A handful of yachts have crossed the Northwest Passage. Hyhmä intends to be the next.
Recently delivered by Cantiere delle Marche, Hyhmä is even more robust than the builder’s other rugged megayachts. The 111-footer (33.83-meter) has thicker steel hull plating, for example, for navigating in ice. Specifically, bottom plates are 20 mm, as are the plates for the skeg and central keel. From the bottom up to the chine, thickness is 12 mm. Meanwhile, 22-mm-thick plates reinforce the hull sides at the waterline, where ice may also impact her. For comparison, other bluewater deliveries from the yard have plates from 8 to 12 mm thick. Certainly durable, but Hyhmä takes it to another level.
Add in naval architecture by Vripack, which designed four yachts completing Northwest Passage crossings, and you get the picture. Hyhmä belongs to an owner who is not content with typical cruising. When the yacht isn’t navigating in ice, she’ll be pursuing yet another passion of the owner. He enjoys photographing wildlife and marine life, and will do so on both sides of the Atlantic. (Note the dolphin sculpture at left, in the stairway foyer connecting her three decks.) Vripack therefore shaped her aft portions to damp wave motion, and therefore enhance comfort. Further enhancing comfort and efficiency, she has a bulbous bow.
Overall, expect Hyhmä to see a range exceeding 5,500 nautical miles, at a few knots less than her 13-knot top end. Twin Caterpillar C18s provide power.
Hyhmä makes it clear from her styling, by Nauta Yachts, that she means business. The owner, 11 guests, and seven crew surely do, too. They’ve all found kindred spirits in Cantiere delle Marche and Vripack. Vasco Buonpensiere, the yard’s sales and marketing director, says, “We have created an explorer vessel which—as Nature does—combines beauty and strength seamlessly.” He adds that she’s stirred more emotions than any of its previous projects. “We all feel like she is our daughter!” he exclaims.
Marnix Hoekstra, director of Vripack, sums it up this way. “We…share the vision that this world is meant to be discovered still, and that yachts are the best tool for that job.”
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