Am I being stupid to consider...

For cruising the San Juans and Gulf Islands any of these will be fine though not ideal. Alaska and west coast cruising, even harbor hopping like you propose to do, will be hit and miss. Passage between ports on the west coast can be difficult due to the distance between safe and navigable harbors. Passage during this time of year can be darn near impossible. Trip planning and weather watching becomes critical and failure to do so can be catastrophic in the wrong vessel.

I think Puget Sound and SE Alaska would be ideal cruising grounds for the diesel powered Chris. Far better than the West Coast because once you turn left at Cape Flattery it's a long long way to anywhere and you might not even be able to get in once you get there much less turn around and go back.

It's not just a seasonal thing. There are about 3000 miles of fetch for a mid Pacific storm to generate swells which often make the bars at the mouths of Pacific Coast ports inaccessible, the ports close, you can't cross the bar without literally risking a miserable death.

It's not always bad, sometimes you can run the entire coast southbound just off the beach, other times, a cushion of a hundred miles may be necessary. I've had absolutely magic runs northbound (uphill) in a 50m yacht all the way from Cabo to Juan de Fuca when it was like a millpond but more trips on an 800 foot supertanker when life wasn't worth living for another day. The weather along that coast is like a box of chocolates ... you just never know.

Go north, it will take about 20 years to see most of it and it's 99 percent "inside."

the run from cape flattery south can be just as bad as cimeing up the coast as marmot say's you just never know and the places to hide can be real tough to get in

travler

I agree, the diesel Chris is the closest. I think you'd be better suited with a 50' sailboat or a trawler then a motoryacht. I am not very familiar with the cruising grounds there.

The mast on a sailboat just provides a place for eagles to perch. I think the only place I can remember seeing a sail raised between Vancouver, BC and Seward was during one of the afternoon beer races in Ketchikan.

Trawlers look good in that area, you can wear your Carhartts and Xtratuf boots and not look out of place. The locals won't be offended by an old Chris at all and will probably like to see it.

harrisos and others,
Can't tell you much about west coast cruising since I've never done it.
But I can tell you that you are getting a world of good information here from everyone that has responded. This is what makes YachtForums a great site. Ask the questions and folks will come out of the woodwork to help. Sometimes it can save you a few bucks; othertimes it can save your butt.

I am not a west coast cruiser, so it's interesting to read some of the posts, and they make sense. The CC Commander is the best choice of the three.... do NOT buy a wooden boat unless you have significant experience with them. I say this from the point of view of being an owner/restorer of wooden boats. I presently have four, so I have really lost sight of reality

The Sea Ray is a total waste of time in my opinion.

The Chris Craft 47 foot Commander is a very very well built boat. The hull was built in three pieces, the bottom to just above the chine, then the two sides were joined with that massive rub rail that extends about half way up the boat. The fibreglass was immensely thick, so a crippling amount of osmosis is very rare. The problem as stated is three fold. First, the mechanical systems are dated, and the cost of updating is expensive. I would usually say that boats like this do have an upside since they are usually well priced, but the market is so buyer oriented at the moment that better boats can probably be had for the 'renovated' price of the commander. Second is tankage, as mentioned. Third is the basic design. Most offshore capable boats have significantly more buoyancy forward than the commander and as a result have greater seaworthiness in large seas or breaking shallow harbor entrances. I personally would consider a 47 commander for the east coast/intercoastal waterway, but going north to Alaska...hmmm you would need to be careful.