Archipelago Yachts, the new British builder, won’t launch its first 47 Power Cat until the Southampton Boat Show in September, but it just announced that it’s starting a new charter business for the northern latitudes next spring.
Archipelago Charters will launch its maiden offshore voyage, called “Cruise North – 47 to 64” in April, when it’s still cold in northern Europe. The plan is to start in Southampton and then cruise to Germany, Denmark, Norway, Shetland, the Faroe Islands and Iceland, returning via the Western Isles and Ireland. The charter is scheduled to return to Southampton in early June. You don’t have to go for the entire trip; Archipelago is breaking up the cruise into several legs.
The Archipelago 47 is designed as an expedition yacht, with an all-aluminum hull, three staterooms, an open-plan salon, and a wheelhouse that can be closed off for cruising at night. It is the brainchild of Stephen Weatherley, a cyber-security specialist with a PhD in astrophysics who’s an experienced powerboat owner.
Weatherley wanted a fast power cat for extended cruising, something with a Land Rover-on-the-water vibe. He couldn’t find what he wanted, so he decided to build it himself. The boat is designed by Chartwell Marine, naval architects with experience in building power cats for the offshore windfarm market; it’s being built on the Isle of Wight.
The first boat is powered by two 420-hp Iveco diesels with straight shafts in half tunnels. Top speed: 25 knots. Two fuel tanks, one in each hull, carry 792 gallons; the company says that provides an ocean-crossing range at 8 knots.
There are three staterooms; the master, taking up the entire port hull, with two more in the starboard hull. The master has a double bed, a study with a desk, a washer and dryer and a large en suite head and shower. The other two cabins share a head. All the cabins have large panoramic windows.
The salon is fully heated and has a six-foot sofa. The galley is equipped for long cruises with an oven, microwave, fridge/freezer and even an nespresso machine. The helm comes with a full suite of Raymarine nav gear, including a 24-inch chartplotter screen, radar, and a thermal-imaging camera. Read more:
