Encore Adventure
Pursuing Dreams, Opportunities, & Challenges
THE BOAT
CAYUGA is a Valiant 40, designed by Robert Perry and is hull number 294, built in Texas in 1991. The Valiant 40 was elected to the American Sailboat Hall of Fame in 1997 and was named Cruising Sailboat of the Decade.
If you're more interested in what it's like to live aboard CAYUGA, jump to The Big Picture. Otherwise, read on...
CAYUGA is named after Cayuga Lake in upstate New York where our family sailed together for many years on a Ranger 23. (The Cayuga people were one of the five original constituents of the Native American Iroquois confederacy.)
We purchased CAYUGA in 2014 and sailed her directly from Florida to Annapolis. I was fortunate to have spent four days on board with the previous owners, after which I had no qualms about immediately taking her offshore. She had a number of major upgrades in the six years prior to 2014, and we have continued to upgrade and maintain her systems.
Every yacht design involves compromises among hundreds of variables, and no boat is perfect. However, we've been delighted with the purchase of this particular Valiant 40 as our "second home", and understand why one reviewer called it a legend in its own time.
Focusing on offshore capabilities, here are just a few items from CAYUGA's extensive inventory of equipment and spares.
Engine: 50 HP Yanmar, burns ~1 gal/hr, ~550+ mile fuel range @ 6 knots
Sails: 120% Genoa, Staysail, double-reef Main, MackPack, all lines led aft
Tankage: 90 gal fuel, 136 gal water
Reserves: On-deck jerry cans with 20 gal diesel, 20 gal water, 10 gal gasoline; 10 gal of water in jugs stored in bilge
Safety/Communications/Navigation Equipment:
ACR 406 MHz GPS EPIRB
Viking Offshore 4-person liferaft
VHF radios (fixed w masthead antenna plus hand-held)
ICOM M802 SSB radio w Pactor II Modem
DeLorme inReach SE satellite tracker with messaging
Raymarine plotter, radar, autopilot and sailing instrument package
800 AH house batteries with 150 watt solar and twin alternators
Hydrovane self-steering
Medical Kit: Stocked for offshore passages and includes diagnostic tools; splints; sutures; IV hydration; catheter; prescription and OTC antibiotic, pain, and seasickness medications; treatments for eye, ear, skin, digestive ailments; etc.