I'm considering the purchase of a Catalina 27 (standard rig and keel, inboard diesel) and I want to make sure it will fit my needs. I had a Venture 25 for a number of years and crewed on a friend's Tartan 30 on Lake Michigan, so the 27 falls somewhere in between. I would be docked in Puget Sound and used around the San Juans and further north to explore Canadian waterways. It would be helpful if other Catalina 27 owners could chime in about their experiences sailing in rougher seas. I need to get an idea of what the boat will handle without major discomfort to the crew. I know my Venture was getting slapped around pretty good once the seas were over three feet, versus the Tartan that would shoulder its way through six foot seas and still feel reasonably stable. What kind of conditions do other 27 owners feel comfortable sailing in and what conditions would you not even take the boat out?
Considering a Catalina 27...
- Thread starter akulsp
- Start date
I owned a 1974 Catalina 27 with a tiller and 9.9hp outboard for nearly 10 years and sailed her all over the upper half of the Chesapeake Bay. The boat seemed pretty stout and simple in terms of systems, and I felt like she could take a lot more than the crew could bear, but some cautions:
- Anything 3ft and over started to be a handful though - the outboard would hobby horse in and out of the water if we had to motor or motor sail. She definitely was better under reefed sail than motoring with a small motor, and your little diesel will be similar, though the prop shouldn't ever come out of the water. Bear in mind that the chop on the Chesapeake bay tends to be short and steep, not at all like swell in the ocean, so that's a factor. But its no fun, and I wouldn't recommend it.
- The issue for the Catalina 27, and many boats of her size and smaller, is that as seas get bigger getting on deck to do anything you need to do becomes progressively more difficult and dangerous. If you have a roller reefed headsail that part is easy, but you'll still have to get to the mast to raise, reef, and douse the main (though lazy jacks can help with the last item). To do so safely you'll need to rig jacklines to tether to, preferably centerline because the side decks are so narrow and running them there is functionally useless. But I never found an easy way to do it on that boat.
- If you end up crashing through waves the anchor is typically installed in a bracket on the forward pulpit, which can fairly easily get ripped off in heavy breaking waves unless you find a way to securely stow it - or remove it and secure below in heavy weather. Perhaps later models had an anchor locker, but mine just had a hawsepipe for the anchor rode.
- The boat only weighs 6,000 pounds, so balancing the sails in heavy winds and not being overcanvassed is really important or you'll have awful weather helm and an uncomfortable (and very inefficient) amount of heel. I once broke the tiller at the (thankfully) end of a day of violating those rules.
The Catalina 27 was my first keelboat and took me a lot of miles, but it didn't take me long before I wished I'd bought a bigger boat like a Catalina 30 from the very beginning.
Have fun!
- Anything 3ft and over started to be a handful though - the outboard would hobby horse in and out of the water if we had to motor or motor sail. She definitely was better under reefed sail than motoring with a small motor, and your little diesel will be similar, though the prop shouldn't ever come out of the water. Bear in mind that the chop on the Chesapeake bay tends to be short and steep, not at all like swell in the ocean, so that's a factor. But its no fun, and I wouldn't recommend it.
- The issue for the Catalina 27, and many boats of her size and smaller, is that as seas get bigger getting on deck to do anything you need to do becomes progressively more difficult and dangerous. If you have a roller reefed headsail that part is easy, but you'll still have to get to the mast to raise, reef, and douse the main (though lazy jacks can help with the last item). To do so safely you'll need to rig jacklines to tether to, preferably centerline because the side decks are so narrow and running them there is functionally useless. But I never found an easy way to do it on that boat.
- If you end up crashing through waves the anchor is typically installed in a bracket on the forward pulpit, which can fairly easily get ripped off in heavy breaking waves unless you find a way to securely stow it - or remove it and secure below in heavy weather. Perhaps later models had an anchor locker, but mine just had a hawsepipe for the anchor rode.
- The boat only weighs 6,000 pounds, so balancing the sails in heavy winds and not being overcanvassed is really important or you'll have awful weather helm and an uncomfortable (and very inefficient) amount of heel. I once broke the tiller at the (thankfully) end of a day of violating those rules.
The Catalina 27 was my first keelboat and took me a lot of miles, but it didn't take me long before I wished I'd bought a bigger boat like a Catalina 30 from the very beginning.
Have fun!
Not a Catalina 27 owner.
I know a couple and I have been around their boats on the Salish Sea (Puget Sound and BC Canadian waters).
The Catalina 27's are solid boats that can handle the inside passage waters on most days better than most crews want to tolerate.
A 27 ft boat is a compact yacht. Rain days and fog can make the boat feel small. That is not necessarily a bad thing. They can sail into places that would stop larger boats.
Because of their size and speed you will need to become a good sailor/Navigator. The boat can serve that purpose. The requirement is due to the tidal movement of the Seas. You will need to time your passages so that the currents allow safe passage through narrow channels. You'll need to manage fuel and water on board as storage could be an issue if your cruising is for multiple weeks away from port facilities.
If I had a 27ft Catalina in good condition and properly maintained, I would not hesitate to sail it from Olympia to Alaska.
We have sailed our similar Hunter 27 on Lakes Erie and Huron for 23 years, and chartered twice on a Catalina 30 in the San Juans. If you are happy with the cabin, (as we are) the Catalina 27 would be a great boat for the San Juans and nearby Canadian archipelago. The Straights of San Juan de Fuca are the only waters with a long fetch where you could find big waves. In the archipelagos, nearby islands and shores will keep the waves very manageable. Some specific thoughts:
1. We get very accurate forecasts and weather radar on our smartphone. So there is no reason to get caught in bad weather outside protected waters.
2. A beauty of an archipelago is that we seldom sail long legs beating into serious weather - there is always somewhere good to go that is a reach or a run as wind and waves pipe up.
3. Our comfort limit reaching in weather is about 6 foot waves. We have only experienced them a few times. We have only returned to port once in the face of big waves - (7 footers coming off Lake Huron in a nor’wester as we left Tobermory.)
4. We have a hausepipe and carry our anchor on a bow roller. There are different good solutions to hold an anchor in place when heading into big waves. (Our worst case was a big power boat turning in front of us as we left Put in Bay one day. Took a couple of feet of green water over the bow without any problem - the cockpit was dry.)
5. Planning for and negotiating tidal currents is one of the fun parts of sailing waters like the San Juans.
6. Cruising in a sailboat is always best when you have a day or two to lay up in port/anchorage if the weather forecast looks nasty.
Both of these boats are seaworthy designs that have made blue water cruises.
Good luck with your new boat, whatever you choose!
1. We get very accurate forecasts and weather radar on our smartphone. So there is no reason to get caught in bad weather outside protected waters.
2. A beauty of an archipelago is that we seldom sail long legs beating into serious weather - there is always somewhere good to go that is a reach or a run as wind and waves pipe up.
3. Our comfort limit reaching in weather is about 6 foot waves. We have only experienced them a few times. We have only returned to port once in the face of big waves - (7 footers coming off Lake Huron in a nor’wester as we left Tobermory.)
4. We have a hausepipe and carry our anchor on a bow roller. There are different good solutions to hold an anchor in place when heading into big waves. (Our worst case was a big power boat turning in front of us as we left Put in Bay one day. Took a couple of feet of green water over the bow without any problem - the cockpit was dry.)
5. Planning for and negotiating tidal currents is one of the fun parts of sailing waters like the San Juans.
6. Cruising in a sailboat is always best when you have a day or two to lay up in port/anchorage if the weather forecast looks nasty.
Both of these boats are seaworthy designs that have made blue water cruises.
Good luck with your new boat, whatever you choose!
If you aren't aware, a guy named Patrick Childress made significant structural modifications to a Catalina 27 he named Juggernaut and sailed it around the world from 1979 to 1982. So even though its a coastal cruiser folks have sailed those boats far and wide. Pick your weather, be comfortable with being uncomfortable, maintain your boat well.
Last edited:
I had a 1970? Catalina 27 in the past. Sailed it for years from Buzzards Bay to Casco Bay. One day, when my adult son and I were sailing in gusty winds and choppy seas, we found the boat was a handful to control. It was all we could do to hold a rough course and extremely unpleasant and wet. Meanwhile a larger sailboat came close abreast of us and I looked up to see the sailors and their guests in the cockpit drinking wine out of stemmed glasses and passing around horsdoevers. I determined right then to get a larger boat. For cruising comfortably I would look for something 30 feet or larger. It may be counter-intuitive but larger boats are easier than smaller ones to manage in harsh conditions. At anchor, the larger the boat the more enjoyable.
I didn't have a Catalina 27 but I had a Starwind 27 and in most respects it was equal and some respects, I think it was more comfortable (wider decks were much easier to navigate and the cockpit also was roomier than Cat 27. I base this comparison on a Catalina 27 in our marina that I am familiar with (but not sailed). Having sailed my 27' boat and a Catalina 30 in direct comparison, I can readily say that the Cat 30 was FAR more satisfying to sail in offshore conditions. The difference in comfort and security was palpable.
I'll also say that sailing a 30' boat with crew or singlehanded is easier than the smaller boat. The motion is steadier, more secure and you don't have to fight thru the obstacles that are constantly in your way when sailing a smaller boat. I'd have to say that sailing my Catalina 320 is a dream compared to sailing my Starwind 27, even though they were set up almost identically. The roominess just makes sailing SO much easier.
I'll also say that sailing a 30' boat with crew or singlehanded is easier than the smaller boat. The motion is steadier, more secure and you don't have to fight thru the obstacles that are constantly in your way when sailing a smaller boat. I'd have to say that sailing my Catalina 320 is a dream compared to sailing my Starwind 27, even though they were set up almost identically. The roominess just makes sailing SO much easier.
Agree with Scott, I owned a Catalina 30 and have sailed a Catalina 27 a bunch of times - with a 20% longer waterline and 50% greater dispacement, the Cat 30 sails MUCH better, especially as winds and seas build - it's really night and day. The interior feels twice as big as well. The Cat 27 is a typical 27 foot boat size-wise, the Cat 30 is one of the largest 30 footers ever made and is more like a 31-32 foot boat - my 35 foot boat only displaces about 10% more than a Cat 30.
When I started looking for a my first sailboat to sail on Lake Michigan, my list included 30-foot minimum, diesel in-board, wheel steering.
But the first boat I bought was a 1996 28-foot Hunter 280. That boat did OK on Lake aMichigan, and I sailed it single-handed a lot. She was a little light, but I reefed when necessary. She weighed in around 7,500 pounds IIRC.
I purchased my second boat - a 1988 O’Day 322 - few years later…she weighs in around 10,000 pounds.
I sail the 32-footer all the time solo. She is less tender than my Hunter was, and I feel much more comfortable in the heavier boat.
I am not familiar with your cruising area, but I would imaging heavier is better In most displacement boats.
Greg
But the first boat I bought was a 1996 28-foot Hunter 280. That boat did OK on Lake aMichigan, and I sailed it single-handed a lot. She was a little light, but I reefed when necessary. She weighed in around 7,500 pounds IIRC.
I purchased my second boat - a 1988 O’Day 322 - few years later…she weighs in around 10,000 pounds.
I sail the 32-footer all the time solo. She is less tender than my Hunter was, and I feel much more comfortable in the heavier boat.
I am not familiar with your cruising area, but I would imaging heavier is better In most displacement boats.
Greg
Mine is a 1978, has nothing close to a bridge deck, so in rougher waters you'd need to be careful. Also, the biggest blocker to my mind is the narrow decks. You really need to navigate up and over the cabin top to go forward, which I do not like one bit. I'm on a lake, so it's not a big deal, but I wouldn't want to be in a seaway, trying to go forward on those paltry decks.
Nice. Only in sailing can you call an average speed of 2.83 knots "racing". Love it.
