The MacGregor 26M Comes Alive

sandre fernando
3 days ago
7 min read

Sea Trials, New Friends and a Name for the Journey

There is a particular moment when an old boat stops being a project and starts becoming a boat again.

I think I reached that point recently with my 2012 MacGregor 26M.

After years of storage, repairs, electrical work, rigging, batteries, paperwork, inspections and more than a few occasions when I wondered what on earth I had gotten myself into, the boat is now spending almost every day on the water at Bolgoda Lake.

And she is beginning to feel like a real sailboat again.

The Sea Trials Are Becoming a Daily Routine

I've been taking the MacGregor out on the lake for short sea trials almost every day that conditions permit.

The purpose isn't simply to go for a boat ride. I'm learning the boat all over again.

There is a big difference between understanding how a boat is supposed to behave and actually knowing how your particular boat behaves when you turn the wheel, apply throttle, raise a sail or find yourself in a tight spot.

The MacGregor has been teaching me.

During the weekends I've also started taking out some of the friends and acquaintances who have helped me get her back into shape. Some have helped with mechanical work, some with electrical work, some with repairs and advice, and others have simply been there when another pair of hands was needed.

So now I'm beginning to repay them in the best way I know how:

Take them boating.

We make short trips around the Yacht Club basin, talk, laugh, experiment with the boat and enjoy being on the water.

And last Saturday was a particularly interesting outing.

The Most Qualified Crew on the Lake?

I had four people from my Coxswain class aboard, including myself on Saturday morning.

We looked around at one another and came to the amusing realization that we were probably the most qualified crew on Bolgoda Lake that morning.

Of course, having qualifications doesn't necessarily make you an expert sailor. The lake has a way of reminding you of that rather quickly.

But it was a good feeling to have several people aboard who understood navigation, boat handling and safety—and who were also interested enough to ask questions and discuss what the MacGregor was doing.

For me, these trips are as much about building confidence as they are about testing the boat.

The Seaworthy Certificate — Another Box Checked

One of the biggest milestones has now been reached:

The seaworthy inspection has been completed.

That may sound like a relatively small administrative achievement, but after everything involved in getting this old MacGregor back into service, it feels rather significant.

There is still paperwork to complete, including registration and insurance, but having the seaworthy inspection behind me means that the project has moved another important step forward.

The boat is no longer simply something sitting in a storage yard waiting for attention.

She is becoming a documented, inspected and operational vessel.

And that brings the eventual objective a little closer:

Getting from Bolgoda Lake to the Indian Ocean.

The Great Question: Can the MacGregor Get to the Ocean?

This is where things become interesting.

The MacGregor is sitting at the Ceylon Motor Yacht Club on Bolgoda Lake, but my eventual ambition isn't simply to sail around the lake.

I want to take her around Sri Lanka.

That means somehow getting from this beautiful inland waterway to the sea.

And there are some obstacles.

The route toward Panadura involves several bridges, and the railway bridge is the one that has been causing me the most concern even with mast down on deck.

The good news is that the MacGregor's mast will be down for the journey.

The less-good news is that I don't yet know exactly how much clearance I'll have under that railway bridge at low tide.

This isn't something I intend to guess about.

A mistake involving a bridge and a sailboat is not the sort of mistake you get to make twice.

So the plan is to make a proper reconnaissance trip toward the Panadura river mouth with someone who knows the route and navigate the sand bar.

Unfortunately, the pilot who has previously made this trip wasn't available when we had planned to go, so that trip has been postponed.

That's fine.

One thing I'm learning from this project is that there is absolutely no prize for being in a hurry.

I'll go when the right local knowledge and conditions come together.

What Does a 40 HP Yamaha Do on a MacGregor 26M?

The boat is fitted with a 40 HP Yamaha outboard, and so far it has been a very useful companion.

The engine has relatively low hours and has proved more than adequate for the sort of motoring I'm doing around the club and lake.

The electric start is wonderful.

So is the power trim in and around the shallow lake water.

Being able to trim the motor and maneuver into or out of tight spaces with a touch of the controls is particularly useful on a boat like the MacGregor.

But I've also learned something important about the relationship between the engine and the boat's steering system.

When sailing under full sail power, there can be considerable forces acting on the steering system. I've already had an unpleasant reminder of that when components of the steering gear popped out of their sockets and had to be repaired.

That repair involved a substantial amount of stainless-steel work—and a substantial amount of money.

So I am now treating the steering system with considerably more respect.

The Yamaha is there to help me get out of trouble.

It isn't there to create another problem.

Single-Handed Sailing — On Hold, For Now

I had originally hoped to become completely comfortable sailing the MacGregor single-handed. I've shelved that idea for the moment.

Not because I have abandoned it.

Rather, I've decided that Bolgoda Lake is not the place to learn that particular skill with my current sail arrangement.

The problem is partly the lake itself.

The basin where I'm currently sailing is quite shallow, and in many places there is less than three feet of water. If I miss a tack and get too close to shore, I don't have much room to recover.

The other problem is my foresail.

What I currently have is a 130% genoa, rather than a smaller working jib.

In an approximately 8-knot breeze, that sail can overpower two people on the boat, let alone one.

And I don't currently have a winch handle, (one is on its way from Ohio) which makes trimming the sail properly more difficult when the wind gets up.

So I'm not going to prove my sailing courage by doing something foolish.

At present, just use only the main sail or go out with one of the sailing instructors at the Club.

I've also made arrangements to borrow a smaller jib from a friend who owns a small training sailboat. That should make an interesting experiment.

A smaller sail, a little less power and a more manageable rig may be exactly what I need to begin developing the single-handed skills I eventually want for the coastal voyage.

There is a difference between being adventurous and being stupid. I'm trying to stay on the adventurous side of that line.

And Then There Is the Question of Her Name

I've been thinking about the boat's name for quite some time.

My previous sailboat was called Mon Cherie, and there is a certain temptation to call this boat Mon Cherie II.

But another name has been increasingly difficult to get out of my mind:

Janapremani

It is a beautiful Sri Lankan name, and the meaning I associate with it is essentially "loved by the people" or "beloved of the people."

There is another reason it has become particularly meaningful to me.

Janapremani is the middle name of my girlfriend, Tissangani Janapremani Kodituakku.

So the name would carry a personal meaning for me, but I also like what it says about the journey itself.

If I eventually sail around Sri Lanka, I don't want the voyage to be only about me and my boat.

I want to meet people.

I want to visit fishing villages.

I want to hear the stories of people who live along the coast.

I want to learn about the different communities, traditions, fishing practices, wildlife and places that most visitors never see.

And perhaps a Sri Lankan name meaning loved by the people is rather appropriate for that purpose.

I also like the fact that it is unmistakably Sri Lankan.

If I eventually arrive by boat in a small fishing village on the east or north coast, I'd rather have a name on the stern that feels like it belongs there.

So perhaps the choice is becoming:

Mon Cherie II

S/V Janapremani

I haven't officially christened her yet.

But I'm beginning to suspect that the second one may be winning.

The Journey Is Starting Before the Journey

One of the things I hadn't anticipated when I began this project was how much of the adventure would happen before leaving Bolgoda Lake.

There are bridges to investigate.

A river mouth to explore.

A boat to learn.

Sails to experiment with.

A steering system to keep an eye on.

Paperwork to complete.

A seaworthy certificate to obtain.

Insurance and registration to arrange.

And perhaps most importantly, there are people to meet.

The MacGregor has already brought quite a few good people into my life and she is belle of the Ceylon Motor Yacht Club here at Bolgoda. A 97 year old establishment.

Now I'm taking them out on the lake.

Eventually, if everything goes according to plan, the lake will become the starting point rather than the destination.

But I'm in no hurry.

For now, I'm happy to spend another morning on the Bolgoda, learning what this 26-foot boat can and cannot do.

The ocean will still be there when we're ready for it.