Big catamaran 45+ single hand friendly

[jdazey]

Well the question is about singlehanding, in this instance an Atlantic 55. I personally would have no trouble managing (and maintaining) that vessel, but, as you, I have some considerable experience.



Thread drift:
About the Atlantic series, I agree with you. Sue and I considered an Atlantic 42 that was for sale locally, inspected it a couple of times, and passed on it. The lack of an aft cockpit/entrance from which to unload groceries in a 25kt rainstorm was a major factor. We also found it a bit confining for a full-time liveaboard. Some of the larger Atlantics such as the 57 have an aft entry as well as the center cockpit and could have been contenders. Many years ago we did some racing aboard a Brown 40 tri. Nice boat, but the center cockpit was far too exposed to the elements. Going upwind in a breeze was like standing in front of a fire hose. Center cockpits are not our preference despite the convenience of having access to all the lines right at the base of the mast.


And keep the wife happy!


Cheers,

[sv Stella Maris]

Most boats can be singlehanded with the right captain, right experience level, and right conditions.

So many questions here the OP is just looking to be involved in the forum and have a conversation. We are all there, good on you and keep asking questions.

If I teed my Lagoon 450F one reef deeper than necessary I single hand her easily. If I know the cruising grounds I am comfortable alone, including docking/anchoring. Change any of these and the answer is no.

-Forward sonar: worthless for the untrained season navigator (advanced tool, IMHO)

-Radar: I can see even small fishing boats ( need to play with the sensitivity settings and sea condition settings). But you must use it for hours to understand what you're looking at, again)

-Watch the weather, read weather books for sailing, and watch the sky every hour and make predictions ! Then learn from the results.

Go slow, go simple, go now...(best advice ever)

[PineyWoodsPete]

Originally Posted by jdazey

Well the question is about singlehanding, in this instance an Atlantic 55. I personally would have no trouble managing (and maintaining) that vessel, but, as you, I have some considerable experience.



Thread drift:
About the Atlantic series, I agree with you. Sue and I considered an Atlantic 42 that was for sale locally, inspected it a couple of times, and passed on it. The lack of an aft cockpit/entrance from which to unload groceries in a 25kt rainstorm was a major factor. We also found it a bit confining for a full-time liveaboard. Some of the larger Atlantics such as the 57 have an aft entry as well as the center cockpit and could have been contenders. Many years ago we did some racing aboard a Brown 40 tri. Nice boat, but the center cockpit was far too exposed to the elements. Going upwind in a breeze was like standing in front of a fire hose. Center cockpits are not our preference despite the convenience of having access to all the lines right at the base of the mast.


And keep the wife happy!


Cheers,

Louise is happy! Pictured below in Santa Barbara near the end of a two week 700nm cruise last Oct. from Monterey to the Channel Islands, turning around at the fabled town of Avalon on Catalina. Had our granddaughter of 15 and friend for a week of it. But we were only 79 then!


A couple of "trick ponies" on the boat are the fold-down 8' wide transom to a swim platform/cockpit extension; and a huge portion of the cabin aft mirrored glass bulkhead that tilts up 90deg. on a hydraulic strut against cockpit ceiling, opening the entire salon. These, plus the huge, efficient fridge/freezer sold m'luv on the boat.

[tccoolair]

Unfortunately not too many people here answered your question. I have a SEAWIND where there are 2 helms & you can see all 4 corners quite easily from either helm making docking easier under all circumstances. Having said that there are always tricky situations that arise & I agree with most that bow thrusters would have to suit the Individual boat NOT just an after thought hoping they will do it for you. Practice makes perfect & being able to see all 4 corners in MY opinion is a must. HAPPY SAILING TO ALL

[tomfl]

Originally Posted by tccoolair

Unfortunately not too many people here answered your question. I have a SEAWIND where there are 2 helms & you can see all 4 corners quite easily from either helm making docking easier under all circumstances. Having said that there are always tricky situations that arise & I agree with most that bow thrusters would have to suit the Individual boat NOT just an after thought hoping they will do it for you. Practice makes perfect & being able to see all 4 corners in MY opinion is a must. HAPPY SAILING TO ALL

Same here. My Seawind (and others as well) have great visibility. They are basically open deck cats with a hard top attached with windows all around in the hard top. Some of the older Seawind 1000s had a canvas Bimini instead of a hard top. I agree being able to see all four corners is a big OK.

[Octopus]

Great thread! Many good ideas and thoughts.

My thoughts...

It's not imperative to be able to see all four corners of the boat, it's better to be able to see two corners on one side really well, as you can almost always just turn round and dock coming in the other way.

There may be conditions where you initially use bow or stern lines only when docking, but for me a midship line has always worked best. I drop a line led through a midship fairlead over a dock cleat and haul in the line with the electric winch, while using the motors to control boat position relative to the dock.

For picking up a mooring, I lower a light chain between the two hulls at the stern, motor over the mooring buoy, which is trapped by the chain, then set the motor to keep the buoy nestled nearest to the helm then at my leisure attach a line and lead it round to the bow.

Reefing the main is the the most difficult single handed task for me because my cat is not well enough balanced to hold her head into the wind in challenging conditions. The autopilot can manage it in less challenging conditions. The answer, I suppose, is to reef very early or just drop the main completely in more challenging conditions and then raise it with reefs in.

I never use our radar, but other people swear by them. One day I'll give it a try. I rely solely on the AIS for collision avoidance.

[bdgWesternMass]

Originally Posted by Grimgrak

Why are forward facing sonars so lacking in terms of distance typically under 100M vs the depth sounding sonar that go so much further?

My understanding is that:

The spread of the beam can be thought of as a cone. The spread of the cone has to be evenly distributed to get a good reading. The sonar depth is what limits the distance that SONAR is effective. The below the surface distance limits the SONAR's overall range as the signal exits the water.