 Choosing
the "right" boat is often a process of evaluating personal preferences
and prevailing local conditions. The waters along the BC coastline, in
Puget Sound and up the Inside Passage to Alaska constitute some of the
most spectacular recreational boating regions ever known. Rustic islands,
alluring passages, nostalgic fishing villages and lively urban seaports
are often scant miles apart-strung down the shoreline like diverse gems
on a sparkling choker. Our waters can be enjoyed or explored in a variety
of power and sail vessels.
For several decades, many prospective boat
owners have concluded that small trawlers are one of the best possible
local choices. With hull designs reminiscent of commercial fish boats,
small trawlers have typically proven safe and comfortable when negotiating
our usual range of sea conditions and capable of enduring far worse when
required. Often configured with only a single diesel engine, smaller trawlers
feature exceptional fuel economy and cruising ranges that can exceed 1,000
miles. Larger superstructures create more sheltered, dry cabin space where
diesel heaters can make year-round cruising comfortable. The most often
encountered criticism of trawler-class boats is a lack of speed. In a
region where boating destinations are often in close proximity, the eight-knot
pace of a typical trawler isn't the "gross disqualifier" it
might be in areas where 100-mile runs are typical weekend cruises.
The Far East has always been a traditional source for trawlers. The Chinese
have been going to sea for thousands of years, and yards in Hong Kong
and Taiwan have exported some popular boat lines to the Canadian and US
market since the 1970s. Economic prosperity in the 1990s eliminated much
of the small trawler production as Asian builders realized that building
a few very large yachts every year could be more profitable than launching
greater numbers of boats under 40-feet. Wages and overhead in Hong Kong
and Taiwan increased to the point where many yards relocated to mainland
China or Indonesia.
The new 2003 Mariner 34-foot Europa trawler
offered by Executive Yachts in Seattle is a sorely needed addition to
our new boat choices in the Pacific Northwest. The Shanghai-built boat
incorporates most of the features that trawler owners have always enjoyed
and capitalizes on the experience of the last few decades to avoid a few
of the traditional shortcomings. A hand laid-up Mariner 34-foot Orient
Europa Trawler is 33'6" LOA, with a 30'3" waterline. The vessel
draws 42 inches, displaces 20,500 pounds and sports an 11'9" beam.
Tankage is 300 gallons diesel and 140 potable water.
Built as a sedan trawler with a single stateroom forward, the Mariner
34 uses the resulting longer cabintop to create a roomy flybridge. The
flybridge is extended to cover the side and aft decks like other Europa-style
designs. Exterior teak is limited to a cap rail, sliding doors and the
steps on the flybridge ladder. The boats are sold with the cap rail left
unfinished, so the new owners can finish with varnish, oil or specialty
finish as desired. There is enough teak to maintain a yacht-like appearance,
but not so much that new owners will be alternating weekends spent varnishing
with weekends spent cruising.
Window leaks have been endemic with Asian
trawlers, but the Mariner uses modern metal frame windows instead of the
traditional "leaky teaky" hand-built enclosures. With virtually
all exterior windows under either the brow of the flybridge cowling or
the overhang of the upper deck, it's most unlikely that owners of Mariner
34s will be chasing window leaks or hassling with rebedding and recaulking.
Decks on the Mariner 34 are fibreglass, without the teak overlay commonly
associated with Asian trawlers. The FRP is easier to maintain, and there
is no possibility of rain or wash water penetrating the deck through planking
screws. Stainless hawse cleats, a transom door, large scuppers and substantial
stainless railing on the foredeck and flybridge are evidence of well-considered
and experienced design.
While the exterior teak is minimal, the
interior of the Marine 34 is richly appointed with teak veneers, laminated
beams, and a teak and holly cabin sole. Joinery is well executed, with
louvered locker doors and without trouser-snagging exterior pull trim.
The interior layout of the Mariner 34 is
ideal for a cruising couple with the occasional overnight guest, or a
family with one or two kids. The master stateroom is under the foredeck,
and features a queen-size berth with "walkaround" accessibility.
Four stowage drawers and a lit hanging locker provide ample space for
a cruising wardrobe. Two portlights, two cabin lights, an overhead hatch
and two reading lamps introduce enough light to prevent any "teak
cave" impression in the stateroom.
Single head configurations are typical
of sedans in this size category, and the Mariner 34's head is to port,
accessible through the forward stateroom. Although few would characterize
the head as "luxurious," it is fully appointed with an electric
macerating marine toilet, a stainless hand basin and a shower. A large
mirror, a cabin light and a portlight help to create an illusion of space
in an area of adequate but not lavish dimension.
The main cabin layout of the Mariner 34
differs slightly from some similar sedan trawlers. A convertible dinette
mounted above seven stowage drawers is in the port forequarter. The adjustable
tabletop and a centre cushion allow the dinette to be pressed into service
as a bunk for an adult or two small children. The galley, aft of the dinette
on the portside and separated by a short serving surface, features a propane
oven and cooktop, an under-counter refrigerator/freezer and a single stainless
sink in a return against the aft bulkhead. The aft bulkhead return creates
additional food-prep space and allows the galley of the Mariner 34 to
compare very realistically with galleys aboard many somewhat larger boats.
The lower helm is to starboard, with a teak spoke wheel mounted above
the AC/DC distribution panel. Traditional navigators will be pleased with
a generous charting surface created with the sliding cover pulled shut
over the companionway to the forward stateroom, but there's an obvious
conflict with convenient access to the head and stateroom when the cover
is closed. (A situation not at all unusual in a smaller boat.) An overhead
console provides an obvious destination for radios, stereos, autopilots
and other electronics likely to be added as the boat is fully commissioned.
Aft of the pilot seat, a settee mounted above 12 louvered locker doors
and framed between two end fixtures follows the starboard cabin wall to
the aft bulkhead door.
The ladder from the cockpit to the upper
deck is, by necessity, rather vertical. The ladder is mounted quite solidly,
with stout handrails, and feels completely secure beneath the scrambling
feet of full-sized adults. A mast and boom create a good option for launching
a dinghy from boat-deck davits, and the mast provides a logical mounting
location for a radar dome. The boat we tested was equipped with an "optional"
bimini top, all but essential in our oft-damp West Coast marine climate
zone.
We tested the 34 Mariner on a rather calm
autumn day. The 220-hp Cummins engine started instantly and ran within
very acceptable noise levels at all speeds. We kicked the stern away from
the dock, backed to create adequate pivot room, and powered out. The Mariner
handled delightfully, with the only possible criticism being a slightly
greater-than-accustomed distance from lock to lock on the wheel. Mariner
Yachts specifies a 10-knot top speed for the 34 with the 220-hp Cummins,
but notes that far better economy would be realized closer to natural
hull speed. A rough calculation of hull speed (square root of the waterline
multiplied by 1.35) indicates that 7.5 knots would be a highly efficient
speed. The Mariner 34's seven-knot wake was broad and flat, rather than
steep and breaking; the hull seems to be efficiently designed. The Mariner
34 makes a very good impression.
After an enjoyable ride, we returned the Mariner 34 to its slip. The vessel
backs to port, so landing to port is a simple matter of placing the bow
near the dock and then allowing the stern to "walk" a bit when
reducing way in reverse.
This is easily accomplished from the flybridge
helm, situated on the centreline, but would be less precisely done from
the lower helm on the starboard side-there is no portside door to open
for a good view of the dock.
Not only does the Mariner 34 seem well
suited for family cruising on the West Coast, it is so relatively affordable
that more families will be able to consider owning one. The base price
for a new 2003 Mariner 34 Europa sedan trawler, F.O.B. Shanghai, is $149,000
USD. The boat we tested has an AC generator, the optional Cummins engine,
a bow thruster prep package (the tube is installed) and a bimini top.
With freight, the Seattle boat is offered at a still extremely reasonable
$179,995 USD; by today's standards that can be considered a bargain price
for a brand new, well-built vessel. We can expect this particular Mariner
to score frequently in the final rounds of consideration by prospective
buyers. 
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