense was to avoid them.

My pal Hal tells me he’s had the same experience. He claims that social media has made the situation worse: “Clients come to me with their minds made up based on the advice of self-appointed internet experts who have no idea what they’re talking about.”

My neighbor got the hang of boathandling and baiting hooks, but he unfortunately made the mistake of calculating the cost of a mahi-mahi dinner and sold the boat. A few hurricanes later, he moved inland to skipper a golf cart and dodge tornadoes.

His replacement has yet to seek my advice. If he does, I think I’ll just give him this column.

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I don’t normally pay much attention to taglines, but Wally’s current one—“20 years ahead”—is an exception. Remember the WallyPower 118? It was Wally founder Luca Bassani’s personal vision of what superyachting could be. It launched 20 years ago but still looks like it’s only just dropped in from outer space. Then there are the various smaller wallypowers that have launched since, the new wallywhys that are phasing in now, and the various iterations of wallytenders, the first of which caused a stir more than 25 years ago. All carry the same futuristic design cues. And who would argue that the new wallypower58 doesn’t look like it’s 20 years ahead of the game too?

The wallypower58 has a distinct aesthetic with a square stem; a clean, hard-chined hull; and a sharp, mostly glass superstructure. The high foredeck has deck lighting and flush sun-pad inlays, and a cockpit Wally calls a semi-open salon. That last space has hardtop protection above as well as full side glazing to plug the gaps between the roof and deck. Overall, the hull volume allocates guest spaces roughly 50-50 inside and outside.

Tanks, engines and pods are beneath the cockpit sole, and there’s carbon-fiber detailing and teak decking everywhere. The decking is particularly impressive where it wraps over the after lip of the swim platform and where it lines the bulwarks. Their after sections fold down to add around 54 square feet of deck space. The whole open-deck area then provides something like 325 square feet of space.

The star attraction aft is a 77-square-foot island sun bed with an awning stretched over a carbon-fiber frame that stows neatly around the base unit. Amidships beneath the coachroof, there’s around 6-foot-9-inch headroom and sofas down each side. The starboard one has a dining table that can be supplemented by free-standing chairs. The forward area beneath the one-piece curved and heavily back-raked windshield includes two high-backed carbon pilot seats to starboard that address a small-diameter horizontal wheel. They look like they could have been plucked from the starship Enterprise.

As with most open models, the accommodations closure is a sliding hatch inboard of the helm, which is nicely arranged with all the switches and instrumentation set into carbon-look moldings. Two Garmin displays dominate the console, where visibility is superb. An electric sunroof above the windshield provides natural ventilation when the air-conditioning is off.

The standard belowdecks arrangement includes a lower salon with two long sofas—one on either side, a head to starboard and a stall shower to port. Forward, there is a stateroom with an aft-facing double berth. The lockers and closets have a rather 1950s luggage look about them, a great contrast to the ultramodern vibe everywhere else.

A smaller, double-berth stateroom with a door, or a single crew cabin with hatch access from the cockpit, are the options on the port side of the lower salon, which also includes a surprise: Instead of hullside windows, this model has what Wally calls magic portholes. Two 55-inch flat-screen TVs can relay real-time images from cameras in the vessel’s sides, or the TVs can relay recordings of the owner’s favorite bay when he’s tied up at the dock, or the TVs can play movies or games. This setup keeps the 58’s sleek hull lines pristine and is more efficient to build, as real windows require significant structures around the apertures as well as laminated glass.

There are two choices when it comes to propulsion: triple Volvo Penta D8-550/IPS700s or triple D8-600/IPS800s, which deliver reported maximum speeds of 35 to 36 knots and 37 to 38 knots, respectively. The boat I got aboard had the most-powerful, 470-cubic-inch, six-cylinder inline diesels, which, at a bit more than half load and in auto-trim mode with the Seakeeper 9 off, delivered virtually 38 knots at just over 2,900 rpm. Wallys always run every bit as well as they look, slicing efficiently and heeling into the turns just enough.

At an all-day, everyday 30 knots at 2,500 rpm, the ultimate range is around 350 nautical miles, much the same as it would be at 20 knots and 2,000 rpm, so there’s no real incentive to cruise halfheartedly with this machine. The onboard management system synchronizes the propulsion of all three pods while in ahead mode, so with only the usual twin control levers at the helm, the skipper drives the boat just like he would if the boat had a twin-engine installation. When maneuvering astern, those two levers only engage the outer engines.

At the heart of a Wally build is style, performance, luxury and a bit of avant-garde thinking. It’s a formula that has made the brand a fan favorite, creating a niche that only it can own. And the wallypower58 owns it well.

The X Factor

The first Wally 58X version recently arrived in Florida. This iteration has quad 600 hp V-12 Mercury Verado outboards, which means a top-end speed of around 50 knots and a quoted fast-cruise range of 290 nautical miles. Normally, aboard an open yacht of this size with a quad rack, owners have to sacrifice some accessibility to the water aft, but fold-down quarter platforms are game-changers in that regard.

On Watch

Wally’s parent company, the Ferretti Group, used the launch of the wallypower58 to say it will soon be one of the first yachtbuilders to offer Watchit anti-collision and grounding systems across its portfolio. Developed by Israeli company Aqua Marine Tech, these systems warn captains about navigational dangers. The tech’s artificial-intelligence technology interprets data from GPS, chart plotters, AIS, radar, sonar, proximity sensors and more.

Take the next step: wally.com

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Allied Feather + Down is not a company that most boaters know, but it plays a role in many of the brands that boaters buy. The California-based firm sources the materials that go into products sold by Vineyard Vines, Under Armour, Sail Racing and more. If you like the way a particular jacket stays warm but not too hot, materials from Allied Feather + Down may be at least part of the reason.

Since about 2010, the company has been trying to solve the problem of down having a bad relationship with water. “For boating and water sports in general, down has always been considered not applicable because of the high levels of moisture, from rain to humidity,” says Creative Director Matthew Betcher. “So even with a brand like Helly Hansen, it’s never something we really saw in their boating pieces until recently, where we can start to develop solutions for that problem.”

That solution is called ExpeDry. The idea is that instead of making water bead up on the outside, or shell, of a product, such as a jacket, ExpeDry will fight the water from within.

Think about how a down jacket or blanket has baffles, which are the squares that look kind of like a quilt. Inside each one of those baffles is what Betcher calls an insulation chamber. His team worked with a technology called FUZE to create tiny gold particles that permanently bond to the down inside the insulation chamber, creating an electrostatic barrier that stops, say, humidity from condensing into water.

“What would happen without it in a down blanket, for example, is that humidity would continue to be picked up by the down, and it would grow mold, lose loft, just get gross,” he says. “It will never really have a chance to dry out. What this does is help keep that down dry. It keeps the whole inside of the blanket drier.”

ExpeDry also makes it possible to hang a down product on a line and have it actually get dry without the need for a home-type, heat-based dryer—a boon for boaters who otherwise have no way to dry those products. “In a laundry situation, it helps the product dry over 50 percent faster,” he says. “Those comforters can take hours to dry properly. This saves a tremendous amount of time and energy.”

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Mercury is the first major manufacturer of marine internal-combustion engines to offer an electric outboard option. The Avator 7.5e delivers comparable performance metrics to Mercury’s time-tested 3.5 hp four-stroke gasoline engine, minus the locally emitted carbon dioxide. The Avator 7.5e is also the only outboard currently on the market with a transverse flux motor, a design that Andrew Przybyl, Mercury’s technical manager and engineer for the Avator line, says has high-torque-density characteristics. The Avator 7.5e comes with a 1 kilowatt-hour lithium-ion battery that nests inside the outboard’s flip-top cowl, and a color display with GPS that gives operators a wealth of real-time range information.

“One of the biggest challenges we had was setting up the overall architecture of the outboard,” Przybyl says. The solution involved auditioning different concepts and designs, and then choosing the right supporting technologies, including batteries, motor types and overall configurations. “In electrification, overall system efficiency is the name of the game,” he says. “The other aspect was sustainability. This outboard is highly recyclable.” Creating a recyclable design, Przybyl says, involved using componentry from nontraditional materials. “Sustainability is an important part of our culture,” Przybyl says.

While the Avator 7.5e is intended for use aboard smaller boats, Mercury plans to release the bigger Avator 20e and 35e outboards later this year. All three of these electric motors will employ similar architecture, displays and companion apps.

Charge and Go

The Mercury Marine Avator 7.5e can run for 60 minutes at full throttle off a charged-up 1 kilowatt-hour battery, or for as long as 2.8 hours at 75  percent throttle (or 6.2 hours at 50 percent throttle, or 19.4 hours at 25 percent throttle). Users can also change out batteries in seconds.

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Trinidad and Tobago reward cruisers with far more than merely beautiful beaches. While best known for the Carnival celebration, these twin isles tempt travelers ashore year-round with awe-inspiring architecture, bountiful biodiversity, and memorable mouthwatering meals. Continue reading to learn more about our favorite destinations in Trinidad and Tobago.

This article was adapted from our Island Icon Series in the June 2023 Edition of Yachting Magazine.

1. Magnificent Seven

The 260-acre Queen’s Park Savannah is the nexus of social and cultural events in Trinidad’s capital, Port of Spain, particularly during its internationally renowned Carnival and steel-pan festivals. But any time of year, visitors can take a stroll along its western edge to take in the Magnificent Seven. This architectural sampler of resplendent early 20th-century mansions fully lives up to its moniker.

Castle Killarney—also known as Stollmeyer’s Castle—was the first to arise on the block, its design inspired by Balmoral Castle in Scotland. The Palladian-style Whitehall takes its name from the gleaming coral used in its construction. The Archbishop’s Palace melds Indian Empire design with red granite and marble brought over from Ireland. Intricate iron railings adorn the elaborate Roomor, while stonework stands out on the French Colonial-style Hayes Court. A 93-foot-tall clock tower dominates the German Renaissance design of the Queen’s Royal College. The elegant French Provincial Mille Fleurs was originally built as a gift for Port of Spain’s mayor and still stands as a gift that keeps giving to all who pass by.

2. Maracas Beach

The 1.25-mile crescent-shaped Maracas Beach on Trinidad’s north coast is as much a destination for its natural beauty as for its “bake and shark” vendors. This classic street food wraps shark meat in fried flatbread and slathers it with condiments of your choosing.

3. Asa Wright Nature Centre

Trinidad’s remarkable biodiversity is on full display in the Asa Wright Nature Centre in the Arima Valley. Schedule a tour to this 1,200-plus-acre preserve, where more than 600 butterfly species flit among the more than 2,000 varieties of flowering plants. The center’s 400-plus species of birds draw in enthusiasts eager to spot tanagers, toucans, colorful motmots and the elusive oilbird.

4. Veni Mangé

For a culinary and visual feast, dine at Veni Mangé in Port of Spain. Opened in 1980 by a Cordon Bleu-trained chef and her sister, this bustling, art-filled restaurant sets the standard for authentic West Indian fare on the island. It’s best known for its rendition of callaloo, Trinidad’s national dish, as well as oxtail.

5. Fort King George

If you’re spending time on Tobago, see the restored 18th-century colonial buildings and beautiful vistas at Fort King George, overlooking Scarborough and Rockly Bay. The officers’ quarters house the Tobago Museum and its collection of Amerindian artifacts, 17th-century maps and military relics.

Other Island Hopping Tips:

• Best Places to Unwind on Bahamas’ Harbour Island
• Things to Do and See on Catalina Island
• 3 Unique Things to Do in BVI

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The Hyfoil 22 is a wolf in sheep’s clothing. Its RIB-style appearance hints at its speed potential, but the boat’s true genius—a single dihedral-based main hydrofoil and twin stern foils—remains quietly concealed between its catamaran-type hulls. Light up the outboards, however, and the Hyfoil 22 quickly yields a dry, comfortable and fuel-efficient ride.

The Hyfoil 22’s three foils partially lift the hull from the water to reduce hydrodynamic resistance and bolster fuel efficiency while rewarding the driver with a well-mannered helm.

Whom It’s For: Boaters who want a fuel-efficient ride that delivers high-performance grins while still being able to negotiate skinny water or even slide up onto a beach.

Picture This: San Francisco Bay is running rough, but there’s sailboat racing to watch. You and your friends load up your Hyfoil 22 and let its wave-damping hull take the lumps, while its hydrofoils free you to chase the fast sleds.  

Take the next step: hyfoilmarine.com

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The southwesterly breeze had filled in nicely, and perhaps with a tad more punch than I would’ve hoped for; in my slip off Buttonwood Cove on Florida’s Gulf Coast isle of Longboat Key, the prevailing beam-on winds had me pinned tightly against the pilings. As I scratched my chin and contemplated exactly how I might extricate myself from the dock, it occurred to me that this might not be such a great day to go sailing.

It was a fleeting thought. I’d had this February afternoon marked off on the calendar for a couple of weeks, at least. It would be my very first sail, under my own command, since I’d purchased my classic old Pearson 356, August West, the previous spring. I was going sailing.

I’d recruited my old mate Dan Spurr as crew, which was appropriate since I’d bought the boat from his son, Steve. Dan had logged plenty of miles on the vessel, and, for that matter, so had I, but never as its skipper. So, my mouth was a bit dry as we tossed off the dock lines and I backed into the cove. The Pearson is a notoriously poor performer in reverse, and there are many obstacles in my marina, specifically sandbars and tightly spaced vessels. But August West backed out like a champ—a happy omen, I thought.

It’s a fairly long motor out a narrow, winding cut into the deeper sections of Sarasota Bay where we could hoist sail and maneuver freely. That time gave me the opportunity to realize it was a whole lot breezier in the open waters than it had been in my protected slip.

Hmmm. Was this still a good idea? Too late. The die was cast.

I swapped the helm with Dan and went forward to raise the mainsail, which is when I remembered I’d not yet addressed the rather fundamental matter of running the reef lines on the quite powerful, full-battened main. And it certainly wasn’t going to happen now. A full-hoist mainsail it would be.

Sarasota Bay was choppy and flecked with whitecaps—“sporty” and “dramatic” were words that popped to mind—and I guessed it was blowing 16 to 18 knots, with gusts in the low 20s. Well, at least we needn’t worry about being becalmed. And while there wasn’t much I could do about the main, with my furling headsail, at least I could unroll just a scrap of it to keep things tamed and civilized.

We hardened up on the breeze and threw in a series of southbound tacks, which carried us past the mansions and museum of the late John Ringling, the circus entrepreneur who is synonymous with Sarasota, and onward to the city’s skyline. With boat speeds steady in the high-6-knot range—not bad for a beast built in 1977 with a 17,000-pound displacement—it dawned on me that we were having a cracking great sail. The helm was light and easy, the motion downright pleasant. “The boat has no bad habits,” Dan said, and he was right.

Near the city front, we turned and eased sheets for a fast reach back toward Buttonwood, notching a nifty 7 knots at times.

Once the sails were doused and furled, perhaps prophetically, I missed a channel marker on the way back to the marina and squished into a sandbank. Being a good friend, Dan just laughed. “You’re officially a Florida sailor now,” he said. “Everyone goes aground. No worries. It’s just sand.” It took a bit of wrangling to get off, which we accomplished after I unfurled the jib again, and we were able to sail back into deep water. Lucky should be my middle name.

And just like that, we were back in my slip, safe and secure, where we cracked one cold beer and then another. True, August West has no bad habits. But me? That’s another story.

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My friend recently posited that if forced to choose, he’d rather lose his wallet than his iPhone.

After pondering, I had to agree. Communication is key everywhere, and, at least ashore, the smartphone has become the most important nexus of modern culture’s holy trinity (wallet, phone, keys).

On board, however, the argument changes, especially when cruising outside of cellular coverage. At that point, the VHF radio and its ability to communicate with multiple nearby vessels and shore stations juggernauts its technology to the top of the importance pyramid. While there’s no question that a fixed-mount VHF radio is a must-have for every helm, few electronic tools are a better universal fit than a reliable and fully featured handheld.

Marine-band VHF communications arrived in the 1950s, giving mariners the ability to talk, either ship-to-ship or ship-to-shore, over line-of-sight distances using radio-frequency transmissions. The first VHF radios were fixed-mount systems. As technology improved and demand grew, handhelds arrived. Recent years have seen new features, such as embedded automatic identification system, digital selective calling and GPS receivers.

Marine VHF is a tightly regulated technology; in the United States, it’s overseen by the Federal Communications Commission. Fixed-mount systems are limited to 25 watts of transmitting power, and handhelds to 6 watts. Depending on how they’re spec’d, marine VHF radios can use more than 40 channels that fall between 156.050 and 157.425 megahertz, and 161.6 and 162.550 MHz. As with all RF communications, transmitting power and antenna height equate to greater range.

The comparatively simple handhelds of the 1990s allowed for voice communications over distances of about 3 to 5 nautical miles. Their rechargeable nickel-cadmium batteries delivered good performance for the era, but they were prone to discharging if they were left unused. Worse, they could develop chemical memories that made recharging complicated. Screens were small and tough to read in direct sunlight, and user interfaces involved hard, tactile keys, dedicated volume knobs and awkward software.

Today, while the frequencies and power outputs are unchanged, modern handhelds are far more sophisticated than even a decade ago. Integration has been key. Higher-end handhelds now have built-in DSC, GPS and AIS receivers.

“DSC is the biggest advancement,” says Hans Rooker, Standard Horizon’s national sales manager. “It delivers the capability of position-sharing, poling and distress-calling.”

Provided that owners properly register for—and program—their nine-digit identification number (called a maritime mobile service identity), all receiving parties can ascertain information that’s valuable and possibly lifesaving. “The combination of the DSC and GPS tells first responders like the Coast Guard vital information on who you are, what type of boat and where you are located,” says Ray Novak, Icom America’s senior sales manager.

DSC also has nonemergency features, most notably the ability to create buddy lists and directly call friends via their MMSI. Provided that the vessels are in range, this technique often saves time and allows users to treat their radios much like they do their smartphones ashore.

While fixed-mount radios have long sported AIS (listen-only receivers as well as listen-and-transmit transceivers), Icom’s flagship M94D is the first and only handheld to offer a built-in AIS receiver. AIS data is shown on the handheld’s display, atop a simplified navigation system. This adds a new level of functionality in handhelds, Novak says: “Not only can you see AIS traffic around you; you can make direct calls to vessels in the area, if there is an issue.”

AIS also lets users set up proximity alerts and receive notifications, if other vessels with AIS transceivers enter their designated watch area.

One of the biggest pitfalls involving DSC and AIS transceivers and fixed-mount VHF radios occurs when users fail to properly network their vessel’s GPS with their radio. “Seventy-six percent of the unanswered DSC calls are due to no GPS coordinates being transmitted,” Novak says. While handhelds don’t have the same punch as fixed-mount versions, one inherent advantage of all AIS- and DSC-enabled handhelds—and their hard-wired GPS receivers—is that they’re self-contained, so all AIS or DSC transmissions always include real-time GPS information.

It might seem obvious in hindsight, but the first floating handheld (Icom’s M34) didn’t arrive until 2007. Today, all reputable handhelds float (some face-up) and offer some water-ingress protection. Many contemporary radios also have a water-activated light or strobe that simplifies retrieval missions, and most have a water-shedding feature to protect their speakers. Other newer features include voice scramblers for making private calls, and scanning features that can monitor multiple channels for incoming RF waves.

Today’s flagship handhelds—Icom’s M94D and Standard Horizon’s HX890—have large backlit screens and intuitive user interfaces. Today’s budget-conscious radios also have easy-to-read displays and intuitive software, even if the tactile buttons have yet to be replaced by touchscreens.

As with all electronics, most handhelds now also employ compact, lightweight lithium-ion batteries that recharge quickly, sans memory issues.

And in terms of pricing, the difference in cost between high-end and entry-level offerings is minimal, especially compared with the electronics normally discussed in these pages. Case in point: Standard Horizon’s entry-level HX210 costs $100, while its top-of-the-line HX890 fetches $200. Icom’s M94D, at $350, is the outlier, but the added benefits of AIS can justify its costs.

Given the features of today’s handhelds relative to their affordability, there’s zero reason to cling to an old clunker. Size is a fair argument, especially for portable electronics, and the flagship handhelds from Standard Horizon and Icom are admittedly bigger (especially the M94D) than pared-down offerings. That said, most good foul-weather jackets have large pockets for a reason.

So, while I don’t plan to deep-six any member of my holy trinity anytime soon, a lifetime of sailing has demonstrated the value of my trusty handheld VHF radio, especially as that last bar of cellular connectivity vanishes.  

There’s an App for That

While today’s economies of scale (or lack thereof) discourage manufacturers from innovating touchscreen-driven handheld VHF radios, owners of Icom’s fixed-mount IC-M510 radio can turn their smartphone into a wireless CommandMic via Icom’s free RS-M500 app. It lets smartphones broadcast at 25 watts and leverage the yacht’s main VHF antenna too.

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