Imagine a beautiful day. Visualize a traditional wicker basket filled with tasty delicacies, a cooler with refreshments on ice, and a large blanket to spread out on the lawn along a tree-lined lake. Chances are you’re remembering picnics as simpler times, perhaps feeling a bit of nostalgia with fond memories of family gatherings, or maybe romance in an idyllic outdoor setting. What may be most remembered is that these moments were times away from daily routines, where quality time with family and friends, delicious food,and a relaxed atmosphere had the restorative benefits of companionship and fresh air…and calm.
More often these days, it’s a pursuit we wish happened on a regular basis, and it should, but it does take a little effort, especially with work, kids, and the schedules involved. Fortunately, a picnic can happen anywhere, whether stretched out by a pond in the park, or on the beach, or perched on a mountain top, but being around water creates a special openness. With the basket, cooler, and family in tow, settle down aboard a Hinckley Picnic Boat 39. It’s the new style of picnic blanket that wraps you up in a distinctive comfort and takes you beyond the shore.
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The Perfect Picnic: Hinckley’s Picnic Boat 39
Picnicking on the Hinckley Picnic Boat 39 allows you to enjoy the scenery in more than one location without packing up the spread. Start with a swim or a snorkel at the reef, tuck in a secluded cove for lunch, and perhaps some well-deserved nap time. Follow up with a scenic cruise past a lighthouse or historical fort or goggle at beautiful mansions on the way home…or you could carry on and stop by a favorite waterfront restaurant before ending the evening with a magnificent sunset.
It was just that easy when I stepped aboard Hinckley’s new gem after its launch at the Newport International Boat Show. Being my first time on Narragansett Bay, I was excited to explore those views and experiences that are only had on a boat. Just getting out for a few hours is all we need these days to break the hold daily life has on us. This was just what I needed.
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“What we do is we create the best possible platform for people to create amazing memories on the water,” says Scott Bryant, vice president of marketing at Hinckley Yachts. “That means giving people everything they need and nothing else. We don’t want to provide all sorts of gizmos and things that are going to take away from the experience. We want it to be simple, and we want it to be useful. We want the boat to kind of fold into the background so people can create those incredible memories.”
Pulling away from the marina at Forty 1° North, Newport’s historic waterfront came into full view, lined with charming colonialera architecture and docks that supported trade starting back in 1639. Today, more than 150 wharves host hundreds of shops, restaurants, and markets, along with plenty of marinas and shipyards. Newport Harbor is home to hundreds of anchorage opportunities, and we quietly made our way past the haunting sound of Goat Islands’ bell buoy 3 that leads out to the open waters of Narragansett Bay.
Power & Running Attitude (D6-480s, HJX27 jets, speeds)
Twin Volvo Penta D6-480-hp diesel engines powered the twin Hamilton HJX27 jet drives up to 32 knots almost instantly. Cruise speed averages around 34 knots with 36 all out, but who’s in a hurry? We’re on a picnic. I could tell when I saw the charcuterie tray on the counter between the cockpit and galley when I stepped aboard. We were off to Mackerel Cove.
Narragansett Bay is New England’s largest estuary and a natural harbor that includes more than 30 islands. Its picturesque landscapes, coastal towns, rich marine life, and nearly 400 miles of coastline, from marshlands to beaches to rocky shores, is a boater’s paradise. Heading west out of Newport, it took no time to slip into Mackerel Cove, which reaches up into Conanicut Island, the second-largest island in Narragansett Bay. It offers a bit of everything, from historic Jamestown to the town beach to the picture-perfect rocky coves for swimming, fishing, and…picnics.
We tucked into a small cove hidden under the Horsehead- Marbella historic summer house built in the 1880s to take a closer look at the classic Hinckley design. Setting the innovative JetStick 4 control system, the yacht held its position without setting the anchor.
“The Picnic Boat 39, like all Hinckleys, is powered by water jet propulsion and right now, we’re sitting at geo-stationary lock, where the water jets are working together in concert with the hydraulic bow thruster to hold us in place here and hold us here safely,” explains Bryant.
“The great thing about water jet technology is that there’s no in and out of gear. It’s just the manipulation of the nozzles and of the buckets, so it’s perfectly safe if you wanted to jump in the water; you don’t have to worry about propellers spinning or anything like that.”
Social Zones (cockpit • salon • new open bow)
Crafted in Hinckley’s classic style, the open cockpit easily seats six and a small refrigerator under the portside U-shaped settee makes grabbing a drink very convenient, as do the movable bolster cup holders. A nicely sized swim platform offers plenty of room to dangle your legs in the waterwithout fear of snagging a prop.
Walking forward to grab a bite from the charcuterie board, I also reached for an ice-cold drink from the counter’s insulated cooler in the starboard-side galley. A larger pull-out refrigerator is tucked under the helm seat, but it’s so refreshing to stop for a second, take a sip, and breathe in the view. Large, powered windows surround the cabin with dual skylight hatches that all open automatically for a truly open feel. Slightly raised L-shaped seating in the salon to port takes advantage of that view, and the pièce de resistance is the newly designed open bow. Hinckley’s forward thinking has now created three seamlessly connected yet separate social areas.
Not to take away from the cozy forward cabin below, which still has plenty of room with a double-size berth that hydraulically lifts for storage underneath and a sizeable head with shower, the Picnic Boat 39’s bow lounge is a new feature for the classic picnic boat look. “It’s about sitting up here and being able to entertain friends and family,” says Bryant. “It’s like the place to be when you’re out on a beautiful day, to feel the wind in your hair…. One of the things we really focused on when we were developing this boat is we wanted every seat to feel like the best seat in the house.”
Even the helm seat is soft and comfortable, and all the controls are within arm’s length. At that moment, we engaged the throttles forward and headed out to gain more perspectives of this incredible bay. Instead of heading back to the dock, we decided to extend our picnic and cruise up to a local waterfront restaurant, passing by the Castle Hill Lighthouse and the grand Castle Hill Inn established in 1875, passing historic Fort Wetherill to port and Fort Adams to starboard, under Newport’s suspension bridge, past Prudence Island where residents need to ferry in, and up to Mt. Hope Bay where we side-docked at the Boat House waterfront restaurant in Tiverton. It was here that the JetStick 4 showed off its most advanced feature: Dockhold.
“I’m going to put the boat in Dockhold to starboard,” says Bryant. “What it does is hold the boat against the dock, and I can leave the helm and untie everything without worrying about the boat going anywhere. Then when we’re done untying the boat, we go to docking mode, and we can maneuver away from the dock.”
Pushing the joystick sideways to port, the yacht moves away from the dock; when ready to go forward, engaging the throttles automatically disengages the JetStick and off you go.
It was a wonderful sunset cruise back to Newport after a picnic day I’ll always remember. “The new Hinckley Picnic Boat 39 is a distillation of the essence of what Hinckley has always done,” says Ben Plum, Hinckley’s chief operating officer. “It’s about a day boat that gives you access to time on the water in the perfect way.”
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