BoatsHughes 35

Hughes 35

Masthead Sloop · Fin With Rudder On Skeg · First built 1977

A Sparkman & Stephens masthead sloop derived from design #2166, featuring a fin keel and skeg-mounted rudder

Designed by Sparkman & Stephens.

LOA
Beam
Draft (max)
Displacement
Ballast
Hull type
Fin With Rudder On Skeg

See her sail

The Hughes 35, on the water

The fleet's own footage — the truest look at how she really moves.

Footage from Lady K Sailing

Is it for you?

Character

Where this design lands on the numbers a shopper trusts — read straight from her own ratios.

LivelySea-kindly

Her heavy displacement on a narrow beam gives 29 — a moderate, middle-of-the-road motion.

Comfort ratio 29
CoastalBluewater

1.81 — just under the 2.0 offshore line; her beam is modest for her weight.

Capsize screening 1.81
LightHeavy

305 — heavy for her waterline, built to carry stores and ride steadily.

Displacement / length 305
EasygoingPowered-up

15.4 — moderate power for her weight; steady, all-round performance.

Sail area / displacement 15.4
TenderStiff

45% of her weight is ballast — stiff, standing up well to her sails.

Ballast 45%

A capable cruiser that sits just inside the offshore line — coastal work with real passages in her.

What the fleet has seen

The Hughes 35, as the fleet has seen it

Derived from the videos the fleet has analysed of this model. ▶ marks open the moment aboard.

The Hughes 35 is a Sparkman & Stephens-designed masthead sloop with a fin keel and skeg-hung rudder, built by Hughes Boat Works Ltd. from 1977 onward. It is a variation of S&S design #2166, previously known as the North Star 1500 and built by North Star Yachts. The boat measures 10.8 meters LOA, with a 3.1-meter beam, 1.8-meter draft, and 5443 kg displacement.

The living fleet

Sailed by the fleet

The channels sailing this model, and where they were last seen.

Lady K SailingLady K Sailing provides data-driven insights on sailboat selection, maintenance, and vessel management, while developing tools to help owners track marine equipment records.

Seen 57 times across one channel of the fleet.

Basemap © Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 4.0

On the water

The Hughes 35 on video

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What they go for

Market signal

Where the fleet has seen this model for sale, and the asking prices that came with it.

1seen sold
1channel looked into buying
$22,000Median asking

From the fleet's own footage — our observed signal, not broker listings.

The record

Full specifications

The complete reference set — tap any figure to switch between metric and imperial.

Dimensions
Weights
Ballast / displacement
45.0%
Rig & sail area
Rig
Masthead Sloop
Ratios
SA / displacement
15.4
Displacement / length
304.8
Comfort ratio
28.7
Capsize screening
1.81
Hull speed
6.8 kn
Pounds / inch immersion
960
Hull
Hull type
Fin with rudder on skeg
Construction
Fiberglass
Production
Years built
First built 1977
Designer
Sparkman, Stephens
Builder
Hughes Boat Works Ltd

Boats like this, on the water

More boats like her, on the water

Comparable boats the fleet has on camera: same type, within a quarter of her length. Open the boat, or watch the video — a timestamp means she only appears in passing.

Westerly Yachts Ltd. Oceanquest 3510.81 mSame hull familyNear-identical lengthAn Ed Dubois-designed cruiser sharing its proven hull with the Seahawk and Falcon, available in center or aft cockpit layouts
Is It Mad to Buy a Boat at 76? Here's What Happened0:04from Sailing Zephyr IV
Herreshoff Manufacturing Newport 2910.84 mSame hull familyNear-identical lengthA 1914 Nathanael Herreshoff design featuring a fin keel and gaff-rigged sloop sail plan for classic performance
Lou Is Back - Shop Tour2:38from Tips from a Shipwright
Contessa 3510.82 mSame hull familyNear-identical lengthA Doug Peterson-designed IOR One Ton racer that claimed the 1974 International One Ton Cup with her prototype Gumboots
BOAT TOUR - Erik Aanderaa's solo sailing MACHINE!0:49from Alluring Arctic
Hunter Marine 35.5 Legend10.84 mSame hull familyNear-identical lengthA fractional sloop with a shallow-draft wing keel, designed as an updated evolution of the Legend 35
Hunter Legend 35.5 - Behind the Curtain0:46from Practical Sailor
Freedom Yachts 35 (Pedrick)10.79 mSame hull familyNear-identical lengthA 1993 performance cruiser with a deep 1.98-metre draft and a spade rudder for responsive handling
This Boat Costs ALL of my Budget, But She's Ready to Go NOW! Freedom 35 Cat Ketch | Wildling Sailing0:46from Wildling Sailing
Bavaria Yachts Cruiser 3510.76 mSame hull familyNear-identical lengthA three-cabin layout packed into a light 10.76-metre hull, designed for efficient coastal cruising
Greece, the Paradise of Forgotten Boats - we returned after 5 years4:57from navegandoporelglobo

The family

Related models

The designs closest to hers — usually the rest of the builder's range, sometimes the same hull sold under another name.

Hughes 31A stretched and widened evolution of the North Star 1000, originally offered as a kit-built masthead sloopHughes 40A masthead ketch with a shallow 1.42m draft and heavy displacement, built to Sparkman & Stephens design #2134Hughes 38-2A T-shaped cockpit update to the Hughes 38-1, later marketed as the North Star 38Hughes 26A Sparkman & Stephens quarter-tonner designed for competitive racing and later adapted for cruisingHughes 38-3A Sparkman & Stephens masthead sloop featuring a revised deck layout with a longer coachroof and a skeg-mounted rudderHughes 38-1A Sparkman & Stephens design #1903 masthead sloop with hulls shared with the Hinckley 38

Keep asking

The fleet has more to say

Search what's been said about the Hughes 35, or ask a specific question — the answer comes back written out, with links to the moments it draws on.

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