we are approaching 70 and love out 2 months a year sailing in the
Ionian. A few things that do or might make life on board for a
single hander of any age.
1. furlers for main and
jib. In
mast main
furling is the way to go (yes purists, lose a knot). You can deploy and reef the sail in 30 seconds with about 10 kg force. a coach roof
winch works well for this. Once you get the hang of furling, you will have few problems.
2. 2 speed or more
self tailing winches.
3.
autopilot is a must. Allows you to move around
4. powered
anchor winch with controls forward and aft. We
Med moor a lot. In calm
weather, it's easy to cast off stern lines (engine idling) then
lift the winch using the buttons aft. If anything goes wrong, go forward and use the buttons there.
Mooring is similar in reverse. you might need help in rough
weather.
5. all the
safety gear
6 Tell tales with a headsail window. Read Arvel Gentry's articles.
7 I don't have it but a walk through transom might make life easy.
8. Inside, reverse cycle AC might make life very comfortable. You will need a 2-3 kva
generator or
shore power. We also have a small
washing machine. We use it with a big
inverter. Wash when you're sailing and you won't drain the
batteries. Save the significant unpleasantness of the laundromat haul.
9. a bike with
battery power might make moving around towns agreeable. We don't use any scooters, bikes etc. We find most
ports are well serviced and we hire small cars if we want to travel further.
10 Try to find a boat with a 4 step
gangway. ladders are not as safe as we would like.
11 a bow thruster might make
mooring very comfortable
12 a
bimini is a must and also a boom tent or other shading over the
cabin.
In
Corsica, I met an 84 year old and his wife who sailed a couple of thousand miles a year. They had no difficulty managing their Amel Supemaru 53 footer
ketch. Life was made easier because all sail controls were
electric and so required no strength. You might have to go to
Europe to get one of those.