INTRODUCTION

     The Carver 440 was selected as a result of working with a broker who showed us several boats while we were in Ft Lauderdale, FL in early-1997.  By the time we decided to see this boat, it had been moved from Florida to Mystic, CT, which was its home base for part of the year.  The previous owner had taken possession of the boat in Florida in March, 1995.  Then the boat had been moved to CT for the winter of 1995-96.  In the spring of 1996 it was returned to FL, where it stayed until about April, 1997.  The three one-way trips put 110 engine hours on the boat each time.  In addition, another 150 engine hours had been put on the boat, making the total 480 hours when we bought it.

     We had owned a Carver 38-foot aft cabin (see Earlier Cruises), and we thought the 440 model would be a good move up for us.  I had read about the Erie Canal, and when the boat was found to be in Mystic, I wanted to take it to Texas through the Erie Canal.  We surveyed the boat in June, bought it, and took possession July 4, 1997.  From July through September 24, 1997, we brought the boat from Mystic, CT to our home in Houston, TX.  We added 250 running hours on that trip, traveling 3500 miles.

     Over the winter we added a dinghy and dinghy davit, or crane to lift the dinghy off the hardtop, plus a battery dedicated to the crane; a larger spotlight; a gas (propane) grill; and other such items.  We changed out the starboard shaft and reconditioned the props, but we did not do a bottom job.  We replaced the spurs on the two shafts, and we replaced the sacrificial zincs on the running gear.  The local CAT mechanic tuned up the engines and changed the zincs in the engines.  The batteries were replaced, and a new battery was installed for the dinghy davit.  We ordered and installed a larger sink in the aft head; the original unit was too small to suit us.  We ordered and received the electronic charts for the coast between Houston and Mobile, AL.  We left Houston on May 23, 1998 to cruise the Tennessee River, and we returned to Houston on September 7.  We added 280 running hours on that trip, traveling about 3700 miles.

     Over the winter we again tuned up the engines and prepared the boat for an extended cruise. We replaced the carpet and the miniblinds in Texas.  Also, we had our wicker furniture removed and repainted, after installing storage boxes under each seat.  Those storage boxes allowed me to keep our shore power cables on the aft deck and not inside the boat.  The cushions for the wicker furniture were replaced, and our two barrel chairs in the salon were also recovered in Texas.  We replaced the outside carpet, the aft deck refrigerator, and the hailer speaker/microphone.  We bought additional electronic charts to connect us from the east end of the 1998 cruise over to the east coast of Florida, where we had electronic charts that came with the boat.

     We had planned to go to Florida and see the Keys and perhaps The Bahamas.  In the middle of 1999 we joined a Texas Mariner Cruising Association (TMCA) charter boat cruise to the Virgin Islands.  We decided to leave the boat in Florida for the winter, so we gave up our slip at South Shore Harbour on Clear Lake.  We eventually found a dock available behind a residence, where we kept the boat from August, 1999 until March, 2000.  In 1999 we traveled 1800 miles, adding about 150 running hours to the boat.  Total since purchase:  9000 miles and over 700 hours.

     In Ft Lauderdale, FL we found a decorator who recovered our vertical accent panels in the salon.  She made bedspreads for the staterooms and replaced all the drapes in the boat.  She made accent pillows for the beds, and generally did a nice job of it all.  While we were there we lost a portion of our flybridge carpet due to a leak in a gallon of oil stored under the forward seat.  We cleaned the heat exchangers on both engines, reconditioned the props, repaired some shore power cables, made some generator repairs, and did a complete bottom job in 1999.

     The Bahamas trip actually occurred in 2000, in January.  There were 7 total trips in the Year 2000 Cruise, which brought us from Florida to Texas through the Great Lakes.  There are two volumes of logs, photos, and maps for the 2000 Cruise.

     Our preparations for the 2001 Cruise included a new water filter downstream of our water tank, which we hoped would take away the cloudy appearance of our water.  Over the winter we had also added new blue canvas and clear eisenglass enclosures and new blue indoor/outdoor carpet for the aft deck and flying bridge; new covers for the dinghy, the outdoor grill, and the helm station, all in blue; and new flags and one new flag pole for the transom.  We had replaced the tachometer shafts on both engines; repaired the padded bolster around the front of the flybridge area; installed a new stereo/tape player for the flybridge; and purchased new fenders, fender holders, and lines for the boat.  Also we had repaired the dings in the fiberglass, caulked the salon windows some more to stop water leaks, replaced a rear seal on the port transmission, aligned the engines and shafts, repainted the bottom and replaced the boot stripe, repaired the VHF radio and hailer/speaker, and tuned up everything that could be tuned. 

     We called the 2001 cruise the TX TO WV TO TX CRUISE because the farthest we would get from our home would be Fairmont, WV.  Going up the Ohio River, you come to WV long before you get to PA, but we cruised up the Monongahela River from Pittsburgh, which led us up to Morgantown and then Fairmont, WV, at the upper end of navigation.  So, WV describes the end point of the cruise, and the highest elevation on the water we would achieve in 2001.  During 5 trips we covered over 5,700 miles in 2001.

     After the 2001 cruise, we quick-hauled the boat and found the port cutlass bearing in bad shape.  Apparently some monofilament line had gotten in, under, and around the cutlass bearing and ruined it and the shaft.  We replaced it and the port shaft and the sacrificial zincs, and we painted the aluminum radar arch and other aluminum supports for the hardtop.  We reconditioned the props and tuned up the engines and the generator.  In replacing the oil and filters on the transmissions, the mechanics put back less oil than required; so we had to replace the transmissions.  We added an air conditioner on the flybridge, steam cleaned the interior carpet, recovered the couch in the salon, and recovered the accent panels over the windows.  We replaced the GPS antenna and removed the inoperable and irreparable LORAN-C.  Another C-phone handset was purchased for the forward stateroom, and the 20-gallon hot water heater was replaced.

     For 2002 we decided to do shorter cruises closer to home.  The decision was based on a number of factors, including business and family plans.  So far we have written up four trips to Galveston; a 5-day cruise to Lake Charles, LA; a six-day Lakewood Yacht Club cruise to Cozumel, Mexico: a 15-day cruise to Corpus Christi, TX; and a 21-day cruise through the Panama Canal on the M/S AMSTERDAM.  These total almost 1,200 miles in our boat.  Over the winter we added a section to the website entitled "Earlier Cruises", which described some boating trips prior to 1997 when we purchased the Carver 440 boat.

      The paragraphs that follow, the boat photographs, and the Carver specification sheets (Page 1)  (Page 2), will give an impression of the layout of the boat, the engines and equipment installed in the boat, and the general capabilities of the boat.  The previous owners left everything on the boat, except their personal belongings, which meant we had sheets, towels, pillows and other linens, tools, dishes and silverware and pots and pans, blender and mixer, charts and maps, and even photographs hanging on the walls.  We had a spare shaft and two spare propellers, an oversized generator, and some extras in the galley, such as oversized sink, garbage disposal, and full-size dishwasher.  We even had canned goods, spices, and other pantry items, all included in the sale.

     The engines were Caterpillar 3116TA’s, and the generator was a 13.5 Kw Kohler, which included a Yanmar 3-cylinder diesel engine.  When we bought it, the boat had a four-bank 60amp battery charger with 110volt and 12volt electricity.  The major appliances, such as refrigerator, range and oven and microwave, coffeepot, icemaker, and some of the lights, needed 110volt power.  The stereo and television equipment did, too, but an inverter was installed that would run those units off the batteries.  The 12volt system took care of the rest of the electrical needs.

     It also was equipped with electronics including radar, GPS chartplotter, Loran, autopilot, depth sounder, two VHF radios (one with hailer and outside speaker, the other with intercom to the salon), and a C-Phone system with three handsets.  We bought the boat with all the charts for the GPS chart plotter to go from Boston to Key West and the Bahamas.  The boat had 3-50-ft shore power cords with adapters, full bimini canvas and eisenglass enclosures for the aft deck and flying bridge, and nice wicker furniture on the aft deck.  Also on the aft deck were the icemaker and a small refrigerator, which would run on 12 or 110 volts.

     We had an electric windlass and an external spotlight, both with remote controls from the bridge.  The air horns were really loud.  The boat had a Glendinning engine synchronizer, which is a computer controlled throttle advance for one engine based on the RPM of the other engine.  The only helm station was the upper helm, or flying bridge.  Speed range was 16 knots cruise, 20 knots maximum.

     Inside, the floor plan was one we liked, with staterooms fore and aft, each with its own head and shower.  The salon had an “L”-shaped couch, two barrel chairs, and two footstools.  Down three steps, with engine room access below the steps, the boat had a dinette to port and the galley to starboard.  The wood was teak, the new carpet was beige, the dinette was blue, and the couch was a cream color. The color scheme for the new drapes and bedspreads was cream with blue accents.  Heads were Vacu-Flush (with fresh water), and we had monitors on the holding tanks and the fresh water tank.  Above the double bunk in the forward stateroom there was a single bunk, which could be used for a child to sleep in, or for storage.

     This boat had fuel storage in two tanks for 500 gallons of diesel.  Each engine had a Racor (primary) fuel filter and a secondary fuel filter on the engine.  Each of the CAT engines required 26 quarts of oil per oil change, and we had installed an oil change system in 1997.  We seemed to have all of the paperwork that Carver provided the original owner for the boat’s systems.

     We hope you enjoy the logs and videos.  Please note the maps enclosed are not to scale and are not to be used for navigation. These materials are offered for your reading enjoyment only.  We are not responsible for any actions you might take as a result of reading our logs.  We are not trying to provide a cruise guide, with recommendations for marinas, restaurants, etc; we are simply sharing our experiences with others that are interested in the trips we made.