Owner’s Description
PISTACHIO is an Arch Davis designed Penobscot 17 rowing/sailing boat that sails and rows well. As a lifelong canoer and kayaker I looked for several years for a small, simple, easily trailerable sailboat that would be ideal for exploring the mid coast of Maine on those days when the breezes picked up. My wife and I have 3 married children who are now having children of their own so this kind of boat has been ideal for a growing family of all ages.
There are so many choices of boats in this size range that are great but I fell in love with the Penobscot’s graceful sheer, nearly plumb bow and wineglass transom. The lapstrake really shows off her lines and I found the design beautiful from any angle. Also, being modern glued lapstrake, we could take her in and out whenever we wished.
I had intended to build this boat and had purchased plans when our boat came up for sale only a couple hours drive away. The builder, Jim Schlough, had done a beautiful job so rather than wait a year or two for my own build, we bought her.
The Penobscot 17 has lived up to all my expectations. She is perfect in 5-10 knot breezes. 2 reefpoints makes it possible to sail her safely in more, but being unballasted you need to keep a hand on the sheets all the time. Beating into 2-3 foot seas you might get some spray but it’s pretty easy to back off some and stay mostly dry. I can sail solo or load up with 4 or 5 adults, a kid or two and our dog on a calm day. Balance is wonderful I really notice no weather helm at all.
I believe her to be fairly quick. Times we’ve been out with other boats I’ve received comments that people struggled to keep up. My wife and I jumped into a local race last summer and for a mile or so in very light air, we came from a couple hundred yards back to leading the pack of much larger boats. Coming around an island though we hit some pretty strong winds so while the other boats took off like racehorses, we turned tail and cruised home.
The other thing I love about this boat is when breezes die, or when we want to put into a quiet beach for the day, it’s easy to drop the sails and row wherever we want to go. There are two rowing stations if we really needed to cover a lot of distance under oar. Maybe someday when I’m really old I’ll explore a small electric motor but for now the oars are perfect.
Mostly though I love sailing PISTACHIO. From trailer to sailing is only about 20 minutes. We keep her on a mooring so can have sails up and ready to go in 5 or 10 minutes. She’s fun to pilot. She’s a great camp cruiser for a couple of people exploring islands along the Maine trail. Or just a great picnic boat. And back on the mooring the deck can be a wonderful spot for a nap.
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11 thoughts on “17' Davis Sloop Rigged Penobscot 17 (2010) - PISTACHIO”
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11 thoughts on “17' Davis Sloop Rigged Penobscot 17 (2010) - PISTACHIO”
Beautiful pictures of a beautiful boat. Thanks for showing it here!
Hello Jim,
Really enjoyed reading about your search for a boat, deciding to build a P17, purchasing Pistachio instead and your philosophy on how you use your boat.
I felt right at home!
I lived in Maine for 6 years (well before I built my P14) and cruised Muscongus Bay in a friend’s cold-molded, home-built 39’ tri. You have gorgeous cruising grounds, to be sure. I especially enjoyed the pix of Pistachio in the fog — so very familiar…
If you read my page, you’ll see that I have towed and sailed my Penobscot 14, Sweet Dreams, all over the country from my home in NC. I towed her to Maine in 2018 and would love to have met you in person and sailed together.
I really enjoy sailing on Evergreen Lake in Hudson, IL together with my friend Vince Bobrosky and his Penobscot 14, E-z Duzit (also featured in this show – I’m sure you’d enjoy reading about his boat).
In fact, Vince and I want to invite you to join us this fall (late September, early October?) for a Penobscot meetup with other Penobscot builders. Have you ever towed Pistachio to IL? Even if you don’t bring her, come for the camaraderie, and we’ll get you and your wife aboard our boats, so you can join in the fun.
There is a nice campground on the shores of Evergreen Lake where everyone will be camping together and it’s only a couple hours from Barrington. We would love for you to join us!
You mentioned your possible future interest in an electric motor. As you’ll read on my pages, I added an EP Carry to Sweet Dreams, and am very, very pleased. It has totally transformed the way I use my Penobscot.
I’d be happy to discuss that in more detail, if you’d like. Text or call me at eightonetwo,twosixfive,ninesevenzerozero, and I can send you pictures of the custom mount Vince and I created to accommodate the curving, raked P14 transom that allows the EP Carry to sit perpendicular to the water without interfering with the rudder. Being able to use the boat’s tiller and rudder, instead of having to rely on the EP’s tiller, makes it really sublime.
Let’s stay in touch — Look forward to hearing back from you!
Hi John,
Thanks for your nice words and comments. That is wild you used to sail Muscongus Bay. What a glorious bay for almost any boat. I’ve kayaked, canoed, sailed and motored around it. All are good. So many nice places to pull up and picnic or camp.
You and Vince have beautiful boats. I really like the simplicity of the interior of the P14. Every boat is a compromise of some sort… For me though the 17′ is much more comfortable on more open water when the winds kick up. Nice to have a longer waterline.
I did build a Doug Hylan Beach Pea (also in the show here- Scurfy) back here in Illinois 2 years ago- which is 13′. Very nice to row when winds are light and I built a small lug sail rig for her that I’m still tweaking to get just right. But a great fun boat. I trailered her out to Maine and will likely leave her there going forward.
Thank you for the offer of a September sail down your way. I’ve not been on Evergreen Lake but it looks pretty beautiful! September and October are probably our two favorite months to be in Maine. The winds and weather is just about perfect for everything- especially sailing so would likely not be back here during that time. I know it’s crazy that I have a very trailerable boat but our home waters out there are just so nice, it’s hard to want to go anywhere else…
I hope at some point we can meet and compare notes on boats. So many fun people and stories here. Keep in touch. Especially if you’re out in Maine again.
Hi Jim,
Hearing you speak of Muscongus Bay in such glowing terms makes me want to hook Sweet Dreams up to the Outback and head north! I didn’t spend nearly enough time on that part of the coast while I lived there. It sure is tempting. I can’t do it this year, but next year…?
I will let you know if plans come together.
Thanks for your compliments about E-z Duzit and Sweet Dreams. Vince and I only met after he had finished his build and I was still working on mine. He was a great influence on my boat and Sweet Dreams is all the better for our collaboration. We even call her Vince’s second boat, and I gave him credit on the builders’ plaque.
I can certainly understand the 17 being more comfortable on open water. I have been quite concerned at times in my 14! I sewed my sail from a Sailrite kit and had them add in a second set of reef points — which have come in rather handy on a few occasions.
Scurfy looks like fun! I’d be curious to hear more of your thoughts on sailing her.
I can’t blame you for not leaving Maine during September and October. Frankly if I lived there, I’d stay put during those months as well. We’ll raise a glass and a sail in your honor at the get together this fall.
Shoot me a text (my cell is in my original post) so I know how to reach out and let’s share email addresses. I’d enjoy staying in touch after the show.
I really like your boat. The paint color selection is great. I also like the how your cockpit is finished out with storage space beneath the seating area. We own a 17′ Whitehall with a sprit rig sail. The sail being an after thought for the Whitehalls. The sprit rig does not sail well to weather, but rather beam reach to wind of the stern is best. If I was succesfull in setting up my contact info you can see a picture on JoeL.”message”
Thanks, Joe. Color was as close to a pistachio nut as we could come… I kind of like that it’s not a traditional boat color. As for the storage- Arch Davis kind of designed the bulkheads not only for structure but under the seats on the sides are several inches of foam for floatation. Beneath that is some space for storage as well as underneath the “thwart” part of the structure. But that can get some water sloshing around so if we care about keeping anything dry, it goes into dry sacks.
Our boat is a bit “tender” when the winds get puffy. I keep a hand on the main sheet and tiller if it’s at all sketchy. I also added a 3rd reef point but have yet to use it. Much over 15 knots and it’s just a lot of wind and waves for a boat this size.
Your whitehall looks beautiful and really like your motor runabout. Classic boat and looks like you really use it well. I grew up on a river in Indiana so spent my childhood with outboard motors on small boats. Nice to just use sails now!
It’s so good to see your boat here James! I hope that we can maybe catch up a bit this year in Round Pond (you were kind enough to send me some pictures of my wife and I in our Caledonia Yawl). Your boat is truly gorgeous! Wonderful pictures.
Hi Ken! Great to hear from you. I saw you coming into the harbor a couple of times this past summer but was tied up at the house. Would love to see you on the water this summer! Is your boat in this show? It should be if not!
Hi James, No, I didn’t put my boat in, but I’m having a great time looking at everyone else’s boats! I’ll be around this summer, so I hope I can see you there too
I love your boat! (and your dog!)
Thank you, Nathanael. I’m not sure who loves the boat more, me or Russell the dog.