Min Size Sailboat

[robischd]

If you were going to do some coastal/intercoastal cruising from Seattle to Ketchikan, Alaska by your self for a few months:
What min size sailboat would you recommend???
(Ex: 30ft?)
Specific major brand mfg and model???
(Ex: Catalina 30?)

Sailing Experience Level
10 yrs exp with Hunter 26, Six ASA Certifications, some experience with Catalina 30's.

 

[jssailem]

Ok. Welcome to sailing the Salish Sea ideas @robischd .

The area you describe is often referred to as the Salish Sea. It encompasses thousand of miles of coast line and conditions that very from peace full lake like calm, to mind frightening ocean like gales.

Since your profile indicates your located in Idaho, my first question is about your sailing experience. The 10 years and the certifications were acquired in the Idaho lakes or out on the ocean some where?

 

[Dave Groshong]

There are too many good boats in all sizes, I like a Nor'Sea 27 or 28ft Bristol Channel Cutter, but those are spendy boats, nothing wrong with a Catalina 27 or 30, or many other boats in that size range.

 

[ToddS]

In addition to the considering LOA, you might also focus on other measurements of "size"... sleeping space and cabin headroom for example. Differences in cabin/deck/cockpit layout, beam, headroom, and LWL (among other things) sometimes have more impact on how big a boat feels than the overall length. I recently sold a 35' boat, and bought a 36' boat, essentially the same length, but the cabin volume roughly DOUBLED. Generally I'm guessing 26'-30' is a good range to start looking, but I'd keep an open mind, and don't get too hung up on that one variable. BTW, how tall are you?... because that can be a significant factor in how comfortable you are standing up, and/or sleeping on a boat of that size. If you're 5'6" you'll be comfortable in boats that will physically torture you if you're 6'3"...

 

[jssailem]

I agreeing with Todd, there are many factors. Fuel and water capacities are a factor in the waters you are considering to sail.
Space and light are often factors. A several month cruise in the Salish Sea can be bright and sunny or cold and rain filled fog. If you are inside your boat you can feel the walls closing in after multiple days of waking to Frizzle. That is when you might wish to have a cockpit that is heated and has glass like curtains you can pull down to create an outside like porch. If you select a pilot house boat you will get that feature and may find yourself more active and less likely to want to pull the covers back over your head.

Heat or the ability to make heat even during the summer is a factor in these waters. I was looking at water temps 2 days ago. The waters in Desolation Sound were in the 70's while the water in the Juan DFuca strait barely reached 50 degrees.

You say you want to sail solo. Boat size becomes a factor. Big boats while comfortable bring big sails. At some point the weight of the sail may be beyond what you can manage solo. I found that 34-36 feet to be a reasonable sized sloop rigged boat to manage solo. Change the way the boat is rigged and you can likely handle a boat up in the 40's. I just don't find lifting the large sails of a 40 foot boat easy.

 

[Stu Jackson]

It's not always the size of the boat as

but the cabin volume roughly DOUBLED

clearly noted.

The largest issue, complimentary to what John is saying, are the SYSTEMS. Heat, heat, heat, even during shoulder seasons, is almost critical in importance. Hot water is nice. The key is reliability of engine and electrical and all supporting equipment.

Is the boat big enough to carry your spares? No kiddin'.

While there may reasonable service marinas here and there, one should consider being self sufficient.

This is big, serious water here.

 

[Jackdaw]

If you were going to do some coastal/intercoastal cruising from Seattle to Ketchikan, Alaska by your self for a few months:
What min size sailboat would you recommend???
(Ex: 30ft?)
Specific major brand mfg and model???
(Ex: Catalina 30?)

Sailing Experience Level
10 yrs exp with Hunter 26, Six ASA Certifications, some experience with Catalina 30's.

To help us out, beyond all the certifications etc., can you list your actual experience in terms of miles, days, nights etc. on a like boat?

What kind of sailing do you like to do? Comfortable cruiser? Fast port hopper?

 

[Meriachee]

We did the Alaska cruise a few years back. First time in about 100 years I was queasy on a boat. Yeah, I know why, but sitting out on the balcony at 10 at night in the cold didn't much help either, it was rough, and there was no horizon in the dark there either.....

 

[Will Gilmore]

If you were going to do some coastal/intercoastal cruising from Seattle to Ketchikan, Alaska by your self for a few months:
What min size sailboat would you recommend???
(Ex: 30ft?)
Specific major brand mfg and model???
(Ex: Catalina 30?)

Sailing Experience Level
10 yrs exp with Hunter 26, Six ASA Certifications, some experience with Catalina 30's.

This is a tough question to answer the way you asked it.
If I were going to do such sailing, as you described, it would be completely based on what I had availible and could afford. If I were to make a recommendation to another sailor, it wouldn't likely look anything like the sailing I'd actually do.
To put a minimum size on it, based on my sailing needs and history, 19' 2" would do it.
To suggest something in that size to another sailor, the Flicka has a great reputation and I was considering a circumnavigation in one when I graduated high school. I got married instead.
I grew up around sailboats and commercial fishing boats. I have crossed the atlantic, aboard a Shannon 50 in 1987, as my father's crew, and have sailed by hobie 18 in lakes coastline on the East Coast, Key West, Gulf and Atlantic waters and read and dreamed a lot. My experience is far shy of yours, but I don't lack for confidence. I wouldn't recommend anyone approach serious sailing the way I would if given the chance.
6 ASA courses, if nothing else, you know how to attend a class and digest the material. That will help a lot when you start compiling your short list of sailing options.

Good luck and I'm very interested in reading more about you journey.

-Will (Dragonfly)

 

[Scott T-Bird]

If you follow RAN Sailing, their boat is for sale, currently in Ensenada, Mexico, for $79,000. You can watch their episodes and see what they did on the boat from when they left Sweden (in the middle of winter) over 2 years ago, sailed down the coast to Spain and beyond across the Atlantic to the Caribbean, thru the Canal, across the Pacific to Hawaii, Alaska, & the entire west coast. They have made numerous improvements and major maintenance projects all along the way, which you can see in some detail.

Their boat appears to be fully outfitted for you without any need for re-fit. Check out their details, I think you would be impressed. If you want to sail to Alaska, this is one that is ready to go right now. The extra space in their 40' aluminum-hulled cruiser will be far more attractive if you are really seeking company. This boat will be comfortable, 30' would not be on the trip you are talking about. 30' might be considered at the minimum threshold for a trip to high latitude. I think anything less would be too minimalist for a normal person (not saying anything wrong with being not-normal! ).

https://ransailing.se/ran-for-sale/

I'd argue that you could spend $25,000 for a nice Catalina 30' and spend at least $35,000 (think I'm kidding?) and a year's effort fitting it for a serious trip, or … for not much more, this 40' boat with loads of space, a proven world traveler, with NOT A THING that needs to be added could be had for a serious adventure as soon as you buy it.

 

[jssailem]

It is difficult to explain the type the sailing experience needed or boat needed in a vacuum.
Perhaps this is a link for those unfamiliar with the Pacific NW waters. It is a link to the videos of a coastal sailing no motor permitted adventure on the west coast - the Race to Alaska. https://r2ak.com/2019-clip-of-the-day/

 

[Meriachee]

I would agree with @jssailem 's thinking and offer a mildly worded comment that here's no way in hell I'd be up there in a 19' boat. When you see the offshore weather marks showing occasional waves off the scale, when the scale peaks at 100', it goes from cruising to survival.

 

[Jackdaw]

It is difficult to explain the type the sailing experience needed or boat needed in a vacuum.
Perhaps this is a link for those unfamiliar with the Pacific NW waters. It is a link to the videos of a coastal sailing no motor permitted adventure on the west coast - the Race to Alaska. https://r2ak.com/2019-clip-of-the-day/

I’m sorry, but I don’t get the point of this. This is the high-adventure long distance race, in conditions that most coastal cruisers will never ever experience. Why post this in this thread?

 

[jssailem]

Why post this in this thread?

Fair question. While it is a sail do what ever you can race to win, it is additionally a cruise to Alaska by some to prove they can accomplish the trip.
The videos show the type of conditions you can experience in these waters. As not every person has seen these conditions, the videos can provide information that seems relevant in a decision process attempting to solve the question posted by "robischd".

If you were going to do some coastal/intercoastal cruising from Seattle to Ketchikan, Alaska by your self for a few months: What min size sailboat would you recommend???

 

[Jackdaw]

Fair question. While it is a sail do what ever you can race to win, it is additionally a cruise to Alaska by some to prove they can accomplish the trip.
The videos show the type of conditions you can experience in these waters. As not every person has seen these conditions, the videos can provide information that seems relevant in a decision process attempting to solve the question posted by "robischd".

But that is the difference between high-level racing and cruising. An expert racing will sail in what comes. That race is in no way a 'cruise'. 30 knots in a channel tonight? Hey, we're racing and want to win. A cruiser will pull in early and spend the night on the hook or at some friendly marina. Go through tomorrow in 12 knots and sunshine. Racers sail in whatever. Cruisers wisely look for weather windows. There is a fundamental difference here. I don't understand the attempt to combine and confuse the two.

 

[Crazy Dave Condon]

Stick to the original question as suggested

 

[rgranger]

... (not saying anything wrong with being not-normal! )...

Normal = Boring

 

[Stu Jackson]

Racers sail in whatever. Cruisers wisely look for weather windows. There is a fundamental difference here. I don't understand the attempt to combine and confuse the two.

jd, very true. I believe what John was trying to do was to show the OP what it looks like, regardless of whether the participants chose to go or stay somewhere. Of course, it's a race so they chose to go out in conditions, but it's the conditions themselves that John was sharing for the OP to better visualize. NOT the actions of the participants.

Look, I've cruised and raced, as well as an "almost delivery" cruise from SF to British Columbia in 2016.

I sailed this boat for 18 years in SF, The Delta and the ocean.

Things are very, very, very different here.

The waters are HUGE. Distances here for "close" ports, even in the sheltered Gulf Islands, make SF Bay look like a postage stamp. Open water fetches, land masses, currents and weather systems are serious things to consider always, of course, but compare to my earlier "what I thought" were extensive experiences, this stuff is very different.

I'm lovin' it.

 

[Meriachee]

I'm lovin' it.

They say it's the "second best cruising grounds on the planet". I'd clearly offer that the scenery bumps that consideration up a notch.

 

[LeslieTroyer]

Even in relatively sheltered waters in the PNW I’ve had the shit kicked out of me - nothing where I said oh god I’m gonna die, but tough sailing or motoring. Areas with 100’s of miles of wind driven fetch meet up with 10+’ of tidal Rip Currents can make your life crazy - often hard to predict even with good weather reports without extensive local knowledge. I’ve sailed here in my C22, Santana 27, Pearson 26 and now my Catalina 36. I’ve buried the nose to the mast in all of them - just cruising. The 22 had the outboard underwater at least 3 times on trying to get thru one Channel before I gave up. It certainly gets the heart going to loose power knowing the rocks aren’t far away. After that I knew I would never have an outboard driven sailboat again!!!

Given planning for water and fuel I wouldn’t mind going to Alaska In My 36. I know people have done it. First is a trip to Desolation and the Briughtons, then Around Vancouver Island.

Les