While the CS27 technically sleeps 5, our kids don’t share beds well, and the double berth in the saloon is small to begin with. The first few nights aboard were spend with 1 of the kids on a camping mattress between the settees. Michal didn’t like sleeping on the floor, since someone was always walking over her.

Our Solution

Lindsay spent a while brainstorming some sort of collapsible bunk over the saloon, typically overcomplicating something that is actually quite simple. Not sure who first made the suggestion, but we soon realized that there was a simpler way. Given its rich history on the seas, a hammock was the (not so) obvious answer to our problems.

Where Do We Mount It?

Lindsay’s initial plan was to put a bolt through the wall from the saloon to the head, and then another in the panel to the right of the companionway. However Les quickly realized that the panels next to the companionway are very thin plywood, and wouldn’t be strong enough to hold a hammock. We really didn’t want to punch a hole through the fibreglass into the cockpit, and had already experienced repurposing the ends of existing bolts from the cockpit locker project.

Adding the Attachment Points

We removed the ceiling panel, and decided that the cleat just aft of the port-side cabin-top winch would serve our needs. It just needed longer bolts, which were inserted with fresh butyl around them above the fibreglass. A climbing hanger was bolted to a piece of 3/4″ plywood, then the plywood was fastened to the new, longer bolts. That description makes it sound  straightforward, but it never is. With the cabin lights attached to the ceiling panel, we could only lower the panel by a few inches. Les had some difficulty working in that confined space, and a few expletives may have been uttered. The result is rock solid, and easily holds either Les or Lindsay (or 2 kids?!?).

Making the hammock

Lindsay purchased some heavy cotton fabric, sewed a simple channel on each end (double-reinforced), then tied some leftover line through the channels, bunching the ends. We use carabiners rated for climbing to attach the resulting loop to the hanging points. The hammock has solved a problem for nights on the boat, but has also been wonderful during day sails. It is amazing how happily our Michal and Isaac will co-exist in the hammock, facing in opposite directions. And on rough days it can help with a touch of sea-sickness. We plan on adding mounts on the starboard side of the cabin, and will try a nylon camping hammock.