Bucket List Boats
Some boats are worth exploring simply because they are unusual, historic, beautifully designed or represent a different approach to boating. Bucket List Boats takes me beyond my own restoration projects to tour distinctive sailboats, trawlers, wooden boats and other interesting vessels. These are boats I always wanted to own, boats I always wanted to work on. They captured my imagination and inspired me to keep working on my own boat restoration projects. These episodes look at boat design, construction, history, layouts and unique features, while meeting the owners, builders and craftsmen who keep these boats on the water.
Forester 26 — An 85-Year-Old Detroit Wooden Sailboat
The 1940 Forester 26 Hope is an 85-year-old wooden sloop built in Detroit from one-inch African mahogany planking over white-oak frames. In this episode, I sail with Dennis, who has owned and maintained the boat for nearly 60 years, and explore what it takes to preserve a classic wooden sailboat across generations. From replacing more than 1,400 fasteners and machining replacement fittings to maintaining its original-style 25-hp Detroit-built Kermath Cub gasoline engine, Hope represents both Detroit’s boat-building history and the extraordinary longevity possible with a properly maintained wooden boat.
Exploring a Rare Fales Navigator 32 Motorsailer
The Fales Navigator 32 combines characteristics of a traditional motorsailer, pilothouse cruiser and small trawler in a boat designed for comfortable long-distance cruising. In this episode, I tour a rare 1975 example and examine its canoe stern, dual helm stations, pilothouse, liveaboard interior and heavy-displacement construction. I also explore the unusual history behind the design and how it evolved from the Willard Marine Horizon into the Fales Navigator 32. With only eight reportedly built, it’s the kind of unusual and capable cruising boat that belongs on the Bucket List Boats.
Nimble Arctic 25 — A Trailerable Motorsailer
The Nimble Arctic 25 is an unusual combination of trailerable sailboat, motorsailer and pocket cruiser. Designed by Ted Brewer, the 25-foot boat combines a pilothouse and interior helm with a sailing rig, compact cruising accommodations and distinctive traditional details such as bronze portholes. In this episode, I tour the boat from bow to stern, looking at its fiberglass construction, tabernacle mast, helm, salon, galley, V-berth and trailerability. Its combination of sail and power capability, manageable size and cruising accommodations makes the Arctic 25 one of my personal Bucket List Boats.
Willard 8-Ton World Cruiser — A Classic Bluewater Cutter
The Willard 8-Ton World Cruiser is a rare, heavily built 30-foot cutter designed by W. B. Crealock for serious offshore cruising. In this episode, I tour a 1976 example and examine its heavy fiberglass construction, cutter rig, bowsprit, cruising interior, Perkins diesel, self-steering equipment and extensive sail inventory. With only about 30 reportedly built, the Willard represents an era when relatively small sailboats were designed for genuine long-distance and bluewater cruising. This particular boat was offered as a remarkably inexpensive restoration project, making it an especially interesting Bucket List Boat.
Skipper 20 — Salty Character Sailboat
The Southern Sails Skipper 20 is a small trailerable sailboat with unusual traditional styling, including a faux-lapstrake fiberglass hull and canoe stern. After looking for one for more than a decade, I finally found a 1981 example and performed an initial assessment of its hull, deck, rigging, interior and outboard well. Beyond determining what the boat needs for restoration, I explore why this distinctive little cruiser has remained on my Bucket List Boats and its potential for future modifications, including a pilothouse conversion.
Lindsay 39 Globe Master — A Motorsailer Built for Adventure Cruising
The Lindsay 39 Globe Master is a rare 39-foot motorsailer designed to combine sailing capability with the range, protection and accommodations needed for long-distance adventure cruising. In this episode, I tour Ariana, a 50-year-old example powered by an 85-horsepower Ford Lehman diesel, and explore its heavy construction, shoal-draft keel, center cockpit, protected pilothouse and large aft cabin. With roller-furling sails, substantial interior accommodations and the ability to cruise comfortably under either sail or power, the Globe Master represents an unusual approach to the adventure-cruising motorsailer and earns its place among my Bucket List Boats.
Legacy 32 MkIII Trawler— A Compact Great Loop Boat
The Legacy 32 MkIII is the kind of compact trawler I’ve admired for more than a decade. In this episode, I tour this rare 32-foot cruiser and examine the features that make it particularly interesting as a Great Loop boat, including its protected pilothouse, practical deck layout, substantial helm station, cruising accommodations and Yanmar diesel propulsion. The Legacy combines the feel and capability of a much larger cruising yacht with dimensions that remain manageable for a couple. Its “big little ship” design philosophy, rugged fiberglass construction and efficient layout make the Legacy 32 MkIII one of my personal Bucket List Boats.
Simmerskip 900 — Cruising Friesland in a Dutch Steel Trawler
The Simmerskip 900 is a 30-foot Dutch steel trawler designed for the canals, rivers and lakes that define cruising in the Netherlands. In this episode, I spend a week aboard one while exploring Friesland, using the boat as both transportation and a small liveaboard cruiser. The trip provides a real-world look at Dutch steel trawler design, including its compact accommodations, galley, helm and cruising layout, while navigating locks, bridges, municipal berths and the waterways connecting Friesland’s towns and lakes. Living aboard the Simmerskip for a week also provided practical ideas for the design of my own pocket trawler and a chance to answer a basic question: how much boat do you really need for comfortable adventure cruising?
MV Shé:Kon— A Backyard-Built Plywood-Epoxy Trawlerr
The Bateau.com T-34 demonstrates what is possible with modern amateur boat-building methods and a determined builder working in a remarkably small space. In Ontario, Canada, I visit Rick LaPorte and his 31-foot MV Shé:Kon, a modified T-34 trawler built from a CNC-cut kit using plywood-and-epoxy construction. The project explores how precisely cut panels are assembled into a complete cruising boat, along with Rick’s modifications, composite construction techniques, interior finishing and custom details. Built almost entirely in his backyard, Shé:Kon is an impressive example of how CNC technology and plywood-epoxy construction can make building a full-size cruising trawler possible for an amateur boat builder.
Mystery 28-Foot Cold-Molded Wooden Gaff Cutter
Hidden inside a century-old Detroit factory, I discovered a mysterious 28-foot cold-molded wooden gaff cutter that had been sitting unfinished and largely forgotten for years. In this episode, I examine the boat’s unusual cold-molded plywood hull construction, traditional gaff rig, wooden spars, bronze hardware, keel and Yanmar diesel, while trying to determine exactly what the boat is and where it came from. Part abandoned restoration project and part traditional wooden yacht, this mystery cutter provides a fascinating look at cold-molded wooden boat construction and an unusual sailboat that deserves another chance to get back on the water.
Nauticat 33 — When a Dream Boat Becomes a Restoration Project
The Nauticat 33 is a classic Finnish-built ketch motorsailer combining a protected pilothouse, substantial cruising accommodations and heavy fiberglass construction. In this episode, I revisit a 1973 Nauticat 33 being offered free after an ambitious restoration and Great Loop dream stalled. I tour the boat from bow to stern, examining its solid fiberglass hull, 75-hp Yanmar diesel, deteriorated deck and unfinished restoration, while discussing what it would realistically take to put the boat back into service. It’s both a look at an interesting Bucket List motorsailer and a case study in how even a free boat can become an enormous restoration commitment.
Glen-L Yukon — Building a 37-Foot Wooden Trawler in Dublin
Could one person really build a 37-foot pilothouse trawler in a front yard? In Dublin, Ireland, amateur boat builder Damian McGlone did exactly that, constructing a Glen-L Yukon trawler from plywood, epoxy and fiberglass. In this episode, I tour the project and talk with Damian about the techniques, planning and persistence required to turn a set of DIY boat plans into a full-size cruising yacht. Similar in concept to a traditional Grand Banks-style trawler, the Yukon demonstrates the remarkable scale of boat that can be built using amateur plywood boat-building methods without a professional boatyard.
“Nova” — A 20-Foot Norwegian Motorsailer
The 20-foot Comet Nova is one of the most ingenious small motorsailers I’ve encountered. In Langesund, Norway, I meet owner Atle Vemren, who has spent more than 40 years adapting the boat for practical coastal cruising and fishing. Despite its compact size, Nova combines a pilothouse, dual helm stations, full keel, sailing rig and approximately 3,000-pound displacement with an extraordinary collection of owner-built modifications. From aluminum-pole rigging to its handcrafted interior, Nova demonstrates how traditional Norwegian working-boat ideas and decades of practical experience can turn a very small motorsailer into a remarkably capable cruising boat.
Glen-L Union Jack 36— Backyard-Built Steel Trawler
The Glen-L Union Jack is a substantial steel trawler designed to be built by an amateur boat builder from plans. In this episode, I inspect a 1996 self-built example with classic tugboat styling, a steel hull, plywood-and-fiberglass superstructure, pilothouse and 120-hp Ford diesel. Despite needing significant restoration, the boat retains a remarkably complete cruising interior, wide side decks, bow thruster and hydraulic systems. At an asking price of just $6,000, this Union Jack raises an interesting Bucket List Boat question: can a neglected, owner-built steel trawler become an affordable coastal cruiser and Great Loop boat—or does the scale of the restoration overwhelm the bargain purchase price?
Halman 20 — Bluewater Pocket Cruiser
The Halman 20 is one of a small group of trailerable pocket sailboats with a reputation for cruising far beyond what its 20-foot length might suggest. After searching for one for more than 20 years, I finally bought one and evaluated the hull, deck, rigging, sails, ballast, keel and interior to determine what restoration it really needed. I also explore the Halman 20’s history, its relationship to the Nordica 20 and Midget 20, and the Scandinavian working-boat heritage behind these rugged little cruisers. It’s a fascinating example of how seaworthiness, simplicity and traditional design can produce serious cruising capability in a remarkably small sailboat.
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