KAYLEIGH Cruising Power Sharpy

With a submerged clipper bow and high tucked transom, Kayleigh is every inch a classic power sharpie skiff. Her flat rockered bottom gives great initial stability and easy beaching. Yet Her generous flaring topsides give ample reserve stability keeping Her dry and secure in rough conditions.

Minimal power from a 2 to 7HP outboard in well slips Her along from 4 to 6 knots with nary a wake. Plans also include drawings for a planing version of Kayleigh’s hull if more speed is desired)

Remote steering is optional, but direct tiller control leaves more storage space at less cost.

A comfortable cabin features sitting headroom, berths for 2, space for a galley and portable head, and ample storage.

Building this boat couldn’t be easier, even for a beginner. Using the Stitch & Glue system, plywood hull panels (3/8” sides, ½” bottom) are sawn to shape using the panel shapes shown in the plans. No patterns needed. (Patterns are miserable to work with, and would more than double the cost of the plans).

Seams are stitched together, forming the hull in the process, which is then epoxy bonded together with all exposed surfaces epoxy sealed and sheathed with fiberglass cloth and epoxy.

We displayed the prototype at the Seattle Wooden Boat Show in the 80’s, ran Her in strong winds in Hood’s Canal, ran Her out of Boston Harbor and among the islands in South Puget Sound, and circumnavigated the sand island that forms Ilwaco Harbor at the mouth of the Columbia with a full load of passengers, all with a tiller steered 3HP British Seagull outboard! She was purchased by a boater from Hemet, CA, who had me install a bulkhead mounted wheel and a 3HP Honda outboard.

Kayleigh was gifted to her current owner about 15 years ago and now sports a 7.5HP Honda. She is kept in excellent repair and still turns heads in Her home waters in Wisconsin!