I have wanted a catamaran since I was at school, they were just becoming really popular as I was starting to run the Razorbill. We used to call into Gemini Workboats every now and then and dream about what we might buy if we won the lottery. Every now and then they might bring a Gemini around to Mersea for see trials and we would marvel at their size. As I said at the very start of ‘How I got into Chartering’ which has now turning into ‘Watery Reflections’, I don’t come from money so much as I would have loved to buy a big catamaran as my first boat I simply couldn’t afford it. Luckily, I have been able to work my way up over the years with lots of support from family, friends and a loyal customer base. Many of whom are now friends more than customers. I reached the point a few years ago where I could now afford to stretch myself and buy a catamaran. When considering investing such a huge amount of money into a business Stacey and I had many things to consider. Firstly, I had to be able to work it from Mersea. This may seem odd to those that haven’t been here but our boats are moored within the creeks that surround West Mersea. These are tidal and can be both narrow and shallow at low tide. Put a few moorings and some boats swinging around and suddenly a boat can become awkward to work. A catamaran also requires a wider, deeper channel than a traditional ‘v’ hull which naturally has its deepest part in the middle of the creek. Some catamarans are wider than others so would a narrower design suit Mersea better? This was soon put to rest as one of the commercial fishermen moored next to me invested in a Sutton catamaran which was as wide as any boat I might buy and he worked it from Mersea with no problems. My mooring was another point of consideration. I have purposely stuck to 10m/33ft boats so I don’t lose my mooring which is about the best one I could hope for. The budget would restrict what we may buy as with anything, although most 10m catamarans are of a similar price. Then there is fuel economy, this plays a big part in most charter boat purchases. Make the wrong choice and I could easily use twice as much fuel each year! Although I may have always had an eye on what I may buy and various running costs it still took us a couple of years pricing boats and comparing fuel consumption which is often hard to get reliable figures on. We had decided that a Blyth catamaran would best suit our needs and we knew several people who had already run successful businesses around here with Blyth’s, so that helped. The only problem was with the cod vanishing and restrictions on landing bass it didn’t seem worth the extra investment on a new boat. I didn’t want a second hand boat as we could potentially buy somebody else’s problems. Particularly two old engines, that could be two lots of grief! As it happens a second hand Blyth came up for sale that already had two new engines in just a year before hand. In addition to this, she had new hydraulics, wheelhouse and windows. So we had a good start. We viewed her and she needed a lot of work doing but it seemed like the best compromise in uncertain times. Over the coming weeks we bought her and even sailed her back from Weymouth to Mersea. Some journey of over 200 nautical miles, in January! Fortunately for us the weather played ball and despite a dusting of snow over the chalky cliffs of Kent, it was a pleasant journey back. This was the longest journey I had ever had on a Blyth by some margin. The only other time I had been on one was for a quick ride in the River when John Rawle first had the Daphne Carole. I was pleased with how she performed but a little daunted by the work ahead. We then spent over 9 months stripping the boat back to little more than an empty shell and re-building her how we wanted. It is a time I would rather forget which included many late nights and early mornings and vast amounts of fibreglass dust in between working two jobs. I had lots of help from too many people to mention for which I am grateful. Our Blyth was re-launched in time for the beginning of November last year. She has performed very well through all of the awful weather of an Essex winter and is every bit the boat I have worked towards over all of these years. We may not be allowed out to play at the moment but when we are we have many exciting adventures planned aboard her.
As I write we still have the Evolution for sale. She was made well in the first place and I have made a few changes to make her even better. Her straight forward set up and manoeuvrability made her a pleasure to use over the last 6-7years. I will be sad to see her go but I’m sure she will go on to serve somebody else just as well.
As for me, I am still as keen as ever to go fishing. This lockdown is the longest period I can remember when I haven’t held a rod. Let’s hope we can get fishing soon, even if we can’t run charters it would be nice to get out. Over the last couple of weeks my ramblings have skimmed the top of how I ended up chartering. They have covered a bit of my dad’s life and a bit of the first 32 years of mine. Hopefully there will be plenty more ramblings in another 32 years.
For more reports, information and available dates, as and when we are allowed to take you, please visit www.essexseafishing.co.uk, follow the essexseafishing page on facebook, our channel on YouTube or call me, Scott, on 07956411528.