35 Command Bridge

[tmere]

Been a long time between post. We bought a 43 Sundeck and we did the Great Loop, we took our time and enjoyed the 4000 plus miles. We spent a year in the Chesepeake and the trip took us three years. Left New Orleans and returned to Mobil Al.

Greatest adventure in our life. We sold the boat and we are presently looking at a 35 Command Bridge. We will not do the loop again as locks in Canada are a mess.

has anyone on the forum done extended cruising on the 35?

Thanks

Tom

[powerboater56]

We took a 5 week cruise on our 35 CommandBridge. We started from Lake St Clair north of Detroit, ran down the Detroit River to Lake Erie. We cruised the whole length of Lake Erie to Buffalo, then the whole Erie Canal to the Albany area.
Next down the Hudson River, around Manahattan, and into Long island Sound. We finished in our home port of Jamestown, RI.

We thought the 35 Command Bridge worked quite well for a cruise of that length. The forward stateroom in the one-stateroom model is amazing, with enormous storage space for clothes and cruising supplies. The galley is fine, and there is ample space to store food.

For two people the saloon area is adequate. The U-shaped settee is really comfortable, with well-sloped backrests. If I have had one quibbe with the 35 Command Bridge, the saloon area can start to feel a tad small if you are harbor-bound for a couple of days. There is no walk around room.

The command bridge is well designed to run the boat, with fantastic sight lines. You have to deal with peering through isinglass and that can be less than ideal when you are navigating a tricky area in rainy weather. But the ability to unzip and open up the isinglass is wonderful in good summer weather. The command bridge is NOT big enough for a crowd -- even four people feels cozy.

The best part of the 35 Command Bridge is the ease of running the boat. You can reach any part of the boat from the command bridge in seconds, the side decks are wide and secure, and the cleats are big and handy. Since the boat is quite low, it is not pushed around by wind that much and the keel keeps it planted in the water. With a bow thruster it is a surprisingly easy boat to dock even with a single. Our 35 Command Bridge loped along effortlessly at 16-20 knots with a 440 Yanmar.

Overall the 35 Command Bridge was a fine cruising boat. If we hadn't decided to buy a place in Florida and become snowbirds we might have kept it. We're still thinking about buying a boat to cruise up and down the ICW and would consider another 35 Command Bridge except I think I want twin engines if we get another cruising boat. Also, I now have two center consoles -- one north, one south -- and I really enjoy the ease of use and speed they offer. Great for zippinjg out for an hour or two.

[tmere]

Thank you for your input, we would bring the boat back to New Orleans. Enjoyed the voyage from New York to Lake Michigan.

We have a 22 CC we keep at our camp in Theriot, La we fish two, three days a week. I towed our old CC behind the boat around Chesapeake. Our first retirement we bought a sail boat and made the Caribbean. We are up in age but love boating.

DT