Seine river cruise,Skippered cruising holiday on River Seine, France

'Tom Jones' is a 60 ft (18.3m) steel hulled motor cruiser

She is not one of your modern plastic 'gin palaces' - she exudes charm and traditional lines, she has been described as being a 'little ship'

She has an aft cabin, which will be your accommodation on your holiday cruise

'Tom Jones' is a 'Coded' vessel - Coded to the requirements of the UK Maritime and Coastguard Agency

		She has been certified for use as a commercial vessel and complies with the very strict conditions laid down by the UK Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) for Small Commercial Vessels. She is coded under the International Institute of Marine Surveying under MCA Category 2, up to 60 miles from a safe haven and the unique number is 06/07/362
With this 'coding' you can be sure that the boat is seaworthy and is equipped to meet stringent safety requirements and carries the requisite safety equipment. The boat is surveyed every 12 months to ensue that she maintains these requirements.		Her 'Coding' allows her to take 10 passengers up to 60 Nautical Miles from a safe haven, although we will normally only be taking a party of two on weekly cruises. We will be travelling along the 'Big Rivers' of Europe so these safety requirements far exceed what we could ever meet !!

The aft cabin is furnished in varnished teak and has a king size bed, two hanging wardrobes, occasional seating, small dressing table and stowage in various lockers. The lighting is switched at both the door and from the bed. There are also two reading lights on either side of the bed. The cabin has natural lighting with windows on each side and a hatch in the ceiling. The cabin measures 2.8m x 3.1m (not including the depth of the lockers)

Entry to the boat is via the wheelhouse which houses all the navigational equipment necessary for a vessel of this size - radar, depth sounder, GPS, Digital Selective Calling (DSC) VHF radio, autopilot and 2 magnetic compasses and of course the wheel.

The wheelhouse is the communal area of the boat and it has 'L' shaped seating, it is very much like the kitchen at home - the place that everyone gathers.

From here there are stairs leading aft - they go to the aft cabin - your cabin on this cruise, the heads (bathroom) and entrance to the engine room.

The heads has a shower cubicle, wash basin and sea toilet. There are small lockers for the storage of toilet items.

The hot water on the boat is provided by either an electric immersion heater or heated by the engines when in use - via a calorifier

The shower has full thermostatic control to ensure a pleasant water temperature.

Forward of the wheelhouse there are stairs again, leading to the galley. The galley is equipped with a fridge, microwave, electric cooker and cupboards and drawers containing food, crockery, cutlery and other essentials.

The boat is all-electric and is powered by two 24v battery banks, shore power when available or by the 4 Kvh generator in the engine room.

There is an inverter in the wheelhouse to enable the charging of mobile phones or supplying power to small electrical items

Going forward from the galley takes you to the main saloon, this is normally part of the living accommodation of the owners of 'Tom Jones' but can be used by you for eating if required.

There is fixed 'L' shaped seating in the saloon and a table together with a drinks cabinet and stowage in various lockers.

Forward again leads to the forepeak cabin - this is strictly the living accommodation of the owners.

A HISTORY OF THE BOAT

*'Tom Jones'* was built by J A Clay of Falmouth, Devon		She was built as a commercial vessel to take fish from Cornwall to France. Due to better road and ferry links this venture was abandoned and the owner refitted her as a private motor cruiser. At this time she was called 'Fiona M' - named after the daughter of the owner. We have spoken to Fiona, who was 13 at the time the boat was initially launched. She tells us that the boat cruised around the south coast of England, The Scilly Isles and over to France and along the River Seine. This picture was provided by Fiona and shows 'Tom Jones' when she was 'Fiona M'
She was acquired by the Devon Sea Fisheries and served as a Fisheries Protection Vessel, based at Brixham. Here she saw service around the the Devon and Cornwall coasts.		Originally the boat was fitted with twin Cummins engines. Devon Sea Fisheries took these out and fitted her with twin Gardner diesel engines in 1984. The engines are 6LYT's rated at 250hp each. When in service as a Fisheries Protection vessel the boat was renamed 'Spirit of Devon'.
		When the skipper of the boat died it was considered a fitting tribute to him to rename the boat after him - he was Tom Jones. With a history of that nature no one since has even considered changing the name again !
She was later bought by a Liverpool businessman who brought the boat to Liverpool. We bought the boat from him in 2002 and since then we have cruised her extensively in the Irish Sea		*'Tom Jones'* in Caernarfon

Some Technical Information

*'Tom Jones'* is registered on the UK Shipping Register (Part 1) Her official number is 338858 Her radio call sign is MKOH		Principal Dimensions Length Overall - 59.8ft (18.22m) Registered length - 55.ft (16.79m) Beam - 14.9 t (4.54m) Draft - 6.5ft (1.98m) Gross Tonnage - 37.03 (11.29) Registered Tonnage - 23.61 (7.2)
	Tank Capacity Fuel Oil - 1300 Imperial gallons (5910 Litres) Fresh Water - 100 Imperial gallons (455 litres)
Propulsion Two Gardner 6 LYT light duty commercial 250hp at 1600 rpm, 15.5 litres, in line six cylinder configuration - turbo aspirated, fitted new in September 1984 Twin disc marine gearboxes, MG 502, fitted new in September 1984 Propellers 31" x 30" pitch 0.6 B.A.R. on stainless steel shafts	port engine	Speed The vessel has a top speed of 12.7 knots The comfortable cruising speed on open water is 10 knots but this will need to be reduced to comply with speed limits on waterways
	Hull and Superstructure The hard chine steel hull is semi-displacement with a box section keel, radius transom fitted with boarding ladder. Two bilge keels / rolling chocks are fitted. The under water section is fitted with cathodic protection. The superstructure is made of steel
Electrical Installation Electrical supply is via two 24v alternators driven off the main engines Independent 230v electrical supply is provided by a 4 Kvh water cooled diesel generator sited in the engine room Shore power is accessed via a socket at the rear of the vessel. This is protected by a Galvanic Isolator All wiring is terminated and protected by Merlin Gerin circuit breakers of the appropriate capacity		Safety Equipment 2 x 6-man SOLAS B liferaft 2 liferings with buoyant line and drogue Man Overboard recovery sling and line 12 SOLAS approved lifejackets, with crutch strap, light and whistle Category C SOLAS First Aid kit 12 Thermal Protective Aids Safety lines (for crew use) Signalling / Search light Distress Flares conforming to MCA requirements DSC VHF radio Smoke alarms in all areas of the boat Fire Extinguishers in all areas of the boat

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