S/V Magic Paws was a Nonsuch 26 designed by Mark Ellis and built by Hinterhoeller Yachts in St. Catherines, Ontario, Canada
Nonsuches are Catboats, easily recognized by their freestanding mast and wishbone boom.
Mark Ellis designed these wonderful boats. He passed away this year, so we wanted to add to the chorus of tributes to his life. Here’s a link to much more about this extraordinary designer: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1BQLG8PfwkV8Ikq3B5Xd_MxVA5ThlDmMU/view?pli=1
Our Memories:
We purchased the boat shortly after we were married and sailed her in the Detroit area on Lakes St Claire, Huron, and Erie.
Named “Magic Feet” when we found her, we rechristened her “Magic Paws” because cats have paws, not feet.
She moved to North Carolina with us and helped us explore the Albamarle and Pamlico Sounds, Intra-coastal Waterway (ICW), and some of the Chesapeake Bay. Our favorite weekend get-away was peaking out into the Atlantic at Beaufort, NC for a short sail to Cape Lookout bight where we could watch wild horses and a lighthouse in a protected anchorage. She was a great boat and we only sold her to upgrade to a vessel designed for ocean passages.
Lots more information about Nonsuches is available from the International Nonsuch Association at this link: https://www.nonsuch.org