We owned a Hawk 20 for many years but the ease of raising and lowering the rig really attracted us to the Bay Cruiser 21. In addition, the water ballast system seemed like a good option for facilitating getting the boat on and off the trailer.

We are so impressed with the beautiful handling of the BayCruiser 21, and recovering our boat onto the trailer in stiff winds is (…excuse the pun!) a breeze – even cross winds gusting force 5 hasn’t presented a problem for recovery.

We took delivery of Little Pickle in the summer of 2024; we’ve sailed on Loch Sween already and we’re looking forward to adventures further afield as we explore the west coast of Scotland. We can’t wait for next summer to put our BayCruiser 21 through her paces more extensively, and we have many adventures planned in the Sound of Jura, including a sail down to the Island of Gigha and dinner at the Boathouse!

The best advice I can give anyone considering a Swallow is to visit the factory and speak to Matt. The enthusiasm for the product from the whole team is infectious, and it’s wonderful to see the love and attention that goes into building these boats in a glorious setting of West Wales where they are built.

We bought a Swallow BayCruiser 23 to downsize from our previous boat (a Catalina 320) to encapsulate all we found most enjoyable about yacht ownership such as coastal sailing, exploring rivers and bays while eliminating more annoying aspects such as onerous maintenance, crowded moorings and excessive marina charges.

Whilst we only took delivery in August 2024 our yacht ‘Little Egret’ is already matching expectations all round. We particularly enjoy its many modern design features and also the stunning classic good looks!

We were lucky to be offered a (drying) mooring on the River Fowey at Golant, which is a delightful and protected location. We have had to become more ’tide aware’ but that is part of the fun of river boating.

We also thought a Swallow would be a more appropriate vessel on which to teach our grandchildren to sail, and a highlight so far in owning our BayCruiser 23 has been fun day sailing with our grandsons aged 7 and 9. We think they might be hooked already!

Even after just a few months’ sailing our BayCruiser 23 I would tell any prospective owner that it is a thoroughly well-built boat; rewarding to sail and capable of taking the ground well as well as the comparatively favourable cost of swinging moorings and marina berthing!

I have been sailing all my life, in the UK and the Med, from a 29ft Westerly Konsort to a Beneteau 423. I could see that at some point I would want to downsize and, living in ‘landlocked’ Derbyshire, the best option seemed to be a boat I could trail.

I was new to towing a boat and have found the Baycruiser 23 ideal. The ability to take on water ballast and enjoy a very stable craft and then pump it out to recover has been a revelation. Launching and recovery is very straight forward. The carbon fibre spars and Dyneema rigging all contribute to the lightest craft you could expect for this size of boat.

I have enjoyed racing Gracenote at Carsington against other small cruisers and then, after towing her to the coast, I can re-create my cruising life. I have sailed her at Milford Haven, Plymouth, Falmouth, the Suffolk Rivers and hope to go further afield into Europe next year. One summer I took part in the Sail Caledonia raid, which was great fun.

I’ve never before owned such an extensively admired craft. Sailing in Plymouth harbour, a ferry boat pulled alongside and the skipper slid back the wheelhouse window and shouted across, “That’s a damn fine-looking boat you’ve got there!” which makes for a memorable moment.

Wherever you live, for cruiser racing, creek crawling or coastal exploring you’ll not find a more versatile boat.

I was looking on the market for a trailerable boat, so when I found the BayCruiser 216 I was delighted to realise that this boat fulfilled all my requirements.  I have been impressed with the eye for detail in the boat’s design, and the quality of the build is outstanding.

I’ve had my boat ‘Mercy Wind’ for around two years now and she sails so beautifully.  I’ve enjoyed sailing her on the Dutch lakes, in particular the IJsselmeer and the Waddenzee, and I’m looking forward to expand my sailing area in the future to the Mediterranean.

Every sailing trip is in its way memorable for me, I’m learning new things all the time with my boat and enjoying getting to know her.

After two years of being a Swallow owner it brings me a smile every time I sail my BayCruiser 26 – she is everything I had hoped for in a boat and I’m extremely happy to own and sail her.

Having raced and rallied Wayfarer dinghies for many years, we were well used to trailer sailing around the UK and beyond into Friesland, Denmark and Brittany. With the logistics of continuing this kind of sailing starting to bring up a few challenges we decided we might be better off trying day sailing out of a nearby cruising club. When we received an offer on our Wayfarer, well, that was that – we were boatless! What to do next? Firstly, ditch the wetsuits we’d been using for years in our dinghy sailing days – Hooray! And then to find a new boat…

A friend suggested we look at the Swallow Yachts’ website, and after a viewing at the Southampton Boat Show, we took a trial sail on a Bayraider Expedition. The weather was perfect; warm and sunny with a light breeze, and we were hooked – line and sinker!

We enjoyed eight years with our BayRaider Expedition – 047 ‘WhimBRel’, but a house move further away from our nearby sailing club meant we needed to work out what to do about sailing. By happy chance we heard about the BayCruiser 21 coming along – with a little more accommodation space we thought that we could perhaps do more overnighters at the club, and it was time for a change anyway! Our BC21 008 ‘Whimsey’ arrived with us in summer 2024.

Size matters to us, as local trailer launching is restricted to boats the size of the Expedition and the BayCruiser 21. Weight was also a consideration for trailing and launching; we love the water ballast concept that features in Swallow sailing boats. The lifting keels means we can ply the shallow waters of Poole harbour at most states of the tide.

Both Swallows we have owned are handy enough to be able to beat up the narrow Wareham Channel and to creep along the River Frome if there is some favourable breeze. The breeze often gets up in the harbour environs and we find reefing very easy.

We love the large cockpit of the BayCruiser 21, which is particularly well suited to day sailing, especially when we have grandchildren on board.

We really like the Epropulsion electric outboard engine that we have onboard our BayCruiser 21. It has its limitations against wind and tide, but we always plan our trips to avoid those conditions. We have two batteries which we alternate, keeping one on charge with solar panels between trips. It really is tailor made for these boats and the kind of sailing we do; it’s such a quiet engine and easy to use, and we can call up a few revs whenever we need to ghost between zephyrs or get up a narrow channel without frightening the seals!

It’s important for us to be able to get on board at our mooring and get sailing as quickly as possible, and even more important to be able to pack up and get the mooring cover back on quickly at the end of the day. The mizzen-less rig on the BayCruiser 21 really helps, and having a fully self-draining cockpit is handy too as the ‘sump-less’ cockpit has always been dry and clean. Having a built-in electric pump to empty the ballast tank at a touch of a button at the end of the day saves time against getting a portable pump out of the locker.

Our BayCruiser 21 is lovely and light on the helm and heaves-to beautifully. The raised cockpit floor provides considerable extra space for the Portaloo, the ship’s battery and other items. As this is accessible from the cabin it frees up all the bunk space for overnighting. We anchored from the side in the Expedition but access to the bow for anchoring is so easy on the BayCruiser 21.

The Expedition had a useful rear deck for a pair of 20W panels which kept the Epropulsion batteries topped up during the season without needing to take them home. The BayCruiser 21 has had the cockpit moved back a foot so, which means that there’s no rear deck, but we plan to use a portable panel of about 100W resting on top of the mooring cover. The ship’s battery has its own solar panel on the cabin roof.

Most years we have trailed down to Mylor on the Carrick Roads at Falmouth – we really enjoy the sailing there, so many destinations to cruise up to. The first few years were taken with the Swallow rallies; and more recently we have been there independently with a couple of other Swallows. Poole Harbour is where we sail most and we love a good day sail meandering up to the entrance, lunch behind Brownsea Island and usually a beat back home. Four or five hours and a nice cup of tea back on the mooring!

We always enjoy our trips up the Fal to Malpas – in earlier years we had raced up to Malpas and back without stopping but now we moor up at the new pontoon there and have lunch at the Heron Inn. Anchoring by the little sandy beach off St. Anthony’s Head is great, and there are so many nice little destinations around the Fal that are accessible in the BayCruiser 21.

With a Swallow it’s very tempting to go bigger than you may really need; so we would encourage anyone considering which boat to get to think about whether they would really sleep aboard, or would you get local accommodation at your destinations as we sometimes do.

Our advice is to take a trial sail if you can – well at least for your first Swallow! Then we found it very useful to go on a Swallow Rally as soon as you can; this is so useful for getting up to speed with all aspects of sailing and trailing. We also found it very useful to find other local Swallows and set up a contact group – this has been invaluable for comparing notes and sailing out in company.

After about 40 years of dinghy sailing, in 2015 we were looking for a boat with a small cabin, easy to trailer and launch, and with enough stability to sail on our holidays in German coastal waters on the North and Baltic Seas.

After seeing the BayRaider Expedition advertised in Yacht magazine we looked at the Swallow Yachts homepage and their YouTube channel. We viewed an Expedition that was in winter storage nearby and finally visited the shipyard visit for a test sail on Cardigan Bay, after which we felt confident that the Expedition was right for us.

Lake Dümmer (on which we sail most of the season) is quite shallow with an average water depth of around 1m, so the Expedition was perfect with the shallow draft. Apart from sailing on the Dümmer, we spent several summer holidays with him on the German Baltic and North Sea coasts and on the river “Havel”.

But our holidays also have something to do with comfort, and after a few years this thought prompted us to switch to the more comfortable BayCruiser 23. This year we enjoyed sailing our new boat as usual on the Dümmer, and also explored around the German Wadden Sea in East- and North Frisia.

We are very satisfied with our decision for the BayCruiser 23 and are already anticipating our positive experiences in our boat (which is named Findus!) can continue next season, when we hope to venture also in the Danish South Seas.

Last but not least the pleasant surprise when we offered our Expedition “Pip” for sale: we received inquiries from prospective buyers in several European countries and were particularly pleased that Pip went on to find found a new home in Brittany.

We had never heard of Swallow Yachts, and our first introduction was seeing a BayCruiser 23 moored on a pontoon in Mylor. The design impressed us and being dinghy sailors, we were thinking of upgrading our Laser 16. After some consideration and web browsing, we visited Swallow, met Matt, Steffan and Lara, who introduced us to the boats under build. When it became fairly evident the BayCruiser 26 had caught Jane’s eye this demanded more attention. We fairly quickly made the decision to purchase our boat based on the fact we loved the design and we were really impressed with the approach everyone we met at Swallow had towards the boats they build and towards us, the customer.

For us it was a fairly simple decision to opt for a BayCruiser 26; there wasn’t another boat design which offered such a big boat package in a trailered boat which we could double or single hand.

The design offered us everything we wanted in terms of comfort – space for storage and up to four people – and a sailing specification which provided us with a massive range from open water offshore, to estuaries and rivers. It really is an impressive package and retaining the look of a classic boat it really draws the eye.

We are based at Beaulieu River, and so our frequent trips are along the south coast. We have trailered Floki to the Western Isles which provided us with a few weeks sailing without the problem of sailing there first.

Our most memorable moment to date is sailing the Western Isles from Craobh Haven to Ardern and Crinan through Doris Morr, around Kerrera and through Cuan Sound. Floki was incredible to sail and live aboard, and watching Otters and Deer on the shore in such a magical place was wonderful.

The one great thing about Swallow Yachts is the feeling of family, the care for their owners is always supportive, and they offer loads of advice. Everyone has been so helpful, and the main advantage is you can speak to Matt (the designer) for advice.

We would definitely recommend Swallow Yachts and as a fleet the Baycruiser 26 owners are a fantastic bunch, all very helpful and supportive.

With retirement approaching I was on the lookout for a faster more modern boat than my previous Hunter Liberty 22. I was searching for a boat under 30ft that I could spend a few days on and which didn’t come with the weight of the maintenance of my former boat. I wanted a large cockpit, outboard engine, lifting keel and good mast raising/lowering capability. I was beginning to realise that there is not a lot out there that would fit my requirements when I came across Swallow Yachts and went out to see them in west Wales. Matt Newland showed me a completed Coast 250 and a BayCruiser 26 that was being built at the time. He recommended the BayCruiser 26 for me as there is privacy when you have a fellow sailor on board. I really liked the real wood finish, standing head room and the innovative ideas that have been incorporated into this classic looking boat.

I am not a racer but I do enjoy the way the BayCruiser 26 effortlessly gets up to a good speed. There no slamming, she points close to the wind and tacks easily; I can speed down Southampton Water with hardly any tacks. The boat is very stable with the water ballast in – better than most boats under 30 feet that I’ve sailed. I find that downwind I do need to put up the cruising chute, and I’m pleased to see that Swallow offer a furling one as I sail on my own a lot.

I like the way the BayCruiser 26 sits on a drying out pontoon as this reduces the standing costs of owning a boat quite significantly. The cabin is comparatively spacious and the berths are very comfortable.

I frequently sail my BayCruiser 26, Bagpuss, on my own; reefing is straightforward and the ropes come to the cockpit. The tiller is very light and the outboard connecting to the twin rudders for manoeuvring in the marina is a real help when you are on your own. The cockpit is roomy, which is especially good for taking the grandchildren out.

I have had the boat just over 3 years but for various reasons I’ve only been able to sail her for one season but I’m intending to enjoy a lot more day sailing interspersed with 3-5 day cruising. I would like to cover the whole of the South Coast and have an ambition to sail it to the Isles of Scilly, exploring anchorages rather than marinas.

On our first sail in Bagpuss, my elder son and I went from Portland Marina up to Kemps Quay in Southampton. Possibly not the most advisable maiden sail, but we did learn a lot! I had set a cruising speed of 3 knots average, which was far too low so we arrived early at St Albans Head. Whilst we went out around 7NM’s the wind had picked up and it was a rough sea even though we had waited for the right tide. The boat coped but I am not sure I did, especially remembering the frailty of the rudder of my last boat. We stayed overnight just round the corner (port side) of the chain ferry in Poole Harbour on a mooring. Lovely watching the sun go down with cheese and wine around the cockpit table after an eventful first leg!

The BayCruiser 26 is superbly built, clearly not mass produced and with her classic lines she is a great head turner. I have met many other owners and they are all so positive about their boats. It is clear that a lot of thought has gone into the modern design, which shows in her performance both in heavy and light seas. These are small volume boats to which you can add your own touch, although there is also lot of options available for new boats.

The BayCruiser 23 is my second Swallow Boat. I had done some extensive research before I first bought a BayRaider Expedition, visited Matt and the team at the Boat Show and in Cardigan, liked what I saw and decided to purchase a new one. I liked it so much that I decided to repeat the whole experience and get a BayCruiser 23.

I like dealing with a small business; the whole journey is much more personal and I value the innovation and swift improvements that can be applied to designs as the lived experience of the owners is played back into the development of the boats.

The BayCruiser 23 is a well thought out boat. I like the simplicity of the design and its various features. The rig is easy to set up on your own or with inexperienced crew and that does save an awful lot of pre-sail moaning. It is forgiving to sail, has plenty of room for a family to muck around on for a day and the flexibility to stay onboard whilst venturing further afield.

I’ve tried keeping my BayCruiser 23 on a hard stand, at a mooring or berthed alongside. All three options have their benefits and demonstrate the flexibility of this boat. She has been used in Chichester Harbour and out into the Solent. I mostly enjoy just getting out and exploring the harbour. Nothing beats a day/evening at anchor at East Head or heading up and around the various channels in the waters around Chichester.

I’ve loved the ability to play around with the sailing of the boat, by adding a spinnaker to the sail set as well as watching my children enjoy the space and flexibility of the boat. It’s fairly forgiving and if you get it wrong and find the bottom, then it doesn’t take too much drama to get yourself out of trouble.

I’ve had a few glorious summer mornings waking up at anchor in the harbour with just the sound of the wildlife and a fantastic sunrise to begin the day.

I would recommend taking the time and effort to speak to Matt and the team in Cardigan as well as
meeting current owners at the Boat Show. There is a superb owners forum that has a wealth of information and covers just about any questions you may have. Take your time to think about the additional equipment that you want on your boat and enjoy the build experience.

Taking loads of photographs when you rig and de-rig for the first time; it will save a lot of head scratching when you are doing it on your own for the first time.

I’m a big fan of the Swallow Yacht range; they have a boat for most requirements and I really benefitted from the experience I gained in my BayRaider Expedition before I purchased the BayCruiser 23. It’s a fab brand, is quick to react to design improvements and is run by people who really care about their business.

Why I bought Daisy Grace Baycruiser 20 number 1

All sailors tell lies. The most common one is “Of course, I’m not looking for a new boat…”

I wasn’t looking for a new boat at the Beale Park Boat show in 2008. But I couldn’t help noticing how smoothly that cream-sailed yawl was moving around the lake. Seemingly effortlessly. Of course, I wasn’t looking for a new boat, but we went for a sail in it anyway and met Matt Newland, the designer. I knew I was safe because, as I told him, if I was looking for a new boat, I would want one with a cabin, which this Bayraider didn’t have. I remember his eyes gleaming slyly as he told me that actually he did have a cabin version on the drawing board, and he was just waiting for the first order to put it into production. I realised I was hooked, and probably landed, but took the precaution of visiting the boatyard in Cardigan before I did anything rash. I liked what I saw and I liked the people I met so I took the plunge and placed the order for what would be Baycruiser number 1. Somewhat embarrassingly, my deposit cheque bounced, but it all got sorted in the end and in July 2009 (“It’ll be ready in April…”) I picked her up from Cardigan and have been delighted with her ever since.

The Baycruiser 20 suits my criteria. She is light enough to trail with an unbraked trailer but is ballasted on the water, so she is very stable. She floats to a mooring in Poole Harbour all summer and comes home for the winter. I can sail her easily on my own, but she can take up to four, at a squeeze. She has a remarkably big cabin, which I use as my home from home. I have six paintings and a small library in her (so much for lightness). I keep the lockers stuffed with enough food so that if I suddenly have a chance to go down to her, I always have enough on board for a weekend afloat.

It is hard to say what the most memorable moments with her have been, but arriving in the Solent from Poole for the 2011 English Raid, to be asked “have you just sailed from Poole? It’s blowing force 7 out there!” was good. I hadn’t really noticed. But the most satisfying moments have been when I have backed the trailer down a slipway, just getting the tyres in the water. There is always someone there who says “Surely you don’t think you can launch into that depth of water?” Touch wood, I have done so every time so far. It produces despairing looks of envy from people who are wading out up to their waists, wondering how they are going to get their trailers back to land.

Daisy Grace had some inevitable problems as a brand new design. Her first trailer broke when I tried to recover her. Matt came down from Cardigan to Poole with a new one. Her original rudder blade swelled  and jammed in the rudder head. Matt designed and made a new one, which never jammed and works far better. When I lost my mainsail and boom (don’t ask) Swallowboats (and my insurers, Bluefin, to give them well deserved credit) pulled out all the stops to make a new boom and get a new sail for me as quickly as possible at the height of the building season.

I would recommend Swallowboats to anyone. Their designs are fascinating and they work. Their after sales service and support is excellent, friendly and personal. I will now stick with my Daisy Grace. I’m not looking for a new boat. No, really I’m not. Honestly, I’m not looking….

On moving inland from Scarborough (N. Yorks) I sold my share in a Hydro 28 that we regularly raced round the buoys. It was strange to be without a boat again.

I’ve been messing about in boats for almost 70 years and I soon realised I had to have another. This time it had to be one that I could (where necessary) sail single handed in waters that I had not yet explored but could also be used for family outings with grandchildren. I had taught my children to sail in a Mirror and later a Wayfarer but I don’t bend and move as easily as I did so I wanted something more stable and appropriate for a grandparent.

I had read, and been very impressed by, reviews of a succession of Swallow Boats but when the BR20 Expedition was featured I thought that all my ideals in a new boat seemed to have been met and so I resolved to make a visit to Matt Newland’s yard to see his latest development for myself. I loved the quality of what I saw and it was clear that the many lovely details in the design substantiate the Swallow slogan “Classic looks – Modern performance”.  Not only that, the boat is set up to be really easily handled in every respect from the carbon fibre spars that are easily raised and lowered single handed, the fully battened main with its lazy jacks and easy slab reefing to the outboard being all ready in situ but clear of the water when sailing.

I had not heard of “Raiding” until Matt explained it as part of the rationale for the design but the option to row the boat properly in windless conditions is another great facility. For keen raiders who use oars to row/sail in races it is vital!

Once Nick Peters became established as a dealer it became feasible to go down from Yorkshire for a trial sail without tackling the West Wales road network which is beautiful but slow! I was still very open minded as we set off from Northney Marina and we had arranged for a friend to bring his Wayfarer for comparison purposes and to see the two boats side by side. To my surprise, in a moderate headwind the Wayfarer couldn’t keep up with the Expedition as we tacked down towards East Head until we had pulled down a reef and filled the water ballast. Neither action was really demanded by the conditions with three of us comfortably sailing her and keeping totally dry in the shelter of the spray hood. Admittedly, the Wayfarer was rather short of crew weight but I could no longer feel open minded. I had loved cruising in my Wayfarer and the realisation that I could return to that kind of sailing but in much more comfort and stability certain in the knowledge that there was a dry cabin to retire into at the end of the day blew away the argument that a brand new and fully equipped Wayfarer would be significantly cheaper. They’re like chalk and cheese! The ease of launch and recovery direct to the road trailer was also very impressive.

I ordered my new boat the very next week.

She was christened on Ullswater in blustery conditions the following spring. What a delight it was to find how amenable her yawl rig is. You either jog along under mizzen and jib or just heave to while you set, reef or lower the main. It’s amazing how easy it is to get just a light touch of weather helm. The fully battened main goes up and down its track really easily and the lazy jacks keep control of the bunt of the sail.

At the end of the week we joined in a very enjoyable Swallow Boat Rally. Even though the weather forecast had put off some owners from travelling to the Lake District, those who did had some varied though sometimes wet sailing. (See the Swallow Boat Owners Forum via the link on the Swallow boats Site)

The next challenge was the Caledonian Raid from Fort William to Inverness (www.sailcaledonia.org). We didn’t win any of the races but we never expected to and anyway I was far too reluctant to get the oars out. Neither my son nor I could believe how easily and quickly we beat up the full length of Loch Ness against a freshening breeze and with no water ballast needed. What a fabulous boat she is proving to be.

Since then, and to prove the point to myself I took her back to Ullswater Yacht Club where I rigged, launched, sailed and recovered her onto the trailer totally unaided.  The only thing I didn’t attempt single handed was to set the asymmetric spinnaker but I will when the conditions are right.

This septuagenarian is as happy as a dog with two tails having a boat that cries out for “expedition and adventure” that comes from a really approachable and supportive company.

Dear Swallowboats-Team,

In case you are interested here follows my verdict after the first about 9 weeks of ownership:

This year´s summer in Germany was windy and rainy. Accordingly I have never sailed the boat in anything under a full 4, most of the timea 5 gusting 6, a few times gusts of 7.

I am keeping the boat in Harlesiel at the Eastern Frisian coast of Germany. That means sailing in the German part of the „waddenzee“. Elevation between low and high tide is about  3-3,5 meters. Together with lots of sand and bars this means steep, short and often chaotic waves. So conditions for coming to the below judgement were pretty heavy for a boat this size.

General

Workmanship of build seems really excellent in all details except one. The one exception is the lower metal bar which holds the mizzen mast. For my taste too small in dimension. The walls oft the hull that hold the metal bar actually show a degree of movement under pressure. Not alarmingly but too much for my taste and to feel safe under all conditions. During winter break I will fix a much wider wooden or metal bar over the existing one to achieve a better distribution of forces. All else is very well made and functional.

Seaworthyness and seakindlyness are excellent for the size of boat. I was expecting it to be good but it is even better than expected. The water ballast works very well. Gives the boat great stability and attenuates the boats movements in choppy waves very well. I feel  the water ballast attenuates movement actually better than a deep ballast keel.

Sails are good in quality and the the sail area adjustment with 3 sails is great.  I have tried sailing under jib and mizzen only. That is very comfortable sailing in bad conditions on most courses except high to windward. Tacking was difficult with that arrangement and a few times impossible in adverse waves. If you know you will have to tack a lot in heavy weather and adverse waves I found double-reefed main and mizzen the better arrangement. Weather helm on the rudder remains acceptable in such configuration.

Cockpit is great, storage in the cokpit lockers  okay. Cabin is enough for 2 to sit and stretch. I have taken the centre cushions (around the mast support) out permanently. That gives more room  and is not really needed to stretch out. With a minimum of practice and excercise getting in and out of the cabin works well for someone my size (1,83 meters of hight). Individuals up to about 1,90 m will be okay, above that things will get a bit less comfortable. During the winter I will get a tailormade cockpit cover to fit over the boom. With that extra sheltered space the boat will be okay for living on board for a few days at least (if you are able to live without too much expectation for comfort of course).

Engine well works very well, prop stays in the water in all conditions. I have tried  a 2,5 hp engine just for one day!   If you only sail in calm waters that sort of mini-power may be okay. But not for where we are. After the 1 day experience with a 2,5 hp I went to the boat shop right away and  got a 5 hp Mercury (built by Tohatsu) with a 12,5 litre auxiliary tank.  That will push you thru strong headwind and waves and without worrying about gasoline supply in the engine tank. In additon these newer models come with the gear lever in front of the engine (instead of on the side), that is a nice feature indeed. Lastly, the boat has a rudder angle of only 30 degress left and right. At slow speeds in a congested marina manouverabiltiy is a bit limited. A 5hp engine helps alot to push you in the direction which you want. In summary, forget the 2,5 hp, 4 is okay, 5 is really good.

What I do not like and will change (just 2 points!).

I have the mk2 foresail arrangement. Very good indeed and the ability to adjust tension in the entire rig all the way to pulling everything real tight is priceless, particularly in strong conditions.   But the handling of jibsheet in its present setup is impractical with the position of the cleats on top of the cabin roof.  The cleats have a lot of bite and under pressure you have to really move directly in front of the cleats to pull the sheets vertically upwards for release or adjustment. Difficult singlehanded and even a second one on board  needs power to handle the sheets. I have simulated leading the foresail sheets to a block on the sidedeck just fore or aft of the rowlock fixtures and further leading the sheets then to a cleat which would be fixed on the centreboard cover. In that arrangement the sheets run (almost) freely over the cabin deck, only interfere minimally with cockpit space and are then in easy reach from any position in the cockpit.  I will work on this during the winter and am quite sure it will work.  Will let you know the outcome. Hope you understand what I mean, a bit difficult for me to express this in English.

Lazyjack/boom halyard. The lazyjacks interfere badly with the mainsail battens on the main´s way both up or down. To avoid this you have to really point dead straight into the wind but that is unrealistic under in the conditions that I have mentioned.  I just dont like that sort of think, to me a mainsail has to go up or down easily in all conditions. Again, I have simulated  another arrangement (with the help of a good sailing friend) and I will try that out during the winter.

That´s all.  I hope you don´t mind this lenghty report.

Many thanks for building me such good boat. With the few changes/adjustments mentioned I think it will be a very safe and reliable almost-go-just-about-anywhere-boat  for even extended coastal cruises.

Why did you choose Swallow Boats?
Swallow Boats has a great reputation for quality, both in their designs and construction. They were also very helpful and easy to deal with, so all these things attracted me to Swallow Boats. But it is the boat design that is most important and no-one in the UK is innovating like Swallow Boats to produce highly usable boats with minimal compromises. They are taking tried and tested principles and improving them, whereas so many boat builders are failing to do this.

Why did you choose a Bay Raider Expedition as opposed to other boats on the market?
The BayRaider Expedition is unmatched in the marketplace, providing a ease of use, performance and good looks without compromises. Its combination of large cockpit and very usable cabin, all in a 20’ boat, also makes it ideal to a very wide range of uses. All other boats we looked at were either less flexible in their potential uses, sailed less well, were harder to trailer-sail or just didn’t look as good. All of those factors are key to me and only Swallow Boats could meet them all without compromise.

How do you use your boat (trailering/mooring/marina etc)?
We trailer-sail the boat because this gives us flexible access to different sailing locations and also minimises costs. We mostly sail the Dorset coast but have a choice of slipways depending on our mood and the conditions. The boat has also been sailed in Cornwall and Scotland and was easily towed to those locations.

Please could you describe the most memorable experience you had in your Swallow Boat?
The great thing about the BayRaider Expedition is that it lends itself to such a wide variety of sailing. Memorable experiences include sailing from Falmouth to the Helford river and seeing sunfish swimming beside us, while on days when we couldn’t get out to sea we are able to potter up wooded creaks. Most recently the boat took part in Sail Caledonia and it was fantastic to sail and row through the Scottish Highlands and be able to compete against boats that you would never take to sea with a young family on board.

How did you find the after sales care at Swallow Boats?
Very good. When we have had any problems or needed to discuss something it has been invaluable to be able to speak direct to the designer.

Would you recommend Swallow Boats?
I would definitely recommend Swallow Boats to other sailors and I am confident that if, in future, we decide to change our boat then we will look at the Swallow Boats’ range first.

Why did you choose Swallow Boats?
I owned a 17′ Lune Whammel open boat but noticed that Drascombes sailed closer to windward, so thought I should upgrade to one of those.  Then I read about Swallow Boats in a sailing magazine and it opened my eyes to the possibilities of proper windward sailing. I also liked the numerous clever design features.

Why did you choose a Bay Raider 20 as opposed to other boats on the market?
I wanted a large open boat providing as much flexibility as possible but which would be light and easy to use and to launch solo.  The water ballast is a great safety feature and makes the BayRaider 20 feel much more solid when needed, usually when I have nervous crew on board, less when I am bombing about on my own.  The recently introduced cockpit tent opens up great new possibilities for exploration in places like the Stockholm Archipelago and the waterways of central Ireland.

How do you use your boat (trailoring/mooring/marina etc)?
All three! The highlight of the year is towing the boat down to Corfu each summer for a change of scenery and sea temperature. It becomes a mobile bathing platform, taverna taxi and is much photographed by tourists passing by on their caiques.

Please could you describe the most memorable experience you had in your Swallow Boat?
There are so many.  The most recent is winning the toughest European sail & oar raid, Sail Caledonia 2013, against a strong field in a race up Scotland’s Great Glen from Fort William to Inverness.  I would also rate using the asymmetric spinnaker for the first time on a beautiful late winter day on Lake Bala in Wales

How did you find the after sales care at Swallow Boats?
Always responsive and receptive to new ideas. Totally committed to honouring warranty work.

Would you recommend Swallow Boats?
I’m a huge fan and a very proud owner.  If it was up to me, I’d have more than one – a stripped down lightweight epoxy ply one for racing and a GRP one for everyday cruising, exploring and camping. Unfortunately, I don’t have the space.

Why did you choose Swallow Boats?
I think I first came across Swallow Boats at a Southampton Boat Show. I wasn’t in the market for a particular boat at the time, but was attracted by the classic lines and got into conversation on the stand. When I was shown some of the innovative features and intelligent design (water ballast; hollow mast, tiller over engine; etc),  and learned more about Swallow Boats’ and Matt Newland’s story and ambition, I became a fan.

Why did you choose a Bay Raider 20 as opposed to other boats on the market?
When I ordered my BayRaider I had a young family of a 4, 6 and 9 year old, plus a dog. My design criteria was:

A boat spacious enough to get the whole family in, plus another, plus our picnic and our dog (solution: enormous cockpit).

• Some cover to get the kids under at least should it start getting wet, cold or lumpy (solution: cuddy)
• Non scary sailing when the kids were on board (solution: water ballast; high boom; ability to rapidly  depower by stowing the main and sailing on mizzen and jib; self-tacking jib; outboard in position and ready to go at short notice)
• Ability to have more exciting sailing when on my own or with an experienced sailor (solution: asymmetric jib; empty ballast tanks for near fast dingy sailing performance; self tacking jib)
• Easy trailer-ability. Minimum fuss and time launching, rigging and recovering. (Solution: light-weight boat due to water ballast, can be towed by a family car; lifting centre board; clever swinging arm trailer gets the boat on straight every time regardless of cross winds or current; mast can be raised single handed)
• A pretty boat with loads of soul and wow factor but with good performance ideal for harbour, creek and inshore work (Drascombe Lugger too slow and won’t point; Hawk 20 too modern, not Swallows and Amazons enough; Devon Yawl doesn’t have an engine well and outboards look ugly bracketed off the transom).
• A boat you could row and camp on board on overnight if fair weather
• I wasn’t interested in racing competitively

How do you use your boat (trailering/mooring/marina etc)?
We are lucky enough to live on the water’s edge in Chichester Harbour, and I check ‘The Black Pearl’ on her mooring first thing each day from the comfort of my bed with a cup of tea and binos. She occasionally dries out onto mud so the lifting centre plate and rudder are ideal. Most of  the time  my wife and I sail her on our own in Chichester harbour, or to join friends for a BBQ 3 miles away at East Head. Sometimes one or more of our children will come too, but they sail their Optimists and prefer to jump into the RIB we share with a local family who usually are going to the same beach party.

I also try to take part in a ‘raid’ once a year. In 2012 my then 11 year old daughter asked if she could come too, and we had a magical 3 days raiding in company with 20 similar or smaller sized boats on the Orwell and the Stour. We camped ashore, but I have now bought the bespoke Swallow Boat designed cockpit tent that attaches to and extends the cuddy, which will make camping on board properly comfortable and weather proof. The BayRaider is purpose built for raiding and exploring shallow creeks. If you touch the bottom lifting the centre plate gets you out of trouble. I have also fitted a battery powered chart plotter with depth sounder, for further piece of mind and to facilitate more adventurous missions.

Please could you describe the most memorable experience you had in your Swallow Boat?
We were invited to join friends at their holiday bothy on the shore of Loch Hourn on the West Coast of Scotland. It can only be reached by boat or by foot. I enjoyed trailing the boat with our dog and kit from the South overnight up to Inverness airport where I collected the rest of the family. The last 28 miles were single track and passing places, we forded a burn and launched off a shingle beach. We sailed the final 2 miles and arrived with all our stores and baggage aboard for the week, where the Black Pearl swung at a mooring like she was born to it, and was sailed daily for fishing and foraging trips. Fabulous!

I’m now looking forward to future raids in Venice and the Gulf de Morbihan

How did you find the after sales care at Swallow Boats?
The team at Swallow Boats are very personable. I feel like I have joined  a club as a Swallow Boat owner. At the boat shows there are always a few owners clocking in to have a chat with each other and with Matt. There is a lot of 2 way discussion on how to tweak the designs and the online forum is very active and a font of shared tips and advice. Matt Newland is often available to have a quick word on the phone, and Charlotte is very friendly and willing to send out any bits and bobs that you need, however low value your order may be for them. The strong impression from Matt and his team is that they are inspired to design and build exciting, elegant and innovative boats with soul and pedigree. They want to build long term relationships with their owners and encourage feedback. On the odd occasion that some item may not work out quite as hoped, Matt is willing to put it right quickly, without fuss, and is always fair and reasonable.

Would you recommend Swallow Boats?
Absolutely. I love my BayRaider. In my view there is not a boat to touch it, (although I sometimes think about the Expedition or the BayCruiser with a carbon Bermudan Rig), and I’ve bought into and applaud what Swallow Boats is setting out to achieve.

Why did you choose Swallow Boats?
I chose to buy a BC 23 (see below) – it’s only made by Swallow Boats!

Why did you choose a Bay Cruiser 23 as opposed to other boats on the market?
Prior to buying Vagabond (BC23 number10), virtually all of my sailing had been in cruising yachts, between 35 and 43 feet long. These had either been owned by friends or chartered. During a cruise to St Kilda, I had seen a Drascombe Rally in the Minch and thought that they looked fun. As my cruising friends were selling up and developing a passion for the golf course, I thought it would be a suitable retirement project to buy a small boat and sail her round Britain. The original project was to buy an old small boat, refit it one winter and sail round Britain in the summer. I spent a bit of time reviewing the market during which my requirements became clarified.

I wanted something that was light, which I trailer behind my car and which I could, if necessary, launch, sail and recover singlehanded.  I required a cabin with cooking and washing facilities (rudimentary but functional), somewhere to store all the food and clothing and stuff  I’d need for two or three weeks on the go. The cockpit had to be roomy enough for company (I had vague ideas of teaching my grandson to sail in her) and yet could be covered with a tent, to extend the living space, where at least my wet weather gear could hang over night to keep the cabin dry. I wanted an “inboard” outboard.  I wanted a simple rig, with lazy jacks and single line reefing for the main, roller furling for the jib, with all the controls from the cockpit. As well as all this, I wanted a boat that would be easy to sail long distances in reasonable safety and be fun to sail when the opportunity beckoned. One that would sit as happily on the sand as it would alongside a pontoon.

I found that my idea of buying an old boat was becoming less attractive (apart from the financial side of things). Old boats were old designs. Heavy hulls with heavy rigs and usually with (to me) complicated sail arrangements. Then I read a review of the Bay Cruiser 23 in PBO. It seemed (in the current vernacular) to tick all the boxes and be capable of development. So I looked up Swallow Boats and found an established company of “traditional” boats with a difference.

I booked a test sail with Matt on a gusty day. The wind was F4 ish so we started with one reef and set out of the mouth of the Teifi. Then we had a force 7 gust when approaching the bar. Matt was pitched to the lee side, the boat heeled a bit and pointed into the wind. “Safe then”, I thought. Matt and I chatted on the way back to the bouy and I liked his commitment to boat design and to his company. I chatted with the guys in the boat shed and realised they were committed to what they did. The decision was made and I have yet to regret it.

How do you use your boat ?
I live in the middle of Buckinghamshire and I don’t think you can get much further from the sea in Britain! Any expedition to the water is at least a two hour drive, so having a boat permanently in one of the south coast marinas or anchorages is not really viable, particularly as half the fun of having a boat is tinkering with her, adding improvements here and there. So Vagabond lives on a trailer in a local barn, when not at sea.

Vagabond and I have just completed (mid 2014) a  voyage  “Round the Island”.  It’s taken us about 6 months, spread over 3 years. In 2012, I did over 1000 miles in her, sailing from Burnham on Crouch, along the South Coast and then up the West Coast to Balvicar on Seil Island, just south of Oban. I then collected her on the trailer and brought her back to the home port (barn) where she stayed most of the winter. In 2013 she went back to Wales for some extras and then on to Rutland Water. After another few weeks in the barn, I put her back in the sea at Burnham on Crouch and went north. 500 or so miles later we reached Lossiemouth and I took her by trailer across to Balvicar, where she stayed the winter on the trailer under a tarpaulin. In May she went back into the water and we sailed up to Fort William, through the Caledonian Canal with “Sail Caledonia 2014” and then North, to Wick and on to Stromness in the Orkneys. From Stromness, we went to Loch Eribol and rounded  Cape Wrath to turn South,  back to Balvicar.

In all, she’s done over 2000 miles – about 450 hours underway –  in salt water.

You can read all about the adventures on my blog –  just follow the link to it on the Swallow Boats facebook page or website.

Please could you describe the most memorable experience you had in your Swallow Boat?
Memorable experiences seem to be of two types, either pleasant or terrifying. I have had both in Vagabond.

The terrifying one was my fault but showed me just how safe a boat is the BC23. I was on passage from Holyhead to the Isle of Man, in conditions that were at the upper end of my tolerance. The forecast was F4 to 5 possibly 6 at times.  We (Vagabond and I) were two hours out of Holyhead with the F4 on our starboard quarter.  The wind rose and over the next hour or so I put both reefs in the main. The wind continued to strengthen. Moreover, this wind had been blowing across the width of Liverpool bay (50 or so miles) and had built up an eight foot swell from the same direction. The boat needed even less sail, so then only thing to do was roll up the jib. And here’s where the trouble hit. I couldn’t fully roll up the jib because I had taken a turn or two off the roller on the previous day. (That was another story). The jib fluttered uncontrollably, shaking the mast and the boat. I had let the sail down into the sea and recover it somehow. I lashed the helm centrally, let the main sail go loose and Vagabond turned into the wind. After dropping the jib into the sea, I clawed my way onto the foredeck, pulled the jib out of the water and lashed it down. Chastened, yet marvelling at the stability of the boat in these conditions, I resumed course for Peel.  Since replacing the jib control line this summer (with a length of 5mm dyneema) I have not had a repeat of this incident.

The pleasant experience was a beautiful afternoon sail on the West Coast of Scotland.  We had stopped over night just south of Crinan and were sailing north from the Dorus Mor up Loch Shuna and into Balvicar Bay for the last leg of my voyage in 2012.  Jura and the wind were behind us, ahead was the calm water of Loch Shuna.  The sun shone and sparkled on the turquoise water. We now had plenty of time and a long run ahead. I pumped out the water ballast and set the jib into a stable goose-wing. Vagabond accelerated to just over 6.5 knots. After we had passed Shuna Island, we needed to veer a bit to port to cross a piece of open water and then back to starboard to head up Seil Sound to the anchorage at Balvicar. The wind veered with us and we stayed goose-winged all the way until we came into the wind to drop the sails in the Balvicar anchorage.

Magic!  I look forward to more days like that.

How did you find the after sales care at Swallow Boats?
The team at Swallow are very friendly and helpful.  Laura is really good at sending the packages of stuff that you might need (at a price, of course!) and I find I can usually speak to Matt if a particular issue comes up about which I need some advice. In the first couple of months a few unexpected snags arose with Vagabond and Matt unhesitatingly put them put right.

As the BC23 is a relatively new design, Matt is also always seeking feedback about ways in which the production boat can be improved (both in terms of quality and features) and I’m quite surprised to note that a couple of my suggestions have been incorporated into later boats.

If you visit the Sallow Boats stand at a boat show, you can usually be sure to meet some existing customers who get roped in by Matt to assist with potential customers.

There’s an active “owners association” with a web site that is full of advice and stories and a few brave souls who organise “meets” and the like.

Would you recommend Swallow Boats?
Yes. Great products, good customer support and a great team.