ALL PHOTOS: SCOTT PEARSON
To say that Adventure Us II, a Hargrave 94 Sky Lounge, is a family yacht is an understatement. A proud grandmother who has long loved boating commissioned the yacht for her and her husband, their adult children, and their grandchildren to cruise together. In fact, according to Michael Joyce, CEO of Hargrave, the grandmother says, “‘I want my children and grandchildren to look back someday and say the best times in their lives were aboard our family’s boat.’” Given how practically every room was designed around the three generations’ needs, the 94-foot (28.65-meter) Adventure Us II is, if you’ll excuse our grammar, an “us” yacht.
If you’re familiar with the Hargrave Sky Lounge models, you’ll note that Adventure Us II has an extended enclosed area on her upper deck. It’s a tremendous entertaining area for the LOA. In fact, this “nice big party area,” as the husband puts it, hosted 24 people for the Fourth of July. He and his wife had EZ2CY enclosures made for the upper deck of their previous yacht, the 82-foot Hargrave Adventure Us, and found that they never took them down. So, enclosing most of the upper deck on this yacht simply made sense. Two long tables to port can extend even more with leaves. The barstools opposite swivel to face them, too. Behind the bar is a pull-out wine chiller. And, a TV above the bar aft swivels out so everyone can watch sporting events no matter where they’re seated. On another note, a table and settee to port of the helm was created for the captain, but the grandmother has told him she plans to commandeer it for lunch.
Stone soles, intricate inlays on high-gloss cabinetry, backlit onyx atop some cabinetry, and tones of cream and rose characterize the saloon aboard Adventure Us II. Even the handles on the floor-to-ceiling crystal stowage are showpieces, crafted as hands holding the pulls. Despite the decidedly formal-looking atmosphere, Adventure Us II welcomes the full family here. Wifi, power outlets to charge everyone’s handheld electronic devices; you name it, it’s here, yet not staring anyone in the face. Lest you think the “connected generation” is disconnected from everyday life, the family knows full well to pay attention to one another. They also spent plenty of time fishing, kayaking, and more.
Three guest staterooms are provided for the family. While the grown children get a king-size bed in the VIP, arguably the granddaughters have the best stateroom, located aft to port below decks. Most visitors to Adventure Us II at the Fort Lauderdale boat show, where she made her debut, raved about this room. Upon entering it, it appears like any ordinary twin cabin. But, a quick glance over your right shoulder reveals a surprise. The stateroom extends to include a third bed, opposite a TV mounted on the wall. Another TV is over by the twin beds, but it’s easy to imagine the girls curling up together back here and singing along to Frozen or another movie.
When’s the last time you saw a 94-footer with an on-deck master? Adventure Us II has one, dictated by concerns over mobility. (Though, we suspect Grandma and Grandpa also like to have a little privacy every now and then.) Even those of us with younger yet still-creaky knees can appreciate the logic of the location. On a related side note, we suspect other yacht builders with models in this size range will soon start configuring options accordingly.
While they’re at it, they should configure a full laundry room like this. Yes, it’s an entire room, tucked aft of the VIP’s walk-in closet. At the same yacht show, we were aboard a megayacht nearly 20 feet longer than Adventure Us II that had a laundry area half its size. The owners of Adventure Us II swapped a fourth guest stateroom for it, but the trade-off was worth it for them.
Joyce considers Adventure Us II the most customized Hargrave delivered to date. There’s layer upon layer of detail, both visible and hidden. The latter includes a handy linen locker behind the art niche in the guest foyer. Whether it’s the good-size crew’s quarters or video-game controllers near TVs, the checklist of priorities reveals a thoughtful grandmother, mother, and boss rolled into one. “She wanted to have onboard the latest and greatest of everything, so instead of saying, ‘I don’t want to go to the boat,’ they jump at the chance to visit,” Joyce says.
Forget the old adage of father knows best. Aboard Adventure Us II, grandma’s the one with the smarts.
rashad javed
standard of work first rate