Bertram 35 Flybridge Review (2021 Edition)

It would be wonderfully easy to focus on the timeless styling of the Bertram 35, unarguably beautiful from the keel up, but the great thing about this boat is that its sublime looks are the happy outcome of old-school functional design.

The deep-vee hull is a direct development of the 31ft Ray Hunt design used on the 31ft powerboat, Moppie, that mopped up all sorts of race trophies and accolades for Dick Bertram in the 1960s.

This hard-nosed racer hull has been developed for more utilitarian purposes but you can still see the pedigree form, with a low freeboard and flared bows falling into a sharp entry. It’s still no slouch, either, the twin Caterpillar C7.1 (a rare, high-quality powerplant for a 35ft boat) shaft-drive engines pushing the Bertram to around 36 knots.

Oldie but Goodie

Little has changed for multiple generations of this 10.7m single-cabin flybridge design. Its long, deep sweep of the cockpit, about half Bertram’s length, still has the broad engine boxes that more recent yachts have managed to flatten out or avoid entirely with sterndrive engines. But the Bertram is and, you kind of feel always will be, a shaft drive. 

The cockpit feels right, the boxes doubling as sun pad seats for an overall look that reflects both the yacht’s serious fisher credentials and its cruising ability. 

With the engines further forward, the cockpit sole opens up to a massive lazarette with live bait well and rod storage around the coamings. It’s a working deck, but one that has finesse - walking through the low-slung transom feels more yacht than fisher. An effect that can be enhanced by adding teak cappings. 

Timeless Qualities

The big cockpit means less room for the interior but the neat flybridge design does create space for a bright salon and galley that feel far more modern than the yacht’s decades of DNA might suggest. In part this is because there is no lower helm, creating a cleaner look, but it’s also down to the quality of finish, modern muted panellings, and countertops mixing with plenty of cabinetry.

Other areas of the design remain stoically traditional. The build quality feels pretty bullet-proof with cleanly lined bilges, stainless steel window frames, and a wonderfully chunky wide gauge gantry for the flybridge. 

Stowage is another feature. It is everywhere and impressive. Joining the deck lockers, there are deep galley cupboards and multiple drawers, with a hidden drop-down rod holder in the salon’s high-gloss paneled deckhead.

While interior space is not going to stand up to a modern cruising yacht on space or specification, the salon is still a great place to be. Set within the hull, the deck and window line is quite high, but while you can’t easily see outboard when seated at the dinette neither do you feel hidden away. The wraparound of glass, white framing, and reflective deckhead dial up the brightness but there is also warmth from the cabinetry and teak and holly sole.

The salon dinette will easily seat four adults around a smart inlaid table that drops to make up a berth, so you could sleep three adults or a family of four with the forward double cabin.

The yacht’s practical cruising nature is reflected in its long galley countertop, less so in the fact there's no fiddled edge. A hob, oven, and plenty of storage, including neat drawer fridge freezers, are all included. There’s also a proper deep sink (why do so many boat builders use shallow sinks within environments that rock?) with two fantastic red, fire-hydrant-style, taps adding some joyous charm.

Further forward, a locker door hides the boat’s electrical master switches, this would be better sited by the cockpit door but putting the draw fridge here does allow you to grab a cold drink whether inside or on deck. When it’s beer versus practicalities, beer wins every time.

The forward cabin entrance is flanked by two matching panelled doors, one for the toilet and shower, the other for the hanging locker. Left open, the cabin allows the interior to feel that bit bigger, stretching forward from the salon but it can be closed off using the locker door and its flip-up hatch. Inside the design is cosy but also very usable, the port-side double berth joined by a useful seat and eye-line lockers that wrap around the cabin.

The toilet is surprisingly big with full headroom and a frosted skylight but, it seems, not quite big enough for a separate shower. 

There will be two, very different, requirements for the helm. Used as a fun but noble cruising yacht or weekender, the standard flybridge is a great spot for short port-to-port blasts or more sedate cruising. 

It is a small bridge, though, and can feel exposed, the short lip of the windscreen is unlikely to deflect much wind or spray. The pilot seats do take up space but offer better support than the optional bench and look fabulous. If you plan to spend some serious time up top maybe pack some ski goggles.

As we reflected earlier, two pilot seats will suit the space on offer but the triples on the test boat make sense for serious fishing, where multiple people will gather up top. The steel gantry makes the whole deck feel more safe and more protected and adds that great aft bench too.

Whether cruising or fishing, the Bertram’s excellent hull and 1,100-litre fuel tank combine for some very useful range. Depending on speed, you can cover close to 300nm, Bertram reckons on a range of 260nm at a rollicking 26 knots.

The helm’s optional varnished, upright steering console looks the business and has single throttles to each side, creating a wonderfully intuitive set-up to ‘walk’ the yacht around at close quarters or to keep the stern and rods where you want them. The broad dash has space for two 12in plotters with two lids for more electronics or simple storage space.

The cockpit is where most of the crew will spend most of their time. It’s an open expanse of the deck, with a standard central rod pedestal or room for an optional fighting chair, flanked by long side lockers, multiple rod holders, and a transom well. 

The Bertram’s low freeboard makes fishing at once safe and easy, you always feel well within the boat but also close to the water. The cockpit coamings are completely smooth with fairleads cut into them, so there's nothing to get snagged on.

The engine boxes make for great loungers, or you could add some director's chairs and a fold-out table, easily stowable in the lazarette. The massive engine hatch lifts as one, the button tucked discreetly under the transom coaming, opening aft so you can easily access the main service points before casting off or carrying out more intensive work from the deck.

Sportfisher Style 

Where the open aft cockpit is simplicity itself, the rest of the decks are a little more complicated, although very much in keeping with sportfisher norms. The test boat came with the optional flybridge gantry, a sort of climbing frame for adults with a web of chunky aluminum that moves up and over the fly, creating two ladders, multiple rod holders, a hardtop, and an (optional) extra aft bench seat. 

The gantry also allows for radar antennae and other electronics to be mounted, something many owners may want to do. The standard open flybridge would need some form of mast to be retro-fitted but the design does deliver a simple and easier-to-use ladder up from the deck. For shade, a Bimini canopy system can be employed.

Both boats come as standard with our test boat’s smart pilot seats, the triple option does take up a lot of what is limited space up top so we would suggest twin seats might be worth your consideration.

Depending on your viewpoint, the side decks are either fairly narrow by cruising yacht standards or palatially wide if you’re used to US sport fishers. The optional gantry pushes out and reduces deck space further but also offers some useful grab rails. The deck does widen as you move forward with tall stanchions around the coachroof and bows and a decent foredeck area to take a line or oversee anchoring.

The Bertram 35 is a premium yacht with a price tag that has little to do with its size and quite a lot to do with its build, ability, and heritage. And also its specification. Few if any boats at this LOA come with a generator, air-con, TV, bow thruster, and teak flooring as standard. Not to mention a pair of 507hp Caterpillar C7.1 engines. 

Our Options

There are a few options to consider. Of the purely aesthetic, some teak decking for the cockpit would seem to suit Bertram’s character, as does the blue gel coat. The flybridge gantry and hardtop are less a decision than a lifestyle choice. If you want to fish in anger it will be top of your list but even for those of you less bothered about rods it does make the fly feel more enclosed, allows you to mount antennae, and offers that aft bench seat, so more people can gather comfortably up top. 

For cruising use, the swim platform is an option, making access from the dock or pontoon to the deck, through the transom gate, far easier.