Fountaine Pajot Helia 44

With their large living areas and the extra space provided in the two hulls they provide advantages of a powerboat and a yacht with very few of the disadvantages.

The biggest issue facing potential catamaran buyers, though it is improving, is pen availability. In WA, there are some catamaran-suitable pens available, about 15 between Two Rocks, in the northern suburbs of Perth and Busselton in the State's south, but getting one close to where you live could be a challenge.

Fountaine Pajot is another European boat builder that is starting to make its mark in the Southern Hemisphere. The La Rochelle-based business is regarded as one of the world leaders in catamaran design and construction. And it has plenty of experience behind it with the first catamaran built back in 1976. Since then more than 2500 cats have left its production facility on the Bay of Biscay in Western France.

The Helia 44 is the 19th model launched by Fountaine Pajot in its 30-year history and is the result of a successful collaboration between the boat builder and the Berret Racoupeau naval architecture office.

It was designed to replace the Orana 44, positioned between the Lipari 41 and Salina Evolution 48 and has similar design traits as the Sanya 57 that was launched last year.

It also has good-size fridges in the galley and aft cockpit with a third, in the saloon just near the rear sliding door, a large two-drawer configuration that can also be used as a freezer. And when you add the ice-maker and a desalination unit that will produce 190-litres/hour of fresh-water (it had been ordered but not fitted when we tested the boat so is not included in the price shown here) this is a boat that could stay at sea or anchored in a bay for quite some time.

The Helia 44 also has a gutter system on the deck designed to capture rain water and refill the fresh water tank if needed.

Standard sails include a slab reefing main and self-furling genoa while a self-furling gennaker has also been added to the arsenal for those days when you spend long hours with the breeze at your back.

For those days when there is absolutely no wind, it only takes a few knots of breeze to get the big cat up and moving, it has also been fitted with a bigger engine package. The two Volvo D2 55hp engines (44hp is standard), with three-blade folding props give the Helia 44 a cruising speed of eight knots with the engines doing 2200rpm and sipping a bit over 2.0-litre/hour combined.

It also comes with a bimini and covers over the helm, a washing machine and dryer and a full suite of Garmin electronics including auto pilot, radar and GPS, with a screen in the helm station and the navigation table in the saloon.

All of these extras, plus a few more, lifted the price to $952,000 and made the cat ready for some serious off-shore sailing adventures.

The test boat had a three-bed layout with two cabins, each with its own bathroom and toilet in the port hull while the starboard side was set-up exclusively for the owners with a large king-size bed located aft, meaning there will be little noticeable "water slapping" to keep you awake at night. Midship there is a dressing area with a host of storage space, including drawers, a full-size hanging wardrobe and linen press. There is also a desk and the test boat had an Ericsson internet modem added so keeping in touch with the office or family is easy.

The washing machine and dryer are located at the front of this area, opposite the linen cupboard. The bathroom, with a large separate shower is forward and a large storage area can also be accessed from the bathroom as well as via a large hatch on the front of the deck.

In the port hull, the cabins are separated by the two bathrooms, each with a separate shower and toilet, which creates a long narrow passage between the two cabins providing the occupants of each with some privacy.

The aft cabins in each hull are light and well ventilated with an opening bridge hatch, large lateral oval porthole, and a panoramic porthole behind the double bed which looks out over the access steps on the transom skirts.

While the fore cabin is slightly smaller the bed is still a good size and it has an interesting hatch that gives you access to the water between the two hulls. The hatch is a safety feature (necessary when built to CE specs) in case the cat capsizes and while it can provide extra ventilation and an interesting view it could also prove a bit nasty if left open while sailing.

The main living area is a huge space, the saloon and aft deck is 50m2 according to Fountaine Pajot, and one of the biggest advantages of a catamaran. With the beam an impressive 7.5m (or 24.3ft) the saloon comfortably accommodates a dining table and chairs that will seat up to 10 people as well as a u-shaped galley and well-equipped navigation desk and there is still plenty of room to move around.

The galley comes with a double sink, clever built-in bin, microwave, oven and hotplates as well as a good-sized fridge and lots of cupboard space. There is also in-floor storage if needed. The second fridge/freezer, mentioned earlier, is opposite the galley and right next to the aft sliding door making it easily accessible from both the galley and rear deck.

The saloon, with its light alpine woodwork and contrasting fine Wenge floors and granite-brown leather-style cushions, is light and bright thanks to high windows that bathe the entire area in natural light, as well as providing a panoramic view.

It opens out onto the rear deck through sliding doors that turn it into one big entertaining area. Like the saloon, the rear deck has a large table with seating for 8-10 people. Opposite the table, on the starboard side, and just behind the helm is a sun lounge that backs onto the second fridge.

The helm is on the starboard side of the cat and sits up above the deck providing 360 deg views. Next to the helm are two large sun lounges, under the boom, which make a great place to enjoy the scenery whilst sailing or to just lay in the sun and read a book.

A large stainless steel frame across the transom houses the BBQ and fishing rod holders. The dinghy sits nicely between the two hulls with twin davits making it a very easy task to lift it in and out of the water.

Access to the water, or on and off the cat, is via three steps at the end of each pontoon.

It is also fitted with fixed fins rather than your more traditional daggerboard keels. According to Fountaine Pajot there are a number of benefits, including not having to adjust the centreboards while sailing and providing greater protection for the drive shafts, propellors, rudder blades and the bottom of the hull. It also means they are a completely separate component to the hull -- a feature that will preserve the integrity of the hull if you do hit something and they do not intrude on interior space.

A slab reefing mainsail and self-furling genoa are standard, though a genneker -- which is also self furling is offered as an option, and was fitted to the test boat.

With the Helia 44 reaching a maximum speed of 7 knots on the test sail it was hardly a day for finding out how the catamaran would handle the large swells and strong winds that are a regular part of boating off the WA coast. What I do know is that the Helia 44 is designed to sit as flat in the water in strong winds as it did during the test. The hull volumes are fairly high ensuring buoyancy under load which should ensure the forward and aft trim remains even in most conditions.

Between-hull water clearance is adequate and the design smooth which should minimise wave slap, which can be an issue with cats when going to windward.

What the light conditions did allow was for us to enjoy the boat in conditions most owners would prefer. After setting the mainsail and genoa, which was an easy one-man operation using the electric winch in the helm to hoist the main and unfurl the genoa we set off on a long tack and just enjoyed the light breeze and beautiful conditions.

After sitting at the helm for some time we engaged the auto pilot and got a taste of how the boat will be used in most circumstances. With the electronics looking after the steering, it was time to sit back and enjoy a coffee and the flat seas.

At one stage with the breeze dying to around 6 knots we flicked on one motor and with it ticking over at 1800rpm the boat speed lifted from four to six knots.

Running the single diesel engine at that speed uses about a litre of fuel an hour.

After an hour or so of cruising we turned around, replaced the geneoa with the genneker and set sail back to Mandurah.

Again this was an operation that could be completed by one person, especially with the aid of the auto pilot but with the genneker winch on the after corner of the port hull it is an easier, and smoother operation with two people. With the larger and fuller genneker set, and the wind increasing to around 10 knots, we had the big cat slicing through the water at just a tick over seven knots.

The steering was light without being too sensitive which made it an easy task to stay on course and tack without dropping too much speed. While it is possible for the skipper to tack unaided it did make it easier, and smoother, to have someone else man the winch.

At the end of the day, putting the sails away was again something the skipper could do by him- or herself, but was quicker and easier with a little help.

Vision from the elevated helm is outstanding and all the electronics are at your fingertips so you can be sure that you are heading on the right course.

It is hard not to be blown away by the amount of space on the aft deck of this impressive cat. And when you slide back the saloon door, exposing the galley and lounge area, it is cavernous. But it is not only big, it is well equipped with and thoughtfully laid out.