My criteria for boat selection were fairly straightforward:
1. It had to be small enough for me to be able to sail single-handed at times, including launching and recovering on my own. I also wanted it to be responsive enough to make a good learning boat. This limited my selection to dinghies, as opposed to larger cabin cruisers.
2. It had to be large enough to sail two-up with my significant other, and take along a passenger or two once we got a little more proficient. This eliminated the smallest and lightest dinghies such as Lasers, and slightly larger boats such as the popular Enterprise.
3. I wanted this boat to be relatively cheap since it was to be a learning tool so that necessitated a used purchase or probably an older boat.
What I settled on in the end was a CL-16, made by C&L Boatworks in Ontario, which is a copy of a Wayfarer MkII (more or less). The boat is 16 feet (4.8m) long, has a 6 foot (1.8m) beam, and weighs about 375 lbs. It's a bermudan rigged sloop with a 95 sq ft main sail, and a 29 sq ft roller furling jib. The boat came with a road trailer and all the rigging was in good condition, so it should be ready to sail first thing in the spring. Now the wait begins...
