Design and Construction
The Snowgoose 35 is a multihull with a solid fiberglass hull and deck, a construction approach that keeps off-season maintenance to a minimum during the sailing season anchor. At 15 feet of beam on a 35-foot length, her length-to-beam ratio of 2.35 makes her slimmer than 90 percent of comparable sail catamarans anchor, a figure that explains the owner observation that beam-on swell at anchor feels less settled than on today's wider designs. Her displacement-length ratio of 132 places her among "light racers," with what one design summary called a precise average ratio between displacement and length for her type. Loaded weight runs about 4.5 tonnes. Draft sits between roughly 2.75 and 3 feet depending on load. The rudder stocks originally carried a mechanical tie bar outside the transom, a detail one longtime owner would prefer to see brought inside the hull.
Rig and Handling
The cutter rig with an aft-set mast keeps individual sails manageably sized, and both headsails ride on furlers with all control lines led to the cockpit anchor. That layout is a large part of why owners describe the boat as easy to sail single-handed. Under canvas she is quick: one owner logged a surf of 16 knots down waves in about 28 knots of wind, and reported 9.5 knots downwind with a symmetric spinnaker, while normal spinnaker sailing settles around 6 to 8 knots. On a beam reach in 16 knots she traveled at 7.5 knots, and near 8 knots downwind in 20 knots true with genoa and staysail poled out. Passage averages run 5.5 to 6.5 knots. The large genoa is a limitation — furling it in stronger winds spoils shape and pointing, and triple-reefed the tacking angle widens so far the boat can lose ground. Bridge-deck clearance is otherwise a non-issue except when punching into waves, and in 2-meter beam seas she can feel rocky.
Accommodations
Owners characterize her as small enough to inspire confidence when working on her yet large enough for comfortable liveaboard use anchor. A standard layout sleeps six, with a spacious galley and a head described as having more room than needed. The saloon holds two benches, and the best sightlines come from inside the saloon or master berth rather than the cockpit. Aft cabins are the weak spot: one owner calls them crawl spaces with no head height in the berth, though some boats were later converted to a stateroom arrangement. The low cockpit itself draws criticism for atrocious general visibility while docking.
Known Issues and Refits
The most consistent owner caveats cluster around visibility and the aft sleeping spaces. The cockpit sits very low in the hull, which one owner says makes general visibility poor and leaves the saloon or master berth as the better vantage points. The aft berths lack headroom and function more as crawl spaces. On the mechanical side, a steerable Sillette drive leg paired with a Yanmar 3GM30 — shoe-horned into the engine bay on at least one boat — delivers surprising maneuverability and 6 knots motoring, topping out near 7.5 in perfect conditions. An aftermarket in-mast furling system has been added to some boats. The external rudder tie bar is another item an owner would relocate inside the transom.
The Verdict
The Snowgoose 35 is a slender, light-displacement cruising cat that rewards single-handed simplicity and punches above her length under sail, yet asks compromises in cockpit visibility and aft-cabin comfort that later, beamier cats addressed.
Pros
- Slimmer hull form than most catamarans of her type, easy to handle short-handed
- Low-maintenance solid fiberglass construction
- Quick on most points of sail with modest rig loads
- Spacious galley and oversized head for the footprint
Cons
- Cockpit sits low with poor all-around visibility
- Aft berths are cramped crawl spaces without head height
- Large genoa furling hurts windward performance in stronger air
