37' Herreshoff Meadowlark Ketch?

[Jdege]

Originally Posted by PineyWoodsPete

Interesting handling under power, requiring a bow thruster - a 16' oak pole with a stout bronze boathook hung from the main spreader!

Interesting in what way? Difficulty in backing up? In turning in tight quarters at low speed?

[psk125]

There was a Meadowlark ketch in our harbor for many years. Looked quite intriguing. If you're looking for a liveaboard, make sure you stand up in the main cabin if you want to be comfortable.

[fatherchronica]

I think the standing headroom if the design was faithfully followed is 5’10”. A belief that I was invulnerable lead me to get 2 inches shorter in a microsecond in 1998. I am now maximum height for a Meadowlark, I believe.

[PineyWoodsPete]

Originally Posted by Jdege

Interesting in what way? Difficulty in backing up? In turning in tight quarters at low speed?

Really both, with inability to kick the stern to stbd with the engine due to the offset shaft, and needing some way on otherwise. Until the 16' "bow thruster" pole, docking in tight quarters was a 1-shot deal, fraught with humiliation! Having the boards down increased confidence, but in attempting to back out once with them down, they flew out into Dumbo-ear brakes due to their two-axis mounting.

[Jdege]

Originally Posted by fatherchronica

I think the standing headroom if the design was faithfully followed is 5’10”. A belief that I was invulnerable lead me to get 2 inches shorter in a microsecond in 1998. I am now maximum height for a Meadowlark, I believe.

They would be the original 33' design.

The Vaites redesign was 37' and had more headroom. Whether it's enough for me, we'll see when I scheduled a walk-thru.

[PineyWoodsPete]

Originally Posted by Jdege

They would be the original 33' design.

The Vaites redesign was 37' and had more headroom. Whether it's enough for me, we'll see when I scheduled a walk-thru.

My Vaites '87 37' had standing headroom for a 6'-er like me only under the center "butterfly" hatch. I estimate 5' 9-10" max otherwise in the salon.

[Richard5]

There's one in Oregon for sale. I'd be all over that if I had a shop. In my opinion, it is not a west coast (U.S.) boat, at least above Pt. Conception. With respect to crossing the Gulf Stream, as always take note of the wind direction.

[PineyWoodsPete]

Originally Posted by Richard5

There's one in Oregon for sale. I'd be all over that if I had a shop. In my opinion, it is not a west coast (U.S.) boat, at least above Pt. Conception. With respect to crossing the Gulf Stream, as always take note of the wind direction.

I've sailed the W. coast above and below Conception fairly extensively, and on several boats, including an S&S Swan 41. From Conception's Cojo anchorage jumping-off point, with the prevailing summer 15-20kt NW'erlies, you will be beat up thoroughly in a daytime passage well before you reach Monterey, and take refuge at the San Simeon anchorage about 90nm N of Conception. And sensibly either wait for a coastal trough with calm to mild SE winds, or go for it at night under power when the NW flow lays down as those in-the-know do.


I'd have no qualms at all doing this in my old Meadowlark w/ 25HP Westebeake, leeboards up, with it's 7.5' WL beam and 35' WL length. W. coast weather is far more predictable than summer E. coast with it's violent thunderstorms, which I know way too much about...

[Jdege]

So, I did a walk-thru, today.

Looks to be in better shape than appeared in the pictures.

Would need a lot of work. I'd want to pretty much rebuild the interior.

Concerning headroom - I'm 6'1", and I can stand along the centerline. And given how narrow the boat is, that's pretty much the only place to stand.

It apparently had two engines, originally. One was removed. The existing diesel works, so I'd probably not mess with it. But should it fail, is consider replacing it with an electric. And putting in two small electrics is an option worth considering. Might make close quarters maneuvering easier.

Lots of room in the engine compartment, for two motors, batteries, even a generator.

[Jdege]

Well, I went ahead and bought her.

https://www.cruisersforum.com/forums....php?p=3224354

[Whipray]

[QUOTE=PineyWoodsPete; It had his patented cored hull with a 1" thick "W" pattern waffle-like core enclosed in heavy glass - making her theoretically unsinkable - [/QUOTE]

The Airex panel foam core construction of the Vaitses/Meadowlark does make for a very strong hull, but it is in no way "unsinkable".
I learned this first hand with our 76 Meadowlark, S/V Whipray. She went down like a stone during Hurricane Irma.

[Jdege]

Originally Posted by Whipray

The Airex panel foam core construction of the Vaitses/Meadowlark does make for a very strong hull, but it is in no way "unsinkable".
I learned this first hand with our 76 Meadowlark, S/V Whipray. She went down like a stone during Hurricane Irma.

Was she salvaged? I'd hate to think of one of these being lost.


Looking at Curlew, there is enough of a keel on her that I'd not expect positive buoyancy.

Her aft bulkhead is solid, though. There is no below waterline connection between the cabin and the cockpit, so she might have enough compartmentalization to float.

But she might not. It's not something I plan on experimenting with.


Unrelated question - I've seen old posts by you attempting to create a list of Meadowlark owners. Did anything come of that?

[PineyWoodsPete]

Originally Posted by Whipray

The Airex panel foam core construction of the Vaitses/Meadowlark does make for a very strong hull, but it is in no way "unsinkable".
I learned this first hand with our 76 Meadowlark, S/V Whipray. She went down like a stone during Hurricane Irma.

Damn! So sorry to hear that. Were you in the Keys or Miami?

My '87 is now owned by ex-boat partner Fred Beauchemin in Lynn Haven, FL since I moved to W coast in '07. She was in a Goose Bayou canal behind his house in Lynn Haven (just west of Panama City) when Michael struck in '18, and received some superficial damage. Fred's now trying to sell her.

If you're interested, drop me an e-mail @ plberry850@comcast.net and I'll send detail photos and get in touch with Fred.

A photo from her prime:

[Whipray]

Originally Posted by Jdege

Was she salvaged? I'd hate to think of one of these being lost.


Looking at Curlew, there is enough of a keel on her that I'd not expect positive buoyancy.

Her aft bulkhead is solid, though. There is no below waterline connection between the cabin and the cockpit, so she might have enough compartmentalization to float.

But she might not. It's not something I plan on experimenting with.


Unrelated question - I've seen old posts by you attempting to create a list of Meadowlark owners. Did anything come of that?

She took a Hell of a beating, but we were able to raise her and get her hauled out at a friend's boat yard. She has been there ever since.

Fortunately for me, her storage rate is ridiculously reasonable.
Unfortunately, our home also took a Hell of a beating...so Whipray had to wait.

Withen the last few months I've been able to get back to work on her. Currently she is gutted...replacing most of the interior plywood partitions, cabinets, and lockers. Also changing the interior layout a bit.

The engine bay is almost ready for the installation of her brand spanking new Beta Marine (Kabota) 30 hp auxillary and NextGen (Kabota) 3.5 KW generator.

That said, I'm really gonna miss her old Ferrymann P-30 auxillary. It was an extremely reliable, old school, low RPM, diesel that sounded very similar to the African Queen when running. It could also be started with a hand crank, if needed.
It was always very difficult to locate replacement parts...and expensive when found. After the sinking, it became lost cause.

Once the interior and engine bay are squared away, then comes rigging & paint. At the rate I'm able to work on her, I suspect she will be on the hard for another year.

This is what she looked like prior to Hurricane Irma ...

As for the Meadowlark owners list...
After about a 1 1/2 years, I was only able to locate somewhere around fifteen boats...mostly in New England, before my computer crashed.
As a result, all info was lost.

[Whipray]

Originally Posted by PineyWoodsPete

Damn! So sorry to hear that. Were you in the Keys or Miami?

My '87 is now owned by ex-boat partner Fred Beauchemin in Lynn Haven, FL since I moved to W coast in '07. She was in a Goose Bayou canal behind his house in Lynn Haven (just west of Panama City) when Michael struck in '18, and received some superficial damage. Fred's now trying to sell her.

If you're interested, drop me an e-mail @ plberry850@comcast.net and I'll send detail photos and get in touch with Fred.

A photo from her prime:

Hiya Pete!

She was just south of Big Pine Key when Irma made landfall...pretty much dead center of the storm.

Even though Bay L'ark is a very desirable boat, one Meadowlark is enough for me, LOL!

However, every now and then someone will express an interest in buying mine. Next time someone shows interest, I'd be happy to send them Fred's way.

What's he asking?