New member here

[Peter Weis]

Hello Catalina 350 owners and enthusiasts! Just joined.

My wife and I are getting ready to return to living aboard a boat to cruise the East Coast from Maine to Florida Keys and possibly the Bahamas. We did this before on an Island Packet 40 and then gave it up to enjoy time with new grand babies and got to spend a lot of time with them until now, when they are going to school fulltime. Actually our two grandsons are being home schooled as they are spending their winters cruising the Bahamas with our son and daughter-in-law on their catamaran, which is now hauled out in St Augustine for the hurricane season.

We own a condo here in New Hampshire and want to escape the winters up here.

We've been looking at boats which would suite our cruising needs and also fit our budget. We keep coming up with the Catalina 350. Smaller than our last boat and easier to maneuver and a bit shallower draft. We like the forward centerline birth (tired of crawling over each other as we did in the pullman on our old IP40). Also, not ready to get in feet first and out head first as we did with the previous Catalina 30). Like the separate shower in the head and the galley is pretty good. The cockpit on the 350 is bigger than our IP40.

We would be cruising offshore at times while also popping in and out of the ICW. With the weather aps now, like predictwind, you can decide whether the winds are favorable offshore or make progress motoring in the ICW. We used to do long multi day passages on our IP40, but no longer want to do that. Being in a rush can be exhausting. Relax and give ourselves plenty of time to get where we're going. We were meeting someone, somewhere, at a given time. No more of that.

We've considered wintering in Boot Key Harbor and also Key West (Garrison Bight), but might cruise to the Bahamas, March thru May, and start north in June. Anyway, that's the plan. As they say - "life is what happens, while you are making other plans" or something like that.

Maine and south of Cape Cod are great cruising grounds in the summer. We've done a lot of Maine, but would love to spend more time around Nantucket, Martha's Vineyard, the Elizabeth Islands, Newport, and Block Island. Think the Catalina 350 would be great for getting us to where we would want to go and do it in comfort.

We met a lot of great fellow sailors during our previous cruising and we want that once again. At our age, probably our last opportunity to do this as long as we are enjoying it.

[TEM58]

Hi Peter,
Welcome, hope your boat shopping works out and you are able to find a suitable 350. We’ve had ours for nearly 3 years and really enjoy it. Like you, I joined this group during the shopping stage and was able to get some valuable insights. Good luck!

[jbd3]

The 350 is ideal for SW Florida if you want to fit under most bridges and run aground only occasionally . we have one in Lake Michigan and one docked behind our house in Cape Coral. Nuts, I know, but they are perfect for couples cruising and we aren't ready to throw in the towel just yet.

[sargentef]

We have put our 350 up for sale, it is located in Oriental NC. It is on the yachtworld.com web site. "Seawing" is a 2005, wing keel, well maintained boat. We spent last year in Boot key on it and loved it. Check it out!

[Peter Weis]

We have put our 350 up for sale, it is located in Oriental NC. It is on the yachtworld.com web site. "Seawing" is a 2005, wing keel, well maintained boat. We spent last year in Boot key on it and loved it. Check it out!

Took a look at your boat. Definitely is outfitted for a boat which could fit our needs - cruising Maine to Florida. My wife has had past problems with contracting pneumonia when she caught the flu and so we want to get the booster vaccinations for COVID when they become available to us which could be pretty soon, before travelling south. If your boat is still available this fall, we would likely want to take a look. Nice boat! There are a few others we are also looking at.

[sargentef]

Happy to give you a look!

[FLCaptBill]

I'm new on this thread. As a former Island Packet 380 owner I'm taking a close look at the Catalina 350. Enjoy reading the threads here and hope to learn more about what appears to be a solid pocket cruiser.

[sargentef]

have you looked at Seawing in Oriental, NC? We are the owners. If you have questions, we are available to answer them.
Erik-n-Sharon

[Jodyboy]

Where can I see pics and description of Seawing? Thanks. Joe

[sargentef]

yachtworld!