What are the capabilities of a 31ft yacht

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Sblaton113

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Hi there,

I'm looking at buying a beneteau 311 clipper but have been told to be careful as sailing a 31ft yacht in the med is "a death wish".

Can you not use a 311 to cross oceans? and by oceans I'm talking the distance from mainland spain to ibiza or from the uk to france (channel crossing)?

any advice from people who have made voyages in similar sized vessels is very welcome!

thanks!

Seb
 
Read about Shane Acton and Shrimpy - that was an 18 foot boat and he had virtually no experience of sailing, but he still managed to sail it right round the world and survive! The Dyes sailed an open 16 foot Wayfarer from Iceland to Scotland and lived to tell the tale...

A 31 foot yacht is certainly capable of crossing oceans - many of the ARC boats are no bigger than that each year - but it would make for a rather cramped and possibly uncomfortable trip. The deciding factor is really more the skill and resilience of the crew - in a real Atlantic storm, a 50 footer is not a lot better equipped to survive than a 30 footer.
 
P.S. it is possible that the "death wish" is more a case of sailing a small and relatively unnoticeable boat in crowded waters - but, once again, that really comes down to crew experience and the level of equipment of the boat. A 50 footer is not a lot more noticeable at a distance than a 30 footer - if you expect to be sailing in congested waters or difficult conditions, then make sure it is well equipped with radar and AIS.
 
Sblaton113 said:
Hi there,

I'm looking at buying a beneteau 311 clipper but have been told to be careful as sailing a 31ft yacht in the med is "a death wish".

Can you not use a 311 to cross oceans? and by oceans I'm talking the distance from mainland spain to ibiza or from the uk to france (channel crossing)?

any advice from people who have made voyages in similar sized vessels is very welcome!

thanks!

Seb
Click to expand...

Who ever told you this is talking xxxxxxxx
 
Where it could be an issue is that it would be hard to sell as so many 45 to 50 foot boats come on the market cheaply in the med each year.

But sailing wise - totally capable
 
Might be worth looking at the YBW Jester Challenge site.

Lots of small boats doing some impressive passages in small coastal cruising boats duly modified for something more serious
 
A while ago I delivered a Gibsea 31 foot yacht from Gib to Corfu via Malta. It was a hoot. Very enjoyable trip but with some wonky weather south of Sicily.
 
My second yacht was a Trintella 29. First owner had completed an Atlantic circuit in it. Our sailing was more modest but we did make the northern North Sea crossing from Shetland to Norway.
Smaller boats have the advantage of being cheaper to berth and maintain, which may help increase your cruising range.
 
There is a definite disadvantage for a small yacht in crowded anchorages. Large boats tend to ignore the small boats and anchor as close as they wish. After all, if they swing and bump into one another, the small boat tends to suffer most.

I sailed an IF folkboat for a few years in the Med and was continually having to move despite being first there.
 
A 311 is perhaps not quite the roughest toughest 31 footer you can get. Certainly used to be one for charter in teh Solent and maybe still is. You could give it a go one weekend over the winter and see what you think yourself.
 
Sblaton113 said:
Hi there,

I'm looking at buying a beneteau 311 clipper but have been told to be careful as sailing a 31ft yacht in the med is "a death wish".

Can you not use a 311 to cross oceans? and by oceans I'm talking the distance from mainland spain to ibiza or from the uk to france (channel crossing)?

any advice from people who have made voyages in similar sized vessels is very welcome!

thanks!

Seb
Click to expand...

balls!!

I've sailed over 20K nautical miles all round the Med in a 31 footer during the last 10 years - even involved beating up from N Crete to Thassos during the Meltemi.
Mostly single-handed.

Obviously talking to a bar-room sailor.
 
I sail a 30' Gibsea originally designed to race the Solitaire du Figaro (ocean sailing singlehanded). With the usual caveats about ability and planning you can go anywhere in a 30 footer.
 
We had an Oceanis 311 (lifting keel) about 20 years ago and kept it for a couple of years.

We sailed mainly on the Solent but made a few longer journeys to Channel Islands, France, and West Country. We sailed as two adults plus two young boys (6/7 years old).

The boat always performed well and we had a few long weekends away with extra guests so it was very spacious for its length. The cockpit tent was useful for winter sailing and wet days.

Our boat was a bit more lively because of the lifting keel which was more of a daggerboard than a weighted keel. However, the boat never felt unsafe to me.

I’m not sure if you know but Ibiza is only 50 miles to mainland Spain and Ibiza to Mallorca is about the same. I would much rather make those crossings than cross English Channel because the weather is better and there are no tides to contend with. The 311 would cope easily with this sort of voyage. We are in Mallorca right now and we have met several full time liveaboards on similar sized boats.

I think that crossing Biscay is not risking your life if you sensibly wait for a pleasant weather window like most of the rest of us do - with good weather forecast apps and grab files this is very doable if you are patient.

I’m not so sure about crossing oceans in a 311 but that’s more because I have never sailed across one myself so have no experience to reflect on.

Interestingly, I think that our boat cost just over £60k new, we sold it for about £45-46k and they still sell for about £30k now. So, not much depreciation over the last 18 years!

Garold
 
Are you sure that when you were told it was a 'death wish' they were talking about its sailing capabilities? These days a 31 foot boat is very small by Mediterranean standards. Our almost-35 ft boat is nearly invariably the smallest boat in harbours and anchorages. There is a reason why small boats are not more popular. When the ambient temperature is approaching 40 C, even at night, it is a lot more comfortable to be in something bigger, with its higher battery capacity, more space, bigger stowage, fuel and water tankage, etc. We are perfectly happy as we are but some people seem to think they cannot manage in anything smaller than 55 ft.
 
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