Sleeping Aboard

[talbot]

We've had some mention of sleeping on board the DSII, but not too many specifics. On the spur of the moment, I spent last night on the lake, and therefore am now an expert:
1. Space per se is not a problem. There's as much room as in a backpacking tent.
2. One person is not a problem: You move all the junk in the cabin to the other side of the mast. Two people would mean you have to put everything in the cockpit.
3. The cabin slopes aft. That's a good thing. It means it can drain. But it means that sleeping in it is like camping in a backpacking tent set up the wrong way on a slope. (You do NOT want your head in the forepeak, unless you wear a hard had to bed). Next time: Extra foam pad for the aft part of the cabin.
4. Mosquitos can be a problem (this has been mentioned on the forum), so I dropped anchor at the edge of the channel, where a 5 knt breeze cleared the bugs and rocked me to, um.... see the next bullet point.
5. Your ear is REALLY close to the water. Waves from 5 knt breeze ring like the gong of bell inside the cuddy. Next time: Earplugs.
6. There is nothing half so much worth doing as swinging at anchor late a night, sitting in the cockpit strumming a mandolin, hearing the breeze ruffle the rushes, and watching the moon rise. So what if you get back to the dock at dawn and drain the office coffee pot in an effort to not fall asleep at your desk?

[GreenLake]

There is nothing half so much worth doing as swinging at anchor late a night, sitting in the cockpit strumming a mandolin, hearing the breeze ruffle the rushes, and watching the moon rise.

Nice!!

[Alan]

Yeah, that sounds really good. And a moonrise? Sigh...

My wife's plans for our DSII include picnic sails until we learn what we're doing, then overnights. She's been backpacking since high school, so no worries about comfort.

We were thinking of rolled-up air mattresses in the cockpit, one along each side of the centerboard trunk, with a wide air mattress across the top. That and a boom tent should be downright luxurious.

[talbot]

Let us know how it works out. I wondered about a way to sleep in the cockpit, but the CB trunk was too much for me to deal with.

[jeadstx]

I built "bed boards" to fit in the cockpit of my DS2 for the Texas 200. I made them to fit between the centerboard trunk and the seats. They are pictured at http://forum.daysailer.org/forum/viewtopic.php?t=3674 . I'm refining them a little to make them lighter. On the Texas 200 I stored them in the stern by straping them in place. I mounted a solar panel to them when not in use. Worked very well.

John

[TomL]

We are retired cruisers and loved living aboard anchoring nearly all the time. We no longer have a boat but are thinking about jumping back in but really would like to do an occassional overnigth.

Question is what do you do about restroom requierments at anchor? Is it possible to fit a portapotty in these mini cruisers? I haven't seen anybody mention this yet.

TomL

[Alan]

The easy way, since a Daysailer can be beached, would be to select campgrounds near beaches, park the boat for the night, and sleep in a tent.

There really isn't anyplace for a porta-potti on a DSII except in the aft section of the cockpit, and if it's there all the time, there's no room to move around. However:

This solution is highly theoretical, meaning I haven't tried it in real life, but it might just work. We bought a folding camping toilet from Cabela's. It will stow folded against the inner side of the transom, and opened up, it fits neatly in the cockpit space aft of the centerboard trunk. You'll probably be sleeping forward, so you could leave it set up at night and have a very convenient bathroom.

[seandwyer]

Hey Alan - what are you using for a boomtent?

[Alan]

Sean,


At this point, the boom tent is still in the planning stages. I've got a topping lift, so I'll probably use that rather than the mast crutch. My wife can sew, so the tent itself will probably be home-made out of a fabric like Sunbrella.

[TomL]

Alan, yep beaching the boat and tent camping may be the only practical method to cruise on a Daysailer but, it really limits your options.

There is nothing more pleasant than to be anchored for the night in a protected cove.

It is going to be spartan but maybe worth it for an occasional night or two aboard mixed in with tent camping and maybe Motels near marinas.

My wife and I lived aborad and cruised for five years and loved nearly every night at anchor, the ocassional storms not so great.

TomL

[UCanoe_2]

When your crew is a 65 lb. Lab who likes to swim and also wants to share the sleeping bag, sleeping on board adds a whole new dimension to "togetherness."

[Alan]

We've also been thinking about using the boat as a dry-land tent trailer, on long road trips where we need to drive more than one day between sailing adventures.

We've camped for years in a home-built tent trailer with big storage but sleeping area smaller than a DSII, in all kinds of weather including big snow, so it shouldn't be a problem.

[seandwyer]

Alan- That's interesting. I've slept in my DS in rest stops when on the road. It's much more comfortable than sleeping sitting up in the car, or just partially reclined with your feet getting caught beneath the brake peddle. I just sort of sprayed myself with bug spray and stretched out. I'd be interested in hearing how you rig a tent without the mast up and the boom in place.

[Alan]

Sean,

I figure the un-rigged mast will be horizontal, or close to horizontal, between the mast crutch on the transom and the winch stand, so the tent could be slung over that.

Glad you brought that up. I've been trying to decide how tall to make my new mast crutch, and I hadn't been thinking about a tent.

[GreenLake]

Even a simple tarp would do.
I only have a winter view:

but I use this tarp year round and have crawled under it to make repairs on rainy days. I'm certain it would work as a temporary shelter, if I had a need for it.

Getting it truly bug-tight might take a bit of additional effort. Tightening it, so it's snug against the rubrail all around, some tape to close off the remaining gap a the front, and some mosquito proof fabric to stretch over the triangular gap in the rear might do the trick.