Winchelsea Lugger

With a nice, buoyant bow and cod shape they look the part and are superbly seaworthy, says prolific boat owner Clive Marsh

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Sussex beach boats and their Flobart sisters on the other side of the channel are amongst my favourite luggers. In Normandy they have a following but here in the UK we do, perhaps, take them a little for granted.

There are those among the fishing community who would use no other boat and it is still possible to get a GRP version built. They can often be purchased second-hand for a bargain and, over the years, I have owned five of them.

They are beamy boats characterised by their lute sterns which, on modern GRP versions, have a hole cut out to take an outboard motor.

With a nice, buoyant bow and cod shape they look the part and are superbly seaworthy. The lute stern is to help the avoidance of swamping when beaching bow first as they run up the pebbles.

Channel hop

I have read that a lute stern can lift the stern at sea and cause the bow to dig in but I've never found this to be the case. These boats have evolved over centuries and if I had to cross the Channel in a small open boat I'd choose one of these boats every time. They have a wonderful motion in a chop.

The standard boat has a normal level of freeboard to enable easy rowing in the event of an engine failure. Some had built-up topsides which are harder to row but have the advantage of keeping the crew much warmer when at sea. I've owned both but my favourite has been the version with the built-up sides: they're very cosy on a rough day (70% of the year).