026-46 Spirit of Zopilote

NORTHERN MARINE LRC
Spirit of Zopilote
Taiwan’s
Early Trawlers
NEW SERIES
Heavy
Weather
Radar Upgrade
A Near
Drowning
ONE-OF-A-KIND
Northern
Marine 64 LRC
Spirit Of Zopilote
Is The First In A New Line
Of World-Cruising
Passagemakers.
by Bill Parlatore
NEIL RABINOWITZ
W
hen we discuss bluewater ocean
motorboats, we inevitably get
involved in the debate of big boat
versus small boat, custom versus production, and what sets one boat apart
from another. Throughout all of this, we still
maintain one common denominator for all of
the boats we tour in PMM. No matter what a
vessel’s unique qualities, it must be competently handled by the normal husband-and-wife
team. Two people, in all conditions.
Yeah, I know, some of you cruise with children, or go solo, but this two-person philosophy continues to reflect the overwhelming
majority of our worldwide boating niche.
In keeping with this team concept, we’ve
covered lots of trawlers that fit somewhere
between big and small, somewhere along the
price and size spectrum that is today’s market.
I’ve also said, in various forms of editorial
comment during the past couple of years, that
bigger boats, custom boats, usually have an
advantage over the other yachts, if for no
other reason than a bigger budget. Given the
right mix of personalities, designers and
builders can try new things, go places unrestrained by bean-counters—really push into
new territory.
This is immensely appealing to me, even if it
doesn’t send me off to megayacht shows. You
see, I feel most of these projects simply get out
of hand, and result in vastly complex yachts that
strain many relationships to the breaking point.
It doesn’t always happen, of course, but it happens more frequently than most will admit.
In any case, I always keep an eye out for a
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Dominion Enterprises (888.487.2953)
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good upper-end passagemaker, a top-of-theline vessel that reflects all the pearls of wisdom
gained from experienced yacht ownership, and
built by people who move in the direction of
“as good as it gets.”
I think we have such a boat tour for you. And
let me first warn those of you who can’t seem
to move beyond size and price; for now put
aside your budgets and see the boat in its
entirety. There is much to learn from this
trawler, much that can be used in your own
next boat, no matter what size. She truly reflects
what the upper end of our niche is all about,
and built with a philosophy I embrace—keep it
simple, yes; dependable systems, yes; go-anywhere capability, absolutely; with accommodations that offer true comfort and elegant style.
I’ve spoken with others who happen to own
big/bigger/biggest yachts—some even with professional crews and six-figure maintenance bud-
gets—and they are still passionately interested in
this boat because it does everything so well.
The Spirit Lives On
We begin this tour with some introductions. If
you have been into powerboats for a long time,
you’ve probably heard of Bruce and Joan
Kessler, experienced passagemakers from
Southern California. In the past, Bruce ran a
large sportfisherman on the West Coast, and
Bruce and Joan later attained almost celebrity
status after they built Zopilote, a 70-foot Delta
trawler in which they had many adventures,
including a well-publicized circumnavigation.
Zopilote was well-known in yachting circles,
and many articles were published about her
exploits. (Personally, I must admit that during
those years, I was an intensely-focused singlehanded sailor, oblivious to such powerboat
achievements. But, as things come full circle, it’s
NEIL RABINOWITZ
no surprise that I would one day become
friends with Bruce and Joan, kindred spirits of
adventure—although eating warmed-over Dinty
Moore beef stew out of a can never held any
appeal to them!)
Zopilote was lost in 1994, after hitting a submerged rock pinnacle in Alaska. Time heals all
wounds, however, and the
Kesslers decided to build a
new vessel to replace her.
After their experiences
aboard the commercialgrade 70-footer with its tenfoot draft, Bruce and Joan
had definite visions of a
smaller package that would
still be as seaworthy and as
comfortable, but perhaps
more manageable when it
was just the two of them.
While the Kesslers were
exploring new designs,
they were approached by
Northern Marine, a new
boat builder based in
Anacortes, WA. The recently
formed management team
presented Bruce and Joan
with a Seaton-designed 58foot yacht that promised to
satisfy their demanding
requirements.
One of these Northern
Marine people was Bud
LeMieux,
whom
the
Kesslers knew from the
days of building Zopilote.
LeMieux spent 23 years at
the Delta yard, eventually
becoming production manager for the mechanical and
electrical divisions. Bud has
enormous experience developing reliable hydraulic,
electric, and mechanical
systems for commercial
fishing boats and megayachts, and he intended
to bring this expertise into the pleasure boat
market.
Another strong personality on the Northern
Marine team was Cliff Rome, a successfullyretired custom home builder from Southern
California. Rome spent seventeen years developing residential areas of Marina del Rey,
before taking time off to cruise with his family.
Like the Kesslers, Rome also owns a 70-foot
Delta-built trawler. (During a recent breakfast
meeting in Marina del Rey, Cliff and Bruce
recalled that the 70-foot vessels were the smallest Delta Marine would agree to build for them,
and the boat’s tonnage “…could be somewhat
intimidating” in certain conditions.)
Kessler and Rome had once talked about a
smaller vessel, only 58 feet LOA, that might
better fit the reality of short-handed cruising.
They knew from experience that certain areas
in the 70-footer were often just wasted space—
such as a large third stateroom that remained
unoccupied more than 80 percent of the time.
While in Europe, Rome had become intrigued
by the look and feel of England’s military patrol
boats. Thinking they would be truly unique
yachts if someone built them for pleasure use,
Cliff became a founder of Northern Marine for
the purpose of building semi-custom yachts.
The discussions between the Kesslers and
Northern Marine went well, and a deal was
eventually struck. Northern Marine began construction of their first boat.
Now, just three years later, Northern Marine
has successfully launched two boats, there are
five new ones under construction, and the company has orders for projects extending into the
next year. Even the patrol boat yacht is under
consideration. Talk about an express cruiser!
The company employs 100 people, with
LeMieux managing production of a line that
ranges from 66-ton Spirit of Zopilote sisterships
to larger trawler-style yachts.
“We are still evolving the product,” says Cliff
Rome. “At the present time, there are well over
100 changes to Bruce’s model since we built
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Port side deck
ends at engine
room air intake.
Spirit of Zopilote.” What started out as a 58footer grew slowly, inches at a time, so that
now the current version of this boat is 58 feet
on deck, and 62'7" overall. The model is known
as the Northern Marine 64 LRC.
But the basic design concept hasn’t changed.
Bud LeMieux explained. “We believe in these
boats. The trawler-type boat is the ideal yacht—
quiet, seaworthy, comfortable, with room for
fuel and stores, and a low noise level. It is a
very relaxing form of boating.”
And the slower speed is no detriment,
according to LeMieux. “At ten knots, you go by
lots of 15-knot boats, because they slow down
as they become uncomfortable, and the owners
realize how much fuel they are burning.”
It takes over 30,000 hours to build a semicustom trawler like Spirit of Zopilote, and the
price reflects every bit of it. With a base price of
just over $1.6 million, this is indeed a major
commitment, yet there is apparently no shortage
of potential buyers—most seem to have many
years of experience, often owning numerous
prior boats. The Northern Marine 64 LRC is considered “the last boat” by some of these people.
It is not a boat for dreamers, rather it may be
the ultimate boat for those who know what
they want, and have a plan.
We spent time aboard Spirit of Zopilote, and
toured the hulls under construction at the
Anacortes yard. Each is unique, a slightly different version of a basic theme.
Onboard Spirit of Zopilote
Walking down the dock at the Del Rey Yacht
Club, I was struck by the overall proportions of
the boat. It really doesn’t seem as big in profile
as the specifications suggest, or I expected.
Steve Seaton’s styling eye created a synergy
where the massive bow section flows quite well
into midships transition towards the stern. The
boat has a much stronger appearance from forward or stern quarter angles, but from the side,
the boat looks smuggly happy, almost a takeoff
of a long-ago childhood memory of a happy
little railroad engine or tugboat, one of those
classic stories of right versus might that always
had a happy ending.
Spirit of Zopilote’s dark green hull gives it a
rich appearance, and the wide expanse of hull
is broken only occasionally by opening ports in
the galley and forward staterooms. A large
breastplate protects the bow from the huge 225lb. Navy-type anchor.
Accenting the green hull is the caprail, which,
from any distance, appears to be varnished
teak. But it is really brown-painted fiberglass, a
concession to low maintenance. In fact, the
entire exterior is intended to be as maintenance-free as possible, needing just the occasional washdown with soap and water.
Two huge rubrails protect the sides of the
hull. One rubrail is thirty inches off the waterline, and is five inches thick, extending three
inches out from the hull. The second rubrail
runs about seventeen feet forward of the transom/swim platform, but down closer to the
water. These rubrails give heavy duty protection
to the hull, necessary when holding the massive
vessel against pilings.
Normal dockside entry is through two opening doors port and starboard (each is 25-inch
wide by 34-inch high), which open onto the aft
deck. The full-beam 30-inch long integral swim
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BILL PARLATORE
BILL PARLATORE
BILL PARLATORE
User-friendly
lazarette access.
Note the aquariumlike bait tank.
and easy access to the 2-1/2-inch
rudder post and Hynautic steering
equipment are in the aft end of the
compartment. The bottom of the
lazarette shows the curved top of the
tunnel built into the hull to allow
spinning a big wheel in a boat with
only a 6-1/2-foot draft.
One great idea I saw repeated
throughout Spirit of Zopilote was a
user-friendly
approach to all
onboard ladders
and stairways. As
you can see in the photo,
the ladder into the lazarette
spreads out almost 60
inches to travel down the
42-inch depth of the space.
Anyone can traverse these
four 13" by 15" steps up or
down without difficulty.
This is a wonderful alternative to stubby vertical ladders. The stair structure is
removable, so it doesn’t
really waste lazarette space.
The aft deck’s forward
Weather-proof
and functional
details on the aft
deck. Note barbeque
and swing-up helm
control.
NEIL RABINOWITZ
NEIL RABINOWITZ
platform is also a good way
to step aboard, complete
with a wide transom door.
Stainless steel grab rails
offer good security while
moving around on this
wide platform.
Stepping onto the eightfoot long aft deck, you can
tell Bruce and Joan like to
fish—a large bait tank is
built into the transom, and
there are numerous rod
holders located around the
aft and side decks. The overhead boat deck only
extends 44 inches back from the saloon house,
allowing room for handling fishing poles.
A deck hatch on the starboard side of the aft
deck is the top door to the 1.5-ton refrigerated
hold, large enough for freezing fish as well as
milk crates loaded with frozen provisions.
A large center deck hatch (31" wide by 67"
long) opens into the lazarette. The lazarette on
the Northern Marine 64 is about 42 inches deep
and over seven feet long. There are two battery
banks and chargers located on the forward end
of the lazarette, and the shorepower cord
receptacle for the Glendinning roll-up system
Uncluttered
foredeck except
for forward bait
tank. Note the
unusual cleats.
NEIL RABINOWITZ
BILL PARLATORE
section includes a ladder up to the boat deck, a
wide watertight door into the saloon, and a
fiberglass cabinet built into the side of the
house. This cabinet has three opening tops.
The first opens to reveal a doorway directly
into the engine room. Lift the top, swing open
the front panel, and you can literally walk down
into the rear of the engine room, safely and
quickly. This is a much better arrangement than
a little access hatch in the bulkhead between the
lazarette and the engine room, requiring you to
crawl on hands and knees, and which destroys
the watertight integrity of the two compartments.
Open the second hinged top, and voilá—a
220VAC barbecue for aft deck cooking. (Bruce
told me he has never found 110VAC units to get
hot enough to cook properly.) Ah yes, where
did I put my Hawaiian apron? A little teriyaki
mahi-mahi anyone?
The third top covers an aft control station,
complete with basic instrumentation and steering controls. Bruce finds this a handy place to
operate the boat while docking, and I see more
and more trawlers being equipped with aft control stations. I really like the fact that the instruments can be covered to stay out of the weather when not in use.
Port side
weather-tight
helm module is
outstanding place
to drive the boat
in good weather.
Bulwarks are 36 inches high and ring the aft
and side decks. Wide scuppers drain any water
that might slosh aboard.
Standing on the port deck, protected in the
space between the bulwark and cabin side, I
visualized rolling waves out on the open ocean,
big swells growling heavily from a passing
weather system, the ship steadily beating
onward, throwing the heavy swells aside in
sheets of spray.
The deck would feel solid, the ballast low in
the keel, the boat taking the seas on the shoulder. The steady beat of the diesel…I knew Spirit
of Zopilote would take care of her crew.
Going Forward
The side decks are 22" wide, and travel forward to about midships, where, on the port side,
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BILL PARLATORE
under the water’s surface.
With a total length of nine feet between the
bow and the built-in lockers and windlass that
sit in front of the pilothouse windows, the deck
is molded nonskid for traction, and the high
bulwarks provide a true sense of security.
Unusual twin-cleat hawse pipes ease dockline
handling, and it is a cinch to keep lines orderly. LeMieux told me they are a Northern Marine
exclusive—in 316 stainless steel.
The commercial anchor
windlass is hydraulicallydriven, and the reel keeps
the entire rode on deck and
organized. Bud LeMieux
developed hydraulic systems at Delta Marine, a
company that built heavy
duty commercial fishing
vessels for twenty years, so
suffice it to say that the
gear is overbuilt, heavy
duty and reliable. Spirit of
Zopilote’s main rode is 90
feet of 5/8" chain, followed
by 400 feet of 5/8" cable, attached to the 225-lb.
Navy-type anchor.
On one side of the anchor gear is a large
Lewmar 58 winch on a fiberglass pedestal.
Commercial
windlass and
foredeck storage
(above). Tiled
mini-foyer inside
pilothouse
(below).
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BILL PARLATORE
the deck ends at a large engine room air intake
cabinet with vented drain. The starboard side
has another easy-to-use ladder up to the boat
deck and pilothouse. (This ladder takes you up
7'4", and the base of the ladder is 51" away from
the bulkhead on which the top of the ladder is
attached. Work this out in your head, and you
can see how gently these steps travel—it is quite
possible to go up or down without holding on,
at least until the seas grow angry.)
The boat deck is where the dinghy and
liferaft are stored, and a low-profile Nautical
Structures electric crane takes care of tender
handling. Two large deck boxes swallow the
boat’s inventory of fishing gear: tackle, rods,
reels, and spools of line—the tools used to
catch and release gamefish.
Spirit of Zopilote is a serious fishing machine.
There is another helm control station at the rear
of the boat deck, allowing Bruce to run the boat
while his guests are occupied landing a marlin.
Not exactly necessary for the rest of us trawler
types, but real handy for gamefishing!
With an 18'6" beam amidships, the boat deck
is wide, and there isn’t much concern moving
around it, although there are still 36" high stanchions around the perimeter.
It is an easy couple of steps up to the flybridge, sized for comfortable living while under
way or at anchor. There is a triangular table
with plenty of seating for crew and guests. The
entire flybridge area is molded fiberglass, and
there isn’t a hint of teak trim anywhere. Given
the small amount of time the Kesslers actually
spend on the flybridge, the area was developed
so that it would be quite usable but otherwise
kept low maintenance.
Two weathertight modules sit port and starboard on the flybridge, opening to expose helm
controls. The port module has most of the
instrumentation of the pilothouse helm, while
the starboard module is only set up with autopilot remote, rudder angle gauge, horn, and
bow/stern thruster controls for docking and
maneuvering in tight quarters.
There is no wheel on the flybridge, but more
on that later…
An arch bridges the two dummy stacks, supporting the electronic, thermal imaging, and
communication antennas; radar; horns; and
lights. Bruce elected to run the wires and cables
outside the arch for accessibility, using wire ties
to keep things tidy.
It is but a few steps down on either side of
the boat deck to reach the pilothouse doors,
and then on to the foredeck.
The strong bow of the NM64 is eleven feet
off the water, raked forward enough so that
the anchor doesn’t hit the bulbous bow just
Saloon And Galley
There is only one entrance into the saloon
and the rest of the boat’s interior, aside from the
pilothouse doors, and that is the massive door
on the aft deck. It is a 32-inch wide by 73-inch
high watertight door, with dogs to seal it tight.
Stepping through this doorway, I noticed a
couple of things immediately about Spirit of
Zopilote’s interior. First, the entire
living space is covered in a rich green
carpet—easy on the eyes and feet—
and a refreshing change from teak
and holly soles. The floor underneath
is actually cored fiberglass, and the
carpeting adds additional sound
deadening.
I also noticed that inside each of
the boat’s three doorways is a 36" by
36" tiled area to protect the carpet
from wet and sandy feet, a mini-foyer
if you will.
Some comments about the building of Spirit of Zopilote are appropriate here. Being the first boat constructed by
Northern Marine to this design, both Bruce
and Joan were intimately involved with the
project from inception through commissioning
and sea trials.
The Kesslers divided responsibilities: Bruce
was responsible for systems and engineering,
while Joan was responsible for layout and
finish of the interior. Like any good team, howBILL PARLATORE
Bruce says it’s a big help when he has to adjust
docklines, which can be a real bear when there
is a stiff breeze. A nice touch, and the fact that
it is manual rather than electric or hydraulic is
an example of a simple solution to an occasional problem. The winch’s handle is stored in
one of the foredeck lockers, ready for immediate retrieval.
The anchor chain runs a foot or so above the
entire length of foredeck, and I was concerned
that it might be dangerous at night—tripping
over heavy chain wouldn’t be much fun. Bruce
relieved my concern, however, correctly pointing out that there isn’t much reason to spend
time on the foredeck of a large trawler at night.
Bookcase and
hanging locker
just inside saloon
door (above). A
casually elegant
saloon (below).
NEIL RABINOWITZ
NEIL RABINOWITZ
with a professional decorator is actually a very practical solution to developing a
proper and permanent interior, as he or she usually
knows all about the various
choices and options. This
can eliminate much of the
legwork of finding out
what works best—in lighting, fabric, furniture, or
material.
The result of the Kessler’s teamwork is both
stunning and functional.
The interior is elegant and bright. Despite the
tinted windows in the boat (all of the large fixed
windows are tinted, except those in the pilothouse), the amount of light in the interior is
considerable. No dark atmosphere on this boat!
Walls are covered in easy-to-clean beige vinyl
with an ultra-suede look and feel. All fixed windows in the saloon have blinds for privacy.
The interior finish is casually elegant, a combination of teak hardwood and veneer, beige
wall covering, and colorful accessories. It is a
comfortable, inviting, yet sophisticated interior.
Just inside the saloon door is a hanging
locker and cabinet for books, VHF and intercom communications, and one of the control
heads for the alarm system. (There are several
BILL PARLATORE
ever, each was very much involved with every
aspect of the boat’s construction. There’s no
way around it—all details are enormously
interwoven. Every inch is important on a boat,
and they become especially dear when you
move down in LOA.
As Joan explains, planning is the key. “We
worked on the plans for a long time. This kind
of effort truly requires planning and a good
base of experience. It’s like starting off with a
blank piece of paper, and you try to get it as
right as possible the first time. Every detail and
inch of space has an impact.
“Measure, re-measure, re-calculate. There’s
just no other way to get it right the first time.”
Joan developed a large working file of all of
the boat’s interior spaces, complete with measurements and drawings, that she took everywhere—along with her tape measure. If she
happened upon some accessory or furnishing
that looked interesting, she had all the measurements and facts right at hand. Guessing was
strictly verboten, and she regretted the few times
she pinch-hit information during the project.
This was even more important in the yard,
when workers would ask her questions. She
would repeat many, many times during the
building of their boat, “LOOK AT THE PLANS!”
Joan used an interior decorator to assist her,
Robin Truckess of Mucci/Truckess. Working
Beautiful galley
understates a
real-world layout.
Roll-out pantry
shelves have
positive latches
for security.
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Guest
accomodations
are amidships.
End table on right
detaches for bed
conversion.
of these control panels throughout the boat,
and all bilge, system, and security alarms are
wired into the master system.)
The port side of the saloon continues forward
with two easy chairs, followed by a built-in
desk for Bruce to use while in port. The desk
blends into what I thought was the dry stack—
but is actually another hanging locker, an entertainment center, and a pantry with numerous
shelves and lockers.
Across on the starboard side of the saloon is a
very comfy L-shaped couch. Rather than normal
furniture where you sink deep into the cushions
(and have difficulty getting out), Joan specified
cushion hardness that is much less spongy, and
actually more comfortable. (All of the boat’s furniture was designed to Joan’s specifications.)
The settee’s shape and position lend themselves to social situations where additional chairs
can be moved into the saloon to create a circular area for crew and guests to easily mingle.
Forward of the settee is a dining room table
with four armchairs. Joan knew she didn’t have
space for the breakfast counter she’d enjoyed
on Zopilote, so her solution was a comfortable
fixed table, always ready for use.
The table opens with an extension leaf to seat
six. I wish all builders would dedicate interior
space for proper eating—rather than forcing
guests to balance plates, napkins, and flatware
on their knees while seated on the edge of a
settee. Even on big expensive yachts this is very
often an afterthought!
The surfaces of this table, as well as the end
tables and coffee table, are exquisite olive-ash
burl wood. Very nice.
Forward of the saloon is the ship’s U-shaped
galley. It is open and wide, with 7'–7'6" granite
countertops, all with teak fiddles. Two stainless
steel 21" by 15" opening ports are located outboard in the center of the galley, adding light
and ventilation to the galley, and allowing the
cook to keep an eye out for dolphins while
chopping veggies for crudite.
Again, the Kessler’s planning is very evident
here. Much thought went into visualizing doors
that fully open, cabinets that positively latch
without having to think about it, and positioning every element in the galley for maximum
functionality.
Rather than relying on the boat designer’s
standard set of dimensions for human ergonom-
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Guest Stateroom
This cabin is an eight-foot square stateroom
located roughly amidships on the starboard
side of the hull. (The rear bulkhead of the
stateroom is the engine room’s forward bulkhead.) Two fixed ports in the side of the hull
add some natural light to this otherwise artificially-lit stateroom.
There is an island double berth in the center
of the cabin, with end tables flanking the wide
berth. Since Bruce and Joan often fish with
NEIL RABINOWITZ
ics and equipment, such as a 24-inch
wide space for standard dishwasher,
Joan used her tape measure when
actually buying the equipment,
before the space was commited,
making sure it worked out as
planned—and therefore avoiding the
loss of an inch or two in critical areas.
Inches tend to disappear incredibly
fast when building a boat.
The galley equipment aboard Spirit
of Zopilote is typical of a passagemaker of this size and capability. Two
deep sinks sit diagonally in one corner
of the counter. The galley appliances
include a 220VAC Jenn-Air stove/oven,
a Sharp microwave, Miele G605 SC
dishwasher, SubZero refrigeration
system, and Broan trash compactor.
The galley has numerous drawers,
bins, and lockers. The boat’s pantry
cupboards have deep shelves that roll
out for better access to contents, yet
all stay secure with elbow latches.
The overall size of the galley is
slightly smaller than otherwise possible, again part of Joan’s plan. Across
from the galley, on the port side of the
boat, are three carpeted stairways
leading to other living areas—two face
forward, one faces aft. Joan wanted to
make sure that there was good flow
throughout the interior, allowing
movement between areas without difficulty or lengthy passageways.
A small panel at one stairway opens
for access to a central vacuum system.
The single hose reaches all areas of
the interior, and is a convenient alternative to lugging around a full-size machine.
One of the forward stairways up leads to the
pilothouse, the other leads down into the
master stateroom. The aft-facing stairway curves
downward towards the centerline of the boat to
a landing that faces a watertight door into the
engine room, as well as other doors into a head
and adjoining guest stateroom.
friends, provision was made to accommodate
single guests. One of the end tables easily
unscrews from its mount, and the double bed
can be slid apart to become two single berths,
and the end table then reinstalled, between the
two beds. An ingenious way to handle different
guest cabin requirements.
The stateroom has its own entrance into the
head, which is large, complete with separate
stall shower. The stateroom has a hanging
locker, drawers, and more than adequate storage space for living aboard or handling additional crew for a transatlantic passage.
The single
Cummins diesel
sits front and
center. Access
is superb.
Engine Room
Back at the landing outside the guest stateroom is a special Freeman door, designed to be
watertight and provide outstanding sound insulation. There are dogs for sealing off this compartment, and there is even a window for
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checking into the engine space without having
to open the door—although we all know that
isn’t the proper way to check the engine room
during hourly inspections.
Headroom in the engine room headroom is
6'3" just inside the doorway, and, at a minimum, 5'9" back at the aft end of the compartment. The engine room is 11'6" wide between
the two 850-gallon fuel tanks that straddle the
sides of the hull.
With many years of offshore voyaging behind
him, Bruce had a lot of input in the layout of
the engine room—as did Bud LeMieux, who is
well-versed in creating engine rooms that work
full-time in commercial fishing boats.
Sitting centerline in the engine room, the 300
horsepower Cummins NT855-M diesel engine
commands center stage, and can be accessed
from all sides, including top and bottom. There
is a full 52 inches between the front of the
engine and the front bulkhead of the engine
room, with 21 inches of walking space on the
starboard side of the engine, and 18 inches on
the port side.
Spirit of Zopilote has three fuel tanks for a
total of 3,300 gallons of fuel—the latest specs of
the NM64LRC call for 3,445 gallons. All tanks
are fiberglass, and shaped to fit right against the
hull, taking advantage of all available space.
They are installed with foam between the tank
and the hull, and completely glassed to the hull
as a double skin. You don’t have any of the traditional condensation problems of truly integral
tanks, yet the tanks add to the vessel’s integrity.
The tanks have sight gauges located for easy
visual measurement, and each tube has a gate
valve top and bottom.
(The boat is full of examples of quality construction, although this quality is not always
obvious. For example, when Northern Marine
PHOTOS: BILL PARLATORE
Engine room
white board over
work bench
shows
maintenance
schedules.
builds the fiberglass water Above: a grand
tanks, they steam-clean the
inside of each tank for starboard-side
eight hours to cook out the view of the engine
styrene, so no taste or odor
is imparted to the water. room, looking aft.
And following ABS guide- Note fuel system
lines, all major bulkheads
maintain watertight integri- plumbing, workty—the one-piece compos- bench vise, and
ite bulkhead from the pilothouse down to the keel is access to aft deck.
two inches thick.)
Inboard of the starboard fuel tank is an 88"
long by 40" high by 25" wide stainless work
bench with sink/faucet, vise, swing-out bench
grinder, and tool storage above and below.
Bruce installed a large white board above the
bench to show all engine room maintenance
schedules.
Aft of the work bench is the fuel system rack,
with all manifolds and plumbing clearly marked
Reprinted with permission. Copyright 2008 © Dominion Enterprises (888.487.2953) www.passagemaker.com
Left: discharge
sea chest with
flow indicators.
Bruce, you need
to fix the one at
the top!
for trouble-free fuel management. LeMieux doesn’t
understand why boats are
built with restricted plumbing (aka skinny little hoses),
especially when it is necessary to load several thousand gallons of diesel. This
boat can take on fuel quickly without fuss, just like a
commercial boat, as all parts are large diameter,
commercially-grade plumbing. Bruce mounted a
couple of sailboat inclinometers nearby to help
him trim the boat by fuel transfer.
The boat’s fuel tanks are kept full, so Bruce
recently ordered a fuel management system to
keep the diesel clean and at peak condition. He
chose ESI’s Clean Fuel System, Model CFS-1000
FSE, with 110VAC transfer pump and full instrumentation.
Aft of the fuel rack are the refrigeration comReprinted with permission. Copyright 2008 ©
Dominion Enterprises (888.487.2953)
www.passagemaker.com
Sea chest
minimizes holes
in the boat.
Notice get home
hydraulic motor
next to sea chest.
Vertically-mounted
electric motor is one
of two matching
autopilot drive units.
pressors, as well as a sea chest for discharging
water. All discharge lines exit through this sea
chest, a large diameter pipe exiting below the
waterline. All discharge lines have small paddle
wheel flow meters (Dwyer Instruments,
Michigan City, Indiana) to show the actual flow
of liquid out each line. This is a simple visual
check—much better than staring at black hoses
and hoping all is well.
Next to the compressors is the ladder up to
the aft deck, which, when open, lets in lots of
natural light into the engine room, a rare experience in the engine rooms I’ve seen. Bruce normally keeps this door closed while running,
preferring to pressurize the engine room with a
trio of large-capacity squirrel fans controlled by
a master panel on the front bulkhead. The fans
bring fresh air into the engine room from the air
intake cabinet up on the port side deck.
On the other side of the 300 horsepower
Cummins from the work bench, on the port
side, are two matching 15 kW Onan generators.
Rather than a small 5–8 kW genset with a larger
20–25 kW genset, Bruce opted for identical 15
kW units.
Bruce’s explanation for two matching gensets
is simple. By having two of the same brand and
rating, he can cannibalize one genset to keep the
other going; he reduces the number of spare
parts and filters; he isn’t stressing a 15 kW genset
when his loads are light, and yet he can quickly
have 30 kW of electric power when he needs it.
Reprinted with permission. Copyright 2008 © Dominion Enterprises (888.487.2953) www.passagemaker.com
PHOTOS: BILL PARLATORE
Both gensets also drive
hydraulic pumps for powering (using one or both
gensets) the get home
drive,
windlass,
and
thrusters. A hydraulic pump
off the main engine also
runs the 30 horsepower
bow and stern thrusters.
Moving aft on the port
side of the 15-foot long
engine room, you come to
the two raw water strainers
for the gensets, and the
pumps for the bait well and
other pressure water needs.
All raw water comes into
the boat through a sea
chest. A huge curved pipe
fits into the bottom of the
hull, with a large positive-latching handle to
open/close the sea chest valve. Fed off this sea
chest are individual intake lines for raw water
pumps for engines, bait wells, refrigeration, and
air conditioning. Each intake has its own strainer, and the entire pipe can be closed and disassembled if necessary, with the boat in the water.
This arrangement localizes and minimizes the
through hulls in the boat. Using a sea chest also
drops the velocity of water coming into the
boat’s plumbing.
A large plate unbolts off the pipe for maintenance, and there is also a huge hinged door on
the outside of the hull. The inside of the sea
chest is painted with anti-fouling paint.
Also visible in the sea chest photograph is the
get home hydraulic motor which turns a chain
on the main shaft. A cover protects everything
and everyone from the spinning shaft and
sprockets.
The rear bulkhead of the engine room is a
watertight bulkhead separating the engine room
from the lazarette. No loose wires or pipes run
through this bulkhead without waterproof sealing, and even the stairs up to the aft deck don’t
compromise the integrity of this bulkhead.
The forward engine room bulkhead carries
the electrical panel, equipment for the Naiad fin
stabilizers, and a 25-gallon lube oil tank.
Bruce uses Racor Tattle Tale oil filters on the
main engine and gensets. These flat filters
replace spin-on paper filter cartridges, and are
often recommended for hydraulic system, gearbox, even cooling system applications. Each
filter employs a very-fine mesh stainless steel
screen instead of the traditional paper element.
When a built-in sensor determines the screen is
getting clogged, it’s a simple matter to take the
two halves of the pancake filter apart, and wash
the screen in solvent. These filters aren’t new—
they’ve been on racing motorcycles and cars for
years—and allow you to better see what particulate matter is being filtered out of the oil. The
reusable nature of the unit also effectively deals
with the disposal issue.
In addition, Bruce installed Pre-Luber systems on the Cummins and both gensets. In
case you aren’t familiar with the Pre-Luber
system, it circulates oil through an engine
before it is actually started, and again immediately after the engine is shut down. Using an
electric pump plumbed into the lubrication
system, the Pre-Luber reduces wear on a cold
engine (in which the oil has settled in the
bottom of the oil pan), and carries heat away
from localized hot spots after a running engine
is shut down.
This additional lubrication can be especially
beneficial in a turbocharged diesel, since a suddenly-stopped sizzling turbo fan can literally
cook trapped oil in the turbo bearings, leaving
a kind of varnish on the bearing surfaces. This
increases friction, and leads to turbo failure.
Running a Pre-Luber for several minutes after
shutting down a hot turbodiesel keeps oil passing through the engine, lubricating and cooling
such trouble areas.
Speaking of varnish, Bruce had all bronze fittings coated with two-part polyurethane varnish. This coating keeps the bronze fittings from
turning green from corrosion, and looks decidedly beautiful. An engine room should be clean
and spotless, but there’s no reason it can’t also
be stunning!
Everywhere there is evidence of keeping
things simple but well-monitored. There are
Murphy gauges located on the main engine.
These are very simple mechanical gauges com-
Details of
wet/dry exhaust
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PHOTOS: NEIL RABINOWITZ
Master head
(right).
Master stateroom
(below) is bright
and comfortable.
Notice the
pocket door into
sitting room.
monly used in industrial applications to measure liquid levels.
I noticed a Murphy gauge to check oil level,
and another to check the water level of the
cooling system. These are simple, mechanical
measurement tools, and provide positive visual
checking of important fluids instead of relying
on idiot lights and hope-they-work sensors.
I expected to find a conventional dry exhaust
on this boat, but was surprised to learn that her
exhaust system is a combination dry into wet
exhaust, a system that Bud has found to be the
best of both worlds.
Asking LeMieux for an explanation, it seems
he has two problems with conventional dry
exhaust systems—they tend to take up lots of
space, and they can often leave dirty decks. A
conventional wet exhaust, on the other hand,
brings potentially-dirty raw water into the cooling system of an engine, leading to other problems. So the NM64LRC has a mixed exhaust.
The engine’s cooling circuit runs through a
keel cooler. Keel cooling is a totally-enclosed
cooling system offering the maximum in trouble-free operation.
As for the hot exhaust gases, they flow into a
blanketed dry exhaust system, complete with
muffler, that runs along the top of the engine
over to the rear of the engine room on the port
side. It is a conventional dry exhaust system up
to that point.
A large-capacity Jabsco raw water pump,
operating off a belt on the front of the
Cummins, carries raw water from the sea chest
through a huge Groco strainer into a stainless
steel pipe that also runs along the top of the
engine, following the dry exhaust system over
to the side of the hull.
There, the raw water is mixed with the hot
exhaust gases, and both exit the boat through a
stacked muffler. At idle (or slow speed) the
now-quiet exhaust gases exit through a small
drain at the waterline, while the heavier,
warmed raw water drops out through a largerdiameter exhaust pipe that exits
underwater. The gases don’t exit with
the raw water because of the back
pressure of the sea on the exhaust
pipe. (This underwater opening is
covered on the outside of the hull by
a rearward-facing clamshell that looks
like a 20-inch fiberglass bell that was
cut in half and glassed onto the hull
over the hole.)
As hull and engine speed increase,
the pressure of the exhaust gases
increases dramatically, as does the
flow of heated raw water. Coinciding
with these increases is the reduced
backpressure, as the clamshell pulls
through the water, actually drawing
the exhaust gases down—so both gas
and water exhaust underwater.
At cruising speed, there is no evidence of the exhaust whatsoever.
Really pretty slick.
This is a great engine room. And
with the Murphy gauges and paddle
flow meters, it is set up for simple
and positive visual inspection of all
major systems, without adding much
complexity.
Forward Stateroom(s)
If you take the downward stairs
that face forward from the galley area,
you travel down to the master stateroom. Immediately before you step
into the master cabin, there is a compact laundry room with washer and
dryer to take care of laundry that
inevitably builds up on every passage.
The master stateroom measures 9 feet long by
11 feet wide, with another 6 feet of cabin added
forward in a sitting/reading area. Headroom is
6'8" in the main section of the master, and there
are numerous big drawers and hanging lockers.
Five large (8" by 18") opening ports are located in the master stateroom, and, this far forward
in the hull, means they are angled out slightly,
and might be left open at anchor during a light
rain. The amount of natural light these ports
bring into this cabin is considerable, and with
the slightly peach-colored wall covering to
reflect light, I frankly don’t recall being in a midships stateroom that was as pleasantly bright
and open. During daylight hours, with all artificial lights switched off, you might be fooled
into thinking you were in a big aft cabin.
The master head is spacious with separate
shower, and decorated to complement the
casual elegance of the rest of the interior.
Now for another neat feature—do you
remember Bruce and Cliff talking about the
wasted space of a dedicated third stateroom?
Well, there is a sliding pocket door between the
sitting room and the actual sleeping area of the
master cabin. When you close this door, you
create a third stateroom, complete with two
bunk beds, a desk, access topsides (with its
own stairway up to the pilothouse), and there is
even a full head with stall shower in the bow.
Everyone involved gets kudos for this layout.
It is a terrific solution to hardly-ever-neededbut-nice-to-have accommodations on a cruising
boat. Most of the time, the space is a usable
extension of the master stateroom. But when
friends come aboard for that long-promised
Galapagos adventure, they can live in a firstclass cabin, without having to resort to settee
conversions and pilothouse accommodations—
or worse, building a bigger boat than you need
otherwise. Very clever.
Pilothouse
From the tiled carpet protection at the pilothouse doors, to the complete computer workstation behind the helm, to the careful layout of
the helm controls, this pilothouse also shows a
lot of thinking and planning. The large windows are fixed (so they’re less likely to leak),
and forward and side visibility is superb. Side
windows are 33 inches high, the forward sloping windows are 36 inches high—the center
three windows have windshield wipers.
There is a wide helm seat built on top of a
teak cabinet, which stores pilothouse essentials—flares, binoculars, navigation instruments,
and books. The 34-inch wide seat is room
enough for two people to sit, and still works
Reprinted with permission. Copyright 2008 © Dominion Enterprises (888.487.2953) www.passagemaker.com
PHOTOS: NEIL RABINOWITZ
well for a solo boat driver. It even has a slideout foot rest.
To the right of the helm is a large chart table
with chart drawer under. Two doors under the
chart table open into a huge storage cavern,
which also allows a normal person to get in
behind the helm console, where all the wiring,
Pilothouse
reflects the way
Bruce and Joan
operate the
vessel.
Aft end of
pilothouse (left),
with watch berth,
settee, and
computer station.
plumbing, and steering
equipment is located. Make
things easy to get at, and
they will be maintained…
The instrument console is
raised for better positioning
of controls and electronics.
Obviously, Northern Marine
works with individual
owners to determine specific brand and product
requirements.
On Spirit of Zopilote,
there is a Panasonic video
monitor (switchable between the computer navigation system, video cameras, and thermal
imaging output from the Texas Instruments
NightSight); a Northstar 951x GPS; Furuno 1941
Mk2 radar display; controls and joysticks for the
American Bow Thruster bow/stern thrusters;
Mathers MicroCommander engine controls;
Datamarine Link’s wind-depth-compass gauges;
Reprinted with permission. Copyright 2008 © Dominion Enterprises (888.487.2953) www.passagemaker.com
M/V Spirit of Zopilote
Sea Trial Results
300
250
200
BHP
a Furuno FCV-582 Color Video Sounder with forward and downward-mounted transducers; W-H
Model AP-4 autopilot; EMS Marcon alarm system;
Naiad Marine stabilizer controls; full electrical
state and charge meters; main engine and genset
gauges; a pyrometer and FloScan monitor; and a
KVH fluxgate compass.
There are two wheels at the helm, a smalldiameter wheel mounted above a larger wheel.
The large wheel is the traditional steering control of the boat’s hydraulic steering. The smaller wheel is a pilotwheel, which uses the autopilot to move the boat off its set course. Bruce
says he never uses the main steering wheel,
even when docking. It is there purely as a backup to the autopilot—he uses the pilotwheel
exclusively. (Which explains why there is no
wheel of any kind on the flybridge, just little
joysticks for the autopilot.)
Overhead are radios, switches for wipers and
lights, and several more gauges—including a
temperature gauge for the engine room (noticing rising temperatures in the engine room is a
clear indication that something is wrong).
Bruce located everything by function around
the helm, so that, as a right-handed person, he
could monitor and adjust the instruments he
most likely needs to touch—without having to
stretch or get out of the seat—unlike many
helm stations where instruments are pretty
much spread across the full width of the pilothouse. The layout of Spirit of Zopilote’s pilothouse follows the way Bruce and Joan actually
operate in the wheelhouse.
Bruce leaves the electronics on all the time.
In fact, all of the onboard systems, including
flourescent lighting in the engine room, are
always on, twenty four hours a day, whether
the Kesslers are on the boat or not. Bruce considers it best for the equipment—there are
many instances where on/off cycling (which
heat/cool electrical components) has caused
system failure. This also applies to computer
equipment. And while lightbulbs may not last
as long, they are relatively cheap. The last
thing Bruce wants to do in an engine room
emergency is to have to fumble for the light
switch!
Behind the helm is a wide watch berth
against the stern window, with a L-shaped
settee with table immediately in front of the
berth. (There is additional chart storage located
under and to the side of this settee.)
Also in the pilothouse is a computer workstation, complete with PC mini-tower, keyboard,
monitor, fax and weatherfax machines, and
both landline and cellular phone modems.
Under way this is Bruce’s office, while he tends
to use the saloon desk the rest of the time.
150
100
50
8
8.5
9
9.5
10
10.5
KNOTS
Under Way
We went for a spin in Spirit of Zopilote, and I
got a chance to see how well everything works
on Northern Marine’s 64 LRC. As the two of us
cast off her lines, Bruce used the two thrusters
to move the 70-ton vessel sideways away from
the dock, giving us sea room to move forward.
There were no shouted orders, or strained docklines springing us off a dock cleat—there is just
too much displacement for normal dockside
tricks. It was more like handling a ship.
I later witnessed the tremendous advantage
that the bow and stern thrusters added to the
helm’s ability to hold her stationary in the water,
as Bruce talked to friends on a nearby powerboat. Despite my initial inclination to label a
stern thruster just more stuff, I saw how this tool
really complemented the bow thruster, offering
a level of control just not available otherwise.
The full displacement, long keel, and huge
rudder also play an important part in helm control, and the Northern Marine 64 moved like a
small ship while maneuvering out of the crowded marina. (And the waves of approval from
everyone else on the water, sailboaters and
crusty fishermen alike, were testimony to Steve
Seaton’s styling eye.)
Walking around the boat while we ran at
1,450 rpms (at a speed of 9.1 knots), without
heat or air conditioning equipment running, I
measured the following sound levels: Out on
the aft deck, 73 dB; standing in the saloon, 66
dB; in the galley, 66 dB; master stateroom, 62
dB; guest stateroom, 68 dB; pilothouse, 61 dB;
and in the engine room itself, 101 dB.
Reprinted with permission. Copyright 2008 © Dominion Enterprises (888.487.2953) www.passagemaker.com
It is always fun to go on a long passage in a
real offshore motorboat, and it would have
been fun to turn left and head to Hawaii, even
though we weren’t well stocked with Dinty
Moore, as far as I knew.
NEIL RABINOWITZ
Summary
For more information:
Northern Marine, Inc.
3116 “V” Place
Anacortes, WA 98221 USA
360-299-8400 Fax 360-299-2600
Northern Marine 64
Long Range CruiserSpecifications
Length Overall
Length Waterline
Beam
Beam (Waterline)
Draft
Displacement (Loaded)
Bridge Clearance: (To flybridge)
(To mast)
62' 6"
57' 3"
18' 6"
18' 2"
6' 6"
165,000 lbs. (73.7 Long Tons)
18' 5"
32' 8"
Fuel Capacity
Water Capacity (Std)
Range
3,445 U.S. gallons
500 U.S. gallons
5,000 [email protected] knots
Block Coefficient
Prismatic Coefficient
Speed/Length Ratio
Length/ Beam Ratio
Beam/Draft Ratio
0.39
0.61
1.185@9 knots
3.38
2.79
Needless to say, I thoroughly enjoyed visiting
aboard Bruce and Joan Kessler’s new passagemaker. Spirit of Zopilote is the culmination of
many years of experience, years of being out
there doing it. She is both a semi-custom production boat as well as a one-of-a-kind.
Northern Marine has taken commercial standards and successfully applied them to pleasure
boats—in a proven, efficient Seaton design that
is stable and seaworthy.
Whether we’re talking about 30,000–40,000
hours to build each boat, exceeding ABS standards in most every way (including gray and
blackwater systems), using heavy-wall copper
pipe for all freshwater systems, or installing
commercial gear wherever appropriate—the
people at Northern Marine want peace of mind
when a new boat leaves their yard.
Walking with me around the production floor,
Bud made his feelings clear. “We don’t cut corners. Period.”
Northern Marine’s future plans include
expanding their facilities to handle new construction and a developing service business.
They hope to build six boats a year, with an
occassional 80–90-footer as well. Seems they
have a plan, and they are staying focused.
As for Bruce and Joan, they aren’t exactly
packed and ready to leave on their next circumnavigation, but Spirit of Zopilote isn’t going
to stay at the dock long. They will no doubt
head up to Alaska again, and perhaps cross
through the Panama Canal on their way up the
U.S. East Coast. Back to places they may have
been years ago in Zopilote, but now can
explore more leisurely.
Wherever and whenever these adventures
happen, the Kesslers are comfortable knowing
that Northern Marine has made their new boat
as good as she can be—as complete, as functional, as safe, and as reliable as possible.
Maybe more so than the original Zopilote.
So when you see a big, green-hulled trawler
pass by in the next few years, check out the
name on the transom. If she is the Spirit of
Zopilote, be assured you are looking at one of
the very best thought-out husband-and-wife
bluewater voyaging yachts of her time. Bar none.
And her sisterships follow in those footsteps.
Cliff Rome nailed the sentiment perfectly. “The
Northern Marine 64 can do everything
well…except go fast.” ●
Reprinted from PassageMaker® Magazine courtesy of the publisher, Dominion Enterprises. Copyright 2008. All rights reserved.
www.passagemaker.com