head of the side passageway, the space is great
for my grandson,” Janet adds.
A testimony to Stalca’s time spent in the
Balearic Islands is a swim platform that was
added aft. “We decided to keep it, but
had to resolve some balance and sloshing
problems. Now it’s just as it should be.”
With the hull stripped to the metal and the
new bow in place, Janet considered a different
hull color. “I was thinking of blue, but in the end
stayed with the original off-white because
Andrew advised against a darker color. It’s just
too hard to keep clean and free from saltwater
deposits. We’re very happy with the painting and
fairing work done by Rolling Stock in Palma.”
Vintage photos show that Stalca’s top deck
was not a living space when she was a royal
yacht: the only access to that area, used
principally to stow a Zodiac-type tender and
what looks like a Laser, was a steep
companionway in the crew cabin. “We added a
retractable stair from the main deck aft and
made what used to be just a storage space with
an outdoor helm station into a lovely sundeck.
That’s where we spend most of our time when
we’re aboard,” Janet says.
The Wotherspoons have a
vintage photo of a young
Prince Albert, hair tousled by
the wind, using the top deck
helm, and another one of
Prince Rainier helming like
an old salt, with a cigarette stuck in the corner of
his mouth. The Wotherspoons kept the original
Plexiglas box that protected the controls, but all
the technology under it is new. After some careful
calculation and reinforcing work, the tender and
a launching crane are now stowed on the
overhang that shades the aft guest cockpit.
As far as engines, generators, wiring and
navigation equipment that had to be changed,
it’s better not to ask. “The ambition from day one
was to keep her as original as possible,” Janet
says. “Where we could we reconditioned, but
some things were just too far gone. We tried to
recondition the windlass, but ended up with all
new chains and anchors. But the ship’s bell,
which proudly reads ‘Stalca Monaco’, is original.”
While installing all new technology aboard a
vintage yacht requires biting the bullet
economically, it does have advantages: today you
can get a lot more brain and power into a lot PHOTOGRAPHS: MARK NICHOLSON/WINCH DESIGN