Well, this is what I love about C.F. I
head in with one thing on my mind, and end up with a whole lot of new thinking.
So we went down to the
boat armed with cardboard boxes (recently purged from the moving boxes, moved house four years ago, still unpacking.
). Mocked up a few of the ideas and considered the implications.
Panope, we tried your setup. It would
work on our
boat if the
hatch was much closer to the deckhouse, but where it currently sits it was going to snag absolutely everything, from the
jib sheets, to the staysail, to any passing humans. Moving it closer to the deckhouse is not an option because of the
mast, which I am told it is a rather important component of the boat. On the upside, it would make an excellent mid-deck hand hold, not to be sneezed at because the trip across our foredeck is a long journey without any form of support. Thankfully we already have a forward facing seat, there's a
liferaft stored just in front of the deckhouse that doubles as a nice seat, though I suspect this is not good for it. Mostly when we are under way, people just sprawl out on towels and things in this area anyway.
So on balance I will stick with the flush hatches, but thank you for the idea.
As for the Dorades, I agree, they will be needed. There are a number of options for this, but in keeping with the issue around a mid-deck seat/hatch, I am inclined to keep them back near the deckhouse, much like the picture I posted earlier. They will be less effective in a following
wind, but in most situations I can envisage with a following wind, the deckhouse itself is a giant aft-facing Dorade that will collect a
lot of air. In all but the worst conditions I expect the storm hatches to be out, if they are in place then we'll just have to cope with stuffy uncomfortable conditions below decks.
Thanks again to all for the excellent ideas, left-field thinking and sharing of wisdom.
Matt