Modern Living: Cruising: The Good Life Afloat

They can be found in almost any yacht harbor—the boats that always look as if they are ready to leave. Out among the perky day-sailors, the fuel-hungry motor yachts, the tall and graceful "gold-platers" of the racing fleet, they bob impatiently at their moorings. They want to be gone.

However they vary in size and construction, they all have important qualities in common. Their rigs and hull designs have made small concessions to the years; they are built for simplicity and safety, for ease of maintenance and sea-kindliness, and the comfort of their...