On test | Happy Daze 57ft x 12ft TESTED Bluewater CURVES IN ALL Boats THE RIGHT PLACES Bluewater’s widebeam narrowboat aims to give the space for which these boats are renowned – but without the boxy edges. Does it succeed? BLUEWATER BOATS are a young particular, it eases approaches to FACT FILE The solid steel dodger encases company with a steadily growing shallow banks, where a craft deeper BOAT Happy Daze the whole of the stern, curving reputation for building barges at the edge may suffer. It also means round slightly inboard. This gives BUILDER at sensible prices. They aim to the draught for the main baseplate Bluewater Boats a full-width bench seat protected construct boats entirely in-house, can be a little deeper, giving valuable from the wind, with storage lockers ENGINE Vetus 65 from the base-plate up – so that extra headroom inside. under. This is, of course, very useful the new owners can have control The forward cockpit appears quite DIMENSIONS for seating the crew, but doesn’t get 57ft X 12ft over all aspects of the design and short because there is no fore-peak in the way of getting on and off the construction. As well as widebeam locker: the usable space is the same PRICE boat – as might be the case with narrowboats, they also produce as a longer conventional cockpit. extending the dodgers to meet the PRicE TESTED Dutch barges based on Branson and Instead, the gas bottles are stored £135,000 + VAT cabin side. Wolstenholme designs. in an aft locker, against the rear Happy Daze is a 57ft by 12ft wide- cabin bulkhead, which then keeps CONTACT Engine beam boat with a narrowboat-style the gas piping to a minimum. Back BLUEWATER Under the deck lives the Vetus hull. Although many widebeam river in the forward cockpit, a steel seat BOATS 65hp engine, which pushes the cruisers are 60ft long, the owners runs around the well, which is open 01926 811699, boat easily at canal speed at www.bluewater wanted to keep this boat on the underneath, to give storage space boats.co.uk around 1400rpm. This also gives Leeds & Liverpool Canal, so chose for coal and such like. There is easy enough reserve power for tidal the slightly shorter length to ensure access to the weedhatch for the bow- rivers. The engine is keel cooled, ease of passage through locks on thruster, and its associated battery with a dry exhaust. This should neighbouring canals.. and switches. be an appropriate decision for a The aft deck is noticeable for two boat that will spend most of its Exterior things: the lack of a tiller, and a large time on a fairly shallow canal, so The all-steel shell is well constructed dodger surrounding the cockpit. avoiding blocked mudboxes and with carefully ground-out welds, This boat is wheel steered, which strainers that can affect a raw and curves in places you might can certainly have advantages on a water-cooled exhaust. expect hard edges. Shallow stainless wide-beam craft. Some tillers can The cockpit surround does not roof vents give the same level of be difficult to handle, while wheel get in the way of the weedhatch, air throughput as conventional steering can be easier on the arms. and the exhaust is safely routed mushroom vents, but are much lower The hydraulically-powered wheel is out of the way – so the owners are profile and discrete. quite small, and set to the left of the unlikely to get burned when trying The shell is not completely flat- boat, along with the engine panel, to remove debris from down the bottomed, but has raised chine rocker switches for headlight and hatch. The large battery bank, with edges, which allows the boat to be horn, single lever control and bow the owners’ choice of 6V traction less brick-like in its handling. In thruster joystick. batteries, should easily be kept charged by the engine: however, an optional Vetus 6.5KVA diesel generator has been specified. This sits in its own sound-insulated cocoon and is operated by a simple switch near the galley. Master cabin Stepping down from the bow cockpit through the wide (and quite tall) forward doors, the master cabin is very light and spacious. The king-size bed juts out from the starboard cabin side, and has lots of Happydaze – space underneath, along with the a wide-beam waste tank. The forward door and boat with bulkhead is glazed, and usefully, the a narrowboat- top half of the bulkhead windows style hull. open for fresh air. › 66 | THE BARGE GUIDE Words & photos | Mark Langley Galley has an enlarged breakfast bar. Gas hob with eye level Large three-seater gas and oven. sofa in the saloon. THE BARGE GUIDE | 67 On test | Happy Daze 57ft x 12ft ‘A full-sized quadrant shower sits on the centreline, benefiting from the 6ft 8in headroom.’ The cabin sides are lined in solid Bathroom Bathroom has so the chimney is less likely to be hit oak tongue and groove planks set A door, with a frosted glass panel a full-sized by branches. It should also mean the diagonally – a nice change from in the upper section, leads to the quadrant stove can heat the boat better. To the horizontal or vertical boarding. The corridor outside the bathroom. shower. left of the fire is a attractive lit glass cabin roof is painted white, with the Here a wide set of side hatches give display unit. There are no fiddles stainless LED lights inset into this. more ventilation; however, with no or doors, so anything put on them As these LEDs use far less electricity steps provided, these would only be could be knocked off if an entry to a than halogen bulbs, the whole boat suitable for use as an exit in case of lock is misjudged! Further high and can be lit with very little power. Ten emergency. low level cupboards are against the halogen bulbs would eat away the The loo itself is fairly large, with starboard cabin side. stored power at around 16 amps an a domestic-sized quadrant shower The owners have added a large hour: compare that to about 3 amps on the centreline, benefiting from three-seater sofa to one side of the for the same brightness with LEDs. the 6ft 8in headroom found in the saloon, with a low TV cupboard Cupboards sit either side of the boat. The macerator toilet and vanity on the other – sufficiently modest front doors, and a large bank of unit are against the hull side, with additions that the space still wardrobes and a chest of drawers a heated towel rail running from feels open. The solid oak flooring are against the toilet bulkhead, all in the diesel fired central heating. throughout the boat should prove to solid oak. A large radiator is opposite There is storage under the sink be hard-wearing, and can be sanded the bed. Throughout the boat, all and on a shelf running behind the and refinished should damage occur. services are easy to get to, just in case loo. Otherwise, the bathroom is A large dog-box roof light (which something does go wrong. A useful pleasantly free from clutter. is shallow enough not to raise the shelf above the bed head gives a air draught of the boat too much) place for the morning cuppa, with the Saloon is double-glazed, as are the rest of portholes above having neat stoppers Against the forward bulkhead sits the boat’s windows. This, coupled instead of curtains – much better when a solid fuel stove in a slate-covered with the good sprayfoam insulation, the window is directly above a bed. hearth, on the centreline of the boat should keep the boat particularly 68 | THE BARGE GUIDE ABOVE: King- sized bed in the master cabin. LEFT: Oak finish to the cupboard doors in the galley. RIGHT, TOP TO BOTTOM: Washer/ dryer and dishwasher in the galley. Useful side hatch. Vetus 65hp engine. snug during winter, when the owners port side. Careful consideration has will be aboard full-time. been given to having a wide variety of drawers, shelves and racks within Galley the galley, to cope with the needs of The granite work surface curves residential boaters. into a enlarged breakfast bar on the The electric panel, including starboard side. Instead of a separate controls for the generator and dinette, the worktop is extended to 3000W inverter/charger, are mounted hang over both sides of the cupboard where they can easily be seen. The underneath. Four people can eat battery monitoring functions of the here, sitting on high chairs: a very DC control system should make it effective use of space, especially easy to keep on top of energy use as it doubles up as more galley – vital when the boat is moored with preparation space. The owners have no 230V shore supply at all, as the 4 WE LIKE… usefully fitted a two-drawer filing boat is currently in use. n Extended cabinet into the ‘dead’ space in the breakfast bar breakfast bar – a place to store all the Underway acts as a dining table. important ‘ship’s paperwork’! In our experience, Bluewater’s Against the aft bulkhead is the craft show good handling, with a n Rear dodger gas hob, with the oven and grill at positive response from the steering. creates a semi- enclosed aft eye level. The stainless units match The chines on the hull help with cockpitst. neatly with the oak finish to the the tracking of the boat, reducing n Good cupboard doors, with a full size the suction effects of the bank in access to washer/dryer, fridge and an optional shallow water.