Small Boats

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NEW ISSUE! In our profiles this month, we look at the Drascombe Dabber, a lug-rigged yawl designed in England more than ...
02/04/2025

NEW ISSUE!

In our profiles this month, we look at the Drascombe Dabber, a lug-rigged yawl designed in England more than 70 years ago but still popular with families on both sides of the Atlantic; and the Kokopelli Platte-Plus, an inflatable tandem kayak that can be carried in a backpack. A lone sailor returns to Lake Roosevelt with his Summer Breeze skiff for his last weekend sail of the year. Christopher Cunningham reviews a new dry suit from Mustang Survival, and WoodenBoat’s Jasmine Thomas tries out a new cordless light while working in her boat’s engine compartment. From Germany, Sebastian Schröder describes how to make your own small-boat wind vane, and we meet Dick Vermeulen, designer of Maine Cats multihulls, and hear how he built two kayaks and converted one of them for sailing.

https://smallboatsmonthly.com/issue/february-2025/

📷 Kokopelli Platte-Plus kayak; photograph by Bill Thomas

After Frank Ward retired, he enrolled in classes to learn how to build boats and how to row. When he had decided to buil...
02/02/2025

After Frank Ward retired, he enrolled in classes to learn how to build boats and how to row. When he had decided to build his own boat to row with his wife, he was drawn to the Annapolis wherry, but preferred cedar-strip construction to a stitch-and-glue plywood kit. The designer was willing and able to accommodate him.

Learn more: https://smallboatsmonthly.com/article/festinalente/

The Spindrift series of dinghies from B&B Yacht Designs promises a range of capable yacht tenders that offer plenty of s...
02/01/2025

The Spindrift series of dinghies from B&B Yacht Designs promises a range of capable yacht tenders that offer plenty of sailing excitement. Here we see a 12' model built by the Meredithe Stuart-Smith of Castine, Maine.

Learn more: https://smallboatsmonthly.com/article/spindrift-12/

François Vivier designed the handsome pocket cruiser Pen-Hir for his own use. He cruises the boat for up to two weeks at...
01/30/2025

François Vivier designed the handsome pocket cruiser Pen-Hir for his own use. He cruises the boat for up to two weeks at a time, often singlehanded, along the Brittany coast.

Learn more: https://smallboatsmonthly.com/article/pen-hir/

This month we’re giving away a low angle block plane from Melbourne Tool Company and a 20oz WoodenBoat travel mug by RTI...
01/29/2025

This month we’re giving away a low angle block plane from Melbourne Tool Company and a 20oz WoodenBoat travel mug by RTIC Outdoors!

We’re accepting entries until 5 p.m. EST on February 17, 2025 and we’ll announce the winner by email on February 19.

To enter ➡️ https://smallboatsmonthly.com/contest/

*The contest is available to U.S.-based paid members of Small Boats Nation. Due to varying contest laws in other countries, we are unable to accept entries outside of the United States.

The Drake 13 from Selway Fisher is a small sharpie designed to be propelled by oars, a lugsail, or an outboard and to se...
01/25/2025

The Drake 13 from Selway Fisher is a small sharpie designed to be propelled by oars, a lugsail, or an outboard and to serve as a tender, a daysailer, a beach cruiser, or a fishing skiff.

Learn more: https://smallboatsmonthly.com/article/drake-13/

The 18' Hampton sloop is an evolution of a coastal workboat that developed for fishing in and around Hampton, New Hampsh...
01/24/2025

The 18' Hampton sloop is an evolution of a coastal workboat that developed for fishing in and around Hampton, New Hampshire, and spread far afield. The boatbuilding duo O'Donovan & Dole of Searsport, Maine, built the boat in these photos, modeling it on an original one built in the early 1900s.

Learn more: https://smallboatsmonthly.com/article/hampton-sloop/

Four times a day, 200-billion gallons of water pour through the Skoomkumchuck reaching speeds of 17 knots, making it one...
01/18/2025

Four times a day, 200-billion gallons of water pour through the Skoomkumchuck reaching speeds of 17 knots, making it one of the fastest tidal rapids in the world. The rapids, 16 nautical miles to the north of us, were to be the first destination in our four-day trip.

Learn more: https://smallboatsmonthly.com/article/scherzo-does-the-skookumchuck/

If a boat trailer is simply parked for the winter, its tires can degrade and even acquire flat spots, bulges, and dry ro...
01/17/2025

If a boat trailer is simply parked for the winter, its tires can degrade and even acquire flat spots, bulges, and dry rot. Having the means to raise and support the trailer quickly and safely makes it easy to protect tires, extending their longevity.

Learn more: https://smallboatsmonthly.com/article/winterizing-trailer-tires/

We're giving away a copy of Paul Gartside's Plans & Dream Vol. 1 and a WoodenBoat wool watch cap to one lucky winner in ...
01/12/2025

We're giving away a copy of Paul Gartside's Plans & Dream Vol. 1 and a WoodenBoat wool watch cap to one lucky winner in January!

We're accepting entires from now until 5p.m. EST on January 20th 2025. We'll announce the winner via email by January 22nd.

Enter: https://smallboatsmonthly.com/contest/

Kent and Audrey Lewis have tried more than a few drinking mugs and bottles over the years. When they‘re out on the water...
01/09/2025

Kent and Audrey Lewis have tried more than a few drinking mugs and bottles over the years. When they‘re out on the water, their current favorite is RTIC‘s 20-oz Road Trip Travel Mug from the WoodenBoat Store:

“We have had the mugs for a year and have used them extensively. They have consistently kept hot drinks hot through a morning sail, and cold drinks cold through a long hot day. They have stood up well, and the outside finish on each is neither chipped nor worn.”

Learn more: https://smallboatsmonthly.com/article/rtic-road-trip-travel-mug/

Shop: https://www.woodenboatstore.com/products/woodenboat-20oz-road-trip-mug-by-rtic-outdoors

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Videos

MUSTELID Episode 14
MUSTELID Episode 14

After a 4 month journey, MUSTELID is homeward-bound!

MUSTELID Episode 13
MUSTELID Episode 13

In this episode, MUSTELID heads North to extend the trip.

MUSTELID Episode 12
MUSTELID Episode 12

Check out episode 12 of MUSTELID!

MUSTELID Episode 11
MUSTELID Episode 11

After a quick detour to visit friends in Pelican, Alaska, Dave and Anke are now in Elfin Cove for episode 11.

MUSTELID Episode 10
MUSTELID Episode 10

In Episode 10 of the MUSTELID series, Dave and Anke are wandering along the Outer Islands and exploring.

MUSTELID Episode 9
MUSTELID Episode 9

In episode 9 Dave and Anke make it to the Outer Islands! They encounter sea lions, large swells, and some beautiful landscapes.

MUSTELID Episode 8
MUSTELID Episode 8

In mid to late July of 2022, Dave and Anke set out on their journey on MUSTELID.

MUSTELID Episode 7
MUSTELID Episode 7

Catch up with MUSTELID owners in their hometown of Tenakee Springs, Alaska as they recap on their boatbuilding journey and prepare for their trip.

MUSTELID Episode 6
MUSTELID Episode 6

Take a look at life aboard MUSTELID. See how Dave and Anke shelter aboard, and forage food and fuel to venture into remote waters.

MUSTELID Episode 5
MUSTELID Episode 5

MUSTELID was designed as an open rig, making it an easy-to-rig boat, especially in colder temperatures. Learn about the sails and rigging in episode 5!

MUSTELID Episode 4
MUSTELID Episode 4

In episode 4 of the MUSTELID series, Dave and Anke talk about the simplicity of the outfittings in the cockpit and the cabin.

Mustelid Episode 2
Mustelid Episode 2

Check out part 2 of the video series with Dave and Anke as they discuss the concept and design methods for MUSTELID. "Overall the shape aims to strike a balance between ease of construction, initial and reserved stability, and an easily driven hull." Learn more: https://smallboatsmonthly.com/article/mustelid/

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Small Boats

Small Boats is a web-based publication dedicated to owners and users of boats that can be stored and maintained at an average-size home. It features a range of designs for oar, paddle, power, and sail.

Each month we include two in-depth boat profiles, as well as rich coverage of gear, technique, adventure and travel narrative, and reader-built boats. The publication maintains a sensibility separate from that of its parent publication, WoodenBoat—a slant toward travel, cruising, and economy of ownership.