Meeting Dædalus
Having taken the decision to become live-aboard residents on a narrowboat we now had to find one. We began a period of research devouring articles in Waterways World, reading online articles on broker’s websites, booking into and later attending the Crick Boat Show where we chatted to narrowboat owners about the pros & cons. We also disappeared down a rabbit-hole of seemingly endless vlogs on YouTube charting countless newbies’ experiences of an aquatic life. Vloggers share (in incredibly meticulous, intricate, detail) voluminous and occasionally useful information.
I made a spreadsheet listing as many brokers as I could find to track narrowboats we liked the look of. It became very confusing so Kate and I made a check list of MUST haves scoring and ranking the various elements we deemed essential. The list included:
large rectangular windows for maximum light
pump out toilet
cruiser stern
70’ long
reverse layout (if you know, you know)
fold-up double bed across the width of the boat
max price £85,000
We planned on visiting a few boats but this proved difficult - because of COVID 19 restrictions, many boatyards just wouldn’t allow us to view boats unless we could prove that we had cleared funds. We didn’t. We had to rely on viewing videos online. We managed to see one boat at Whilton Marina but it was much scruffier and less appealing than it had appeared in its online showcase.
On 4 July 2021 an update from ABNB brokers listed some new boats for sale and included was a fetching looking boat called Dædalus. She* really grabbed our attention despite the fact that she met none of the criteria listed above.
*Although named after an Ancient Greek bloke all boats are she… aren’t they? That is a thing, isn’t it?
I left her on the spreadsheet and found myself following the link to gaze apon her on an almost daily basis. I began to panic as it was evident from my tracking that boats were selling quickly and prices seemed to be rising. Had she sold? Was she still available? The owner had also listed the boat on Apollo Duck (a kind of Exchange & Mart for boats) and in that listing said that the boat was currently moored on The Thames near Oxford not far from our home in Chipping Norton.
On 5 August we could contain our excitement no further - we had to have a look over Dædalus. We rang ABNB. They said they’d arrange a visit. The current owners, continuous cruisers, were still living aboard and the broker had no idea where they were. They called back with an appointment time at Stoke Hammond - the other side of Milton Keynes.
We immediately drove the 50 miles there, looked over the boat, walked away and the next day made an offer at the full asking price (well over our maximum, of course.)
We fell for her hook line and sinker. She’s stunningly beautiful (although painted plainly in grey and black) she’s sleek and slender and extraordinarily well maintained. It was clear that the owners Simon & Pat - who’d worked alongside blacksmith Robert Kranenborg to build her and then fit her out themselves - took immense pride in her. Robert had started the boat as a live-aboard for himself but having to relocate his business to the South West - where there are few navigable waterways - decided to sell. The boat was moved to and completed near Simon & Pat’s home at Royal Naval Air Station, Lee-on-the-Solent (formerly HMS Daedalus.) The couple, who’d been living aboard a narrowboat for five years previously, designed the interior with their experiences in mind. They’d lived with those large rectangular windows we’d wanted. Pat explained, “people just gawp in at you through them all the time.” Whereas you can’t really see in 9” round portholes when walking past a boat. Additional light comes through Houdini Hatches (rooflights). Pump out toilets can be expensive to empty so they elected for cassette. The bed, a King-Size is fixed under the tug deck at the bow - so there’s no need to fold it away. Cruiser sterns are a “waste of space.” At 67’ the boat will be able to cruise a few more miles of the system than a 70’ and the open layout has been designed so that you feel that you’re living in a deceptively spacious (albeit floating) apartment.
But at the heart of Daedalus is her engine, a reconditioned fifty-six-year-old diesel Gardner 4L2 delivering 40 bhp at 800 rpm. I know nothing about engines but I know this - she sounds as sweet as a nut. When Simon started her up the £1 coin on its edge that he’d balanced atop the engine did not move - at all.
Perhaps we were lucky that Simon & Pat were still out on the waterways, perhaps it had put people off viewing her, perhaps others weren’t as keen on her distinctive look as we were, but we felt blessed that we were the first folk to view her. The couple were making their way to The Crick boatshow where ABNB had planned to show her and where I have no doubt she’d have been snatched up. We are pleased we met Dædalus when we did. It’s now just a waiting game!