Here is a gem of a book that OCH Guide Iain Oughtred brought to our attention. It’s a must for anyone who sails a small boat, even if it’s not a dinghy and even if you’re not planning to cruise. Author Roger Barnes describes what has worked for him, and just as importantly, he shares what he’s learned from mistakes along the way. He is English and knows how to handle fog, tidal currents, big winds and heavy seas—and enjoy it all safely. His boat, AVEL DRO, was built to Francois Vivier’s Ilur design and carries a huge lugsail. Her interior is sectioned off like an old-time Man of War, with a “squalid” foc’s’le, a cooking and washing area amidships, and “plush” officers’ quarters in the stern. All this in an open 15-footer! There’s plenty of good humor and down-to-earth writing based on wide experience, as well as a rundown of other available dinghy-types that make good cruisers. Below is just a sample of what you’ll find inside the covers of this exceptional little book. If you love it, here’s the link to purchase the book (in print or for Kindle) on Amazon.
All material © Roger Barnes and posted here with permission of the author.
Introduction: On the Edge of the Wild
My aim in this book is to encourage you to use a small open boat to explore local and more distant waters. We will discover the amazing flexibility of a dinghy, small enough to be trailed behind a car and launched almost anywhere there is navigable water. A little boat, honed to her purpose, can carry you sure-footedly over the waves into the most beautiful and remote places.
Over the Horizon
Loctudy has a melancholic end-of-season air. The café-bar at the marina is closed, and its canvs canopies slat mournfully in the chill north-east wind. It is very late in the year for a sailing holiday, but I had a sudden whim to go cruising. Unlike most cabin yachts, my dinghy is not laid up ashore half the year, waiting to be craned back into the water in the spring. I am free to go sailing at any time I like. This means I can take advantage of the magical spells of settled weather that sometimes occur in late autumn, just before the onset of winter.
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Mark Darley says:
I just spent a few days at a Swallow boats rally/raid in Mylor, Cornwall. These boats, and especially the open boat designs, should be on the radar of anyone looking for a cruising dinghy with optional water ballast.
http://swallowyachts.com/range/bay-raider-20/
Will Parkes says:
I’ve read the whole book now on Kindle and it’s the best book on dinghy cruising I’ve seen. I particularly enjoyed the discussion of Ilur, Wayfarers and Drascombs.
Peter Brackenbury says:
Some more on the ilur and Barnes’ dinghy cruising exploits.
http://www.classicboat.co.uk/articles/dinghy-down-the-loire/
Peter Brackenbury says:
Thanks Dustin! I have been holding off purchasing this for some unclear reason. I have read about Roger Barnes before and his exploits have steered me toward the Ilur as a possible build one day. I think he captures the spirit of being in a small boat and how it forces you to be fully in the moment allowing nature to dictate the rules. Once that is embraced, a whole new world opens up. I will be picking up his book immediately.