Biggest size for single handing?

[Tranona]

Tranona



Got him bang to rights there






Post 25 again?

I was rather proud of putting six reasons for my opinion into the 6 lines.

The more you ramble on, the more I think you have read another post and replied to mine in error.

Unfortunately post#25, which I did read does not address the question that the OP has posed - and clarified in a later post - so is of no use to anybody.

I am sure you can be very proud of not answering the question - is it perhaps because you have no experience of the problem?

 

[PaulRainbow]

Sensible approach but I get the impression the OP was thinking + 40 foot

In post #1 he said he thought 40ft too big. He also mentioned live aboard and cruising, which describes my use. Personally, in terms of handling i would be happy with 40 or so feet. Cost of the boat and running costs jump up a fair bit though.

 

[Norman_E]

Whilst I understand the concern about some marinas, the biggest issues with size have to be those of the cost and your ability to sail it. I am currently single handing my own 45 foot boat. I am 71 and not very big or strong, but its not a problem because the boat has a relatively small rig.
A bowthruster helps when going slowly astern, as it corrects the course quicker than the rudder will do it, but is useless against even a moderate crosswind when coming out of a berth. I have a full battened mainsail, and reefing it down in a blow was a problem until I changed from single line reefing to twin line. I can get the reefs in without using the winch except to put final tension on the leach. I haul the sail up to the second spreader by just pulling the halyard, then winch it. I think that there are 38 foot boats with bigger rigs than mine that are probably harder to manage. As for sailing performance I have no issues with mine, its not a racer but actually sails very well, and when SWMBO joins me, the amount of space below pleases her.

EDIT. What I am really saying is that the length of the boat is less of an issue than you might think. A smaller lighter boat than mine, with a big rig, might be far more difficult to handle.

 

[doug748]

Unfortunately post#25, which I did read does not address the question that the OP has posed - and clarified in a later post - so is of no use to anybody.

I am sure you can be very proud of not answering the question - is it perhaps because you have no experience of the problem?

When you fall into deep water don't thrash about, new RNLI advice which could be very useful to you.
Anyways, this is enough of Post25gate.


"Just to clarify.
I'm meant live aboard cruising. I can get into my home marina berth in most weather so not really a consideration . I'm more concerned about going into a strange marina. I wouldn't like to go down a trot of yachts looking for a berth only to have to reverse out. Some marina's are really narrow and quite easy to get into a lot of trouble." purplerobbie


Cruising on your own you can run out of enthusiasm for marinas quite quickly.

With bigger boats it's snakes and ladders. You may be billeted on the easy T berths whilst smaller boats are led into ever more dodgy corners of a marina. Downside is you will sometimes miss out on a perfect snug pontoon and will often be rafted.
The obvious example is somewhere like Victoria Marina, Guernsey where you face the hugger mugger rafting pontoons.
It's the opposite case with Treguier where the easier, convenient, downriver berths are reserved for larger yachts.

As you say anchoring off is useful, where you can. Another good plan is to enter a marina at midday when it will usually be as quiet as it gets.

 

[purplerobbie]

Our first two boats were pretty painful in reverse and that led me to regard handling astern as rather important. We always stay in marinas and I really wanted a boat that I could reliably park backwards into a space just three or four feet larger than the boat itself. When we were evaluating potential purchases for the third and fourth boats, I insisted on having the opportunity to test out close quarters manoeuvring in general and reversing in particular.

The result has been our current boat which will turn on a sixpence and arguably handles better in reverse than forward. It has a wide, open transom - almost as wide as the boat is amidships. I can step around the wheel and steer in reverse facing in the direction of travel and the throttle is high up on the binnacle meaning that I have full control of the boat in reverse without ever having to take my eyes off the pontoon and surrounding boats. When I get into the berth, I can leave the engine in tickover astern to keep it pegged to the pontoon, then calmly step off through the transom to come round to the midships, take a line and make fast. It really is very easy.

When I bought my boat the throttle was on the cockpit side, lowdown so you had to take your eyes off were you where going to change it.
The first time I moved the boat I came into a berth a little fast looked down for the throttle then looked up just in time to see us hit the pontoon.

I changed it and put it on the wheel and it made all the difference. As you say you just stand the other side of the wheel for going astern and you never have to take your eyes off where you're going
The boat is a perfect size for living on and behaves impeccably in most situations.

I suppose the answer to this is smaller isn't necessarily more manoeuvrable and everything is a compromise.

Maby what boat do you have?

 

[ianj99]

Quick question - not meant to be judgemental in any way..

Living aboard, how often do you go in and out of marinas?

The liveaboards I know usually mostly only move the boat for a reason - like moving to a new place or leaving the anchorage to get some diesel or stock up in the nearest town. In and out of marinas going for day sails just doesn't really happen. There are a multitude of good/bad features for a singlehanded liveaboard boat, ease getting in and out of marinas is just one, not even near to the top of the list either imho.

I only lived aboard for about a year but used the boat in the usual way weather permitting, time constraints etc. There are several liveaboards in Tarbert who rarely leave their berth, so their boat is in reality, a floating home. The largest only left the harbour once a year to do the AF somewhere on the Clyde.
Compared to many yacht owners I would say I left the marina to sail more often. It is surprising to me, just how infrequently many yachts are actually used for their intended purpose, the majority being floating holiday homes with maybe an annual trip away for a week or two.

I agree that getting in and out of a marina should not be top of the list, nor should the size.
What is important I suggest, is the suitability for continuous habitation in all weathers. Even then there were a couple of times when I have had to decamp to my motorhome due to the violent motion and snatching of mooring lines and severe writhing of the main pontoon making accessing the boat very dangerous.

 

[PuffTheMagicDragon]

My boat is 32 feet long and is from 1973. While she is a delight to sail and easy to control she is a pig when motoring astern due to prop walk and an offset shaft. This makes going into a pontoon berth stern-to practically impossible, even on the very rare occasions where I do have crew. I did consider a bow-thruster but came to the conclusion that I would be buying something for the next owner to enjoy as I had my 70th birthday last December and don't sail as much as I used to.

My solution is to motor slowly into the berth and make the boat fast... bows-to. I then put her to bed and relax on deck or in the cockpit with some tea and my pipe. Then, when somebody I can trust walks along the pontoon and stops for a chat I ask for help in warping her around. As long as he/she follows my simple instructions it takes us less than three minutes to turn her around.

 

[maby]

......

Maby what boat do you have?

Beneteau Sense