Whether you're shopping for your own tender setup or just curious about what works for us, this guide covers our complete setup from the core vessel to essential safety gear, here's everything we use and why it matters.
The Tender
When we bought UNDRA, she came with a Talamex tender. A fine enough tender but too small (max capacity 5 people) and not the driest ride. It will be replaced, we're just not sure with what...yet. Maybe another OC Tender, maybe a custom aluminium tender, perhaps another Highfield... we're honestly not sure.
Our previous tender (and still one of our top faves) was the 330 OC Tender with full carbon construction. It's one of the lightest tenders out there and an excellent balance of performance and practicality.
Electric Propulsion
We LOVE electric dinghy motors and they just make sense for us.
- Silent operation, sort of (when you're flying at 15 knots, there's going to be wind and water noise)
- No more searching out fuel on remote islands or worrying about storing it
- No more worrying about bad fuel or filtering gunk out of it
- Minimal maintenance requirements
- Instant torque for responsive handling
We really loved our Zero Jet electric motor on our OC Tender. It had speed, range and was just wildly practical.
If we had a working davit system, we would have just gotten another one. But we don't. So we needed an electric motor to go with the tender we have. After a lot of research, it seemed the top contenders we found at METS back in 2024 were still the leaders. Specifically, the Momentum M10 outboard. It's simple, light weight, has excellent range, is an easy peasy install and transferable to whatever we end up with next.
Nikki Wynn
Docking & Anchoring Equipment
Dinghy docks are a rare sight in most of the remote islands. Which means we're either anchoring out and swimming to shore or we're tying up to whatever structure, commercial dock or tree we can find. So to protect our investment we utilize:
- 15 foot dedicated stern line for when we need both ends need to be secured.
- Mantus Marine dinghy anchor (preferably 2) - Yes two, one bow and one stern. Because sometimes we need to anchor with the bow pointing into the waves (nothing worse than coming back to the little boat after its crashed onto the shore from breaking waves that built up from a storm...ask me how I know). Plus these tiny anchors come with a nice carrying bag and nylon rode.
- 3 feet of 1/4 inch stainless steel chain
- Additional 1/4 inch stainless steel shackle for rope rode attachment (also from mantus marine).
Safety Equipment
- Floating VHF ours has GPS coordinates on the display, an emergency light and the battery lasts a long time. Also great to have on in a busy anchorage instead of leaving the big boat VHF on.
- Mantus Marine Navigation Light for the transom, ensuring visibility during evening hours and night time explorations.
- Manual Bilge pump
- Compact Emergency Medical Kit - Deciding what goes in a medical kit varies from person to person. For me, I think of the worst case scenario and try to plan for that. So trauma bandages, a Tourniquet , and hydration packs are all basics for us. I like the adventure medical kits because they are good solid kits and supplies. There are sooo many starter kits to chose from based on your activities and needs. Even if you build your own, you can use these kits as guides.
