Princess Sharpie Cat Ketch 26

Description

The Princess Sharpie Cat Ketch 26 (commonly called the Princess Sharpie 26) is a modern plywood sharpie-style coastal cruiser designed by Graham Byrnes (of B&B Yacht Designs, based in North Carolina, USA), building on the success of its smaller sister, the Princess Sharpie 22. Introduced in the early 2000s as part of B&B's line of easy-to-build, trailerable sharpies, it uses stitch-and-glue plywood/epoxy construction for lightweight, low-cost amateur building (no strongback or lofting required), with an open or semi-customizable interior layout allowing builder-owners to adapt accommodations (e.g., berths for 2–4, galley, head options, and standing headroom in the cabin area). It features a classic sharpie hull (flat or soft-chine bottom for shallow draft and beaching), cat-ketch rig with unstayed masts (often in tabernacles for easy stepping/lowering), self-tending sails for simple shorthanded operation, centerboard(s) for variable draft, positive flotation, self-draining cockpit, and excellent performance in light-to-moderate winds with good stability and speed for its type. No large-scale production occurred; it's primarily plans-based with dozens of home-built examples documented in wooden boat forums (e.g., messing-about.com, WoodenBoat Forum), praised for trailerability (beam under 8'6" for easy towing), beachability, and versatility as a pocket cruiser for coastal gunkholing, weekends, or lake sailing while handling chop reasonably well.