jwboatdesigns
29-11-2008, 01:31 PM
Pathfinder, dinghy cruising in style, as the Jaguar car man said, “Grace, Space, Pace”
L O A 5.25 M 17 FT 4 IN
BEAM 1.95 M 6 FT 5 IN
WEIGHT (dry, inc. motor) 220 KG 485 LBS
SAIL AREA 15.1 SQM 162 SQFT
http://www.backyardboatbuilding.org.uk/forums/images/PF01.jpgPathfinder was designed partly as a result of my own long experience cruising in small boats, partly as a response to reading several good books on the subject including Margaret and Frank Dyes several books on cruising in their Wayfarer dinghy, and partly as a result of much discussion on the Dinghy Cruising and Openboat yahoo internet groups.
On the latter I’d asked for ideas and opinions hoping to take advantage of the experience of the members. I did get some good ideas, and had to debate some of my more fixed ideas with others which made me think hard about them, not a bad thing.
The result was Pathfinder, a big, powerful, fast open cruising yacht with lots of space and speed. This is a very stable boat, fine lined and with a lot of sail area that can be rapidly shortened down all the way to just jib and mizzen which allows her to cope with really bad weather still under a balanced rig. The yawl rig is my choice, to sit hove to, head to wind, with the mizzen sheeted hard in is a calm and comfortable way to wait out a squall or to sit outside a river bar until the tide changes. It's cheap to build, powerful and versatile.
I used my favourite build method, well suited to first time builders this gives a boat with a distinctive classic look but is hugely strong and still light in weight. There is much built in buoyancy, and a considerable amount of locker space to keep the bedding and provisions dry, the bunk flats are just over 2metres long and wide enough for a comfortable airbed.
The prototype was built by Paul Groom in Auckland New Zealand. Paul and his wife have two young boys and have been away for as long as a week camping on board “Varuna” which gives a good idea of just how much room there is on board.
164 165 166 167
168 169 170 171 172
Have a look through the pictures above and below. The one at the top of this post is a blurry video capture by Dave Perillo of 'Varuna' smoking along in 30 knots of wind. The thumbnails I list below.
1. A view from above showing Pathfinder's interior and deck layout.
2. A picture of paradise - Tauranga Harbour, New Zealand.
3. Varuna's interior at painting time. Lots of space there.
4. Cavatina, sloop rigged in this pic. She had a yawl rig later in her career.
5. Imagine the lovely view from those windows. This is Steve Earley out on the Chesapeake.
6. Rigging Varuna. The yawl rig took about 15 minutes to get ready.
7. Varuna ready for the off.
8. A great shot of 'Cavatina' with 650lbs on the rail. That's real stability.
Can't you imagine yourself seeing the coastline coming up over the horizon ahead?
John Welsford
Designer
[Editor's note: I suspect John's got the last shot slightly wrong. The transom doesn't look like Cavatina's - unless that's not Cavatina at 4. I'll check next time I talk to him. Smashing photos aren't they? My own favourite is the one of Varuna hiking along just beyond the surf line. Thanks John - and thanks to all the Pathfinder owner/builders here.]
L O A 5.25 M 17 FT 4 IN
BEAM 1.95 M 6 FT 5 IN
WEIGHT (dry, inc. motor) 220 KG 485 LBS
SAIL AREA 15.1 SQM 162 SQFT
http://www.backyardboatbuilding.org.uk/forums/images/PF01.jpgPathfinder was designed partly as a result of my own long experience cruising in small boats, partly as a response to reading several good books on the subject including Margaret and Frank Dyes several books on cruising in their Wayfarer dinghy, and partly as a result of much discussion on the Dinghy Cruising and Openboat yahoo internet groups.
On the latter I’d asked for ideas and opinions hoping to take advantage of the experience of the members. I did get some good ideas, and had to debate some of my more fixed ideas with others which made me think hard about them, not a bad thing.
The result was Pathfinder, a big, powerful, fast open cruising yacht with lots of space and speed. This is a very stable boat, fine lined and with a lot of sail area that can be rapidly shortened down all the way to just jib and mizzen which allows her to cope with really bad weather still under a balanced rig. The yawl rig is my choice, to sit hove to, head to wind, with the mizzen sheeted hard in is a calm and comfortable way to wait out a squall or to sit outside a river bar until the tide changes. It's cheap to build, powerful and versatile.
I used my favourite build method, well suited to first time builders this gives a boat with a distinctive classic look but is hugely strong and still light in weight. There is much built in buoyancy, and a considerable amount of locker space to keep the bedding and provisions dry, the bunk flats are just over 2metres long and wide enough for a comfortable airbed.
The prototype was built by Paul Groom in Auckland New Zealand. Paul and his wife have two young boys and have been away for as long as a week camping on board “Varuna” which gives a good idea of just how much room there is on board.
164 165 166 167
168 169 170 171 172
Have a look through the pictures above and below. The one at the top of this post is a blurry video capture by Dave Perillo of 'Varuna' smoking along in 30 knots of wind. The thumbnails I list below.
1. A view from above showing Pathfinder's interior and deck layout.
2. A picture of paradise - Tauranga Harbour, New Zealand.
3. Varuna's interior at painting time. Lots of space there.
4. Cavatina, sloop rigged in this pic. She had a yawl rig later in her career.
5. Imagine the lovely view from those windows. This is Steve Earley out on the Chesapeake.
6. Rigging Varuna. The yawl rig took about 15 minutes to get ready.
7. Varuna ready for the off.
8. A great shot of 'Cavatina' with 650lbs on the rail. That's real stability.
Can't you imagine yourself seeing the coastline coming up over the horizon ahead?
John Welsford
Designer
[Editor's note: I suspect John's got the last shot slightly wrong. The transom doesn't look like Cavatina's - unless that's not Cavatina at 4. I'll check next time I talk to him. Smashing photos aren't they? My own favourite is the one of Varuna hiking along just beyond the surf line. Thanks John - and thanks to all the Pathfinder owner/builders here.]