EARLY YEARS ….. NARROW BOAT “FREE SPIRIT”

 MAKING THE INITIAL BREAK

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Our bungalow in Longwell Green, where we lived until February 2001, is situated half way between Bristol and Bath, just five minutes in the car from Keynsham, on the River Avon. It was there, in a boatyard, that our son stored his Wayfarer dinghy. Shortly before we retired, whilst helping him renovate this Wayfarer, we watched with interest the construction of a steel narrow boat shell. When the construction was almost complete and the lining out began, Margaret was fascinated to watch this hull becoming a ‘home’.

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One day whilst both of us were watching the fit out progress, Margaret said to Pete,

”I could live in one of those”,

and as happens so often, this gave him ideas!!!

star

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We owned ‘Wandering Star’, a 32′ Nicholson sailing boat at that stage and she was the boat in which we had always imagined we would eventually cruise around the Med.

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We were considering taking early retirement, but unable to afford full retirement, we had looked at the option of working for six months and cruising in “Star” for six months each year. After great thought, Pete asked, ”Did you really mean that you could live on a narrow boat?” Margaret knew then that he had worked out ‘another way’ that would allow us to ‘play’, not for six, but twelve months a year.

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Having outlined his plan, the joint decision was made, and we placed an order for the shell of a narrow boat to be built. Pete’s plan was that once the shell was completed, he, would carry out the fit out, treating it as his full time job, whilst Margaret continued working. Once the narrow boat was ready for us to live in, we would rent out our house,and move aboard to live.

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Brilliant idea, BUT, that would mean the care and maintenance of two boats, two insurances, the mooring for two boats, when we could only ever be living on one at a time. This problem caused much discussion and thought, but in the end, with great sadness we both accepted ‘Wandering Star’ had to be sold.

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She was a wonderful boat (it had been Pete’s dream for many years to one day become a Nicholson 32 owner) and she had given Margaret so much of the confidence in sailing that had previously eluded her. Once “Star” was finally sold, we would go off on the narrow boat cruising the English Canal System, then three years on, we would sell the narrow boat, buy a sailing boat and continue our dream by sailing to the Med.

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One truly amazing six week cruise in ‘Wandering Star’ to North and South Brittany and the Channel Islands was scheduled, and took place for the summer of 1999, then, she went ‘up for sale’.

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The shell of our 60 foot narrow boat was ordered in July 1999, the construction of which commenced in September of that year. By 12th December the same year we had taken ownership. Pete’s job, as planned, was to make this shell into our ‘home’, so with Margaret teaching in Keynsham, we would drive to work together each day.

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Apart from the Insulation of the shell, Pete did everything himself and by November 2000,  ‘Free Spirit’, as we named her, was ready for us to move aboard. She was just great, so cosy and comfortable, all fitted out in beautifully oiled light oak wood work, plenty of storage and of course, central heating.

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Master cabin looking forward (doors to for'd well deck) Master cabin looking aft

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The Master Cabin was at the forward end, with a double bed, wardrobe, drawers and small dressing table. Double doors opened onto a small forward well deck, it had all we needed for a really good nights sleep.

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Moving towards the stern, abaft of the master cabin, was the ‘heads’, a good size with a walk in shower, wash basin and toilet.

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Heads ( walk-in shower out of camera to left)

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Dining area looking forward (converts to double berth) Dining area looking aft

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Moving aft again next compartment was the Dinette The table seated four people was of varnished oak and at night, could convert into a double bed if needed. It was a lovely room in which to eat our meals, yet great also as guest cabin when we had family or friends to stay. Our Grandson Matthew, only 3 at the time, loved it and would ask to sleep on the ‘table bed’!

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Galley looking forward Galley looking aft

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Next aft came the galley, well equipped with fridge, full sized oven and hob, sink, adequate work surface area and plenty of storage space. With windows on both sides, it was light, bright and a great place to prepare meals, allowing anyone working in there, to watch all that was going on, at the same time. We both did loads of cooking and baking in there, Pete always baking our own fresh home made bread.

Saloon looking aft, 2 x settee berths after end Saloon looking forward (wood burning stove to strbd)

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The galley opened directly onto the saloon, a spacious area and one in which we loved to relax. It was really warm and cosy in the winter with its wood burning stove, yet we could enjoy the cooling breeze, wafting through from stern to bow, or vice-versa, in the summer. In addition to the stove, gas central heating with radiators was fitted throughout the boat. We were never cold, even when the canal was frozen and snow lay all around us. We had a television and music-centre, two easy chairs and on both port and starboard side at the after end, a six and a half foot long settee berth. This provided the opportunity for us to sleep a total of six people comfortably. We carried out all the upholstery work ourselves and must confess to being very proud of our efforts

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The steering platform was up a small companionway ladder from the saloon, to port of which lay the electrical systems control panels, whilst to starboard  was a wet weather clothes locker. Under the steering platform was the engine.She was fitted with a Perkins Prima diesel engine Pete had taken from a Maestro car, that had only done 25,000 miles. Pete marinized it himself and in the whole of the three years that we owned the boat, it simply purred along, never letting us down once.

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We travelled many hundreds of miles in “Free Spirit” through nearly a thousand  locks.  We covered 95% of the navigable British Waterways Canal System, the only canal we did not cover was the Huddersfield Canal, because at just over 60ft we were too long to fit in the locks.

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NB Free Spirit

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“FREE SPIRIT”

WHAT A HOME,

WHAT AN ADVENTURE,

WHAT A FANTASTIC EXPERIENCE

Pete and Margaret

Pete and Margaret take a trip to Spinalongha