Boat of the Week: Go Anywhere in the Whaler 190 Montauk

For many Chesapeake boaters, Boston Whaler’s 190 Montauk makes a lot of sense. She’s big enough to carry eight people, able enough to handle all but the most extreme weather the Bay can throw at her, quick but fuel-efficient with a 150-hp Mercury on the transom. Even so, she’s small enough to tow on a single-axle trailer behind a mid-size SUV with a capacity of 5,000 lbs., and she draws only 13” with her engine tilted up.

From watersports and hard-core fishing to Saturday race committee duties, this Whaler is ready for anything, and she’s built well enough that with reasonable care, she’ll last for a couple of generations. As with all Whalers, she’s also unsinkable, thanks to her foam-filled Unibond construction. Chesapeake Whalertowne has this model in stock with special late-season pricing.

The 190 Montauk’s layout is simple: a bow deck with separate dry storage/fishbox and dedicated anchor locker (full cushion optional for $3,212), seating for two on an optional cooler with cushion (part of the $2,268 Fishing Package), a two-person cooler/leaning post with reversible back at the helm, and two seats at the transom flanking the splash well. The Fishing Package includes also four vertical rodholders on the front of the console and a pair of tackle drawers in its starboard side over the fire extinguisher. Bow and side rails are optional ($1,122) but highly recommended (by this correspondent, a long-time Montauk owner). You’ll want them both for safety and for attaching useful aftermarket items such as additional rod holders.

The port corner of the transom holds a swim platform with a folding, telescopic boarding ladder. The cockpit is self-bailing. There’s 60 gallons of fuel capacity under the console, with battery storage inside it.

Since Boston Whaler and Mercury Marine are both part of the Brunswick Corporation, there is considerable synergy between boat and motor. Whaler’s design team upgraded the 190 Montauk with a new hull built to carry Mercury’s proven 150-hp EFI four-stroke. Look at the Performance page on the 190’s website and you’ll find that the 150 pops her onto an efficient planning attitude at a relatively slow speed of 13 knots (2,750 rpm) and progresses from there all the way to 41 knots at wide-open throttle (5,900 rpm). The key point, though, is the wide sweet spot of 17-30 knots (3,000-4,500 rpm) for good fuel economy. That makes for a range of 200-260 nautical miles and the crucial ability to adjust speed to a wide range of sea conditions. On a calm day, by all means turn her up to 30, but when nasty seas build, that 13-15-knot planning speed is money in the bank. By the way, Brunswick also owns Simrad Electronics, so the 190 Montauk carries that long-established company’s NSX sonar/chartplotters and VHF radios.               

Chesapeake Whalertowne has three 2024 190 Montauks in stock at this writing. Click here to inspect them. According to Whaler’s Build Your Whaler tool, MSRP for 2025 models equipped like them, including T-top, electronics, and galvanized trailer, run around $87,000, but check with the dealer for the boats in stock.  They’re sweet little rigs.  

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