Week 29 Looking at Boats

Looking at Boats...

...a very tiring, but mostly enjoyable experience. Maybe full days of doing anything are tiring these days?

After 26 days on board Motortjalk Australia, Robin and Joy decided that they liked the idea of a "boating retirement plan". They even met some Aussies in Joure, who were on their way to "swap partners', which raised my eyebrows a little, even though I understood that they had bought a boat in partnership with another couple. (but you never know). 

We have met other Aussies who have bought into the Linsson range of boats, but those boats are another price range, probably beginning at around €350,000.00 or thereabouts.

The boat sharing people (only) paid around €35k for theirs and it is very suitable for each couple to spend 3 months a year on board. It might get a bit tight with all four on board for any length of time, but that is not their intention except for a few days "changeover", each year.

Robin & Joy, 2017

Everyone agrees that the Netherlands is THE place to buy a boat - there are just so many of them and the deal can easily be sorted out in English. The Linsson boat crowd even get tours of the boatyard while "their" boat is being built and personalised.

It's 9 years! (really?) since Andrew & Terry bought their boat with a little amateur assistance from me (just showing them around). But they had good luck and found their ideal boat, took it to France and are now happy to potter around the Netherlands for as long as they are able. (A little setback this year with motor problems, but Andrew confided in me that it is still just so amazing that they can "be sitting here on their own boat").

In 2008, I took Andrew & Terry to "Dodgy Brothers Boats", near Heeg. These were some that Andrew had looked at via the internet, but in the end, we couldn't get away quickly enough! And so, just to gain a little perspective, I took Robin and Joy to have a look. Same story this time around. The "tell him he's dreaming" movie came to mind. Some of the boats are real shockers compared with some we have been looking at. One broker told us that "prices have dropped by around 60% since 2008". Indeed, some boats looked to have a reasonable "asking price" - but not at Dodgy Brothers....!

The name of this boat was particularly apt... in better times it's name would have meant "peace", but now the English meaning is more appropriate!

At Sneek, we visited an enclosed boat shed filled with exclusive boats - beginning at about €90,000. Oh well, we had a look anyway!

We also visited the Charter place where our boat used to work. They still have some in service....

Also at Heeg, we saw some Lemsteraaks (sailing boats) as part of a charter fleet. They really do have a special charm...

We've made an appointment to look again at a boat that Robin & Joy heard of when they were on their trip. Friends of friends. We saw it a few weeks ago and Janny & I couldn't believe how good it was for the price that was being asked. It was built 40 years ago (on a hull dating from circa 1900) and is still in the hands of the chap who built it. It is obviously much loved and well cared for, but it didn't seem quite right to fall for the first boat they looked at! But now, having looked at quite a few other boats, trying to get a feel for prices and quality, it seemed to be definitely worth a second look!

We've also ordered a compost toilet for the boat - it wasn't in stock so the owner is going to bring it to the boat during the following week. He looked very disorganised (but enthusiastic); business seems to be on the increase given the current popularity of the Tiny Homes movement (and an associated desire for self-sufficiency).

Ben in Zagreb on Friday, Split on Sunday 

Travelling with Eliana...

...and the pumpkins, getting bigger every day! And we picked our first zucchini!