Our Last Boat the Mimi

[Nellie Too]

I opened up todays Seattle Times Newspaper and spent sometime reading it this morning. After a while I started looking at the Weekend insert and much to my surprise on page three there was our old 38' Monk designed boat the MIMI on Vashon Island. I always regretted selling her but I was working such long hours I never had an opportunity to use or maintain her. Mimi was built in 1947 in north Seattle by Sunquist and was transported by flatbead truck to the ship canal for launch. Mimi had a long life of entertaining people and had been to Alaska several times and many more times to places like Desolation Sound, Campbell River and Princess Louisa Inlet. I hope you have the opportunity to see her in the paper. She is truly a classic as one of a kind Ed Monk design. I truly miss her.
Bob

 

[Nellie Too]

I forgot to mention a few things. Some time ago (I think about May) in a topic we were talking about going to Desolation Sound and all the caution that had to be used given the conditions that exist there. I brought up the topic about the torpedo test range that exists in the proximity of Nanimo, B.C. I also stated that we were hit by a test torpedo in that range on our way back from the North some time ago. The Mimi is the boat that survived the attack and took the strike in the keel (thank God). Mimi had a gross weight of 46,000lbs but the strike still lifted her up in the water by two feet. She was and I am sure, is still a good and solid boat. I contacted the person who took the picture and have asked him to send me a copy, when I get it I will put it in our photo album. I hope you enjoy these story as it brings back many good memories. Mimi was the boat we had before the Nellie and the Nellie Too.
Bob

 

[Sterellie]

There are indeed fond memories for boats gone past. Ones' largest boat is like your first real love. We never forget the happy times of great cruises and the pride of ownership. Best to forget the huge yard costs and expensive mistakes. This is my memory of the 52' steel Loland trawler that emptied my wallet for years. Strega is a delight and only uses my change purse to maintain.

 

[walldog]

I forgot to mention a few things. Some time ago (I think about May) in a topic we were talking about going to Desolation Sound and all the caution that had to be used given the conditions that exist there. I brought up the topic about the torpedo test range that exists in the proximity of Nanimo, B.C. I also stated that we were hit by a test torpedo in that range on our way back from the North some time ago. The Mimi is the boat that survived the attack and took the strike in the keel (thank God). Mimi had a gross weight of 46,000lbs but the strike still lifted her up in the water by two feet. She was and I am sure, is still a good and solid boat. I contacted the person who took the picture and have asked him to send me a copy, when I get it I will put it in our photo album. I hope you enjoy these story as it brings back many good memories. Mimi was the boat we had before the Nellie and the Nellie Too.
Bob

WOW!! I am sure that not many of us can say we survived a torpedo attack....at least not in our personal boats. Glad you survived with little or no damage. There has to be great story to go with the picture when you get it.

 

[Stella Maris]

Bob,
I also saw that photo. I spent several minutes looking at it. It was a beautiful photo with a great looking boat, in an incredible setting.

As for your stories, don't stop sharing. It is all of these "stories" that make this such an interesting group of people. In the past year we have met some very interesting and incredible people with great stories to tell. I will never forget your "torpedo" story!

 

[Nellie Too]

I have included two recent pictures of the Mimi in our photo album, one of which was that in the Seattle Times a few days ago. She truly was an incredible boat that put up with us new comers to boats other than runabouts and row boats. I was raised on the water and spent much of my youth taking our 10' row boat to Blake Island with an Elgin 4 hp outboard. I am fortunate to have had such a great youth on and near the water of Puget Sound. Memories of the Mimi include running out of fuel in Deception Pass with a few friends with me on one of our early excursions with our new boat. It was extremerly stormy that night and after remembering the fuel reserve tank and getting it restarted, we faced very high seas on the way to Anacortes managing not to get sea sick. I don't think those freinds ever joined me again for rides other than trips across Puget Sound and trips around the Seattle area on good weather days. Then there was the time that the mechanical steering system locked up on the way into the locks. I had a friend with me that was new to boating so he only watched as I jumped off the boat to tie it to the cleats going in. When I tried to tie it down the line pulled out of my hands and I watched helplessly as my friend and the boat started its exit into the Sound. Fortunately a fishing boat with a full crew aboard pulled along side the Mimi and attached lines and kept the worst from happening. They were kind enough to take us to a secure place where a few day later I installed a new hydraulic system. I hope you don't mind my jabbering, but the pictures brought back special memories which I wanted to share. These mistakes I only made once.
Bob

 

[Stella Maris]

Love it!!!! I liked the story you told at the "Halfway There Cruise" of crashing into the police boat when the locks opened on the downward side and there was no where to go because of all the boats blocking the waterway! The torpedo story is still number one though!

I am going to try my best to say this without insulting anyone....... I love to make friends with older folks (it is getting harder to do as each year passes by, as I am becoming one of those older folks) just to hear their stories! Life early on could be much simpler! Look at boats back then and now! I remember when we came to Bremerton for the first rendezvous, a fellow Tugnutter asked me how we found our way around without a chart plotter! I showed him the maps and charts! He was amazed that someone still used these! On Solitude we had no radar, chartplotter, auto helm....... The simpler life!

Keep entertaining the rest of us with your stories! (I am not calling you older...... just wiser!)