The real value of catching up with other boaters who own your type of boat is swapping experiences with people who understand your vessel. At the Maritimo Roche Harbor Rendezvous in mid-May, 19 Maritimo motor yachts converged on Roche Harbor, on Washington State's San Juan Island, with owners arriving from Seattle, Gig Harbor, Victoria and other communities scattered around the Pacific Northwest. Many of them were about to head north through British Columbia towards Alaska for the summer cruising season.
Maritimo's motor yachts are built on Queensland's Gold Coast, and most of its US activity has traditionally centred on Florida and the East Coast. The Pacific Northwest is newer territory, one the company says is attracting growing owner interest, helped along by the fuel capacity, seaworthiness and onboard living space that long-range cruising toward Alaska actually demands.
There was a mix of Maritimos on the docks, from a recently delivered M60 to an M48 from Maritimo's original model range. Between them the fleet spanned more than two decades of production, boats their owners had held for ten or fifteen years moored alongside others only recently handed over. That many boats, with that much combined experience, made for interesting, and by all means valuable, conversations.
Some of that exchange was built into the programme Martimo had organised. Garmin representatives ran sessions on current navigation and electronics, and further sessions covered docking, line handling, fender placement and deck operations, open to partners and crew as well as skippers. But plenty of the talk happened on the docks or over dinner between the organised schedules. Practical ideas of pooling cruising notes on routes, anchorages and experiences into something other owners heading north could actually use were raised. Anchorages worth a detour. Stretches of water that turn nasty in a north-westerly.
Maritimo has more photos and a highlights video from the Roche Harbor gathering on its website.
