We've done our last ocean passage and selling our Valiant 39. Wonderful boat. We live at Tahoe so are contemplating another lake boat. we had an O'day 25 in the past and this time would like something smaller and lighter. Requirements would be 1) a well designed and built boat 2) comfortable enough for 3-5 days of cruising 3) fast and easy to rig. This last one is important for day sailing. Don't want to rent another bouy at exorbitant process so want a boat that is easy to rig/derig. Boat ramp just down the street.

Catalina 22's seem a bit spartan. Ranger 23s look kind of cool. Am wondering what thoughts you guys might offer on these or other similar vessels?

Thanks!

It looks like the Ranger has a fixed fin keel, so unless you can always guarantee a steep concrete ramp, I think I would rule that out for traier sailing

There are so many good options. If your tow vehicle can handle a Ranger 23, it might be worth checking out Hunter 235 and Hunter 240. Hunter 260 is supposed to be a trailer sailer too, but its getting up there in weight.

I think the easiest boats to rig might be small cat boats like the Compac Horizon Cat.

Having owned a Hunter 23.5, it still took a half hour or more to rig and to de-rig at the end of the day. That hour adds up quickly to not going sailing much... They are definitely light wind boats too...

I think the same could be said about the rigging time for a Catalina 22.

The only boats I know of that are really fast and easy to rig are small mast tabernacle cat rigged boats.

I think rigging and launching and trailering and de-rigging a 20'+ foot boat in under an hour is optimistic. If you plan on going cruising on Lake Tahoe for a few days at a time then it should not be a problem, for daysailing the effort to reg and launch each time will reduce your sailing days.

If you want a 20'+ boat consider a slip on the lake or a mast up marina situation. Otherwise, consider two boats. A 16 footer for daysailing and a larger boat for lake cruising. A Potter 19 is a nice happy medium that can be launched quickly because the mast is light enough to walk it up. It is large enough to cruise on. It will still take a half hour to get into the water each time.

It takes me an hour to rig and launch (or de-rig and retrieve) my Catalina 22. I have a lot of crap on my boat and I only do it a couple times a year, so if you kept it simple and got good at it you could do it faster. I still wouldn’t want to do all that for a day sail. In fact I have never day sailed my boat.

Like what ArcB said, the only boats I’ve seen that are *really* fast to rig and launch are the Compac cat boats, but if you think a Catalina 22 is too spartan then the Compacs would be right out.

But I don’t necessarily agree that the C22 is that spartan. We have a stove and a BBQ, a sink, good electric, and a head that flushes.

I think it depends on how big you are. I’m 5’ 9” and (by midwest standards) of average weight. My wife is under 5’. The boat fits us fine. But if I were two inches taller or 40 lbs heavier then it would be a bit cramped.



By “just down the street” — how just down the street do you mean? Could you store a boat mast-up and tow it to the ramp that way? With a Catalina 25 swing keel or a Hunter 240 water ballast stored mast-up you could be on the water in no time.

I appreciate the feedback
some context...
1) Tahoe doesn't have marinas per say at least not on our end. What few slips have been condoized and go for over $50k. Buoys are for rent from home owners and resorts but average $3k or more per season.
2) As I said we had an O'day 25 that we'd rent a bouy for. We couldn't rig/take down in much less that 3 hours. So half an hour sounds pretty good.
3) boat ramp down the street is maybe 1500 yards but there is on set of power/phone/cable lines. I could keep much of the rigging attached as long as the mast can be propped low enough to clear the lines. Plenty of room on our property to store in the partially rigged state.
4) probably wouldn't day sail much. more likely to put her in for a few days.
5) swing keel or shoal keel with centerboard, or even centerboard a requirement as some years water can get low. In fact some years would have to drive a few miles to a deeper ramp.

Kind of sounds like a Catalina 22 remains the leading contender.

Hey Minnesail.. We're about same size and pretty fit. Any particular models of C22 we should look at?
thanks

Pop top will be more spacious and summer friendly

If you aren’t looking for the pop top C22, you could also look at an Oday 23. It’s basically the same boat as the 25, with a shorter main cabin. You mentioned that you wanted to be able to cruise for 3-5 days; that’s at the outer limit for the Oday 25 in my book. YMMV, but if you go smaller than the 25, i don’t think the C 22 is going to make you happy. Maybe we just have different tolerances or preferences for cruising, but it seems to me that you have two incompatible criteria: easy to tow and rig, and cruisable for five days.

I of course am going to throw out the Beneteau First 235. Odd that people always forget about this awesome pocket cruiser......


There's a guy from Italy that sails his up and down the coast. Went all the way from Sicily to Portugal on a trip. Something to consider....