"Your crazy," they said. "It's a terrible investment. You'll have to spend a fortune to make it habitable; you'll be lonely; it'll be freezing and miserable in the winter; it'll sink/float away/collapse/tip over. etc etc". All the usual stuff.
Her husband's solicitor, on the other hand, who was handling their divorce, was quite keen on the idea&mainly, it has to be said, because she didn't want half her ex-husband's house.
His advice to her ex (also a solicitor, Surrey division) was admirably direct: "She's obviously taken leave of her senses, get her to sign now before she returns to the real world." Looking out for your client's interest, they call it.
Fresh Start
Sally, however, never felt more sane. She first saw the boat on a sunny Summer's day and fell in love with it. " 'Walking on Sunshine' was in the charts at the time and as I drove away that's how I felt," she says. That was 12 years ago and she's never regretted the move.
"It was hard work. The boat was a real wreck when I started. The roof leaked, there were buckets everywhere, the floorboards had holes, the electricity was terrifying. Everything was wrong and needed to be ripped out. But part of the fun and enjoyment was doing it up.
I wanted somewhere a little different and didn't want to be burdened by a mortgage, so buying a house boat seemed like a good option. It's a kind of rebellion, I suppose. Over the bridge is civilisation. Maybe it's just a fantasy, an illusion of escape but it's a pleasant one and works for me. Up to this I'd always done what other people expected ".
Cutting Loose
Life on a boat, of course, is not without its ups and downs. "You have to be diligent with repairs and maintenance," says Sally "otherwise you can have problems. But some people tend to forget. One of the neighbours here, an actor in the grand manner, wasn't very practical and didn't check his ropes.
One Christmas day he came loose in a storm and floated away towards sea. He was waving helplessly from the deck as he drifted past. But he was rescued eventually. Another woke up to find his shoes floating past his bed in the middle of the night and had to man the pumps fairly quickly to save it."
Overall, however, the benefits outweigh the problems: "It's very calming to live beside water. Even when it's wild and stormy. The views are good and its nice to live down here. A nice way of life. The house boat community here have a very easy-going, live and let live attitude".
As for the local land lubbers, most are fine, although one or two "do look down their noses and regard us as a bunch of water gypsies. But I can live with that".
But in order to circumvent potential prejudice Sally has devised a crafty little ruse: two sets of headed note paper: "Not everyone will be impressed by a house boater so you have to be careful about telling some people. Prospective employers and so on" she says with a laugh.
Well Appointed
The house itself is an old Thames River boat and is, as estate agents say, well appointed. With two double bedroms, a good-sized kitchen/living room, a shower room and toilet it's also much bigger than you'd imagine.
Among its more interesting features is a 'secret' room which Sally now uses as a utility room but which a previous tenant used for some spare time horticultural activity. Obviously floating on water is not enough for some people.
After 12 years on board Sally has decided to move on. She paid £35,000 for the boat, spent £8,000 on repairs and has now sold it for £51,000.
"That includes the freehold for the mooring," she explains. "Back in the eighties the riverbankers got together and convinced the council to sell the leaseholds and since then many have also bought the freeholds. £20,000 for the mooring and £31,000 for the boat itself was how I sold it."
There has been huge interest, although many are surprised by the cost. "It's a fantasy for many people. But they don't know about mooring or some of the hard work involved".
Sally herself is moving ashore to a flat in a Georgian house. "Won't you miss it all down here," I ask. "Maybe so," she says "but the new flat overlooks the sea".
Michael O'Flynn
If you're still keen, check out magazines like Canal Boat and Inland Waterways or the web sites for the RBOA and British Waterways
© Find A Property 2000-2007
