Shipping a boat from overseas... (Shipping a wooden boat from Finland to Alaska)

If you see what can happen in a seaway You won't want to ship the boat - best leave it at that!! Same as you never eat in the restaurant AFTER you've checked out the kitchen!!

 

OK, got the measurements.

She is 743 centimeters long plus motor which totals to 816 cm

She is 258 cm wide

and 213 cm tall.

I was told she is too wide to go inside a container.

I'm hesitant to ship her tilted as I'm not sure what it would do to the integrity of the boat.

What do you suggest?

BTW, she's been on dry for few years so taking her through Siberia and motoring her through Bering sea is out.

 

I'd look strongly at shipment to the railhead at Vladivostok (if only because that's a place that's fascinated me since I was a child) and thence as cargo. Might be able to work deals as deck cargo on local freighter to Japan and then an oil tanker, as they go out from Alaska laden and return in ballast. Anyway, that route is surely shorter and thus cheaper than across the North Sea, trans-Atlantic, then a Panama Canal transit and up the entire (by definition) Pacific coast of Central and North America. Probably about even with paperwork either way, though.

 

He he, tilt the container to keep the boat upright

Nice looking piece of driftwood there. I see you polished the camera side of the hull for the picture. I was wondering what the other side of her looks like

If that was my boat, and I want to take her elsewhere, I'd custom built a trailer and tow her out of there... or wait for the next big flood to take it out.

How many trees did you chop and scharf to get her like that ?

He he... What's with the eagle's and stuff on the wind... this is a boat forum

Build the trailer, it may take a day or two but you can always use it over and over... or sell it again.
At least you have control over it

 

Joking aside the trailer is worth a look! then RO-RO port to port, driving in between!! Probably expensive but that's boats!

Alternatively sell her for mucho dinero and build another!! (or is there some other reason involved?)

 

That should qualify for trailer transport... not too wide or too high. Most places can issue a temporary license to transport an unlicensed trailer so it shouldn't be a problem.

A hired flat bed trailer could aso work... if you make supports for the hull to sit in.

 

I was thinking you could do a deal with a shipping company and get her on a flatrack in the hold with one side out about six inches. She could be at the edge next to the hull where they usually leave some space but you would be too high as well, even before you get her onto a frame and this could cause problems and cost as well.

Maybe the trailer on the RORO ship (there are a lot of these around even on ocean routes) is the way to go, but I would talk to shipping companies that go to where you want to get to and see what they can offer. They will all have carried boats before.

Someone will have a suitable service, it's just a case of finding them. It will probably have to be a few separate legs though, with a lot of planning and preparation. You may be best to work the route from Alaska backwards to Finland, do the difficult plan first.

 

A thought just occured to me. If you are worried about structural integrity why not build some temporary scaffold inside the boat. The way I would do it (I've never done this before:

Figure out what angle you will have to tilt her to to get her into a container.

While she's still upright, install temporary pillars and cross bracing out of 2x4 inside the hull, at an angle that would make the pillars vertical once the boat was tilted.

Build a cradle to hold her at that angle, narrow enough to fit the container.

Any distortion of the hull would be from the weight of the high side pushing down. With the bracing in place the boat is structured as if the high side was meant to be high.

That may solve your problem without a lot of extra fuss.



At least in my mind this would take the weight of the high side and transfer it through to the cradle. You would want to make sure crade sections and scaffold sections were at the same stations down the length of the boat.

 

I checked up the boat yesterday and had a pow wow whit Spin Drift.
She has desided to sell the boat. It doesn't fit in a container (not enough flare to fit in tilted) and other means cost fortunes..
Beautiful boat... sad they have to apart..

 

How sad Spin Drift, - - Such a beautiful boat... May your deity bless you and help you achieve your hearts desire....

 

Probably for the best, think how sad you'd be if after carting her half way around the world you open the box and all you find is matchwood! Surely better to leave a thing of beauty like that as just that!

 

Here's how you do it with other peoples money

 

You might try a company that flies to AK (anchorage) in C-130's on a regular basis. You can get that boat and all the rest of your stuff in a C-130.
Lyndon air Cargo. Based out of Lyndon Washington state.

 

Containerized shipping probably isn't going to work for a boat that size and there are other ways to do it. Most international boat movers have cranes or lifts used to load the boat and specialized equipment to keep it in place (the overland part is pretty straightforward.) Since you're shipping to Alaska, I would recommend finding a company that has offices there. A1AutoTransport is one such company, but there are many others and it's always a good idea to some price comparison before making a decision.

 

This.

Also, completely random comment, if you can make the trip with your boat you might make up a spiffy title around your boat's name, if possible, invent some hyped up drama out of the ordinary for cut scenes and commentary, and post a web show spoofing History Channel fare ... well, that's if they aren't interested in putting your journey on the air and help pay your costs (considering what they air they might be).