In Search Of The Perfect Sailboat

Sailors are dreamers. As it might be adulterous to be thinking of another sailboat while one is so totally satisfied with their current boat, it’s not uncommon to have in the back of ones mind what the perfect sailboat might be. Just as a pretty girl might turn your head as she walks by on the street, so a salty little craft might do the same as she glides by on the sea. Does this perfect sailboat actually exist? I would have to say only in ones mind. I would like to share with you the salty little craft that I dream of.

 
First off if one is going to dream of the perfect sailboat one would want to have an idea of the need for that sailboat. In my dream she would be used for ocean crossing. Sailing to distant and remote locations of the globe. A safe and comfortable craft that would serve as my source of mobility and my home. She would be set up for single handed sailing and be easily handled. In my dream I would be setting out to cross oceans alone. Days or even weeks at sea with nothing but this salty little craft and myself.

One might call me a purist however I have a strict set of rules for what would or would not be onboard the perfect sailboat. Every item on this yacht would earn it’s keep or it would not come aboard. Locations for the stores and my personnel gear would be carefully thought out. Clutter would have to be eliminated. Everything would be manual, from the bilge pumps to the anchor windless. You don’t always have the luxury of power at sea. I would want to know I could make my way with nothing but myself and the wind. She would have a minimum of threw hulls if any at all. She would be enginless with only a set of deck sweeper oars to help maneuver about in a harbor. If I couldn’t get there by sailing I wouldn’t go at all. You might be asking yourself, "What is the perfect size of the perfect sailboat"? In my dream the smaller the better. Contrary to many a sailors dreams, my perfect sailboat would be of a size that I could jump over the side and push her off a bar if the bad luck of running aground were to take place. She would be sloop rigged with sails small enough to be handled alone in a blow. Her keel would be of full length with a stern hung rudder that could easily be gotten to. Her cockpit would be small so not to turn into a bathtub when being chased down the face of large waves by a following sea. Lighting of the cabin would be with oil not electricity, and so would be the ships running lights.

One could go on and on about the perfect sailboat, sailing on the perfect sea, at the most perfect time of ones life. But in reality does such a ship really exist other than in the mind? I would think not, however for myself there is a small little craft that does come close to the yacht in my dream. It’s the Pacific Seacraft Flicka. I’ve always said that someday I’ll own a Flicka or one of these day’s I’ll be out on the ocean alone. I have to admit, that someday hasn’t arrived yet. However one of these days…

Here are some fun stories form the owners of Ficka’s that have sailed them all over the world.
One of these days…

Singlehandling into the Cook Islands aboard a Pacific Seacraft Flicka

Living the Dream of Pacific Island Cruising

One Very Tough Lady

Searching the world for the proper boat

The Voyage of "Alsvid" Pacific Seacraft No. 7

The Pacific Seacraft Flicka "Absolute freedom and fun"

12 Crucial Questions that will help you select a better Cruising Sailboat

The Flicka brochure from the Pacific Seacraft homepage

Flicka Sailboat Home Page

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