A Didi Mini Goes Cruising

The first boat to our Didi Mini design, drawn to the Mini 650 Rule, was built by CKD Boats of Cape Town for owner Mike ONeill. She was named "Warlock" and never raced in anger. Mike is a superyacht captain and seldom in the same location as his little boat. Eventually he sold her and the new owner commissioned Fluid Yachts, based in the gorgeous town of Knysna, to transform her into a little fast cruiser. The photos below show "Warlock" in her original form and the transformed "iCandy".

Changes include a reworked interior with as many comforts as could be fitted into such a small hull, extension of the deck to the transom, swept-spreader rig for easier handling and a retro-fitted lifting keel to replace the 2m deep fixed keel.

"Warlock" with 2m fixed keel

"Warlock" had the old style Mk1 aft deck.

"iCandy" with lifting keel to access shallower anchorages.

"iCandy" with extended aft deck for a bigger cockpit.

"iCandy" with tall swept-spreader rig for easier control.

"iCandy" now has a retro-fitted aluminium lifting keel.

Keel-lifting tackle of "iCandy".

Looking aft from the massive forward double berth into the saloon.

The new lifting keel of "iCandy" is to our design and can be retro-fitted to any of the Didi Mini or Didi Cruise-Mini series designs. Keel-down draft is 2m, the same as the fixed keel, but it can lift to reduce draft to 1m, for access to shallow moorings or anchorages.

For more about our Didi Mini design series or our other designs, please visit our main website at http://dixdesign.com/ .

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Angus Cruising Rowboat

Sailing to Desolation Sound is a great experience. The trip we took involved a full range of conditions and challenges. But the area has its limitations for a keel boat. We saw many kayaks, often lurking in the lee, watching for a weather opening.

Some coves and inlets were very deep - too deep for safe anchorage. Signs were evident that previous visitors had stern-tied to a rock or tree, since the cove might not have enough room to swing on the scope necessary for a single anchor.

Being avid rowers, we often discussed the possibility (probability?) of making a similar voyage in a rowboat designed for use at sea.

Back in Port Townsend, with Belle Starr at anchor (she makes a wonderful condo), I had the opportunity to assist (compulsive boatbuilder) Marty Loken, in the construction of the new Angus Cruising Rowboat, from Julie and Colin Angus. Plans for this boat were completed at the end of last year. A prototype was built for a client, who took off for places unknown and hasnt been heard from since...




So, Martys RowCruiser is the first boat of this design, made from a kit. He is working under a schedule, with the intention of having the boat ready to display at the upcoming Port Townsend Wooden Boat Festival, the first weekend in September.

Those who know me will not be surprised to learn that I have never built a boat from a kit. This was my first go. A neighbor of Martys had been by the day before to help stitch the planks and bulkheads together. Our task on the second day was to true-up the hull shape, taking out any twist or lack of symmetry. It was a pleasure to see how well the planks fit and how simple it was to see a truly beautiful design emerge. The boat is essentially a
canoe, with an efficient double-ended waterline.

For a burdensome 18.5 foot boat, this is going to be a fast, quick, rowing machine. The Angus Cruising Rowboat is designed for an owner-built sliding seat, though it would be easy and effective to simply use a fixed seat.

Marty has initiated a website for this design, which will feature his own experience building the Cruiser. There will be a workshop in February of 2015, for those interested in building this boat, with coaching from the Angus team. You can visit his new site at RowCruiser!

While working, Marty and I daydreamed about the potential of gunkholing with a flotilla of RowCruisers next summer. And there is a good chance for a Desolation Sound rowing voyage. The British Columbia Kayak Parks found on the Sunshine Coast are wonderful, but imagine being able to anchor in a remote cove, with not another soul and sleep comfortably aboard your own rowboat.



Angus RowCruiser:

Length:  18-8.5" (570 cm)
Beam:    46"        (117cm)
Waterline: 17-9" (541 cm)
WL Beam: 33.4" (85 cm)
Draft:         3.6"   (9.1 cm)
Weight:  148#      (67 kg)
Volume:147.6 cu ft (4.2 cu m.)

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Didi 29 Retro Cruising Rig

In a post in May 2012 we announced the new Didi 29 Retro design. The first CNC plywood kit for this design was cut in South Africa by CKD Boats and construction will soon be started by the owner/builder.

This boat has a large gaff rig but it is very versatile, able to be reduced to much more compact proportions by sail selection and reefing. Still, it is an imposing rig that is aimed primarily at racing in the Caribbean classic style races. We are accustomed to seeing photos of gaff-riggers carrying very impressive clouds of sail but, for those who are more cruising-oriented, this big rig has way too much sail for comfort. One such builder approached me to ask if it is possible to use a smaller gaff rig on her. I have drawn a cruising gaff rig and that drawing is now included as part of the stock design.

Didi 29 Retro Cruising Gaff Rig

This one is more compact, with shorter spars all round. The inboard foretriangle and the deck hardware layout are the only parts of the rig that are unchanged. The shorter bowsprit and lower masthead have given smaller asymmetrical spinnaker and outboard headsails. These are balanced by a smaller mainsail with shorter foot and head on the same luff length.

Didi 29 Retro Gaff Rigs

For comparison, the racing rig has 24% more area in the main and Genoa, 17% more in the Yankee and 27% more in the asymmetrical. Overall, this will be an easier rig to handle and it will be able to carry each sail combination into stronger winds. That is without sacrificing any of the features and versatility of the bigger rig.

To see more of this design, watch the video of my PechaKucha presentation on how it was developed from the Didi 26 design.

For more info on this and our other designs, go to http://dixdesign.com/

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Design 2400 73 Cruising Ketch

Heres a nice looking ketch that is pretty old school for 1980 but a nice looking cruising boat nonetheless. Shes a lot of boat with four cabins plus crew in 73 overall.  The design was never taken beyond this very preliminary stage.

Principal Dimensions

LOA 73-0"

LWL 54-6"

Beam 19-0"

Draft 9-0"

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My dinghy cruising packing list

Ive been doing quite a bit of dinghy cruising this year. So much so that I havent had much time to write about it, sorry.

Ive gotten my packing routine down to the point where I feel its getting quite efficient.  I always bring the same items and store them in the same place for every trip.  A little organization goes a long way when it comes time to find something.  I try to bring only what I need, and use items for multiple purposes whenever possible.  I only bring extras of items that are crucial.

It really bugs me to have things out where I have to walk on or around them, so I store everything in the lockers and under the thwarts and side decks. Once everything is packed away, it looks like Im not bringing anything at all.  Thats not easy to do in an open boat.

Here is the packing list that I use.  This first page shows where on the boat I store everything.   Many of the items are stored in bags.  I use soft-sided cooler bags for food and water, duffel bags and backpacks for clothing, and dry bags for electronics. Page 2 shows the contents of each bag.

Most of this stuff stays on the boat permanently.  Usually all I have to pack for a trip is food and clothes.

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