Kennneee Posted September 26, 2020 Report Share Posted September 26, 2020 Hi Guys- Some of you have followed my build of Rosie, an Outer Banks 26. After all of the time and effort put into her creation it has been such a pleasure to spend lots of time aboard this Summer. Luanne and I would head out for 2-4 nights most weeks exploring the wonderful cruising grounds in our own back yard, the Gulf Islands. Some of the places we would anchor in were less than 10 miles from our home. We recently decided to go further afield and head up to Desolation Sound for a couple of weeks. In normal years the beautiful anchorages up there are crowded with large yachts coming from south of the border (US, that is). With the border being closed and the high season over it was the ideal time to provision and head north. Rosie was a bit lower in the water when we took off with lots of water, fuel and food aboard. This was to be a 2 week trip that morphed into 18 days. We didn’t want it to end! Towards the end of the second week out the smoke from fires hundreds of miles south of us was making visibility difficult. I added radar this year and was very glad to have it when motoring through the smokey veil. We hunkered down in a beautiful anchorage on West Rodona Island for a few more days then planned and skipped a few other spots since there was nothing to see at this point anyway. With the poor visibility and the beautiful weather forecasted to change we headed south. Our passages across the Straight of Georgia and through Dodd Narrows, two possible places for some excitement were pussycats. Careful monitoring of weather and tides as well as a boat that has some speed really reduces possible exposure to conditions that make for good stories. As we motored along we talked about how we would improve Rosie. There wasn’t much to say. Seeing all of huge logs in the water I think I would go up a size in the bottom planking. I will make a minor change to the head. Next season we will have a couple of kayaks or surfskis along, an electric outboard and a solar panel. Rosebud, our modified Spindrift 9 is a great tender. Light weight, spacious and rows beautifully. I like “picking up my toys” every night to avoid a midnight fire drill should conditions deteriorate. The “Kencrane” that Graham designed made hoisting the dinghy aboard a near effortless procedure. The layout, performance and aesthetic are spot on. The Wallas stove/heater is one of the best decisions we made as far as equipment goes. The Sarca Excell Anchor I added this season made for restful nights. I have come out of the dark ages and have become a believer in electronic navigation and radar. In every anchorage we had people making me blush with compliments on her. Can’t say I minded that much:). We have been back a week and we are both looking forward to heading out again tomorrow or the next day for a few more days. Winter closes in fast here and every weather window needs to be taken advantage of now. Here are some pics of our summer aboard. https://photos.app.goo.gl/cjr3XpU9jhhJXdzW8 Cheers, Ken 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Doug_N Posted September 27, 2020 Report Share Posted September 27, 2020 My brother texted me that he saw a beautiful boat when he was visiting Lund. He sent me a picture and I immediately recognized Rosie. He was very impressed. I hope you don't mind me posting a couple of pictures that he took. He was on the Nordic Tug. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bowbert Posted September 27, 2020 Report Share Posted September 27, 2020 Thanks for the report Ken. Glad you are enjoying Rosie! When you get time, could you provide some feedback on how she performed in different sea states. I'm still pondering my upcoming build, and I'd like to know how she cruises. Also, wondering how she handles heavier seas and slop you might have encountered. Did you feel the 90hp was the right choice? Great pictures, Bret Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kennneee Posted September 27, 2020 Author Report Share Posted September 27, 2020 Doug- I remember your brother in his Nordic Tug snapping some pics. Thanks for posting them. Bret- So far Rosie seems to perform well in everything we have encountered. That said, we have not been in any really nasty stuff. What I will say is that she rides quite well in any chop we have had her in. I occasionally look for large ferry wakes and take them at different angles and she does nicely. She has quite a lot of waterline beam and I think that explains why she is resistant to rolling in anything we have come across. She is also relatively unaffected by weight. By that I mean passengers moving around do not change her trim that much. That might also be a function of her moderate deadrise. If I recall her PPII (pounds per inch of immersion) is around 400lbs. The large waterplane area helps to explain that attribute. That trait is not to be minimized even when at anchor or a dock. Makes for more comfortable cooking, sleeping etc. When someone blast through an anchorage with a large wake, Rosie stands up pretty well. Better than some larger boats I have been on. The Carolina bow is quite pretty but has some notable function. The deck is almost always dry in anything we have encountered. I think Graham found a sweet spot on her entry. She has no tendency to pound. Again, nothing really big but I have surfed her down some decent size ferry wakes and she handled well with no tendency to bow steer or otherwise misbehave. I added trim tabs this year which was an inexpensive way to improve performance. Nice to be able to dial in trim. How a boat performs at anchor is also an overlooked trait. In reality that is how you spend most of your time when cruising. She is light weight and I have 30’ of chain and the rest of my rode is nylon. She will dance more at anchor than a heavier boat anchored on all chain. Loaded up with fuel, water and etc she behaves much better. That is a tradeoff that comes with a light weight, fuel efficient boat. Graham once mentioned that he could have made her lighter but didn’t want her to be to “corky”. Again, I think he got it right given that every design plus has a negative. In some ways I am glad not to have more to report. Big water will come at some point. I am pretty confident she will do at least as well as I do. Have you decided which boat you are going to build? Keep us posted. Cheers, Ken Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kennneee Posted September 28, 2020 Author Report Share Posted September 28, 2020 Oh, 90hp is enough for me. Almost never go top speed and hole shot is of little importance to me. We like to cruise around 15 -18 knots and there is plenty of power for that. A 115hp is about the same weight if you want more juice. Ken Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lenm Posted September 28, 2020 Report Share Posted September 28, 2020 Looks like a great trip - living the dream! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alan Stewart Posted September 29, 2020 Report Share Posted September 29, 2020 Really like those stern bucket seats in the corners. Great pictures guys! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rattus Posted October 1, 2020 Report Share Posted October 1, 2020 Gorgeous boat, outstanding workmanship. Beautiful photos! My only criticism of the layout is no seating with your honey on the aft deck. ;-) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HighDesert Posted October 11, 2020 Report Share Posted October 11, 2020 Hey Ken, Wonderful photos of a magical summer. My favorite picture is the one of Luanne rowing Rosebud. You absolutely nailed it. You're a knight in shining armor. Carter Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kennneee Posted October 11, 2020 Author Report Share Posted October 11, 2020 Thanks guys. Carter, how are things coming along on your OB20? Pics? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.