Canal Boat — February 2018

28 February 2018 Canal Boat canalboat.co.uk

THE BOAT TEST

contains a 20 litre diesel tank to supply the

stove. The water tank is underneath the

deck.

The stern is semi-trad, with lockers both

sides of the deck. The instrument panel is

on a column one side and has a lifting

cover to give some protection from the

elements. As well as all the usual dials and

switches, there’s a 12 volt socket, which

Will plans to use for a plug-in torch to

provide extra light in tunnels. There are

sockets for shore power at the bow and

stern.

The deck board has a Desmo fitting to

take a small table. It’s just the right size for

the space, as it’s small enough to get

round, and big enough for several cups or

glasses.

There are a couple of taff seats at the

rear, specified by the owners purely as

somewhere to hang the life ring. They also

say, though, that they act as a rail to help

make them feel safer when stepping on and

off the stern.

The owners have added a cratch cover

and a pram hood. Will went to great

lengths to get the hood to look just right,

designing the side windows to replicate the

shapes seen in river cruisers, like the one

the family used to have in the Lake District.

Both covers were made by NRM Leisure.

LAYOUT AND FITOUT

This is a 52ft boat, but Sandra says they

wanted to fit in everything you’d normally

find in a 60 footer – and they have pretty

much succeeded. It’s a reverse layout boat,

with the galley at the stern. Next comes a

Pullman dinette, just a little shorter than

the standard, followed by the saloon. The

shower room is an off-corridor design,

with the cabin at the bow.

The fitout uses oak-faced panels below

the gunwales, with painted butt and bead

tongue and groove on the cabin sides and

Extended sofa for family sailing

The boat is based on a Disney theme