I am James, and these are our tales. I am ably assisted by my wife Mary-Ann, children, and friends, sharing what many will never see in a lifetime.
Our sailing journey began in the late 1960s, cutting our teeth on classic dinghies and monohulls like Optimists, Sprogs, Dabchicks, OKs, and an Enterprise. We were always close to the sea; if not on it, we were in it. That drive continues to this day.
With this passion for the ocean and with a tight family budget, we took the ultimate leap in 2003, building our own 11.6-metre sailing catamaran. Launched in 2009, we documented every step of this budget-friendly build, sharing our lessons in several books, including A Sailing Catamaran Building Adventure.
Transitioning to Blue Water Cruising: By 2019, to our latest adventure involving the purchase of a 2018 Leopard 45 production catamaran. With this purchase, we sailed her over 4,000 nautical miles through the stunning South Pacific back home to Australia.
Upon arrival, she underwent a massive marine electrical retrofit, including a Power Conversion, to now have 110vAC and 240vAC systems. This is all driven by 3.2 kW of custom solar panels to a lithium battery bank capacity of1600 Ah. True complete off-grid living.
We have clocked over 20,000 nautical miles, over half spent crossing deep offshore waters in the South Pacific where safety and community are paramount. We have been blessed with safe passages to date, a result of a lot of preparation, learning, reading and asking questions.
We are proud members of the Ocean Cruising Club (OCC) and Island Cruising, whose incredible content and support have been invaluable to our offshore voyages.
The Robertson and Caine Leopard 45 is a 45-foot cruising catamaran designed by Simonis & Voogd and built in South Africa by Robertson and Caine. Introduced in 2017, it quickly earned a reputation as one of the most popular production catamarans for offshore cruising, live-aboard sailing, and charter operations. Its innovative forward cockpit, spacious interior, and practical deck layout make it equally suited to long-distance passage-making and comfortable coastal cruising.
Our Leopard 45 Specifications (changes)
Builder - Robertson and Caine
Brand - Leopard Catamarans
Designer - Simonis & Voogd Yacht Design
Vessel Type - Sailing Catamaran
Length Overall (LOA) - 13.72 m (45 ft)
Length Waterline (LWL) - 13.08 m (42 ft 11 in)
Beam - 7.35 m (24 ft 2 in)
Draft - 1.50 m (4 ft 11 in)
Air Draft - Approx. 21.3 m (70 ft)
Displacement - 14,900 kg (32,849 lb)
Hull Material - Fibreglass (GRP)
Rig Type - Fractional Sloop
Engines - Twin Yanmar 45 HP diesel saildrives
Fuel Capacity. - 700 L (185 US gal), since increased to 900 L
Fresh Water Cap. - 780 L (206 US gal)
Holding Tank Cap. - Approx. 170 L (45 US gal)
Upwind Sail Area - Approximately 123 to 125 m²
Accommodation - 5-cabin layout (since reduced to 4)
Heads - 5 (since reduced to 4)
CE Design Category - Category A (Ocean)
Key Features
This Leopard 45 has several design improvements over previous Leopard models, including a protected forward cockpit connected directly to the saloon. This feature improves ventilation, creates an additional entertaining space, and provides easier access to the foredeck.
A raised helm station offers excellent visibility under sail while keeping all sail controls within easy reach. We needed to be single-handed. Wide side decks are a huge winner (when compared to other production 45' yachts, a generous aft cockpit, and a large saloon create a practical layout for extended cruising for our life aboard.
Performance
Powered by twin 45 HP Yanmar diesel engines and the Yanmar SD60s, the Leopard 45 delivers dependable handling under power and efficient performance under sail. The combination of moderate displacement, amazing beam, and balanced sail plan provides a comfortable motion offshore while maintaining respectable cruising speeds in a wide range of wind conditions.
Join our journey with No-Chat Sailing Videos and website, where we share our quirky, real-life adventures. We highly value our subscribers' time, delivering pure sights and sounds without the fluff.
Your indirect support by just watching and reading drives us to keep stepping up and sharing more of our horizon.
Be inspired, enjoy the ride, and welcome to this wonderful sailing fraternity.