APSARA

THE BOAT

Apsara is an aft-cockpit Tayana 52 built in 1988 by Ta-Yang. She is stoutly constructed, with a practical cutter rig, long fin keel, and immense skeg-hung rudder but also sleek lines and speed to make ocean crossings tolerable. Her designer is Bob Perry, known for creating some of the most successful bluewater cruising boats of the last 50 years.

When we began searching for a boat for our South Pacific voyage, there were several requirements: 1) She had to be solid, safe, and fast under sail; 2) Each girl needed her own cabin for times when family fights in the middle of the ocean demanded physical separation; 3) She must have adequate tankage and be manageable by one adult under sail; and 4) She must be pleasing to the eye as one paddles to shore in the evening. We think we hit the mark.

Finding her was not hard once we nailed down our requirements. Ben has loved the Tayana 52 design for decades. We flew to Fort Lauderdale the weekend after Irma tore through town in September 2017 and knew she was the one. No teak decks! No rotting black iron tanks! Slab reefing from the cockpit via power winch! A freighter trip through the canal had her in Victoria, B.C. by Boxing Day.

Our 2018-2019 refit:

• Sails from Tasker
• RBS battens and Schaeffer adjustable batten boxes
• Dyneema runners, spinnaker pole mast storage, cascading vang, boom preventer/downhaul system, second spinnaker halyard, new headsail halyards
• Ground tackle: Spade, Fortress x2, CQR, 330′ of new 3/8 BBB chain
• Second Raymarine autopilot ram
• Frigoboat refrigeration and freezer
• Victron 3kw inverter/charger and monitor
• Auto/manual bilge pump and high water alarm
• New shaft, couplings, cutless bearings, rebuild V-drive/transmission
• Removed rudder, inspected, new bearings/packing, chain and wires
• Water filter, backup hand pump in galley, and second water tank
• High output alternator and smart regulator
• 800 watt solar array
• Solid rails added around cockpit
• New dodger, hard-top supports, cockpit cushions, and sail covers
• Stereo system with cabin and cockpit speakers
• Viking 6 person liferaft and 406 Epirb, MOB buoy and strobe, lifesling
• Satellite phone and antenna
• Outboard motor lift
• SSB/Ham radio
• AIS wifi to Garmin and laptop with iPad remote at helm station
• Integrate instruments via NMEA 2000 to plotter and autopilot
• New house battery bank
• Replace gaskets in all opening ports and hatches
• Replace watermaker membrane, add charcoal pre-filter for flushes
• New headsail furling unit and adjustable forestay, repair staysail furling
• New Force 10 oven/range
• Collect spares for EVERYTHING!!

2025-2026 refit

• Repower old Perkins 4-236 with Beta Marine 85T, regear transmission, install larger 23″ maxprop
• Replace Tides marine mainsail track with Antal track
• Install inspection ports in fuel tank
• New harken traveller
• New gooseneck and vang fittings
• New outhaul car and track
• New intermediate shrouds
• New staysail and mainsail halyards
• Upgraded steaming and foredeck light
• Fully refurbished mast wiring and VHF coaxial cable
• Renew yankee and staysail sun covers, overhaul main with new chafe protection, headboard, battens, and batten receptacles
• New dodger with stamoid and polycarbonate windows
• Rule 3700 emergency bilge pump
• Starlink mini
• 12v dc-dc converter for instruments, vhf, and starlink/12v outlets circuits
• Power conversion for primary winches (in process)
• Honda DF20a outboard