An intriguing boat moored near Faversham
A mystery craft sails into Herne Bay
The first looks as if it could be Scottish to me but I don’t recall seeing her in the area before – is she a fifie? I’d certainly like to know more.
The second is very striking when seen from a distance. I’m pretty sure she’s the Colin Mudie-designed sharpie I’ve seen over-wintering at Faversham’s Iron Wharf in past years. If so, she’s working as a pleasure boat, and having seen her hull I can say that she bears a strong resemblance to the Nonpareil sharpies that Thomas Clapham designed and built all those years ago. There’s a short description of the Clapham’s Nonpareil boats here at the Wikipedia. Now, I wonder whether I might be able to persuade the kids they would enjoy a trip in her next week?
Gavin,
She is Maurice Griffiths LOON, rebuilt a while back at Alan Staley's.
I think that she used to have a centre plate that came through her foredeck, but this was removed due to leak problems.
She is well documented in MG's 60 year a yacht designer.
Bob
Thanks Bob – Loon's a well known name, and I gather an early MG design.
I've got several of his books, though which boat appears in which I can never recall! Btw, I greatly enjoyed this Peyton cartoon I saw recently http://www.eventides.org.uk/images2/Peyton%20cart…
How's Idle Duck coming on? Is she anywhere near to being on the water yet?
Gav
Hi Gavin I owned her back in the late 70’s and sold her to the Guy in Faversham. She did have a center board, leaked around the Garboards most of the time, but was a great boat. Just before i sold her i found she was designed with a loose footed mainsail and trying this transformed the performance. when i bought he she had a large perkins truck engine in her so sailing stern down and improved with a yanmar. I believe for a while she was called Gairlock and was used for Duck hunting. the owner before me ( a doctor i think) used to sail her to France, take out the mast and use her as a motor boat on the canals from Dinard for holidays each year.
Michael
GAVIN,
I am wrong; she is not in MG's book 60 Years… , but she IS designed by MG. She is mentioned in one of his earlier books.
Bob
The boat Loon is a Maurice Griffiths design which i owned in the early 80's. She was launced with the name "Gairlock" and this was subsequently changed. When i bought her she had centre plate operated by a modified tennis net worm drive. The Garboard strakes worked like carzy and I was going to the channel islands most weekends I moved toa larger Yacht Chloe May 42'. before she sank. The new owner in putting on a fixed keel has probably transforemd the boat. One modification back to origianl was to put a loose foot mainsail on her which transformed the performance.
21 January 2013. My father George Robinson bought Loon between in about 1955. It had been with the commodore of the West Hartlepool yacht club and then up on Lake Windermere. My father converted an old war department trailer to carry it. My father kept it at Whitby in the outer harbour in the southside moorings that he himself established. We went across the Cherbourg (encountering the ash of the Queen Mary !), Sark and Jersey in about 1965 on a trip out of Poole. We then sold to a friend Johnny McGuire who then lived in Poole. If anyone wants contact, happy to chat on e mail arobinson90@yahoo.co.uk
Hello I'm menno from holland
in 1999 I was in favershame on the yard of allan and looked at the loon.
is it treu that they put a keel unter it ,that would be sad
can some body help me to find the loon of the drawings of her
best regards menno