Sailing is more physical than you would think, especially on a small boat. Lots of moving around, adjusting things, tacking, jibing etc. Not sure I would directly compare it to paddling, but you’re generally not just sitting there the whole time. I’m often tired after I take my boat out.
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Ditto what Brodie said. One of the reasons sailboats aren’t as popular is you have to work to sail them. Perhaps not the same cardio as paddling. That is until the wind starts howling. The heart rate goes up as a function of the wind! 
Of course. That answers it. It shows you how easy you can allow perception to become reality. Our mind easily fills in the blanks. My bubble image of Gin Coladas on a gently heaving deck on a whisper breeze for the return trip just popped. I shoukd have had enough common sense. Do they come with motors and drink dispensers . . .
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Many people that I take sailing are very unprepared for the reality of sailing. I have had people show up with elaborate spreads of complicated and messy food - having no idea that it’s often a challenge just to grab a granola bar with one hand! I eventually wrote up a “reference guide” to send to people who are coming sailing with me as to what to expect. It has proven quite useful.
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I was on a boat in the 24 ft range with 2 other people who had it down with handling the marconi rig (?) I helped change to storm sails. My young son was green, but it was a blast.
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A ketch has the after mast, shorter the the forward mast and located in front of the rudder post (A yawl has the after mast behind the rudder post).
Thanks.
How do you board a unique boat?
Unique up on it.
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Sailing new boats is fun. I grew up on Chesapeake Bay which used to have a lot of great old wood sail boats. In college my room mate’s Dad had a 30 foot yawl from Holland that was sailed across the Atlantic. It was a stiff boat and great in higher winds.
I had an old Columbia 23 at Lake Tahoe for many years. A tough place to sail. For rough weather, I brought my friend Eddie from Scotland. We would take a reef in the main at the dock at Tahoe Keys and fly the smallest jib. When the spray was coming over the rail and we were heeled in I would make him read Robert Burns with his strong Scottish accent.
My uncle recently passed, but for years we sailed his 35 foot ketch in the San Juan Islands of WA. I miss those days most of all.
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Really like the story of your Scottish friend reading Robert Burns as the spray flew over the rail! If you haven’t heard William Topley singing “Sea Fever” a John Masefield poem. I think you will enjoy it.
For those who are interested in sailing canoes or just sails in all their variety then this is a book for you. Very good explanations for DIY types. The illustrations done by the author (a sailmaker) are clear and beautiful.
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I have used a bed sheet between two canoes many times on longer trips. Once on the Missouri River in Montana, we had a northerly wind and the current was around 4-5 mph. With the sheet between two canoes we were making 10-12 mph over ground.
Topley music is pretty good. I was looking at an old castle in Ireland in the middle of nowhere. I met a newspaper man from Dublin. We smoked a joint. He gave me a tape of Christy Moore. I gave him a Grateful Dead tape. We met up with our wives in Dingle for a couple of days. Rollickin good times in Ireland.
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