Osbert
I remember reading something boat designer John Welsford wrote about the importance of ‘dream boats’. The essence was that if you want a boat to fulfil your dreams you should build it, even if those dreams might not become reality. And when creating a new design the designer not only needs to respect his client's dreams, but also ensure the boat works for other times on the water. John designed his Walkabout specifically for someone’s dream of singlehanded cruising on the Maine Island Trail, but he also made sure it would be a great boat for going around the bay with a couple of friends.
My dream when I chose the Walkabout design was in two parts: cruising in local waters for up to a week at a time, visiting the coastal villages and islands of the Firth of Forth; and being able to quickly get on the water for a couple of hours at a time, grabbed at the weekend and evenings.
In reality, most of my “adventurous” sailing has been on the Sail Caledonia raid – four times so far, though only twice in “Scratch”. I’ve discovered that the main barrier to multi-day cruises on local waters is committing the time.
Scratch view under the sail: Sailing Scratch on the Firth of Forth, my local waters: Arthurs Seat dominating the Edinburgh skyline
Scratch view past mizzen: Visiting Fisherrow Harbour just down the coast. One of the joys of the Walkabout is that when the wind drops, rowing is a pleasure, not a chore
20.