A 1977 Jeremy Rogers Contessa 26.
A Summary
Designed by David Sadler and launched in 1966, the Contessa 26 is a 26 ft masthead sloop, based on the Folkboat design but adapted for GRP construction.
350 Contessa 26’s were built by Jeremy Rogers of Lymington between 1966 and 1977 before the moulds were sold to Chris Carrington of Maclan Marine, who produced a few more from 1977-8. Another set of moulds were sold to J.J. Taylor and Sons Ltd. from Toronto, Canada, where another 400 were built under the Contessa 26 name, and then “J.J.Taylor 26”.
The design has had impressive success on the racing scene, including great results in the Round Britain and OSTAR races. It has a multitude of transoceanic passages to it’s name as well as two circumnavigations (to my knowledge) by Tania Aebi and Brian Caldwell.
Tarka herself
She was sailed for a few years after being built, before being sold to an owner who kept her in their garden for 30 years. She was then sold to someone who refitted the interior – as a carpenter might (the interior was insufficiently glassed in). She was then bought back by Jeremy Rogers (I believe)- as a family project, but complications led to them putting her up for sale, having stripped the interior and installed a new Beta 14 engine, along with a few other new parts. As of May 2024, it’s up to me to get her back on the water!
The name “Tarka” comes from the 1927 novel “Tarka the Otter”, by Henry Williamson. The name is said by the author to mean “Wandering as Water” or “Little Water Wanderer”. The novel describes the life of an otter, along with a detailed observation of its habitat in the country of the River Taw and River Torridge in north Devon.(https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tarka_the_Otter)
