MARITIME TRADITIONS at SEA

COME SAIL WITH ME!

The Cowichan Wooden Boat Society, the operators of the Cowichan Bay Maritime Centre offer many special benefits to their members.

One of these benefits includes sailing aboard the sailing vessel “Sweet Pea”.

For the boating enthusiast or even the novice sailor the history of this boat is fascinating.

SV Sweet Pea was built around 1946 to a modified William Atkin design.
The name Atkin has long been associated with the best in basic boats. If you are looking for "the right little boat" to build - or have built - or if you just like to dream over boat plans, you'll be delighted with the design.

She is a classic carvel planked cutter daysailer/pocket cruiser built with a long keel and straight stem. Carvel planked construction forms are very old. Carvel planked trading vessels sailed the seas of the ancient world long before anyone thought to write down anything about even the military vessels of the times. The history of this form is measured in thousands of years and has been used around the world.

Her displacement hull is red cedar on white oak ribs and deck beams. The cabin and toe rails are solid teak and the deck is teak on fir plywood. The stem band, winches and fittings are bronze. The standing rigging is stainless steel and bronze.

The Sweet Pea is 18’5” long with an overall length of 26’6”, with a beam of 5’6”
and a draught of 4’4”. She sails with a mainsail, foresail and jib.

Her original inboard engine was replaced with a 6HP Evinrude “Fisherman” outboard, fitted aft of the rudder on a stainless steel bracket on the boomkin.

The Sweet Pea has been owned by the Cowichan Wooden Boat Society since March 2006, when she was received as a donation. She is currently being restored to seaworthiness by members of the Cowichan Wooden Boat Society.

Ian Douglas, a member of the society, has taken on the stewardship of “Sweet Pea” and in doing so in addition to keeping “Sweet Pea” in good repair, he is available to teach our members how to sail. So if you would like to learn how to sail this “sweet little boat” join the Cowichan Wooden Boat Society and learn from Ian.   For more information you can contact us at cwbs@island.net.

The origin of her name is unknown, but she is regarded as a “sweet little boat” by all who behold her!