Preview: Aboard a Legendary Boat, K. Aage Nielsen’s HOLGER DANSKE

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We climb aboard designer K. Aage Nielsen’s HOLGER DANSKE (his favorite boat) with owners Joy Phillips and Philip Myer, as they take us for a sail and give us a tour of this legendary ketch in Tasmania.

The culmination of and posterchild for Aage Nielsen designs, this magnificent double-ender is Scandinavian design and build quality at its finest. Strong, heavy, comfortable, and fast – HOLGER DANSKE is a stunning, fully-furnished cruising boat that can still win races.

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45 Responses So Far to “Aboard a Legendary Boat, K. Aage Nielsen’s HOLGER DANSKE”

  • Avatar

    Kaci Cronkhite says:

    Pure beauty! And the ride. Oh my! Comfy as they come. I was lucky to sail “home to Kettering” with Joy and that fun, talented crew of Mainers, Port Townsendites, and Aussies after the Australian WBF in 2019. Unforgettable sail. Hats off to Joy who’s done yet another tremendous phase of restoration/upgrade since then. Wonderful video OCH!

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    William Mittendorf says:

    I was lucky enough to sail with Aage many times in the late ’60s on the centerboard sloop, Butterfly. Aage was a lovely man. We were always racing, and I asked him once innocently, “If you built 41′ 210, would it be fast?” He replied, “Yes, it would be very fast.” There was a bit of a pause and then, “…wouldn’t be much room below.” It was a great lesson in compromise for a young man.

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    Scott Brown says:

    Pretty sure I saw Brion Toss in that cockpit shot. Was she in Port Townsend, or was Brion in Tasmania?

    Lovely vessel and outstanding video!

    -Scott

    Cape George 31′ Tally Ho!

    • Avatar

      Joy says:

      We were all very fortunate that Brion came out to speak at our Australian Wooden Boat Festival in Hobart, Tasmania. I used to work for him years ago, and he very kindly joined in on a local twilight race after the Festival. What an absolute treat.
      All the best
      Joy

    • Avatar

      Fred Green says:

      Ahoy Mr. Brown,
      Thank you for asking the question regarding Brion Toss. I just watched the video for I can’t say how many times and just noticed him or his look alike.
      Cheers to Mr. Toss. He will be missed.

      Regards,

      Fred Green
      Pearson 10m “Feliciy”

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    John Mark Connolly says:

    I think I’ve watched this video at least 5 times — it is one of my favorite of all the wonderful videos on OCH — and that’s saying something! Truly Holger Danske is a living work of art. I love seeing how she surfs on her own wake — at the smoothness of the quarter wake — like she is flying just above the water, not cutting through it. Just a beautiful boat, beautiful video and wonderful people to share her with us. Thanks so much!

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    Ken Borgers says:

    I couldn’t disagree more. Just look around! There are a wealth of great videos, writing, and boat sense in these web pages!
    Ken Borgers
    Life Member

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    Raymond Morgan says:

    Is Holger Danske a ketch or yawl? What is length on deck?
    Thank you,
    Morgan

    • Avatar

      Maynard Bray says:

      She’s a ketch and all of her particulars are listed in the Navigate Further portion of this video’s page above. Her LOD is 42’6”.

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    Trevor Gunning says:

    All the words have been said…Great to see Tasmania on the map its a great part of the world.
    All the best for her and her owners and crew.

  • Avatar

    Chris Noto says:

    Thanks to all who contributed to the making of this marvelous video. The boat, the people, the sailing, and the artistic and technical excellence of the document make my heart sing. Bravo!

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    edward demarco says:

    lovely boat…one major factor in her speed is her large sail area…

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    Robert Wilson says:

    A working piece of art; beyond beautiful. Thank you so much for sharing her beauty.

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    Theodore Casellini says:

    What a beautiful boat! Are there building plans available?

    • Avatar

      Maynard Bray says:

      Aage Nielsen’s drawings are housed at Peabody Essex Museum in Salem, MA, and I believe are available for study. Getting permission to build from them is possible, but involved.

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    William Elliott says:

    Beautiful video of a beautiful vessel. Thank you. Although I have a smaller, canoe stern vessel (PSC 34) that is quite competent, I’m envious of the superb craftsmanship and the wood construction.

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    Charles Zimmermann says:

    Tom Kiley raised some very good questions at the beginning of the video. Perhaps someone has the answers. This would be an excellent topic for a blog post (moderated by Maynard Bray, perhaps?). Logically there should be many boats which are similar to Holger Danske. But there aren’t. You might think that price is the reason. No it isn’t. A few years ago David Jones Yacht Brokerage http://rockportmarine.com/brokerage/ reported that Holger Danske was sold for $400,000. Of course no one will ever build a replica at that price but I bet the original price, in retrospect, looks like a bargain today. This is just an amazing boat.

  • Avatar

    Bill Courington says:

    I never expected such a wholesomely chubby boat to look so fast. Surely the footage has not been slightly speeded up …. ;-) Boat profiles such as this are my favorite Center Harbor feature.

    • Steve Stone

      Steve Stone says:

      It’s a good question, Bill. Nope, that’s her real speed you’re seeing.

  • Avatar

    Joel Schwalb says:

    Loved seeing some of the details of the craftsmanship. What a beautifully built boat.

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    Tim Leary says:

    She looks to be surfing her own wake! Very powerful looking.

    • Avatar

      James Dowle says:

      1 1/2 times the square root of the waterline lenth in feet gives you the hull speed in knots, when the boat surfs its bow wave.

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    Andrew Washburn says:

    Love the video….but it makes me long to go sailing. My boat’s on the hard for two more weeks.

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    Christopher Chadbourne says:

    What a remarkably smooth quarter wave!

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      Gordon Burvill says:

      I agree – it’s such a beautiful boat that even it’s quarter wave is captivating.

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    Eric Winter says:

    Did I see a state of Maine flag (not the ensign) flown as well?

    • Avatar

      Joy Phillips says:

      That’s correct, We were flying it as a courtesy , as there were OCH crew visiting from Maine onboard (Eric, Ben & Steve) as well as Tom Jackson from Woodenboat Magazine.

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        Gordon Burvill says:

        Hi Joy, if you don’t mind me asking, do you know how and when the boat made it to Tassie? Cheers

        • Avatar

          Joy Phillips says:

          Hi Gordon, sorry for the slow reply.
          She was sailed across the Pacific after her refit (which was done in Denmark 95-96).
          I believe she was kept in Pittwater (north of Sydney) for a few years before coming down to Tassie with the previous owner.
          Cheers

  • Avatar

    David Satter says:

    I remember this and Northern Crown in Woodenboat mag. years ago. Love these two boats heavy,fast and safe. I’ll have to dig out the old copy. Quality construction, It’s just beautiful.

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    Peter Beckett says:

    As a double ender cruising boat owner (Nor’Sea 27) it gave me so much pleasure to see Holger Danske sitting in the winner’s berth at the Royal Bermuda Yacht Club when she won the Newport Bermuda Race those many years ago. The bewilderment on the faces of crew members of the stripped-out racing hulls with every go-fast gadget imaginable sitting either side of her was the icing on the cake. Thanks for the nice coverage in Tasmania.

    • Avatar

      Philip Myer says:

      Wow that you were there !, Richard Wilson at 70 is just completing the solo round the world race- what a sailor and skipper.

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    Eric Maxwell says:

    I am in Quispamsis New Brunswick, enjoyed the video very much. I noticed the provincial flag for New Brunswick flying from a spreader and am curious about the connection with NB. Do you have any sense what that is?

    • Avatar

      Philip Myer says:

      We fly the NB State flag because we have been there and it is one of the most attractive flags I’ve seen.

  • Richard Greenway

    Richard Greenway says:

    Superb! The epitomy of all that I hold worthy in a craft.

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    Joseph Zawodny says:

    Such a unique and beautiful boat. OCH never disappoints. You do a wonderful showing the rest of the world boats that are special and unique. Thanks a bunch!!!!

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    Thomas Kiley says:

    Great job with the video. It did the boat, the designer and the builder justice.

  • Avatar

    Robin Van Auken says:

    A “magical” boat, indeed. It’s a beauty, with amazing attention to detail.

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