19' Oughtred Wee Seal (2003) - OPUS

Some boats are race boats. Some boats are cruising boats. Opus, a modified Wee Seal, designed by Iain Oughtred, is a boat that just seems to make people smile wherever she shows up, according to Seattle owners Lee Bjorklund and Larry Goerss.
With Scandinavian-influenced longer ends, and great reserve buoyancy all round, Opus has proven to be an exceptionally able, comfortable, dry and sea-worthy double-ended vessel. She handles and balances well in all sorts of conditions. Opus is a shining example of a pocket cruiser that is not intimidated by distance, location, or sea conditions (within reason). She is a boat where, in the words of Wayne Roberts “the essence of simplicity is the height of enjoyment.”
Opus is modified with a toe-rail, a Bermudan rather than a Gunter Rig and a full keel with bilge boards instead of the as designed swing keel. This modification added 10” to the draft, but created a flat, unobstructed floor in the cabin and significantly opened up the interior space. Additionally, the builder installed a motor well on the starboard side of the keel, making running under power both convenient and efficient. A Honda 2.3 h.p is used on lakes and a Mercury 3.5 when doing “larger” Puget Sound sailing. Inside, Goerss retro-fitted the bow portion and two storage units into buoyancy chambers with twist-lock watertight hatches. Electronics are solar powered.