In 2004, after many years owning and sailing a variety of interesting boats, the stars aligned, the shop floor was available and we began building a cruising boat designed to fit the needs of our expanding family.
Over the next three years, I worked part time (still had my day job building boats for others) and with the full time help of two capable shipwrights and some youngsters assisting, we built Charlotte and launched her in 2007.
Our goal was a vessel that would be big enough for ocean passages, small enough so as not to be a burden or too costly to maintain, sleep eight (squeeze 10 – we now have 5 grandchildren) and be capable of day chartering with me and a young helper as crew. Charlotte, named for my paternal grandmother, is an uncomplicated traditional gaff rig schooner that fulfills her mission with high marks.
We have sailed her as far south as Haiti, Cuba and the leeward islands, and east to Maine, Nova Scotia and Cape Breton.
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Please consider bringing the lovely Charlotte to the Great Chesapeake Bay Schooner Race some year, we would love to have you! It is a fun 117nm race down the Bay, bookended by very collegial gatherings on either end, one in Baltimore and the other in Norfolk. This year’s race is Oct. 3-8 http://www.gcbsr.org
Nat invited my wife and I aboard Charlotte early one morning at Mystic. It was a treat to get a tour from the designer and builder. Everywhere you look a lifetime of experience shows through. She has been my favorite boat ever since.
Please consider bringing the lovely Charlotte to the Great Chesapeake Bay Schooner Race some year, we would love to have you! It is a fun 117nm race down the Bay, bookended by very collegial gatherings on either end, one in Baltimore and the other in Norfolk. This year’s race is Oct. 3-8 http://www.gcbsr.org
Absolutely spectacular schooner. Those mains look interchangeable in the event of a rip. I love the simple powerful rig.
Wow, she is my most definitely my type
She has been one of my favorite builds for some time. Gorgeous and practical in many ways.
Nat invited my wife and I aboard Charlotte early one morning at Mystic. It was a treat to get a tour from the designer and builder. Everywhere you look a lifetime of experience shows through. She has been my favorite boat ever since.
An interview with Nat Benjamin here: https://www.woodenboat.com/videos/matt-murphy-interviews-nat-benjamin