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Our First "C Ghost" Sailboat

In the early 1990’s we chartered several sailboats on the Chesapeake Bay to try and get a feel for how much we liked sailing and what style boat might suit us. That experience led to the purchase of the first C Ghost sailboat in 1996, a Sabre 28. The boat was 13 years old at the time we bought it and was in generally good shape. We sailed it on the Bay for 7 years, nearly every summer weekend. Here are some pictures of the boat and the (much younger) family.

Retrospective1
The underwater profile of the boat. Most noteworthy in this picture is that you don't see a propeller! That's because Sabre decided to offset the prop and shaft to the port side (blocked from view here by the rudder) to try and counteract prop-walk.
Retrospective2
The main salon looking forward. The dining table is folded up against the wall on the left, a feature we liked a lot and now also have on our current boat. Paula re-upholstered all the cushions herself and did a great job. Those blinds you see on the windows came straight from Home Depot and I just cut them to fit.
Retrospective3
The boat had one aft quarter-berth. Much like in our current boat, we used it mainly for storage. In this case, it was the best place on the boat for a little TV (no flat screens on the market yet) and our VHF. Just above the TV is a teak panel we added which houses the shore power breaker panel and battery charger, both of which we installed ourselves. This TV screen suffered "burn-in" from the 3 original Star Wars movies we watched a million times. Our VHS tape player was in the cabinet just to the right of the TV.
Retrospective4
The galley consisted of an alcohol cooktop (no oven), an ice-box, and a sink with a foot pump to draw water from the tank (cold only, we used a black "sun-bag" to make hot water). We did not have refrigeration, and always had to bring a big block of ice with us whenever we came to the boat for the weekend and make it last as long as possible. The one thing we learned from having an alcohol stove was NEVER to get another one.
Retrospective5
The V-berth is where we all slept, sometimes all six of us (including the dogs). There is a trapezoidal piece (not pictured) that filled in the little gap you see to make a big, big bed. The dogs would burrow under the covers all the way to the pointy end and be content there all night. In the passageway between the main salon and the V-berth was an "athwart ships" head. The toilet was on one side of the passageway and the sink on the other. You could close doors on either side and create a private and spacious bathroom for a 28' boat.
Retrospective6
There was space on the foredeck to sit and sun. The deck had good handholds and space to walk around the cabin top.
Retrospective7
We typically got to the boat on Friday evening after work and stayed until Sunday night. One of the big culinary highlights was Paula's outstanding boat breakfasts. Yes - you can make superb cinnamon buns on an alcohol cook- top!
Retrospective8
The boat sailed really well. It had a traditional mainsail and a roller furling jib. In this picture behind Paula is the Francis Scott Key bridge leading into Baltimore.
Retrospective9
Both girls learned to sail, and in this case Glennis is doing the driving. We kept the boat on Rock Creek, just off the mouth of the Patapsco river in the upper Chesapeake. We made frequent trips across the bay to anchor in Worton Creek, Still Pond, and Fairlee Creek. We would also make occasional trips to Annapolis for the weekend.
Retrospective10
This was the usual scene once we reached an anchorage or returned from a long sail on Sunday. The dogs only liked sailing when it was calm.
Retrospective11
Ahhh - Margeaux enjoying the nice warm summer weather and a smooth ride.
Retrospective12
This is an interchangeable scene, either in the morning just after waking up , or at night just before bed. The dogs loved being close to the girls.
Retrospective13
It wasn't always fun for the dogs. This pitiful scene was just after returning from a rollicking 15 mile beat across the bay into 20 knot head winds. Noah barely held himself up and Jonah could not even sit for the picture.
Retrospective14
We all shared the sailing. On the back railing of the boat you can see our 5HP outboard that powered our dinghy. We towed our dinghy everywhere we went since there was no room for it on deck.

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