Dinghy for CD22

[oldragbaggers]

I would be very interested to know how you CD22 sailors address the "dinghy problem". We will be sailing in the Chesapeake where a lot of time will no doubt be spent at anchor and a dinghy would be extremely valuable. The only way I can think is to tow one and I would like to hear from sailors who have some experience with this (as we do not), especially in the Bay. Or other innovative ideas would be appreciated.
Thanks,
Becky

[Joe CD MS 300]

I have an inflatable Inova kyack. Its similar to some of the Sevylor models but made of mutch better materials. It packs up into a backpack type bag. It gets you around and is fun but would be of limited value for hauling a lot of gear.

Joe

[Jim Davis]

Just a thought. For a boat the size of the 22, you will probably find a rigid easier to handle. They tow well and are fairly stable for two plus groceries. They are also good for rowing, some even sailing. You might want to look at Walker Bay and similar.

Inflatables on the other hand aren't great or towing. Unless it has a rigid or inflated floor it can actually act as a sea anchor, and with your speed this can really be a drag. Also the idea of deflating it and stowing it in a locker - a lot of effort and take a good look at the available space on the 22. I might add these normally row like a three legged dog and to windward - worse Of course you can use a small outboard, but then you have more to stow.

When I had a 25, I towed a Dyer. I kept it when we moved up to an Albeg 30 and now with our CT35 we carry either a 9 foot RIB (working dinghy)or the Dyer (formal dinghy) on davits. This isn't an option for you.

Now the food fight will begin.

[rtbates]

We use an inflatable 2 person kayak on our 25D with great success. It's light enough to haul aboard easily and stow on the side deck, or it can be deflated and stored in it's own bag behind the mast. Or if you want to go state of the art try these guys.

http://www.tinkerinflatables.com/

They even have a liferaft as well as sailing options. And being what is basically a catamaran it moves easily thru the water I'd imagine.

[Tod Mills]

At present, on my little (17') boat I use a small inflatable dinghy (the smallest in the inexpensive Sevylor line):

[img]http://www.todspages.net/images/NC04a10-rowashore.jpg[/img]

It works for me for taking my pup ashore, but it is one crowded dinghy!

It rows poorly (i.e. anchor close to shore and go straight there and back) and don't even think of towing it (tried that once for about 5 minutes in light air), but it has two advantages: it deflates and stows in a cockpit locker and it will not, no matter how madly I row, put a ding in my topsides.

I have stowed it on the foredeck, but would only do that for shorter hops in milder weather. It does save the rather tedious chore of pumping it up again with the high volume pump (big dia cylinder avail at W-mart):

[img]http://www.todspages.net/images/NC04b01 ... redeck.jpg[/img]

On the Maine cruise last summer, others that I was cruising with took: a Gloucester Light Dory, a Nymph pram, and a Walker Bay 8. I got the chance to use each of them.

The Gloucester Light Dory was clearly the best rower, but was very tippy and generally not the best all around dinghy as it was long (over 15', bigger than the boat that was towing it), provided a fair amount of drag in light air, and was a bit on the heavy side. It's gunwales were unpadded, so care was needed.

The Nymph was a surprisingly good rower, and had a very small presence in the water when unloaded. With an oversized skeg or a bit of weight in the stern to keep the regular skeg in the water, it towed nicely without too much drag. Dittoes on the gunwales.

The Walker Bay surprised me. I started out biased against it (what can I say, I was being a snob) but found that it rowed quite nicely (maybe even better than the Nymph) and with it's semi-flexible construction really didn't need gunwale padding particularly.

All of those boats offer some reason for concern while towing should the weather sour, but the Nymph was light enough that it might be stowable on deck if it's not too horribly rough.

For my 26' boat I'm going to want something that rows nicely, so I think something like the Nymph or perhaps a custom-designed dinghy (using Greg Carlson's free program "Hulls") will be a possibility.

I'm considering a small kayak for the 17'er, knowing that it will be kind of wet, have very limited load capability, and be rather tricky to get in and out of from the mother ship.....

[Bill Watson]

Another option is the folding Porta-Bote. I've dragged the smallest one (8'3") behind Kittiwake without problems in flat water. Was finally showed how to fold and unfold it across the life-lines, relatively easy to handle along - weight about 45 pounds. Storage is easy, although you need space for the 2 seats and transom. When folded, I tie it to starboard stanchions and it is about the same height as cabin top. It rows well, although I'm finally looking at small outboards. Easy to get in and out of from Kittiwake - and beam approx 5' - so pretty good space for carrying supplies, etc.
Peace and Fair Winds, Bill

[Joe Myerson]

I'm not sure why Tod says he was a "snob" about the Walker Bay. I've had the 8-foot model for about four years now, longer than I've had a Cape Dory.

The boat's advantages include:
--surprisingly easy rowing
--not bad towing
--no need for extra padding on the gunwales
--relatively low price.

The disadvantages include:
--light and seemingly unstable when climbing onto the boat
--a U-bolt in the bow that should have extra backing added if you plan to tow
--(this is the biggest for me) this plastic boat won't accept antifouling paint. Since I have to keep it in the water at a club dinghy dock, I've got to scrape it off at least once every two weeks.

All that said, I think I'd prefer to have something that I could stow on the foredeck, or deflate and stow below, when I go on longer cruises. The inflatable kayak looks particularly appealing, if I can find one within my price range.

I hope these observations help a bit.

--Joe

[Cathy Monaghan]

If you don't mind rowing, take a look at these lightweight inflatables. They won't break the bank either.

Since you've got a small boat, you may want something that you can stow -- towing isn't really a good idea if you plan on making any trips longer than 20 miles. If you can't stow it below, lash it down on deck.

Small inflatable boats, especially the Intex Inflatables, at Cabela's. Then check out the Sevylor Tender Runabout at QualityInflatables.com.

There are some interesting choices in inflatable kayaks as well.

If you want a more sturdy, yet inexpensive, dinghy, take a look at what BoatstoGo.com has to offer -- in particular, the 8' 6" Saturn SD260. Right now it's on sale for $799.00. (Can't comment on the quality -- have never seen one in person.)

[Steve Laume]

Cathy, when you say towing is not a good idea for more than 20 miles, could you elaborate a bit. Are you talking about more than 20 miles offshore or just that amount of distance? I know I will have to do something different if we start doing many offshore trips but for now we are towing a CD-10. It is amazingly seaworthy when it is towed empty. It is a joy to row and sail as well as look at. What are the major pitfalls in towing a dink? I know we have to deal with adjusting the tow lines and it is a nuisance when we get a fish on or on those rare occasions that we pull up to a dock. Is the main concern the the thing will capsize and rip out the painter sometime in the middle of the night? This must be why all the new boats seem to be 45' and larger. Plenty of room for a dinghy aboard but you never see one in the adds, Steve.

[Jim Davis]

I took a good look at a Walker Bay today and would make one change. I would do this to any other stock dinghy, and have done it to my Dyer.

I would add a towing eye down at about the water line. This raises the bow a tad and makes it track a lot better. The only reasons I can think of for a high eye is it looks better and is cheaper to instal. For the Walker Bay, I would get a 1"x8" SS tang and bend it to fit as a backing plate and use a 5/16" U-Bolt for the eye. On a fiberglass dinghy I use epoxy filled with fibers to reinforce the area, but the WB plastic would not bond.

For places like the Chesapeake towing is a good option, and I have sen many boats towing the full length of the ICW. A couple cautions should be made. The bottom of the dink may need frequent cleaning and when coming alon side it is advisable to put it on the outboard side for a while. Also don't back hard when towing - here you get goosed and probably foul the prop. Polypropylene line and floats help, but....... Also I put a large plastic funnel on the painter about 2 feet from the dinghy. This is on so in towing the neck points toward the big boat, if I slow down it drags wide side forward and slews the dinghy to one side or the other. For towing in heavy weather, be careful and adjust as needed.

Remember this discussion started for a 22 foot boat where deck stowage isn't a practical idea. Also it is oriented toward weekend cruising and exploring creeks/visiting towns while anchored off. inflatable kayaks work, but if Mama wants to do a restaurant in St. Michaels? Folding boats are also viable.

[Joe Myerson]

Jim is right about towing a dinghy--it's a fine solution for sheltered waters like the ICW, and probably the Chesapeake. I've always towed a dinghy when cruising in the Buzzards Bay-Vineyard Sound area. However, doing so can get awfully tricky when heading downwind in heavy chop. That's when you've got to make sure that the dink doesn't get going faster than the boat and slam into the transom. (The rubrail across the stern of my catboat had a couple of dents from just that sort of mishap.)

I would imagine that in really large waves, such as you can get in open water, it could be a problem. Whenever I've cruised in open water, on my own boat or on others', we've either left the dinghy at home or (on larger boats) carried one on deck.

--Joe

[Cathy Monaghan]

Hi Steve,

Cathy, when you say towing is not a good idea for more than 20 miles, could you elaborate a bit. Are you talking about more than 20 miles offshore or just that amount of distance? I know I will have to do something different if we start doing many offshore trips but for now we are towing a CD-10. It is amazingly seaworthy when it is towed empty. It is a joy to row and sail as well as look at. What are the major pitfalls in towing a dink? I know we have to deal with adjusting the tow lines and it is a nuisance when we get a fish on or on those rare occasions that we pull up to a dock. Is the main concern the the thing will capsize and rip out the painter sometime in the middle of the night? This must be why all the new boats seem to be 45' and larger. Plenty of room for a dinghy aboard but you never see one in the adds, Steve.

The weather can surprise you, sometimes it will defy the weather forcasters, and any winds above 30 kts can make towing a dinghy of any kind risky. We learned this firsthand while sailing home in 45 kt winds on Raritan Bay. (This was when we were still working, it was Sunday and we had to be to work on Monday morning.) The wind and waves were on our starboard stern quarter as we sailed on a broad reach toward home at over 9 kts. (I think our speed would have topped 10 if it wasn't for the dinghy!)

Our inflatable, an Apex weighing in at about 80 lbs, was engaged in acrobatic maneuvers the entire time -- flipping upsidedown, pitch poling, righting itself, and getting airborn. We could not get it aboard, otherwise we would have done so, and were really afraid of losing it. Luckily we didn't lose it and after that experience we will never tow it again for anything more than a short hop -- 20-30 miles or less -- and in light air only. We store the dinghy, rolled up, in the quarter berth when not in use. It only takes about 20 minutes to set it up, so it's not a problem. If the dinghy is going to spend the night in the water tethered to our boat's stern, we remove everything from the dinghy including the motor.

We've also watched the dinghies tethered behind other boats at anchor engaged in similar antics and this is NOT a good thing if the outboard is still attached to the dinghy's transom. Herb Reincke (CD330 Innisfail) can attest to this, as we contacted him over the VHF to let him know that his dinghy had flipped and the outboard was upsidedown and underwater! That happened a couple of years ago but it's not an isolated incident.

And if it's going to rain cats and dogs, the dinghy will fill up with several inches of water -- hard dinghies may sink (we've seen that happen too). While up in Maine in 2004 while in Camden we had several inches of rain overnight which sank nearly half the hard dinghies in the harbor, the other half were awash and the inflatables were all bathtubs.

So tow it when you can, but if the wind starts freshening, get the thing aboard before it's too late.


Fair winds,
Cathy
CD32 Realization, #3
Rahway, NJ
Raritan Bay

[oldragbaggers]

I would like to thank everyone for their input. There were probably a dozen points made that I had not considered, and it is obvious that this will take some more thinkin'.
And as for the "food fight", isn't that part of the fun??

Becky

[Steve Laume]

I do have one of those dings in my transom from the CD-14 surfing down and biffing the mother boat a good one. I saw it coming and dashed to try to head it off but I was too late. This was my own fault (isn't it always?) because I was towing on a short painter. I had the dinghy on the first wave and there was nothing to stop it before it got to the big boat. The CD-14 tracks very straight and it will get you. Whenever we tow The CD-10 it seems to veer off much more quickly and does not have a tendency to ram us. The CD-10 has been through ungodly waves and behaved itself very well. We got pooped on the big boat and the dink never took on a drop. We do not use a motor so that may help the seaworthiness and certainly lessens the consequences if it ever did flip. I want to make a cover for it this winter. This would take care of the rain problems and eliminate the need to bail it out every time we come down to the boat. It would also protect the varnish so it should stay beautiful for a long time. Beautiful is not a would that has any bearing on inflatables. I have never had this rig out in very high winds so I just don't know how it would fair in those conditions, Steve.

[George Shaunfield]

It seems to me there is another option for a dinghy for a small boat that no one has mentioned -- a nesting dinghy.

I currently use an inflatable kayak, but am planning to build a 9' nesting dinghy. When the bow section is inside the aft section it will be 4'7" long. Just so happens that it would fit aft of the mast on my CD 26 with only 1" overhang to the open main hatch and inside the handrails. The plans for this particular dinghy are available from B & B Yacht Designs http://www.bandbyachtdesigns.com/yachtt3.htm. They have smaller and larger models as well. And, of course, there are many other sources for plans of nesting dinghies. Most are built using the stitch and glue method for a modest cost. This model can be powered by oars, sail, or outboard.

It will be a lot easier to row my 22# Bruce anchor out in a hard dinghy than carry it in my lap in an inflatable kayak (which I have done twice). It should tow fairly well and yet still be able to be carried upside down on deck behind the mast in rough weather, or offshore, while leaving the foredeck clear.

Food for thought.
George