Vlog 358: Dimensionally Transcendental

It’s just 26 feet long and 7 feet wide but my ‘new’ (built 2001) Sea Otter narrowboat can sleep two adults and two children, has a full galley, plus shower and toilet. See how it’s all packed in, in this video!

The boat is designed with a small ‘cruiser’ stern at the back, that is to say, one which is open flat deckboards upon which you can stand while steering or place a small chair to sit once moored. Underneath the deckboards is a 21hp Yanmar (Barrus Shire) diesel engine, as well as the starter and leisure batteries, and an insulated cylinder for domestic hot water. This is heated either by the engine or (when plugged into a mains shoreline) a 1kW electric immersion heater.

The bow features a compact well deck which again can either be used for sitting (just about) or storing things such as a hose pipe for refilling the water tank, which is underneath the well deck floor. At the front of the well deck is an enclosed locker in which a 13kg propane gas cylinder sits; this is used for cooking and heating. Overhead, a cratch board provides a frame upon which a canvas cover can be hung to enclose the space. Doors split horizontally across the middle enable access into or from the boat.

Descending two small steps into the boat’s cabin you first encounter a small cupboard on the port side which has the gas heater at the bottom, with a battery charger, mains RCD and trip switches, and the two main electricity switches. There is also a box of 12V fuses. The woodwork on the starboard side houses the engine ignition and rev counter plus some warning lights.

Stepping further inside is a two-person dinette area to the left. There is a storage area underneath each seat and the table between them can be lowered such that when the cushions are rearranged, the dinette becomes a single bed. But … it hides a surprise: a wooden board is hidden to the side of the dinette and can be pulled out and rested on rails behind each seat, thus turning the dinette into a bunk bed, ideal for children.

Opposite the dinette is a large ‘cupboard’ which is in fact the toilet and shower area. The floor is in fact the shower tray, and the tap on the basin can pull out to become the shower head. There’s a plastic curtain on a rail to protect the woodwork from water spray. Wastewater is pumped out by an electric pump under the cupboards. The toilet is a Thetford cassette type which has a removable canister underneath thus it can be emptied by taking the canister to a suitable disposal point (known as “Elsan points”).

The galley comprises units situated on both sides of the companionway in the middle of the boat. The port side has a cupboard and fridge with worktop above; the starboard side has more cupboards and a very decent oven and grill, with four-burner hob above. There are also small shelves above. A sink with draining board completes the galley area. Above the galley is a hatch in the roof for extra light as well as ventilation.

Finally towards the front are two bench seats opposite each other. These form seating for the daytime and convert to a substantial bed for nighttime (re-using the side cushions to infill the centre, on a board which pulls backwards out of the front step). The aforementioned split ‘stable’ doors at the bow lead out to the well deck.

Sea Otter boats went into administration several times but finally ended production in around 2013 I believe. This boat dates from 2001.