Design & Construction
The hull form began life as the Herreshoff America, a Halsey Herreshoff design originally built by Nowak and Williams. When the Hutchins brothers of Com-Pac Yachts bought the tooling, they added a shallow keel and centerboard, then modified the deck and rig while preserving the original shape. Bruce Bingham gave the final hull drawings their character, and the result is a boat with virtually no overhangs, a kick-up rudder, and an aft-located centerboard that helps keep the helm balanced. Build quality reflects the excellent detailing Com-Pac owners have come to expect.
Draft with the board up is a mere 26 inches, while the board-down depth reaches a full 5 feet. That shoal-to-moderate split, combined with the kick-up rudder, makes her a natural for thin-water exploring without sacrificing the lateral plane needed to stand up to a breeze.
Rig & Performance
The rig is pure catboat: a single gaff mainsail set on an unstayed mast, with a single traditional reef. Drawings show wheel steering, and the boom gallows capture the sail neatly when it's time to anchor or motor home. Under sail, she will point about as well as you would expect from a gaff rig, but the boat offers a stiff ride, and one reviewer expected her to surprise sailors with just how well she sails. A 35-mile day is a solid target—she is neither a rocket nor a pig, rewarding a relaxed, flat-sailing style that makes the most of her form stability.
Accommodations & Trade-offs
The cockpit seats four in comfort, and the cabin keeps things simple: two berths, a single counter, and a forward compartment dedicated to a porta potty. Because everything is scaled to fit the pocket-cruiser envelope, the Horizon Cat simply cannot accommodate large battery banks, generators, air conditioning, inverters, or refrigeration. That's a deliberate trade-off. What you gain is a boat that is easy to own, easy to tow, and ready to slip into shallow creeks at a moment's notice.
The Verdict
The Horizon Cat 20 is a focused, honest design that leans into its catboat DNA. It rewards owners who value simplicity, shoal-draft versatility, and the pleasure of sailing a boat that feels larger and more stable than her 20 feet would suggest.
Pros
- Extremely shoal board-up draft (26 inches) with a kick-up rudder for beaching and gunkholing
- Stiff, flat-sailing ride that inspires confidence in a breeze
- Traditional catboat aesthetics and robust Com-Pac detailing
- Comfortable four-person cockpit and simple two-berth interior
- Uncomplicated systems reduce maintenance and cruising complexity
Cons
- Gaff rig and single reef limit upwind angles and heavy-air flexibility
- Overnighting is basic; no space for air conditioning, refrigeration, or sizable battery banks
- Modest daily mileage suits relaxed coastal pottering rather than ambitious passage-making
