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The
GH47 is the ultimate cruising liveaboard. She is dramatically bigger
than the GH37 without sacrificing the trademark features of a Mirage
trawler, including stable hull form, positive buoyancy, shallow draft,
twin screws, tough construction, household appliances and aggressive
pricing. Not only is every space in the GH47 bigger than those on the
37, a new cabin has been behind the raised pilot house. We call it the
Watch CabinTM.
Let’s take examine the GH47’s features one at a time:
Hull-The
Great Harbour 47 does not have a sailboat hull. Designed by by Mirage
President Ken Fickett and naval architect Lou Codega, she is based on
offshore tugs, inherently stable boats, and thus does not require
expensive stabilizer systems, which will eventually fail.
Buoyancy-Deck
and house are cored with buoyant and sound-deadening Nidacore. Because
the boat is not a sailboat hull and therefore not ballasted, the
Nidacore overcomes the weight of the ship’s hull and machinery. The
GH47 will not sink even when filled to the gunwales with water.
Shallow draft-The
GH47 is a true gunkholer, and as such, can find safety from storms in
places deep trawlers can’t penetrate. The vast majority of trawler
owners would prefer to find safe harbor rather than have to run
offshore for “sea room.”
Twin screws-Twin
71 HP Westerbeke diesels ensure true get-home ability in the case of a
failure in one. In fact, the GH47 runs nearly as fast on a single-screw
as it does on two. The fact that the engines are set wide in the hull
makes for superb maneuverability, even in wind and current.
Tough construction-One-inch-thick,
solid fiberglass hull, 1 3/8-inch aluminum handrails and a “tactical”
hard rubber rubrail at the widest (and strongest) part of the boat.
Household appliances-The
boat’s electrical system is designed for standard 22 cubic foot
refrigerator, radiant glasstop stove and convection/microwave oven -
items that would be standard on vessels of 50 feet or bigger.
Watch Cabin-Abaft
the raised pilothouse is a cabin with queen berth and en-suite head,
along with hanging locker and storage. Despite the addition, there was
enough room in the pilothouse itself for the same convertible settee
found in the 37.
Price-At $699,000, the GH47 meets or beats the price of comparable trawlers.
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