Who are you?Ger Wouters, I live with my husband Henk on board our stately lady 'Marquise'.We have been living on the water for about 4 years now.Our 'permanent' berth is for now the Dukrahaven in Zaandam.We started in IJmuiden.What kind of boat do you live on?I live on, or rather in, a 1986 Contest 48 S, a bulbous sailboat.Chosen among other things because of sufficient space for the two of us, headroom, classic interior.My preference was initially for a motorboat, because I didn't understand much about sailing.Why did you move to live on a boat?I only came into contact with sailing after I met Henk.He has been sailing since his early childhood.When we went back to my birthplace Haarlem together, the plan arose for our own boat.We lived near a marina, but we never ended up there.My preference was initially for a motorboat, because I didn't understand much about sailing.Henk liked a completely different sailing area and so came the 'Mq van Carabas', a motor boat.After a long trip over the rivers through the Netherlands and the north of Belgium, during which we also sailed on larger waters, the turning point has come.I started dreaming of a long sailing trip and I was not the only one.Our plan to leave was born.We switched to sailing and entered the Colin Archer Memorial Race in 2008.That's how we discovered Scandinavia.We wondered why we wanted to head south straight away.The archipelago of Sweden, the fjords of Norway, the beauty of the Gulf of Bothnia….we don't want to skip it.Sailing all year round in these areas, we don't see ourselves doing it.Living on board and sailing for three months in the summer months, that seems fantastic to us.The house has gone up for sale and we have started preparing to live on board.What are the pros and cons for you?I especially see advantages, to start with the direct contact with the outside!I can't really explain that well.It has to do with a feeling of freedom, of peace, of space, although you usually have more square meters at your disposal in a house.The idea that you can move to another place if you feel like it, certainly plays a role.One drawback I experienced the first year: the laundry!Unlike Saskia, I find doing the laundry in the marinas a minor disaster.Few machines and a lot of offer.Long wait, always stress of 'Wow, if only my laundry is still in the machine' or 'As long as I just have a dryer' et cetera.A washer-dryer has come on board.Since then I decide for myself when I do my laundry and I make even more use of wind and sun to dry the laundry.We insulate the windows and shutters in winter with bubble plasticHow do you keep the boat warm?We have three types of stoves: a diesel stove (Dickinson) in the cabin that also heats the tip because the chimney pipe is half placed through the wall.a hot air heater (Eberspärcher) in which the power of the hot air mainly heats the aft cabin and the cabin.an electric heater if it is really cold and the aforementioned heaters offer just too little heat.We have also insulated all cabinets, but if it gets really cold, condensation still forms on the ship's hull.This is especially annoying with cupboards with clothes and towels.The solution for this: somewhere in November I will stick diapers on the back wall in such cupboards.Moisture-absorbing and also insulating.Sometime in the spring I'll take that off (if I think about it).In winter we insulate the windows and shutters with bubble wrap.At some point, a real solution will have to be found in the form of 'double glazing', realized with attachments made of hard plastic.Have you made any adjustments to the boat?We have not made any major changes.At first I thought I wanted to convert the hand shower to a 'real' shower.We are 4 years later and it no longer interests me.Showering is fine with a hand shower.Before we moved in on board, we insulated the cabinets and built in the diesel heater.Which boat occupant do you want to pass on the line to and why?I'd like to pass the line on to Richard Scheers.He was one of the first to respond to my italics about living on board.I'm curious about his reason for living aboard the Yagis years ago.Stories that stick with Dutch Sailing Heroes.Groundbreaking - Extraordinary - Personal www.zeilhelden.nlShare to Facebook Share to Twitter Share to LinkedIn Share via emailShare to Facebook Share to Twitter Share to LinkedIn Share via emailShare to Facebook Share to Twitter Share to LinkedIn Share via emailShare to Facebook Share to Twitter Share to LinkedIn Share via emailShare to Facebook Share to Twitter Share to LinkedIn Share via email