An excerpt from Nordhavn.com;

“There are few boats so uniquely qualified to take two people and their guests around the world as comfortably and as economically as the Nordhavn 40. Strong, rugged and handsome in a no-nonsense way, her special personality was inspired by salty commercial ships fishing the world’s deepest oceans. She stirs a passionate interest and curiosity along docks and throughout anchorages everywhere, with people enthusiastically asking her crew “where have you been” and “where are you headed?” Indeed, the Nordhavn 40 looks like the serious passagemaker that she is. But above all her seriousness of purpose, there is a wonderfully romantic, emotional element to the boat that strongly attracts a wide base of seasoned sailors, experienced power boaters and those just entering the world of boating.”

The Nordhavn 40 is a well proven sea worthy vessel. The paragraph above explains this very well. Nordhavn believes so much so in this vessel that they sent their own project managers and other staff around the world on a Nordhavn 40 back in 2001. It was a 26,000 mile circumnavigation completed in 6 months. Many other Nordhavn 40s have made many noteworthy passages proving the seaworthiness of this little ship.

Entering the port side onto the cockpit you will find a spacious cockpit area with two benches which double as storage and an LPG locker. The deck is equipped with non-skid and there is access to the lazarette as well as to the swimstep. Forward thru the watertight aft door you will now enter the salon. The salon on Embracing Life is full beam, the starboard side has a an “L” shaped settee. The settee cushions were completely replaced recently, the upholstery and foam are all new. The port side of the salon has a built in settee as well and is a great place to relax, watch TV or read a book. Forward on the port side is well equipped galley. Several of galley appliances were all recently replaced with new units. There is a 2 burner Dickinson LPG cooktop which is great for cooking in adverse sea conditions. The new stainless steel Vitrifrigo fridge is a great upgrade as well as the new GE microwave.

Forward of the galley and salon area there are two staircases, one leading up the pilothouse and one leading down the cabins. Down the staircase one will be led to the guest cabin just off to the port side. The guest cabin consists of upper and lower bunk and ample storage. The lower bunk does slide out to become larger, which is a very nice feature. Opposite the guest cabin is the head area, this is a full head with a shower. It’s a nice use of space for a 40ft vessel. Forward is the full beam master cabin. This cabin has a large bunk for two people, ample storage and plenty of natural light from the overhead hatches and portlights. The floors throughout the vessel are carpeted.

The pilothouse on the Nordhavn 40 has been well thought out. Starting after there is a spacious day bunk. Forward of this there is a nice settee area with a teak table. The cushions, the same as the salon, have been reupholstered and the foam has all been replaced with new. The dash equipment is easily accessible. Much of the dash equipment has been replaced with new modern units which is another great upgrade to Embracing Life.

From the pilothouse we can access the remaining exterior spaces, Portuguese bridge, foredeck and the boat deck, thru either the port or starboard watertight doors. The Portuguese bridge is a great protected area for an operator observe his or her surrounding and still be protected from the elements. The foredeck has a non-skid surface as well as stainless steel and lifeline railings. Access to the windlass and anchor is from the foredeck. The anchor on Embracing Life was recently upgraded to a Rocna 40kg anchor.

Access to the boat deck is from both port and starboard sides. With the non-skid deck and stainless steel lifeline railing one does feel safe up here. The paravane rigging has all been removed from Embracing Life so the boat deck is a nice and open space. The boom and winches can easily handle lifting and lowering a decent size tender into the water from either the port or starboard sides. The galvanized winch cables were recently replaced Spectra lines, which is yet another big improvement.

The engine room and lazarette areas on Embracing Life are easily access and well laid out. Access to the engine room is thru a water tight door in the guest cabin. The machinery is simple and that is what you want on a long range cruiser. The main engine is a Lugger 668D with 105hp and about 6,535 hours. These have always been extremely reliable engines. Embracing Life is also equipped with a Westerbeke 12kw generator with only 1,275 hours. The fuel manifold system is simple to operate and the fuel capacity is 920 gallons. This fuel capacity will propel the vessel for 3,000 plus miles. The lazarette is accessed from the cockpit and holds the steering gear and several other electrical components.