EXTRAORDINARY BOATS

Boats have been built of wood since Noah first put axe to tree. For devotees of the classic style, Spirit Yachts have been building head-turningly pretty yachts with laminated wooden hulls since 1993, including the largest single-masted wooden yacht built in the UK since the 1930s, the jaw-dropping new Spirit 111. But last year the Ipswich-based yard also launched Avvento, a smaller sister to its 47 and 55 Cruising Range yachts.

The Spirit 44 Cruising Range Electric (44e for short) hides technology advances that offer a glimpse into a future of sustainable boatbuilding. Unrecyclable fibreglass and sails, toxic antifoul, and fossil-fuel propulsion have been replaced by sustainably sourced timber, self-sufficient electric propulsion and zero carbon emissions.

The owner is Vincent Argiro, a retired tech entrepreneur who lives and sails in British Columbia. Explaining his motivation, he said: “My first sailboat was also the first of its kind to be built all-electric. I have never owned anything else, nor will I. To me, it is