The Pahi 31 "Saffrons Dream"
Just a Big Hobie!Saffrons Dream is a James Wharram designed 31 foot Polynesian double canoed sailing vessel. Inspired by the ancient double canoes of Polynesia, Wharram has been designing these vessels since the 1950's when he first built and sailed one across the Atlantic. Unlike modern catamarans, the Polynesian double canoe (or catamaran if you like) is not a rigid structure but uses rope lashings within its form to allow the hulls to move independantly of each other so the boat can flex with the seas. The Polynesians used the double hull canoe to explore and colonize an area or over ten million square miles.
Our Pahi is built from sustainable softwoods and uses modern marine ropes as lashings. She has a 9.9HP outboard which we use in tight places. With no cabin over the centre she is light weight, shallow draft and fast off the wind. Saffrons Dream also produces all our fresh water using a solar array that powers a watermaker. We also tow a 16 foot Boston Whaler with a 30HP outboard which is used as rescue cover and ferrying supplies and people ashore and back. Not only was Wharram inspired by these vessels but also in the 1960's Hobie Alter visited Hawaii and after sailing on Woody Browns Polynesian double canoe he returned to California and began building the now famous "Hobiecats". So you can see that not only is all of our fleet, the Hobie 16s and our Pahi 31, inspired by the Polynesians but even our concept of camp sailing from island to island comes from that same inspiration. |