17th December 2022 – Today I went to pickup a model of the Aquarel. It was custom made for our museum.
Category: MS Aquarel
1st May 2019 – I went to Lauwersoog in the Netherlands for a special reason. The Aquarel was at the yard by her new owners. She is being fully restored and repainted. A job I’ve never done. The owners managed last year to get the engine running. Now it was time to get a new survey.
I have a lot of respect for the current owners and what they have realised in such a short period.
15th September 2018 – I wasn’t expecting the engine to run or even to see the Aquarel (now Marie-Louise) moving when I called the owner. They left Amsterdam when I called and we arranged to meet them in Huizen.
I arrived a little earlier then expected, but managed to take some great shots from the top of the harbour entrance. There were no words to describe how I felt. We talked for some time with the owners, went on board and had a look in the engine room and hold.
14th August 2017 – While I was in Amsterdam getting some books for my Library aboard Tordino, I stopped in Zaandam to have a quick look on the Aquarel.
She was looking good, but a bit squeezed in between two other ships. I was a bit disappointed about the paintwork of the hull. For a sandblasted ship which was coated with epoxy, I found red paint coming through on several locations. Something must have gone wrong during this process.
Or just have a look at the complete gallery:
5th January 2017 – While sailing to Bruges with the Tordino, just passed Dordrecht, we noticed the Aquarel being towed. The new owner will sandblast the hull in Dordrecht before towing her to Zaandam.
19th December 2016 – A few more hours and all the repairs were finished. Only on one repair, I was standing inside the ship. A pipe for the gray water was to thin. It was a new pipe, but pipes should be at least 6mm.
17th December 2016 – Another day of work at the yard. They believe the job can be done in three days.
16th December 2016 – Doing the repairs. The yard did the welding while I was the lookout in case there would be fire. Since most of the ship was built with the idea of welding in the hull, there was no risk of having a fire. Therefore, I decided to watch the welders and learn…
13th December 2016 – The surveyor came from Holland and did a check on the hull. The tunnel of the shaft needed doubling plates and a few old pipes had to be sealed. Not bad for a 100 year old ship!
12th December 2016 – She was dry docked today. It took us a lot of effort to get her near the slipway. Once she was out of the water, the yard started cleaning the hull for the survey.
10th December 2016 – The Aquarel was pushed to the yard with a small tug. The engine is still not fixed and part of the deal to acquire the Tordino is a yard visit for the old lady. She is 100 years old! It took us six hours to get from Beernem to Zelzate.
5th November 2016 – The weather wasn’t right to do much. I painted the gangway and front deck. Sadly enough, it wasn’t a success, since it started raining once I was finished. It will certainly need a second coat. Most likely, next year!
1st November 2016 – Time to work again! I continued cleaning the deck with a high pressure machine. It took me all day to do both sides. A lot of paint is gone, but you notice she is looking cleaner.
30th October 2016 – I took my high pressure cleaning machine and started cleaning the decks of the Aquarel. After four hours, I was totally wet and cold. I was able to clean the deck and remove some loose paint.