QSM Page 5

The Catamaran ‘Gannet’.

As an apprentice, I was obliged to sail in 32ft Cutters and 27ft Whalers on the river Tamar.  When I worked in Malta for 18 months, I spent my spare time sailing RNSA dinghies.

 About 25yrs ago, I got a book of Catamaran drawings from James Wharram. I chose the Tiki 21 plans because the hulls were about 3 feet wide and would fit down path at the side of our house.  The instructions given were clear and I had no trouble following them.  My hulls are made of 1/4” Douglas fir, 3 ply, coated with glass cloth. The hulls being held together with fillets of epoxy resin glue.

Gannet is 21ft long and 12ft wide. The model is “Tiki 21”. Each of the 3 beams is lashed in 4 places to the hulls using 5 turns of 4mm polyester 8 plait cord. When launching, I strap a wheel, to the hull, just in front of the skeg. The hulls roll off the trailer much easier now. The deck is in 3 pieces which rest on the lower edge of the centre and rear beams and on the sides of the hulls.

When sailing, it is difficult to tack. Sometimes, you can ease the bows through the wind.  If the boat moves backwards, reversing the tiller can help you go about. When trying to tack, you have to ensure that you have enough room to gybe, should you fail. When the sea gets choppy, the water sweeps across the deck. The cabin in each hull, has a seat and the boat can be steered from there.

click to enlarge

You can also sleep in the hulls but you would have to share the space with your food, water and other bits of tackle. I prefer to sleep on deck, under a tarpaulin or the foresail. Once I sailed to Clacton and the GPS showed that we were doing 11 knots, for a short time. I have sailed to Brightlingsea, Walton Backwaters and the Orwell bridge.  The weather has been so foul in the last couple of years, that I have not made any long trips.

The name ‘Gannet’ was chosen because it is short and I had not seen another vessel with the same name.

 Bill Cotterill