Why I sail small, wooden boats

Video transcript:

Most harbors these days are filled with floating fiberglass summer houses, so why would you want to sail in something small and wooden? The big boats have features and comforts that you'll never get in a small boat, so isn't a small boat a step down from the standard modern yacht? Well, I think it is for a lot of people, but for me, the small boats have some big advantages that make them my first choice.

Small boats can go where the big boats can't
One of the special things about small boats is that they can go all the places where the bigger boats can't go. Many small boats don't need much more than "a wet lawn", as they say, to go sailing. This opens up a huge range of cruising grounds to go exploring places where you could never go in a boat with a deeper draft.

With a small boat, you can explore the smallest waterways, far away beaches, and deserted islands that aren't accessible in any other way. In Denmark, where I live, we have several hundred islands and most of them are uninhabited and even unnamed. So the opportunities for adventure and for exploring are virtually limitless.

Small boats are easy to transport
Another special thing about a small boat is the fact that it can easily be taken to any place that you want to go sailing. It's small enough to trailer or to even put on the roof rack of your car. With a big boat, you're pretty much locked to the area around your home harbor, unless you go on a longer cruise.

With a small boat on a trailer, a few hours of driving might take you to cruising grounds that would require a week of sailing to reach. Inland lakes and waterways are also an option with a small boat. So the flexibility of a small boat is pretty great, I think. And you don't need the same degree of planning. If the weather is good, you can go sailing even in areas that would require a lot of time and planning to reach in a bigger boat.

Small boats are easy and cheap to handle and to build
And then there are the practical aspects of small boats. First of all, they're easy, cheap, and fun to build. They're easy to store on the trailer, in a garage, or in a shed. You don't need a mooring or a harbor and they're easy to maintain. The fact that they're small means that there's less stuff to look after and there's way less stuff that can break. If you store a wooden boat under a roof or a tarp, regular maintenance shouldn't be anything more than a fall wash down and a fresh coat of paint and varnish in the spring.

Limitations of small boats
Obviously small boats have limitations too: One thing is the fact that most small boats are intended for use in sheltered waters only. And while some people have made extensive open water cruises in open dinghies, it's probably not what most of us would want to do. Also, small boats usually don't have a cabin, so if it rains, you will get wet. And a small boat of course doesn't have the same comfort as the bigger boats: No cabins with mattresses, no permanent galley, no toilet, and such. When you sail a small boat these are the compromises.

So can you do a multi-day cruise in a small wooden boat? I would say yes, but it all depends on the level of comfort that you require. Last summer, I went on a camp cruise in my Norwegian pram, which was an absolutely amazing experience. Camping on the beach instead of staying in a crowded harbor is much more for me, but obviously, it comes at the price that you stay in a tent - not a cabin - and you cook on a camping stove - not in a permanent galley.

So I think it depends on your personality. For me, the added adventure and intimacy with nature are more than worth it. That said, small boats are great day sailors too, so if you're not up for big camping trips, day sailing can give you wonderful experiences too.

Pure sailing
I think, to me, what a small boat boils down to is that it allows me to do pure sailing and connect with my body and with nature. Every movement of the waves and every blow of wind is transmitted. Every slight adjustment to the tiller, the sail, to the oars has an immediate effect on the boat. Sailing in a small boat is just me and the elements.

- Mikkel Pagh