New Photos of Reuel Parker's Schooner, Ibis

Reuel Parker recently sent me a new selection of photos to post on his Ibis blog, which I will do in the next few days.  Here are a few shots of Ibis afloat, some taken from his Bahamas cruise earlier this year.  This vessel is also for sale, and Reuel will be relaunching her this fall when he returns to Florida from Maine.  Details can be found below the photos.  Here's one taken at the dock shortly after launch:

At anchor somewhere in the Bahamas:

Somewhere off Andros Island, Bahamas:

Reuel Parker, designer and builder at the helm:

A couple of interior shots that show the spacious accommodations in this shoal-draft sharpie schooner:

 

 

Here you can see just how shoal-draft this vessel is:

The following is taken from Parker's description and "for sale" ad on his website:

 

IBIS is the new prototype MAXI-TRAILERABLE cruising sharpie schooner. Construction is complete and sail trials have been made in the Bahamas. IBIS felt safe and comfortable during both Gulf Stream crossings as well as several other open-ocean passages. She exceeded my hopes and expectations, and proved to me beyond a doubt that properly designed and built sharpies can be seaworthy and seakindly. IBIS is presently hauled out for the summer. I will re-launch her in November of 2010. She will be available for inspection and sail trials during Fall and Winter.

IBIS is for sale for $179,950.

IBIS is 51' 4" LOA, 10' Beam, 2' 6" Draft (7' 8" Board Down), 42' LWL. Her displacement is 14,500lbs and her empty trailer weight is 12,000lbs. She has a box keel containing 2,500lbs of lead, an additional 500lbs of internal ballast, and carries an incredible 250 gallons of water in integral central tanks for an additional 2,110lbs ballast. Her lead-filled steel centerboard weighs 1,350lbs, and is raised by the same 12v winch as that used for raising the masts. The winch is mounted on the foremast tabernacle, and uses dedicated batteries charged by their own solar-charger. Fuel capacity is 80 gallons, providing over 110 hours of motor time, for a range of over 850 miles.

Sail Area is 753 sq ft in three self-tending sails (gaff schooner). Her masts are tabernacled using an electric winch and permanently installed A-frame. Her bridge clearance is 35'; With masts down her bridge clearance is less than 10 feet. She is powered by an Isuzu 3LD2 3-cylinder diesel, which powers her to a speed of 8 knots, consuming only .75 gallons per hour. This makes her more fuel efficient than most large pickup trucks! IBIS has a stern boomkin not shown on the drawings below. The boomkin supports the main traveler, boom gallows, flag-staff and GPS antenna.

IBIS is based on the Washington State halibut fishermen of the San Juan Islands in the 1880's. These were double-ended sharpies intended for use in all seasons. Construction is composite wood/epoxy/fabric, with hollow Douglas fir laminated masts and main boom (bird's-mouth method). There are five water-tight bulkheads making this vessel as unsinkable as possible. She can be sailed or motored to safety with any compartment flooded.

More details and additional photos can be found at Parker Marine Enterprises.

Boatsmith Inc.'s New Tiki 36

David Halladay is now ready to move forward on his newly-drawn version of a Tiki 36 catamaran based on a scaled-up Wharram Tiki 30.  The Tiki 36 will offer many amenities not available on the Tiki 30 while still keeping the sleek lines and coming in at a much lower weight than the Tiki 38 with the schooner rig.  It will offer a longer waterline for faster speeds than the Tiki 30.  Here are the main differences compared to the Tiki 30:

• Hull beam increased to 5'
• Overall beam increased to 19'8"
• Sheer height increased 12"
• Forth beam added
• Separate head and shower compartments
• Wider main bunks and larger forward berth areas
• Standing headroom in galley and nav area

From David Halladay's description:  The Tiki36 will weigh in at around 4300 lbs and will have a sail area of 600 sqft.  They will be built of foam cored fiberglass and fit out to the highest standards.  If you look at our spec sheet you will see that this is a well equipped boat and one that should be very comfortable as well as able to show her heels to many while keeping the rugged simplicity and seaworthiness that Wharrams are renown for.   These will still be custom boats and there is very little that can't be modified on them to suit the owner.  The helm pod for instance is very open to customizing to exactly whatever flavor suits you. This boat will fit into a  single 40' container for easy shipping. 

He's offering this fantastic cruising catamaran at an introductory price, and can provide a full spec sheet to show exactly what you're getting for your money.  There's nothing currently in production that could compare to the capability this boat offers in this price range. For more information, contact david@boatsmithfl.com or visit his website at www.boatsmithfl.com 

Mississippi Coast Oil Spill Photos

I took the above photo near Waveland, MS on Thursday, July 8.   It is one of many that I went to the coast to shoot for a magazine article I'm working on about the impact of the spill on the Mississippi Coast.  To see a few more images from this series, click on this link to my Bug Out Survival blog here:

http://www.bugoutsurvival.com/2010/07/went-to-beach-yesterday.html