23th August 2010 – During the visit of Bourges, I found a small shipyard with one dry dock. Around the yard there are several houseboats and barges that will be converted. A few of them were already shortened as well. Besides a tjalk, there was one specific spits barge that got my attention. If anyone has more information, please contact me.
21st August 2010 – The first day of 7 days in the French Burgoyne region. The area has three rivers that can be used for cruising: Canal Nivernais, Yvonne and the canal Lateral de la Loire.
3rd August 2010 – We went back to Antwerp to visit the spits barge a second time and to finish the deal. A new barge will find it’s way to become a houseboat in Bruges.
1st August 2010 – Once in a while; people ask me to join them to visit a barge they are interested in. Today I went to Antwerp to visit a spits barge. I was amazed to find such a traditional looking barge with so many original fittings. Whether the sale will go through, I don’t know but at least I had a great day and have seen some nice barges!
26th July 2010 – Since I have my ship I met many wonderful people. There is an English woman waiting for her barge to be brought over to London. Next to her, another English couple is moored with their barge. We all went for a drink!
18th, 19th and 20th July 2010 – After two months of intensive work, I’m going to Amsterdam (to see some boats 😉 ).
24th June 2010 – Another lovely evening, one more for me to rest. The owner of the barge I visited on Tuesday came by to visit the two boats, the Watergeus and the Frantsis. It is always nice to exchange ideas and have a chat on boats and living afloat.
22nd June 2010 – No, I didn’t buy another boat, instead I visited one in the yacht harbour in Bruges near the railway station.
12th June 2010 – I made a little cruise from Bruges to Ghent on a barge with my girlfriend. A time to relax. Sun was shining, but I had to wear glasses since it hurt to much.
My neighbour added a second coat and the last plate was welded on the Frantsis.
21st May 2010 – The Ontario is back next to me, alongside the Watergeus. For a day I had a view on the water. I’ll be glad when she is gone, not for the view but for my ropes and steel cables.
20th May 2010 – Some stuff has to be taken out tomorrow, so we moved the Ontario by hand to a mooring with land side a bit further on the canal. It was not a real mooring, but we had to improvise something.
12th May 2010 – A few weeks ago, a friend, one of my neighbours, came to talk about buying a boat together. We talked for hours, had a beer and then all went home. A few days later we started mailing boats we found on the Internet.
Today we went to have a look at a barge, a small Beurtschip. The same shape of hull as the Watergeus but with a small wheelhouse, no accommodation and most likely, she was used as a tanker.
The ship was on land at a yard in Zwartsluis. Zwartsluis has many yards, on one of them the Watergeus was lengthened in 1962. After driving for over 4 hours, we arrived. At first sight, she was looking good. There was not much known on the barge. The engine was there, but condition unknown. The hold was filled with a lot of stuff and there were as a lot of work on the hull. At the other side, the size was good and the bottom of the ship as well. She had been doubled.
Since we were now having a lot of questions, we made no decisions and returned to Bruges. We shall see the next coming days what the future brings…
9th May 2010 – The next day looking at a project is a lot different then the first moment. Now you realise how much energy it will cost, certainly when you wake up with pain in the back, neck and head.
I decided to do it a bit more relaxed today. I made a little mast for the bow of the ship. A boat with no mast and flags doesn’t look right. My parents came to eat so I only worked in the afternoon, starting with making a small inventory of what needs doing in Bruges:
The more I looked around, the more I got fascinated they way the Ontario was built, the details in the den and boeisel. So I started chipping rust till it came dark.
Also some more water was pumped out. She is no longer having a list, but is now taking my light in the living room.
8th May 2010 – The first day of three intensive weeks: making the Ontario ready for sailing after ten years. We started at 8 and we ended at 9 O’clock in the evening. Continuously working, but the result was good to me. Lest start at the beginning.
Since the engine is not running we moved the ship by hand like in the old days. A small boat with a 4hp outboard tried helping. It wasn’t very easy and I had underestimated the strength you need to pull a ship. Jagen, as it is called in Dutch, was very common in the early days before barges had engines.
4th May 2010 – I have mentioned it before and it was an idea that had been playing in my head for the last couple of months: Saving the Ontario from the scrapyard. The Ontario is a 1924 built spits barge from the famous Belgian yard Jos Boel & Zn in Temse. This marvelous ship with a MAN 3 cylinder slow running engine, had been at the scrapyard before.
This vessel later returned to Bruges and had been vandalized ever since. Besides a fire, she was cut loose on several occasions and even made it into the local newspaper a few times…
The last couple of months, I had been in talk with several people to find out more about the history of the boat, yard visits, etc… Since the project would demand me to much time and I didn’t have any budget, A friend of mine bought the ship.
We will put it along the Watergeus for a short period, before it leaves for the Netherlands. At least, she will be saved from the scrapyard and this had been my intention from day one!
