World of Ships – May 2018

PADDLE STEAMERS

Paddle Steamers I World of Ships I 39

Although Mark Twain is a steam-powered

stern-wheel vessel, Molly Brown has a

working replica beam engine, but for

passengers viewing only with diesel engines

powering side paddles. Both vessels carry up

to 250 passengers for 20 minute trips but

have no rudders or steering gear, progress

LEFT Because of shallow water, Croisi Europe opted

for paddle propulsion for Loire Princesse.

ABOE Inexplosible 22 is replica of a river Loire vessel built in 1837 and like other fleet members carried a

named designed to convince passengers there was no risk of boiler explosions.

MOLLY BROWN

MARK TWAIN

OWNER Euro Disney, Paris

Rouen, Lyon and Aix-le-Bains, and long after

their disappearance on cross-Channel routes

paddle steamers were to be found on coastal

excursions operating from Le Havre, Caen,

Honfleur and Trouville.

In 1992 Euro Disney opened near Paris, and

a side-wheel vessel and a stern-wheeler were

built to offer trips around the Rivers of the Far

West manmade lagoon in the Frontierland

area. In 2007 the replica paddler Inexplosible

22 was built for service at Orleans before the

wheel turned a full circle in 2015 as leading

river cruise specialist Croisi Europe introduced

the cabin paddle vessel Loire Princess. They

are due to take delivery of a second stern wheel

cabin ship in 2018.

ABOVE Although there is a replica steam beam

engine for passengers to view, the Euro Disney

paddle vessel is diesel-powered and guided around

a Frontierland circuit by an underwater rail.

LOIRE PRINCESSE

OWNER Croisi Europe

BUILT 2015 by Mecasoud, Saint-Nazaire and assembled in

dry dock at STX Yard

DIMENSION 90m x 10m

MACHINERY Twin Volvo Penta diesels each of 500HP with

direct drive to paddle wheels. Passengers 96

When French river cruise giant Croisi Europe

planned a new cabin vessel for trips upstream

from Saint Nazaire to Angers, the problem

of having to negotiate several stretches of

shallow water was solved by building a paddle

boat with a draught of just 3ft. Stirling Design

International (SDI) produced plans, and Loire

Princesse was built in sections by Mecasoud,

being assembled in a dry dock at the STX

Shipyard in Saint-Nazaire, with delivery in 2015.

The two-deck vessel is long and low, so

she can negotiate bridges crossing the river,

and she has luxury accommodation for 96

passengers. All cabins have private bathrooms

with showers, hair dryers, safes, desks/

dressers, flat screen TVs and telephones. There

are 30 upper deck rooms with picture window

and private facilities, and a further 18 double-

occupancy cabins on the lower deck. Loire

Princesse has two 500hp engines with direct

drive to the 4.5m diameter paddle wheels,

which have fixed floats for a speed of 10kmh.

Problems sometimes encountered with

paddle boxes becoming choked with water

were solved when the outer casings were

removed. Loire Princesse alternates between

six- and eight-day tours in a nine-month

season. During 2018 Croisi Europe introduced

the 110m stern-wheel cabin vessel Elbe

Princesse II, built at the Neoplia Yard in

France, which joined Elbe Princesse (2017)

during summer 2018, doubling capacity on

sailings between Berlin and Prague.

around the lake being guided by a link

with an underwater rail! Molly Brown’s

engines overheated on 16 May 2005 and

a full complement of passengers had to be

evacuated. As Mark Twain was receiving

refurbishment at the time, repairs to Molly

Brown did not start until September 2006,

and the craft did not resume operations until

well into 2007.

INEXPLOSIBLE 22

OWNER City of Orleans

BUILT 2007 by Delavergne Shipyard, Arrille.

DIMENSION 35m x 4.5m (hull), 7.3m (over paddles)

MACHINERY Diesel-hydraulic

SPEED 8.6 knots

PASSENGERS 85

Inexplosible 22 is a modern replica of a small

paddle vessel built in 1837 for a River Loire

fleet that all carried the name Inexplosible to

reassure passengers there was no risk of the

hazard of boiler explosions common on some

other early steam boats. Built for the Orleans

Regional Authority at a cost of €800,000,

the modern vessel’s ownership was switched

to the City of Orleans in late 2015 for the

nominal fee of just €1.

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