Calla Lily is a 1990 Compass 47 built in Cape Town South Africa by Compass Marine. Her designer, Angelo Lavranos, was a member of the team who designed the S&S Swan 40 and 48. The most traveled and popular large cruiser from South Africa, Compass 47 has an interesting history. Many of the 50 produced were bought and sailed to Europe or the Americas to be sold as a way to get money out of apartheid South Africa. Virtually every Compass 47 built has crossed at least one Ocean, (most of them two or more), and at least three have circumnavigated. The boat was the class winner in the ’82 South Atlantic Race and ’85 Beachcomber Race showcasing her speed and stability.
She looks good on paper and great in person. We found her in a boat yard in San Carlos, Mexico on the east shore of the Gulf of California. She had most everything we were looking for, sloop rig, about 45 feet long, built for blue water, and beautiful teak cabinetry.
Since we purchased her in 2019, we've done two major refits. The first one was updating and replacing all the major systems, the portlights and hatches, the sails, steering, rigging, solar, batteries, dinghy and outboard, lighting, and plumbing. After a season in the Gulf of California, we hauled out again to get her ready to head out into the Pacific Ocean. The focus this time was refinishing and painting everything outside except the topsides. She got a fresh paint and non-skid on top and a new bottom including Coppercoat anti-fouling. We also got 120 meters of chain and a new 33 kilogram Rocna anchor, life raft, dyneema lifelines, and a Hydrovane self-steering system. In 2024, we replaced her knackered AGM house batteries with 8 kilowatt hours of lithium iron phosphate batteries and all the things you need to manage them. Most recently, in September, 2025, we replaced our chainplates and rerigged and tuned her.