Finding a Suitable Sailboat for Cruising
Because Paul and I had never sailed before we decided to sail around the world, we didn't know what boat we should consider buying. My dad, who had sailed on the Chesapeake Bay for several years, told us that we would need a blue-water or cruising sailboat. He favored Valiant sailboats as this make had completed more circumnavigation than any other brand which seemed to indicate that they were safe boats. After checking out the beautiful - and expensive! - boats at the Annapolis Boat Show, Paul and I started looking for a used Valiant. We found one we liked in Florida online and placed an offer to buy her, sight unseen, but contingent upon our approval once we actually saw the boat. We flew down one weekend and discovered that her hull was covered in a rash of tiny blisters in her fiberglass. It didn't bode well. And after we went on board, I was dismayed to find that Paul and I would not be able to sit up in bed as the ceiling was too low. How would I drink coffee in bed in the morning? As silly as that may sound, we were shopping for more than just a boat, we were shopping for our home for the next several years. We retracted our offer and broadened our search to include Tayanas, some of which shared the same boat designer as the Valiants we were looking at. We found Cherokee Rose online as well and flew down to Beaufort, SC, to see her. Despite her tired exterior, the sailboat was well-equipped for cruising (see specs below). We placed an offer, contingent upon an acceptible boat survey (the marine version of a pre-purchase home inspection) and engine test. Both came back positive. Best of all, she had tons of lockers without feeling claustrophobic. And yes, I could sit in bed and drink a cup of coffee...which I did whenever we were anchored (and the boat was level). |
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Photos of Cherokee RoseNote that these tidy interior photos of Rosie were taken at the end of our cruise, after we painted and worked on her interior. As the numerous other photos on this website clearly show, we always seemed to be in a state of disarray while living aboard.
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Specifications of our Cruising Yacht
Interested in buying a sailboat for cruising? Or just curious about what equipment Rosie carried? As you will see below, we stocked a large amount of spares and supplies on board – friends nicknamed us “the floating West Marine” – but we believe that having a successful, enjoyable and safe cruise means being prepared, and self-reliant. Here are her specifications (if you want even more details, check out Paul's Anatomy of our Cruising Sailboat):
Stove fuel: propane, 30-lb aluminum bottle with 10-lb back up bottle Deep, 2-basin stainless steel sink Fridge and Freezer (2 holding plates in series, run by Fleming 1/2hp DC water-cooled compressor with timer switch) White countertops with Ann Sachs glass tile backsplash Pressurized cold and hot water (110V & engine-heated 10-gallon heater ) Pressurized salt water Spares: vacuum pump, refrigeration gauges, Tx valve, spare coolant to recharge refrigeration
Keel-stepped Isomat aluminum spar with new mast foot Spreaders inspected and powder-coated Fully batten main sail with three-reef points (all reefing occurs from the safety of the cockpit for single-handed sailing) Roller-furling (Profurl) 90% Yankee jib Roller-furling Staysail Orange, blue and white asymmetrical spinnaker with sock 20-foot spinnaker pole mounted to integral mast track Mainsheet traveler system Double preventers Running backstays Self-tailing 2-speed winches – 4 in cockpit, 1 on mast Spare: Aluminum staysail boom, miscellaneous fittings, rigging, blocks,
65-pound Bruce anchor 45-pound Delta anchor 22-pound Hi-tensile Danforth Two (2) 3/8-inch BBB chain, 300’ each 600’ 5/8” twisted nylon 300’ 5/8” braided nylon 300’ ¾’’ nylon
Trace 2500 watt inverter/battery charger Quad Cycle from Cruising Equipment, Inc* Breaker panel and battery selector switch Shore power cord, 25 feet Pig-tail adaptors for 15-amp and 50-amp shore power Four (4) Kyocera solar panels controlled by Trace Solar Controller Fourwinds wind generator with air brake *includes readout for voltage in both banks, amps in/out, ability to separately monitor charging from solar panels, wind generator and alternator
Par electric bilge pump Gusher electric bilge pump Two (2) manual gusher bilge pumps, one near bilge and one in cockpit Village Marine Little Wonder Watermaker Pressurized fresh water shower in cockpit (cold water only) Pressurized salt water deck/anchor wash-down Saltwater plumbing connections for water maker, AC unit and water-cooled refrigeration
406 Epirb Plastimo 4-person life raft with manual watermaker Grab bag with first aid kit and emergency supplies Avon 3.10 roll-up dinghy Dinghy anchor and rode 15-hp Mercury outboard 18-foot Parateck sea anchor with deployment bag Dodger/Bimini with zip-in screen enclosure for sun/insect protection Sun awnings with rain-catching udders Bendix washing machine (2 ½ hours of good sunlight on the solar panels makes enough energy to a) make 20 gallons of water needed for a load and b) to run the washing machine – we wouldn’t cruise without one!) Central air conditioning/heating (on shore power only) |
Perkins 4-108 diesel engine, 48-hp Engine hours: 622.2 hours since last rebuild Rebuild included (documentation/receipts available): New crankshaft New injectors, injector pump, instrument gauges New bearings, liners, piston rings, valves and valve guides Reconditioned oil pump, honed cylinders, decarbed head Cruising speed: 5-6 knots; Maximum: 7 knots Borg Warner transmission Velvet drive with reduction gear Alternator – 120-amp with identical spare Twin Racor mounted on manifold plus standard on-engine filter Shaft: 1 ¼-inch stainless steel Heat exchanger Double strainers for raw water intake, enabling cleaning while running engine Spares: raw water pump, oil cooler, starter motor, heat exchanger, (4) fuel injectors
Robertson AP300 Hydraulic unit autopilot* Autohelm tiller-type autopilot (for use in conjuction with Fleming wind vane steering system) Ritchie 6-inch diameter compass Silva wind speed/direction* Silva depth sounder * Silva GPS* Lev-o-Gauge Dell INSPIRON 7000 laptop computer* used for weather faxes, electronic charts, e-mail Garmin GPS with fixed mount and exterior antenna Inmarsat C Satellite e-mail and weather** Three (3) VHF: 1 Standard Horizon in cockpit, 1 Cobra Marine at nav station, and 1 Apelco handheld Bose 614C 200 MP3/CD player with iPod input with speakers in the cockpit/salon SGC 2000 Ham/SSB with SGC automatic tuner and insulated backstay *Note: We interfaced our Robertson autopilot, Silva instruments and Garmin GPS to our electronic charts on the Dell computer. We were able to plot our course on our electronic charts, have the waypoints transmitted to our GPS and have our autopilot steer the boat to our course. The autopilot beeped to let us know if a course change was occurring so we could prepare the sails. In addition, we were able to see depth, wind speed, speed over ground, etc on our computer – so the nav station really served as another “command” center. If interested, ask Paul how he set this up and about our electronic charts. **We chose Inmarsat C over satellite phones for three reasons: Inmarsat C sends free weather updates four times a day and the weather forecast is based on your current GPS location – a perfect, and easy, compliment to downloading weather faxes via the SSB (yes, Rosie has that capability, too) and more reliable since it is not subject to atmospheric variances like the SSB. Second, the Inmarsat C gave us another level of safety. Our families could monitor our progress on www.purplefinder.com, a website used primarily by shipping companies to track their fleet but it also works great for sailboats – showing where Cherokee Rose is and giving details like wind speed and speed-over-ground. In addition, the Inmarsat C operates like another Epirb in case of an emergency. By pressing two buttons simultaneously, it sends out a satellite distress call with GPS location. Lastly, when something breaks at sea (as it does), we were able to get information/instructions e-mailed to us so we could fix the problem.
Awlgrip non-skid decks Steering system: pedestal with wheel Modified fin keel with skeg-hung rudder
Fuel tanks: (2) 60-gallon fiberglass tanks Holding tank: (1) 60-gallon fiberglass tank
SS basin Hot and cold pressurized shower |
Have you read Sailing to Jessica?
"Most books are enjoyable to read but only a few leave you inspired and wanting to read more. Whether you are a sailor or not you go through the roller coaster of emotions Kelly and Paul experienced along their amazing life-changing journey. I thoroughly enjoyed every word of this book and respect the passion and courage that these 2 people took to give up their conventional lives and pursue their dream of sailing around the world." - Media Eldridge
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