If you head to Maine by boat, a lobster roll is practically required. Cruise to Philadelphia and you’ll tie up and grab a cheesesteak at Pat’s or Geno’s. On Chesapeake Bay, the Maryland-style crab cake is a perfect excuse for a day on the water. Food and boating have long been natural companions, and that connection shaped my recent trip to the Chesapeake aboard a Nordic Tug 44 Flybridge, a rugged semidisplacement passagemaker built for long-distance cruising.
Casting Off
I met Bill Boyer from Wilde Yacht Sales, a Nordic Tugs dealer based in Essex, Connecticut, at Osprey Point Inn, Restaurant and Marina on Swan Creek in Rock Hall. It was a crisp autumn morning, the shoreline framed in vibrant golds and yellows as we cast off. Despite the Nordic Tug 44’s solid, full-keel single-screw profile, leaving the slip felt surprisingly simple. The boat’s well-placed bow and stern thrusters and progressive controllers make tight-quarters maneuvering almost effortless — as easy as many joystick-equipped boats I’ve handled.
A small flock of Canada geese accompanied our departure, and a great blue heron watched as we opened onto the Chesapeake. Once we rounded the shallow Swan Point Shoal, a steady north wind built to 10–15 knots. We settled into roughly 10 knots toward Baltimore, taking an 8-nautical-mile beam sea. The 44’s motion was predictable rather than uncomfortable, although the rolling could become tiring over a full day. With a stout fiberglass hull, the boat punched through the 2-foot chop and 4-foot ship wakes with composure and no audible stress.
An Inside Job
While Bill handled the helm, I explored the interior. The main saloon has generous glazing that floods the space with daylight and ample headroom for taller passengers. The galley is U-shaped and set forward to port, with an L-shaped dinette aft to starboard. Warm teak cabinetry and quality joinery give the 44 a comfortable, ship-like ambience. There’s space for lounge chairs near the dinette and a pop-up flat-screen TV tucked into a slim cabinet behind the galley, so onboard life feels very much like home.
A navigation station to starboard offers room for a laptop and a compact office setup. To port is a guest stateroom, and an enclosed head/shower opposite doubles as a convenient day head. The master stateroom forward has a queen island berth, abundant natural light, an en-suite head and more headroom than is typical in this size of boat. The lower-deck corridor felt a touch tight at times, especially when entering or exiting the guest head, but it’s manageable and not a deal-breaker for me.
On the helm deck, Nordic Tug offers the 44 with or without internal stairs to the flybridge. The test boat lacked internal flybridge access, which made the layout feel airier inside, but I’d opt for the stairway myself. Interior access makes it easier to move between helm and flybridge and improves aft visibility. At the primary helm, visibility and ergonomics were excellent, and once we adjusted the twin Llebroc captain’s chairs they proved very comfortable. A bench behind the seats provides companion seating for guests.
Fit and finish throughout the 44 are impressive. When Boyer mentioned the teak-and-holly sole was actually a vinyl reproduction, I was skeptical — but it’s remarkably convincing. That synthetic sole resists dents, stains and wear far better than real wood, though purists can still order authentic teak if they prefer. Some owners choose carpeting instead.
Port Call
Approaching Baltimore — one of the East Coast’s busiest commercial harbors — we expected to navigate heavy traffic. With three 15-inch Garmin GPSMAP 7616 multifunction displays at the helm, tracking ship movements and planning our approach were straightforward and stress-free. The electronics made a potentially anxious part of cruising smooth and simple.
Docking at Baltimore Marine Centers in the Inner Harbor was uneventful. The side decks felt a bit narrow and required deliberate two-step moves, but ample handholds made transits safe. Designers must balance side-deck width against interior space, and the Nordic Tug 44 strikes a reasonable compromise between onboard comfort and deck safety.
From the marina we took a quick ride to Lexington Market and made a beeline for Faidley’s Seafood, a Baltimore institution since 1886. Tucked toward the back of the market, Faidley’s is famous for its jumbo lump crab cakes — our destination and well worth the stop. Eating with the locals at the standing counters is part of the experience; the fresh lump crab meat and careful seasoning delivered a Chesapeake Bay classic.
Homeward Bound
After leaving Baltimore and passing Fort McHenry, I pushed the 44 to explore performance. Power comes from a 510-hp Volvo Penta D11 six-cylinder diesel driving a 2½-inch stainless-steel shaft and a five-blade bronze propeller. The boat was comfortable across a range of speeds. The most efficient cruise I observed was 8–9 knots, where fuel burn measured roughly 5–7 gallons per hour; at 10 knots the burn was about 7.6 gph, and at 11–12 knots we used about 16 gph. At full speed (about 15.8 knots) consumption rose to roughly 24 gph. With two diesel tanks totaling 600 gallons, the 44 offers substantial range — about 1,700 nautical miles at an economical 8-knot cruise.
Conditions headed home were calm, and we shared the water with oyster boats and a skipjack returning to Rock Hall after dredging the bars. By mid-afternoon we eased back into Swan Creek and snugged the boat into the slip. Though the Nordic Tug 44 is built for long-distance passagemaking, it proved equally well-suited to a comfortable, easy day trip: simple to handle in tight quarters, steady and comfortable underway, and pleasant to live aboard for the day.
As I walked toward my car I found myself thinking about longer trips — to the islands and beyond. The Nordic Tug 44 clearly has the build, systems and sea-kindly characteristics to be a dependable partner for extended cruising and coastal passagemaking. Nordic Tugs, Burlington, Washington. (360) 757-8847. nordictugs.com
This article originally appeared in the January 2017 issue.