The cabin, shown with the bulkhead removed in Les' photo on Facebook, in our view is quite large. One could argue that it is really 7' 7" long, and the 5' 9" berth extends out 18" into the cabin, which allows a person to sit on the berth while visiting with three other people in the cabin, as well as allowing easy access to the portable toilet under the center cushion. Of course, when the left, rear cushions are put into place, the berth extends to a total length of 7', reducing the floor space in the cabin at night. Visually however, the cabin still looks 7' 7"' long. That's the genius of this design. Please notice, too, the width of the floor in front of the dinette and galley: it is wide enough for two people to easily pass one another, which we feel is an important feature for living comfortably in a small boat.

This great photo taken by Les Lampman on our maiden voyage shows the ample space in the cabin of this boat. Moving up to the Marinaut 215 from our CD 16 Cruiser made a HUGE difference for us in comfort and elbow room. 9/26/12 update -- One thing important that can go overlooked is that the cabin walls go straight up, instead of angling in toward the center. This visually creates a lot of space, and makes us feel we are in a much larger boat. Indeed, over the course of a year, we spent over 30 nights on the Betty Ann, and we continue to feel we are in a very comfortable and unconfining living space.

We have added a 750 Watt Sunbeam toaster (Model TSSBTR2SBK) and a 650 Watt, 5-cup Black and Decker drip coffee maker (Model DCM600B), that fits neatly on the countertop, does not inhibit use of the Wallas, and has vastly made more pleasant our overnight stays. We still love the Wallas for cooking our meals and providing heat, but it really is more convenient to use the electric appliances in marinas. Notice, too, that we added a cutting board to fit on top of the Wallas. It does not slip because we used one of those rubber shelf liners underneath. It does not get jostled around while underway -- we can attest that it stays in place in 4 foot following seas! Notice, too, the plug strip, which has a 15 amp breaker that we use with a portable shore power set-up as recommended on this site by others more knowledgeable than me.

The space between the helm seat and galley cabinet, and right of throttle, is great for books and maps

Helm Drawers -- each with drawer stop to prevent unwanted openning in rough conditions

Co-Pilot Seat Storage. Please notice the high quality brass latch and the sliding, swivel seat. We can access this space even when in the full sleeping configuration.

Rear Port Storage Box, which can easily hold the contents of a large suitcase.

A very convenient shelf attached to the port, dinette wall

The Galley top is made of laminate. The Faucet is actually a very high quality Euro-design, with ceramic valves. The faucet contains a switch that starts the pump and allows for variable water flow. To the right is the Wallas two-burner diesel stove. It boils water quickly, and is powerful enough to heat both the cabin and the enclosed cockpit. Yet it can be set to low speed, and keep everyone in the cabin comfortable. USE DIESEL FUEL! Les told us that diesel has more btu's of heat per unit and has a longer shelf life than kerosene (2 years as opposed to 6 months or so.) And it is a miser on fuel. We only burned about 1.5 gallons for the three weeks we were on the boat, and we used it to heat the cabin for 2 to 4 hours per day.

Overhead Shelf. This shelf is approximately one foot deep, and securely holds a great deal of items. Les had the shelf made with an approx. 1.5 inch lip to prevent items from falling.

A view of the dinette and top shelf. This dinette very comfortably fits large people like me (I'm 5'11.5" tall and 250 lbs., and am very comfortable.) One of the things that makes this dinette comfortable is that the table does not use (or need) a support leg. Below the dinette table is a very large storage shelf with a high lip that extends from the bulkhead to the end of the co-pilot seat. Simply put: the storage capacity of this boat is amazing.

First Mate and CIC working on her log at the dinette table

O.k. -- we brought along too much stuff, but nevertheless, the galley cabinet has a large capacity, aided by the nice upper-level shelf.

Anoither view of the upper-level galley shelf. Please notice that we bought Cuisinart Stainless Steel cookware, which works great with the Walas Stove

Secure Grab Bar and LED light over Dinette

Canvasback Cockpit Enclosure is approximately 89" wide by 74" long by 75" high. It affords such a wonderful view, that we decided to keep it clear, and order three screen windows for summer use (back-middle, port and starboard front)

Another MBC nice touch: windshield washers. The blue arrows show the direction of water flow from the windshield wiper washer nozzles located on each of our three wiper arms. This works very well. As most of you know, when operating a boat in salt water, the spray over time leaves deposits of salt caked onto the windshield, reducing visibility. This low-cost option was invaluable to us, and will be more so in Long Island Sound, where the shallow waters have a higher saline content due to evaporation. We highly recommend this option, as well as the fan. We have fans on the port and starboard windshield, the flows of which can be directed toward the glass, or even down to the berth. It helps to clear up fogging, and we highly recommend it. Incidentally, that round, flat area by my wife's elbow is a wonderful resting spot for a plastic water bottle while the boat is at rest.

Another location for the portable toilet during the day. We found it could also be nestled between the copilot seat and berth, but of course passengers would have to sit at the table. Don't try this, however, when the top-level, fresh-water reservoir is full and the bottom container is empty. This renders the toilet top heavy, and in the event of the boat healing sharply to starboard, it could tip over. This could empty its contents onto the floor. (I know -- this happened to us.) Since May, 2012, we no longer use this arrangement, and now favor the cockpit area with a larger porta potti. (see related subfolders)

Interior window covers

Lewmar Hatch with screen and self supporting hinge

Les solved the issue of the door clearing past the steps by making the step slightly narrower and setting it back slightly. It works great! Now I can do port side docks, but we still prefer the starboard side because a) it's easier for me to grab the docking cleat from the helm station, and b) my wife and I find it is easier to enter and exit the boat from the starboard side.

This picture, sent to me by Les Lampman, shows the bottom step attached to the fuel tank and sitting on the shop floor prior to its installation in the boat. After installation, the top step is attached and the gray covering material is affixed to the sides of the tank to make it look sleek. It was great to see the under-step, vertical support strip that was in this design. The step holds my 250 lbs. weight without unduly flexing. It's quite robust.

After a full season: close up of welds on bottom step

After a full season: attachment of top step to fuel tank via 3 bolts.