With the plan to voyage and live aboard, a boat that would be sea kindly and able to capably haul gear and provisions would be very important as well. Having never built a boat before, choosing something straight forward with modest shape and decently sized scantlings would make the build easier to achieve. It’s kind of like deciding on a Ford or Mercedes, then picking which model and year to build.Īfter a lot of reading and research, I ended up on the Atkin website and really loved their tagline: 'Individualized Designs for Unregimented Yachtsmen.' That sure described me! After a bit more digging and reading I came to learn that Atkin’s hometown was relatively local (in Connecticut) and that his designs have a very good reputation as solid, safe vessels and their plans are written with the home builder in mind-a crucial detail. The options are daunting!Īfter poring over various designs I came to the decision that I need to pick a designer then pick the boat, that way the field could be drastically narrowed. The Atkins are a legendary family of boat designers they refined and tweaked Archer’s designs to create numerous double ended designs such as Thistle, Vixen, and of course, Ingrid and Stormy Petrel. Many of those original builds are still afloat today-to date, the original Vixen has made two circumnavigations of the world and is capable of many more.ĭeciding which boat to build is like trying to pick a car to build if you had every make and model throughout all of history to choose from. He’s known for designing efficient sailers that are seakindly in rough weather and big seas. He primarily designed fishing vessels for use on the North Sea and expedition boats for polar exploration.

She has a laid White Pine deck.Ĭolin Archer was a famous Scottish naval architect and shipbuilder from Larvik, Norway. The frame is of White Oak, and she’s planked with a mixture of White Oak and White Cedar. She’s 37’ 6” on deck, with a 32’ waterline, and will carry 816 sq ft of sail. She displaces about 25,000 lbs and has berths for up to 5 people, and despite her large size, she’s easily sailed single-handed. Arabella is a Colin Archer-inspired, double-ended ketch designed by William Atkin.

Acorn to arabella