The Boat Tour

Pacific Wonder is a De Kleer Built Endurance 35. In this episode, we tour the boat stem to stern. If you've ever wonder what an Endurance 35 really looks like, this De Kleer build is a good one. An excerpt from the Nauticapedia explains it well. " Endurance 35s were sold as kit boats. The buyers could take anywhere from six months to five years to finish them, and the skill levels of those doing the work varied. Some did the work themselves, while others hired tradesmen to complete the job. Some of the boats boast beautifully crafted interiors, while others have a definite DIY look to them. But whatever the quality of the interior finishing, owners know their boats have an exceptionally solid hull of pure fibreglass. The De Kleers’ reputation for ‘overbuilding’ originated at an ad hoc boatyard located on a garbage dump in the vicinity of Triangle Road and No. 6 Road in Richmond. About two dozen boats in varying stages of construction were propped on supports there. As holes were drilled for through–hull fittings, the builders were amazed when they saw the thickness of the hulls built by the De Kleers. "My brother insisted in building like that," explains Arie. "He felt that because we didn’t know how well the boat would be finished, we had to build it strong to begin with. We didn’t want our boats sinking if they hit a rock." He is proud of the fact that when a number of boats were driven up on the beach in Cabo San Lucas some years ago during a hurricane, two of the four that were salvaged were boats that he had built. One of these boats, an Endurance 35, the Ayorama, was damaged when it was pushed off the beach with a bulldozer. However, the owner, Grant Nichols, was able to sail it north to Baja California where he could execute repairs. He then took it home to Comox, where it is reportedly still sailing". As traveling sailors in the PNW and Alaskan waters, we aboard Pacific Wonder are very happy to know that the robust FRP hull is of a quality and thickness to provide us with a maximum of confidence in our near constant encounters with deadhead logs and growler ice that is often unavoidable. Enjoy the tour!