In his book, Nigel Calders Cruising Handbook, Calder takes a detailed look at the types of sailboats to consider for cruising. Here are some of his thoughts:
Center or Aft Cockpit
The most basic question to be settled is whether to have a center or aft cockpit. Center cockpits have grown in popularity over the past couple of decades, particularly since the popularization of the deck-saloon concept by Oyster Yachts. The center cockpit puts the cockpit to the longitudinal center of motion of the boat and closest to the mast, making it easier to run the lines to the cockpit and to go forward to work the sails if necessary. There is almost always much better visibility forward.
When combined with the deck-saloon concept, the raised sole beneath the deck saloon provides volume for the engine, batteries, tankage, and an AC generator, keeping all this weight low in the boat and close to the longitudinal center of gravity (which reduces pitching in head seas). Above all, the center cockpit enables a substantial aft cabin to be put on a boat, transforming accommodations.
An aft cabin does not work too well until a boat is large enough to provide reasonable inside access to it down the underside of the cockpit coaming. If this is not possible, the aft cabin will have a forward-facing companionway, which will be exposed to the weather. It will be necessary to transit the cockpit to enter and exit the cabin. If the aft cabins companionway hatch is opened for light or ventilation, there is no privacy for the cabin. With or without a companionway, aft cabins typically suffer from a lack of ventilation.
The attempt to provide an aft cabin with inside access on a smaller boat leads to excessive freeboard with a high, shallow cockpit that is uncomfortable and unseaworthy, and a raised house on an aft cabin that makes it difficult to work on a deck in rough weather. Inevitably, there is always someone who tries to push the design envelope too far.
Hard on the wind, the center cockpit – being that much farther forward than an aft cockpit – tends to catch a lot more spray. Some are notoriously wet. A center cockpit is invariably higher than an aft cockpit, which may put the heads of taller people within range of the boom – a potentially dangerous situation. On many boats, the cockpit sole is close to the height of the lifelines, with the coamings well above the lifelines. In rough weather, there is a significantly greater chance of getting pitched overboard when entering or leaving the cockpit than on an aft-cockpit boat. The center cockpit complicates steering and makes it difficult to rig the control lines for a wind and vane. A center cockpit often has somewhat limited cockpit stowage. It also precludes dinghy stowage between the cockpit and the mast (which is often the optimum location on an aft-cockpit boat).
For more detailed advice on what to look for in and on a boat for your cruising, purchase Nigel Calders Cruising Handbook from Practical Sailor.
