Boat made in Canada?

[johnshasteen]

I had a Bayfield 29 cutter for a number of years and it was a great blue water sailor - she has the head forward and no vee-berth, so the main salon is the size of a 35 footer. We took her on the Galveston to Vera Cruz Regata de Amigos (650 miles each way across the Gulf of Mexico - a pleasure to sail.

[hatchman1]

Originally Posted by Faster

Lots of good Canadian boats out there. The answer depends on what kind/size or boat you're after. Typical Canadian mainstream brands include older C&Cs, CS (Canadian Sailcraft), Aloha, Mirage, Tanzer, Ontario Yachts (builders of Vikings, Ontarios), Hinterhoeller (Niagara, Nonsuch) and on the west coast, Fraser, Coast, Spencer, some Cooper models, Sceptre, Dash, Martin Yachts, Hotfoot, the list goes on.
Not all of these are still in production, of course, but many examples exist on the used boat market.

Also check out the Nautilus Yachts, produced by Aztec Yachts built in the 1980's. These were Pilothouse sailing yachts. Very sea worthy vessels and sail really well. Hull styled after the C&C design.

[SSTampa]

Originally Posted by johnshasteen

I had a Bayfield 29 cutter for a number of years and it was a great blue water sailor - she has the head forward and no vee-berth, so the main salon is the size of a 35 footer. We took her on the Galveston to Vera Cruz Regata de Amigos (650 miles each way across the Gulf of Mexico - a pleasure to sail.

I've had a hard time finding anyone with real experience with the Bayfield 29. There is one here in Tampa for sale that - for some reason - I just fell in love with. But everyone keeps saying how it is not suited to Fl. Too heavy for light winds; too hard to maneuver in tight spaces -- full keel will make it hard to turn; too hot for exploring locally in the summer (vs those wide open Catalinas!); etc. And then I'm reading several posts here about how it has a low "righting angle", etc. To me it seems like the perfect pocket cruiser with shallow draft. A decent choice of day/weekender, with possibilities of long distance (well if Key West/Dry Tortugas is long...) And it just seems well built. One concern is that it really does have no privacy area for overnighting with a few friends even though it is very roomy below. Did you ever miss that v-berth? Did people make fun of that huge head up front? In general, did it seem like a boat that could be at home on Tampa Bay??

[Faster]

Originally Posted by SSTampa

...Bayfield 29. ..... One concern is that it really does have no privacy area for overnighting with a few friends even though it is very roomy below. .?

I seem to recall that the main bulkheads in the B29 had sliding panels built into them so you could "separate" the cabins and create at least an illusion of privacy.

No question that as a full keel shallow draft boat she'll be difficult at times in close quarters, but on the other points, particularly the shoal draft, it seems to me she'd be a fit for you.

It helps that you've "fallen" for the character look. Lots of teak to look after too