Testing the Deben Lugger

A daysail on the River Deben in Suffolk, England, to test the very impressive Deben Lugger. This vessel carries a double balance lug rig above an 18 foot fibreglass hull, and is purpose-designed for dinghy cruising. THE DEBEN LUGGER LOA 5.25 m 18'3" Beam 1.9 m 16'2" Weight 360 kg 792 lb Sail area 13.57 sq m 150 sq ft CE category C for 6 persons. 2005: Prototype produced from a Drascombe Driver hull, widened out and with the skeg and bilge keels removed, and a centreboard added, as well as a completely new internal moulding. 2007: First production Deben Lugger, shown at Beale Park. Since then, 46 craft have been produced. All the construction is done in Suffolk, UK, including the fibreglass mouldings. Anglia Yacht Brokerage, Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk. http://www.anglia-yacht.co.uk INTERESTED IN DINGHY CRUISING? Read my book, 'The Dinghy Cruising Companion' for much more information about dinghy cruising and order my new book of yarns 'Sailing the Shallows'. www.bloomsbury.com And join the Dinghy Cruising Association: www.dinghycruising.org.uk AVEL DRO - my own boat. Avel Dro is an Ilur designed by François Vivier, and built of clinker plywood by Les Charpentiers Reunis of Cancale in 1994. I bought her in France in 2003 to import her into the UK, and more recently returned her to France again., and to French registry - hence her Tricolour Ensign. The design is based closely on the traditional inshore fishing boats of Brittany in the early years of the twentieth century – which explains her simple boom-less lugsail rig and lack of a mainsheet horse, (sometimes controversial among my viewers). Although rare in Britain, Ilurs are relatively common in France. Modern Ilurs are slightly different from mine however, as they have more built in buoyancy. The name Avel Dro is Breton: Avel = wind, Dro = to turn – so it means a whirlwind. Length 4.44 m Sail area 12.2 m² Beam 1.70 m Draught 0.25 / 0.86 m√ MUSIC I will remember - Gavin Luke Footprints in the Sand - Roots and Recognition featuring Melanie Bell - from Epidemic Sound: www.epidemicsound.com - more of Melanie here: https://youtu.be/9SrphGHyZck?si=-Usa_vLoBvJscey4 Video copyright Roger Barnes 2026