Outbound 46 Revisited: Going strong after 15 years, this venerable passagemaker still might be the perfect couples bluewater cruiser
by Andrew Cross
After being dropped ashore by dinghy, I paused on the seawall to make sure I hadn’t forgotten anything aboard, then looked back at the Outbound 46 sitting at anchor and gave a nostalgic wave to the crew in the cockpit. We’d just finished a fun few hours of sailing on the Chesapeake Bay and I don’t think anyone wanted it to end. I sure didn’t. And I was envious of the boat’s owners, who would soon venture into blue water on their way to the Caribbean with the Salty Dawg Rally.
Our sail was just after the 2014 Annapolis sailboat show in October and we had found a perfect fall day to get the Outbound out for a gallop around the bay. When I stepped aboard the 46 there were three couples in the cockpit along with Phil Lambert from Outbound Yachts. Interestingly, one of the couples owned the boat and the other two were Outbound buyers who’s boats were in various stages of the build process, so it was fun to sail with them and to gain insights into why they had chosen the boat. Read the full review.