Around that time, we were introduced to a 25 foot all fiberglass, direct drive, diesel cruiser referred to as an Albin 25. This is a well laid out Swedish build center cockpit produced in the 1970s with an aft cabin. We determined this could meet our future requirements for sustainable cruising along the coast. We quickly positioned ourselves into an arrangement to purchase one of these very boats. The basic boat itself was in good condition but needed a lot of work to be made comfortable and presentable. We were able to start using the boat right away and began sleeping on the boat instead of camping on shore. This type of boat is very economical running for roughly 2.5 hours on one US gallon of diesel at 6.5 knots. Additionally, this boat was small enough overall where cleaning and maintenance didn't require a significant time commitment either. Many innovations were done to improve the usability of this boat. This remained as our boating solution for about 11 years where we covered nearly 7000 nautical miles, had two children, and travelled to Desolation Sound nearly every summer. In the last few years of ownership, we put this boat on a trailer and were able to transport the boat overland quickly to other cruising areas such as Tofino/Clayoquot Sound.

As with any great things, conditions change and our growing family was finding the boat challenging for space and provisioning. At this time and for the past few years we had been thinking what, if any boat would be great for our next boat. We liked the trawler style boats but all the boats we liked were prohibitively priced for our budget and instead of choosing exactly what we might like, we decided to look at what configurations meet our needs, competitively priced, depreciated to its value price but is expected to still provide many years of service life going forward.

One day looking at a free boating publication from the fuel dock while at anchor, Kelly came across an article about the "Bayliner 3587" aft cabin model. The article went on to describe the accommodating tri-cabin design (well-appointed for a family) in a 35' boat, direct drive twin diesels and how these can be acquired at such a relatively good price with low hours. While entertaining to dream about at the time, it did give us a floor plan layout to compare to other boats for the years to come.

Eventually, on our annual summer trip to Desolation Sound we started to feel we were going to need a bigger boat. We were still enjoying ourselves, but we could tell minor frustrations could lead to a less enjoyable boating experience if we remained boating with the Albin 25. Through these past several years, we kept thinking back to that magazine article about the 3587. We also had been comparing the 3587 to other boats that would provide similar functionality over the past few years. The 3587 always seemed to come out ahead with all things considered for our needs. Through a bit of searching, we found there were three 3587's on the market on the west coast of Canada, two in Vancouver and one in Sidney (our home port).

We had now mentally committed to this effort and reality would tell where this might lead. Funny enough, when we dropped in to see the listing broker in Sidney, he chuckled and remarked the owners had just listed but were taking a two-week trip to Desolation Sound before the boat would be available for viewing. I had seen this boat one year previous and oddly enough I had talked to the owner on the dock at Refuge Cove in feeding my interest for information on this model. During that conversation I got a non-sales related inside scoop on this vessel. I was confident it would be the one to beat. This delay gave us time to book appointments to view the other two vessels in Vancouver; one of which was in relatively poor condition and the other was okay but nothing exceptional overall.

Once the boat returned to Sidney, we were engaged to view it immediately and we negotiated the terms. A deal was reached, inspections and water test discovered nothing concerning so we proceeded to purchase.

This was a turn-key boat, which is what we wanted but even with a boat like this, it takes a few years to customize it to suit your boating needs. We are "anchor first" boaters but this boat had been arranged to be more of a "dock queen". At least it had a propane galley already but did not have diesel heat or an inverter and it had a small battery bank.

The moment we had arrived home from our Desolation Sound trip; in the quest for a larger boat I had done a full clean-up on the Albin 25 and immediately posted it on Craigslist and other online resources. With whatever I own and take pride in for a while I tend to innovate and improve what is already there as much as possible and this Albin 25 was no exception. It was on the market for a few days and the second or third call for the Albin was a nice gentleman from Seattle who sounded quite serious and requested an appointment immediately. He came to Victoria a few days later and was quite pleased with what he saw and we wrote a deal.

It was a busy time with viewing 3587's, appointments, fulltime day jobs, cleaning and selling a boat, etc. The scheduling worked out so we would be closing the deal on the Bayliner 3587 on a Friday afternoon, I would drive into Victoria to pick up the future buyer of the Albin 25 in Victoria the same Friday night, we would water test the Albin at daybreak the next morning and if successful I would accompany the new buyer to Anacortes immediately and a friend in another boat would follow to run me back to Sidney. Meanwhile Kelly and the kids would be prepping stuff to go onto the 3587 for our first overnighter that evening. In a complete coincidence, the deal to sell the Albin was occurring 11 years to the day of when we bought it.

The plan started out well. The deal closed on the 3587 without issue. Picked up the buyer in Victoria who had ferried up from Seattle. Prepped the Albin for its water test and farewell voyage for the next morning. I'm not superstitious but this was working out too perfectly...

At the boat ramp 5am or so the next morning, the Albin would not start. 11 years of success and never a no-start. Just cranking over and over and over... How could this happen! A 15–20 minute resolution effort was attempted but by this point the confidence was lost. The perspective buyer was still interested but a purchase was not in the cards for that day. I drove him back to Victoria where he could return to Seattle boatless. It otherwise could have been absolutely perfect but in retrospect I was satisfied it happened this way. I was given the opportunity to make this situation right for the new buyer before this sale would be done. Although disappointing at the time, it's much better than what might have transpired if the engine failed shortly after the sale. Such a legacy of pride and ownership should not be tarnished in this way.

I rushed home from Victoria and loaded up the truck full of gear to take to the marina. We proceeded to transfer cart after cart of gear to our new-to-us 35-foot boat and immediately departed to meet up for a raft-up at a local anchorage for our first night aboard. It was great evening to relax and have a few drinks and reflect on the situation. This was the first moment of relaxation in many weeks except the realization that I had generally what no boater ever wants... ownership of two primary boats and one of which is broken.

Summer was coming to an end, but we still wanted to go out boating in the 3587. Additionally, there was a host of new innovative projects ready to launch on the 35 but yet any enjoyed focus on the 35 was immediately encountered with the remaining responsibilities of the Albin 25 and bringing our ownership of it to a close. Focus was diverted to significant engine repairs and once completed the engine ran far better than it had run in our entire 11 years of ownership.

After the repairs were made and the boat was water tested, another meeting was scheduled with the same buyer. This time when the boat was launched it started and ran with enough vigor for any seller to be honored to offer to the next owner/caretaker. The water test with the buyer was successful and at the time of this writing (2021), the same owner still has the boat today.

Our new to us 35 footer needed to be customized to the way we use a boat. Many projects ensued such as battery banks, hydronic heating, power inverter, solar power which all contributed toward a anchor-first well functioning recreational cruising vessel. Due to the 20+ years of age of this vessel (or any vessel), maintenance and repairs are critical. There is a balance required between installing new features and maintaining existing systems. Even with all the improvements listed above, significant repairs were required on the canvas, zippers, vinyl enclosure windows, plumbing, electrical, general engine maintenance, immediate unplanned repairs, etc. Once you become the caretaker of a vessel you have a responsibility to keep everything in operation. If your interest in usage begins to diminish a boat can quickly become something you are best to pass along to a new caretaker. I have chosen to perform all maintenance and repairs myself. This can be good and not so good. The good is you have the best control over costs and labor availability. The not so good is you have to find this time for the ongoing project list.

From our experience, we have found you have to be committed to what is required for the size of boat you have if you wish to take advantage and get the use out of it. Generally, boats are time consuming and can be expensive. Good decision making (starting with the choice of boat) can improve these costs and commitments to some degree. In addition to sharing our travels and adventures, we will be sharing the aspects of what it takes to own and operate a vessel such as ours. We will be communicating this mostly through YouTube and Instagram but nothing is absolute, we'll see where this all leads to. We encourage interaction between you and ourselves.