frequentgusts-blog
Frequent Gusts
A journey of small & traditional boats around the world. Their designs, their builders, and the owner's adventures.
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Eun Na Mara. Another beautiful double ender by Iain Oughtred.
I finally had sometime to fixed the blog and going back for few hours to keep this discovering journey surrounded by small boats and their designers. And to come back I choose a beautiful vessel of which I know very little.
Ian Oughtred design "Eun Na Mara" as a tough double ender boat in a small package. She is just short of 20 feet and include a small cabin and a very safe cockpit in which any sailor could take some rough weather is safety.
She is designed to sail with a canoe yawl rig, or a regular gaff and mizzen. Sure this one is a once more, a small cruising dream.
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Deer Isle Koster. A Scandinavian family treasure designed by Bruce Elfstrom.
The Deer Isle Koster is surely one of the most beautiful pocket open cruiser design out there. Bruce Elfstrom drew the boats for his daughters to sail and row off Deer Island in the summers and enjoy open boat cruising around the bay. This boat is a Scandinavian style "koster" boat crossed with a Beetle Cat, a boat that can sail like a witch and row like a feather with its lightweight construction.
The hull has a deck which makes her dry and safe. Flotation chambers are integrated into the ends of the boat, accessed by water tight hatches. The mast is birdsmouth-hollow construction making unstepping of the mast easier for extended rows. Being a light boat, she rows effortlessly, and can sail a bit of rough waters in total comfort. The Deer Isle Koster is a family boat at heart. Build one with your family and sail with them or solo if you preferer. Either way it will be a wonderful experience. Plans and kits are available from Clint Chase in Maine.
http://www.clintchaseboatbuilder.com/index.html
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Design No. 57. 10' Lapstrake Sailing Dinghy from Atkin & Co.
No.57 is a round-bilge, lapstrake boat that was designed in an era when most all round-bilge dinghies, and other small craft, were planked in that manner. From keel to masthead, stem to stern, No. 57 was designed to sail well, row easily and, at the same time, or to be used with an outboard motor. This 10-footer is rigged with spritsail spreading 53 square feet of light canvas. The mast stood without standing rigging and the boom and sprit, are light and short enough to stow inside the dinghy.
The 10-footer is rigged with spritsail spreading 53 square feet of light canvas. The mast stood without standing rigging and it, with the boom and sprit, were light and short enough to stow inside the dinghy.
The dimensions of No. 57 are 10 feet over all; 8 feet 10 5/8 inches waterline; 3-feet 11 1/2 inches breadth; and 6 inches draft. The freeboard at the bow is, 1 foot 8 inches; at the lowest place, 1 foot 1 1/2 inches; and at the stern, 1 foot 5 inches. Looking a the images I found online and its measurements one can see immediately that she is a awesome little boat.
If this or similar boat are in your boatbuilding dreams, you can easily purchase some study and detail plans from Atkin & Co, where three generations of boat architects offers more than 300 designs including sailing dinghies, double-enders, traditional offshore and coastal cruising yachts.
http://www.atkinboatplans.com/Dinks/index.html
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Le Principesse. A Spurling's skiffs from Great Harbor Boatworks.
Great Harbor Boatworks builds those beautiful 12' round-bottom rowing skiffs based on a style Arthur Spurling of Cranberry Island designed. Spurling's skiffs were known for being stable, smooth-rowing boats which tracked well and could be rowed singly or by two people. Richard Stanley picked the best-looking original still in existence and made a jig based on that model.
The staff of Great Harbor Boatworks designs and builds custom wooden boats using an evolving blend of traditional, modern and innovative techniques and materials. They also run a full-service maintenance yard, specializing in the care of wooden boats. For more information, you can visit their website, and in doing so, don't forget to take a careful look to the gallery section, and admire the incredible craftsmanship that Ralph W. Stanley started in his shop in Maine nearly 40 years ago.
http://www.greatharborboatworks.com/our-projects/rowboats
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The Lowell Hunky Dory. A great boat tender.
The Lowell Hunky Dory is a fiberglass dory which works great as a rowing boat or tender.Measuring 11' 4" X 48", the Lowell Hunky Dory is based on the classic Downeast half-dory. The flat bottom creates a stable & secure boarding platform whether from dock or vessel, and allows for an easy & comfortable beach or shore landing.
A graceful recreational vessel or excellent work boat for along the shore or around the dock. Great for rowing or with a motor, its could also have a color match option for a customized yacht tender and its well-suited for lakes, streams, rivers, and bays.
http://www.lowellbrothers.com
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A beautiful double ender from Iceland.
I don't know much about this lovely double ender boat and I find her by chance on the Woodboat forum. It was built on 1906 in Iceland, and recently rebuilt by Jón Ragnar Daðason last year.
It's beautiful lines are a clear reminder of the old nordic double ender fishing vessels, small but very seaworthy, and capable to bring both the fisherman and its cargo safely home even in a hard blow. My kudos to Jón for bringing back such beautiful thing on the water and proudly share his work with us.
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A traditional racing boat. The Enterprise dinghy.
All though I am a passionate beer can racer, I am not usually covering many racing boats, so I decide that is about time to introduce one to my blog. The Enterprise dinghy is a two person, non trapeze, non spinnaker one design double chine hull dinghy with distinctive blue sails. Designed by Jack Holt in 1956, the design has withstood the test of time and the class provides some of the best dinghy racing to be found anywhere.
Despite being one of the older classes of dinghies, it remains popular in the United Kingdom and about a dozen other countries, and is used for both cruising and racing. It has a combination of size, weight, and power which appeals to all ages.
The Enterprise is accredited as an International Class by the International Sailing Federation, and there are over 23,000 registered worldwide. It has exellent qualities both as a cruising and two-person racing boat. The Enterprise dinghy is also very seaworthy and can be sailed offshore with confidence.
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Gazec 12, a beautiful skiff built in 3 days.
I always have been a great admirer of the naval architect Francois Vivier. His designs have always have been the most regarded ones among worldwide small boat lovers. His boats are small but very seaworthy and designed to be built either with traditional or modern techniques. Thousands of beautiful boats with his designs have already being built by amateur or professional boatbuilders around the world. I am planning to cover his designs more frequently, and possibly engage in some nice exchange with the homebuilder of his design in the future, but I decided to begin with one of most recent design that speak for the most part to be homebuilder beginners, the Gazec 12.
The Gazec 12 is inspired from the traditional skiff of Morbihan Gulf in France. She has been designed with a wide transom, allowing to fit a small outboard. This makes a very stable little boat, to be used as a tender or for fishing or any other use in protected waters.
The Gazec 12 introduces a new approach for home boatbuilding. Using tenons and pins, this pretty skiff is built without any mould or pattern. Painting apart, the boat requires no more than 3 days to be built and should be considered the perfect boat for a family boatbuilding exercise.
Presently, Gazec 12 plans are marketed in French, but I am sure Francois will be happy to translate drawings and building instructions in English as soon as demand will arise. Have a look, and perhaps you could find three days to spare and build this great skiff yourself.
http://tinyurl.com/gazec12
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Sjogin. A beautiful scandinavian gaff sloop.
Sjogin is a small traditional Scandinavian Workboat that sail on the north end of Barnegat Bay in New Jersey. Her design seems to be modeled on a typical clinker (lapstrake) Swedish inshore fishing boat and not one of the more refined carvel types.
Sjogin is 22’ LOA, 8’ 6″ Beam and draws about 2’9’’. She has a long shallow keel and she’s never had an engine and instead carry a sweep to scull when needed but otherwise use whatever wind’s available to get in and out of her slip. She was built in Southern NJ in 1961 by a gentlemen named Gullen. We have no further details of her builder or designer. While she has workboat roots, her proportions and details suggest she was drawn by a well practiced eye. Her design inspire Francois Vivier to make a sketch of a new design, named Norzh 22.
http://www.sjogin.com
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Irene, Lucy and The New Dawn Traders
I know this blog is mainly about small boat and their adventure, but I casually did find out about this very unusual voyage, and I decided to share with you. The New Dawn Traders is a project born from a passion for life and living within the planets means. The voyage is a symbolic one, trading goods under sail, following the trade winds and connecting with people along the way. What will bring these traders around on the voyage is a worthy west country Ketch named "Irene", built in 1907 in Bridgwater and usually berthed in Bristol.
The ship was, after many reincarnations, recently relaunched as a trading and training vessel, and its crew is hoping that such voyage will shine a light on a future vision of shipping. The journey will be a long one long and sure full of uncertainty, but I am sure the ten strong international crew members could take her in safety around the world, and together trade in ethical goods, ideas and education, food and off course a new celebration of life.
Irene just Departed from Plymouth on Valentines day with a cargo of organic beer from Exeter brewery destined for Brest in Brittany, then will then head to Vigo in Spain to fill her hold with fine Olive oil before skirting the Canaries and Cape Verde Islands destined for Rio de Janeiro. Its crew is planning to travel up the coast of Brazil collecting, Cachaca, Cocoa, Coffee, essential oils and super foods from the Amazon.
Irene was launched in 1907 in Bridgwater after 4 years of construction by FJ Carver and Sons. She spent her early life delivering cargo of coal, woods and other heavy goods along the coast of the West country. She is the last of the west country ketches under sail having survived 50 years trading through 2 great wars and a recession.
Her present owner, Dr Leslie Morrish, found her in 1965 derelict on the Hamble river and fell in love with her. He bought her for £2500 and spent 20 years rebuilding her. You can read the full story of her restoration and early years with Leslie in his book ‘The Good Night Irene’. Leslie lived on her in Brentford London with his family before sending her to the caribbean to become a luxury charter vessel.
In 2003, tragedy struck and Irene was burnt to her water line and sank in Marigot bay, St Maarten. She was raised and towed back to the UK where she has been lovingly restored. The voyage of the New Dawn Traders will be Irene first long Atlantic crossing after her rebuild. Join me in wishing and supporting Irene in her voyage, it will well worth to imagine her olive oil delivery could have your name on it.
http://lucyandthenewdawntraders.com
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Scamp. A pocket cruiser in less then 12 feet.
Our own youthful dreams often featured small boats in starring roles. Aboard these simple, little vessels we dream to venture across large or small bodies of water in search of unknown shorelines or uncharted islands, and once we land, we hike into the interior, and make camp.
Curiously, never once did these visions include negative images of wrestling with a heavy mast and complex rigging, fussing with a smelly, recalcitrant outboard, or being held off shore by our boat's draft. And even when we pictured the afternoon breeze kicking up whitecaps, never once did the vision include a chilly capsize.
It was the dream of returning to those simple pleasures that inspired thoughts of S.C.A.M.P. (Small Craft Advisor Magazine Project) to commission a boat that was seaworthy and safe, that could be daysailed by a small family or taken out overnight with one or two people.
New Zealand boat designer John Welsford give them the perfect answer with Scamp. Shorter then 12 feet the Scamp features include a water ballast tank, an offset centerboard, a “veranda” to provide shelter from the elements, and a draft of just eight inches when the centerboard is raised that surely allow intrepid sailors to explore waterways not accessible by most other boats. The boat was an immediate success, many people already build few of these and added their boat names to a registry that Small Craft Advisory provided on their website since the beginning of this development.
As consequence of this amazing response from the public, Dave Robertson of Gig Harbor Boat Works, decided recently to begin the production of the Scamp in fiberglass. The new fiberglass SCAMP will retain all of the characteristics of the wooden versions as it was designed by Welford for wood construction, and will be indistinguishable from well-built wood SCAMPs.
http://www.ghboats.com/2011/08/scamp/
#Scamp#(Small Craft Advisor Magazine Project#Small Craft Advisory#Dave Robertson#Gig Harbor Boat Works#John Welsford
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Storm 19. A Capable Coastal Cruiser
The Swallow Boats "Storm" range of double ended dayboats focus on aesthetics and easy sailing performance. The range comprises 15', 17' and 19' craft that have traditional lines but are lightweight and simple to maintain and sail. They do not have the outright top speed of our raider range of boats but are exceptionally fast in light winds where the reduced wetted surface of the double ended hull form really comes into its own. For this reason they also make excellent rowing boats.
As the name suggests, she is 2 foot longer with all the additional space being added in the cockpit. Very similar in appearance to the 17, she is more capable, with increased freeboard and more beam. She is available as an epoxy-ply construction (with our 6 year hull warranty), which helps keep her all up weight down to 200 kg (440lbs). She is easily powered under oar and provision can be built for two oarsmen in tandem. Like Storm 17 she takes a small engine (2-3hp long shaft) in a dedicated well aft, under the tiller and out of the way.
She has enough room for up to eight adults but is equally at home being single handed. Her size makes her perfect for comfortable cruising around the coast. Like Storm 17, she has an optional folding spray hood which provides useful shelter for 2-3 people if the weather turns bad. There is substantial storage room in hatches under her foredeck and the decks themselves are inset a few inches so any items placed on them will not be lost overboard. A coaming runs right round the cockpit providing a comfortable backrest for all, and the high boom means that no heads will get hit.
Storm 19’s standard rig is a gunter ketch. The most obvious benefit is the easy way in which the rig can be tamed by dropping the mainsail. If conditions worsen while you are out, then simply release the halyard and the main sail and yard drop into the boat. Perfectly balanced under Jib and Mizzen, she transforms into a benign, upright and reassuring little craft, a very useful feature if you have reluctant crew on board. She has passed her capsize and flotation tests with flying colours and passes the EU RCD tests for Category C (Inshore). Her seat sides are such that they restrain any shipped water from flowing too far port or starb'd. This has the huge benefit of actually making her more stable after a capsize. Her hollow sealed spars mean that a 180 degree inversion is very unlikely & she can be righted easily.
http://www.swallowboats.com/
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Deben Lugger.
The Deben Lugger is an 18’ traditionally styled day boat that is based on the traditional lapstrake design of the Drascombe boats. Her lug yawl rig comes with the choice of either a balanced lug main with boom or standing lug without. Both rigs are carried on un-stayed carbon-fibre masts/spars carrying traditional clipper cloth tan sails with slab reefing. These spars are lighter, stiffer & stronger than conventional alloy or timber making her easier to rig while giving improved performance & reduced maintenance. The whole rig stows within the length of the boat for trailing or storage.
She has a shallow long keel that gives her great stability for her size and also enables her to sail in shallow water with good directional windward performance in as little as 14” of water making her ideal for exploring estuaries & creaks. Within her keel and huge central storage locker is the sealed centre-plate case, this minimizes it’s intrusion into the cockpit & keeps it’s mechanism away from fingers & bottoms. The centre-plate keel is made of substantial 10mm thick galvanized steel plate this gives great hull stiffness and wind-ward ability. With its 10-1 gearing it is also very easy to lower & raise.
Down either side of the cockpit she has two substantial iroko rails for securing safety harnesses, fenders, warps, etc to. The forward spray-rail has been designed to accommodate a spray-hood which covers the flat area above the storage lockers making a great lounging area or with the extension slats & added camping tent a comfortable sleeping platform. Moving aft and keeping with the lounging theme she has two removable iroko timber seat panels allowing for the helm to get out of the wind and shelter low down on the sole boards. These panels also store the fire extinguisher and can accommodate canvas storage bins, for sail-ties, warps, etc.
Her anchor stores on chocks on the fore-deck with its warp being stowed in its own well behind the main-mast, the 2-part oars slide forward up tubes on the starboard side of the centre-plate casing while the blades stow in the locker against the casing, fenders stow in the central locker or under the slated seats, Her small aft locker is vented and is designed to take a 12L remote outboard motor fuel tank the line of this passes into the outboard well. The well is off set to port and allows a modern 4-stroke outboard engine of up to 6HP to be mounted and tilted clear of the water while sailing or when moored. She has a substantial New England style ‘Barn Door’ type rudder this gives a light balanced feel with minimal weather helm, it is the same depth as the keel allowing it to be left mounted while beaching, sailing in the shallows or leaving on a mooring.
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Heybridge Roach.
The Heybridge Roach is a small classic dinghy with lapstrake design based on a traditional 1920's wooden clinker plans. She is currently produced in fiberglass with the addition of oiled Iroko gunwales/trim, and wooden spars. Being of traditional design she sits in the water rather than on it and this allows her to row and sail beautifully. The sailing version comes with a standing lug sail of 3.5 M2, has a marine plywood dagger board and rudder. She is very simple and easy to rig/sail and seem suitable for all ages and levels of experience.
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BayRaider 20. A new camp cruiser from the UK.
It may look like a character boat with its saucy sheer, ketch rig and sliding gunter mainsail, but the BayRaider 20 is more then an old looking boat. Built in your choice of fiberglass or cold-molded wood by UK-based SwallowBoats, the BayRaider features a sophisticated gravity-fed water ballast system, a NACA foil centerboard and a semi-planing hull form. The result is a daysailer with surprising performance that can also serve as a stable platform for camp cruising.
In many ways, it’s the little things that set the BayRaider 20 apart. The tiller has a hinged dog-leg to raise it up so it doesn’t hit the crew in the knees. All control lines—jibsheets, mainsheet, mizzensheet—are within easy reach of the helm, and the hull has not only an attractive wooden rubrail and sheer strake, but also skids on its bottom for beaching. The wooden mainmast is stepped on a tabernacle, and the tall gunter sprit is carbon fiber. The kick-up rudder has a notch in its trailing edge that confused us at first, until a company rep explained it was a step to help crew climb back aboard after going for a swim.
The impressive 660 pounds of water ballast can be taken on or dumped while underway. This means the boat’s performance can be fine-tuned depending on sailing conditions. The boat is easily trailerable and takes just minutes to rig and launch, which means you can explore distant bodies of water without having to budget a lot of time for setup before and after exploring.
Swallow Boats was started in 1995 by Nick Newland, a professional naval architect with considerable experience in the UK defence industry and a lifelong interest and enthusiasm for small boats. The business was originally set up to produce high quality kit boats for foreign and domestic markets. Over the years an enviable reputation has been established for aesthetically pleasing designs that are strong, simple and safe.
http://www.swallowboats.com//
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Charlotte. A Wooden Boat Story.
Charlotte is a film about an extraordinary boatyard, the Gannon & Benjamin Marine Railway, located on the island of Martha's Vineyard, Massachusetts. Ross Gannon and Nat Benjamin established the boatyard in 1980 with the purpose of designing, building, and maintaining traditionally built wooden boats, and in the process they transformed Vineyard Haven harbor into a mecca for wooden boat owners and enthusiasts.
After a long career of designing and constructing boats for others, Nat embarks on building a 50 foot gaff rigged schooner for use by his family and friends — her name is Charlotte. Through close observation of the everyday activities of the boatyard, the film emerges as a meditation on tradition, craftsmanship, family, community, our relationship to nature, and love of the sea.
One of the loveliest aspects of living a nautical life, be it as a sailor, boatwright or simply someone entranced by the idea of the open ocean, is the endless opportunity for reflection. The solitude of the waves, the mirror image of a brilliant sunset on the water, or the simple acts of craftsmanship leave one with time to contemplate what is truly important.
http://www.charlottethefilm.com/
#Gannon & Benjamin#Martha's Vineyard#Ross Gannon#Nat Benjamin#Charlotte the movie#gaff rigged schooner
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Matt Billey. Danish double-ender project in Gloucester, MA.
I recently visit Matt Billey and his beautiful Danish double ender located in Gloucester MA. He was taking some time off from working on the 80-foot-long replicas of the three Boston Tea Party ships with Leon Poindexter, and messing around with a probable bowsprit to install on his sloop.
The Sloop is a copy of a Danish double-ender that was built on Bornholm Island in 1900 and its clearly being built to perfection. Matt is currently working on installing the engine, and re-fitting the both a bowsprit and the mast.
He is apparently working on this project for a while, and design and built the shed that contains the sloop as well. I promise to go visit him again, see how the project is progressing, and bring him few books we had the pleasure to discuss during the visit. I am truly impress buy such workmanship, and I am beginning to think about the possibility of making a small movie/interview with him and post it here.
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