Considering the incredible voyages of the Bountys launch and the James Caird, ocean cruising in small boats has a long history. In 1866 the 26ft (7.9m) Red White and Blue crossed the Atlantic from east to west. In 1870 John Buckley, plus friend and dog, crossed in the 20ft (6m) City of Ragusa. It was the first small yacht to make a double-crossing of the Atlantic and was powered primarily by a wind turbine.
Six years later the 20ft (6m) Centennial, a decked dory with square sail, made the first single-handed crossing. In 1891 Si Lawlor sailed the 15ft (4.6m) Sea Serpent across, beginning the race to see who could claim to have sailed the smallest boat across the Atlantic.
The next year William Andrews, celebrating the 400th anniversary of Columbus's discovery of America, crossed in the 14ft 6in (4.5m) canvas-covered, folding Sapolio. It was 1964 before John Riding in the 12ft (3.1m) Sea Egg beat this record.
A year later, in the summer of 1965, Robert Manry, a 48-year-old Cleveland, Ohio newspaperman, made a single-handed, 78-day, 3,200-mile crossing of the Atlantic Ocean in a 13-foot centerboard sailboat named Tinkerbelle.
Manry's miniature ocean cruiser, one of the smallest to ever accomplish that feat was actually a converted stock sailboat called the Whitecap manufactured by the Old Town Canoe Company of Old Town, Maine.
The design of the NEW Tinkerbelle2 featured here is an adaptation and in some respects, an improvement on the original. The general dimensions of the hull are the same, however the minor changes made in the current design make her a faster boat. In addition, the centers are more properly located and the sail area has been increased.
While the original is clinker-built, the new Tinkerbelle2 is of double-chine, plywood construction to make her more suitable for the homebuilder. She can sleep two average size people below decks, carry a goodly amount of gear, and the large locker aft of the cockpit will take all kinds of cruising gear.
Like her namesake, she also has a heavy centerboard, however placed in a more conventional arrangement. The rudder featured in the plans is for shoal waters, however a hinged blade would work well for this design as well. The solid, all-wood rudder can be lifted out and removed.
Tinkerbelle 2 is a design that can be readily trailerable by most any vehicle and can be easily built in the single car garage. So why wait...get your plans today and build a part of history!
