After 10 fabulous years of cruising enjoyment lovely Piper barge is moving to new crew.
After the most fantastic 10 years cruising French, Belgium, Luxembourg, and a year on the Thames we offered our Piper Barge for sale through Simon Piper, her builder, on his pre-loved Piper website.
But for those who want to know what she is like, here is a full description.
Calliope sleeps 4-8 people and has some features that make her a little different to some of the other barges from the fantastic Piper Boats company. For example, the two cabins are situated fore and aft, providing greater privacy for guests.
Broad Facts:
~ Launched 2015; steel construction
~ 150hp BetaMarine engine, keel cooled and serviced annually
~ Vetus bow thruster
~ 8 x 100 watt PV panels
~ Hull re-painted 2024
~ Central heating and double glazed throughout
She is currently at Saint-Jean-de-Losne, 21170, France – but look through the blog to see her in all her many happy cruises, sometimes with friends or family.
For now, here is a Calliope taster. A picture paints a thousand words, so here goes.
Here she is, in Belgium, showing off her extra-large front deck – great for crew to manage rope throwing, and then to relax, with plenty of space to sit.
Down below Calliope’s 3 large windows each side and dog box above ensure that below decks is light and airy for the living areas – the engine room and technical data follow. If that is more your interest just scroll down.
The saloon, leading into the galley, with its Reflex stove for extra warmth in winter.
In the summer we open up the dog box for cooling breezes and blue skies.
There is an external shade for really hot days as well.
The galley is specially designed for people who like to cook, with gas hob and oven, and big full height fridge with freezer box …..
…. plus a washer/drier.
And there is loads of storage!
For sleeping there are two cabins, each with its own en-suite.
The main cabin is towards the bow with a UK king-sized bed with lots of drawers and cupboards
The en suite has a lovely big shower, basin and toilet, with roof hatch above for extra light.
The toilet is below the porthole.
[Sorry my reflection is in the next photo!]
Cabin 2 is towards the stern and ideal for friends or family with its comfortable, long, twin bunks and its own ensuite with shower.
These photos show the bunks, some storage, the big mirror and the door to ensuite.
So the second cabin and its ensuite are a saloon away from the Main Cabin.
Most snoring doesn’t travel that far!
So that is where the first 4 people can sleep.
We also often use the double sofa bed in the saloon as an extra cabin. The windows, hatch and dog box all have covers for night time.
And the seats in the wheelhouse convert to a double bed to make total indoor sleeping space for 8.
The other main ‘living spaces’ are the wheelhouse, with its dining table, and the back deck, with its chairs and, for us, glasses of rosé at sundown.
The wheelhouse has stable doors at sides and back. The upper wood section is totally collapsible, but we have never needed to do this and have passed safely under the lowest bridges on the French navigable waterways.
On top of the wheelhousse are 8 PV panels giving 800 watts of power. They allow Calliope to stay away from shore power for weeks at a time.
Inside is a great place to sit, even when not cruising, with all round vision.
This gives a good feel of the space, with my apologies that I took the photo before we renewed seat cushions and blinds in 2024.
Now it looks more like this ….. although on a bit of a rainy day.
And on hot sunny days the whole windscreen drops down! It is one of our delights to be moving on the water with the fresh air flowing through the wheelhouse.
Being out in the open air is a big part of life on Calliope.
Naturally the back deck is a popular place to sit and relax, quietly alone or with friends.
And Calliope is unusual in having plenty of space on the front deck too.
The front deck also houses one of Calliope’s special features – a huge locker to store bikes, tools etc.
There are two other lockers on deck – a ‘rope locker’ on the back deck and a gas locker at the side.
And now on to the technical information.
The engine room is accessed from the wheelhouse.
In addition to the 150hp BetaMarine engine it houses the Bubble PJ diesel powered boiler, hot water tank, DAB Easybox pump for domestic water (new 2024) and the pumps for black and grey water waste.
The panel of Mastervolt electrical instruments is at the base of the stairs into the spacious room.
Calliope is keel cooled meaning she can cruise without concern of weed entering the cooling system. She only draws 0.9m.
If anything gets caught on the propellor, (a rarity), easy access to the weed hatch in the engine room allows it to be removed.
Strangely to many this is one of my favourite tasks.
Perhaps the other favourite past time is enjoying the back deck together at the end of a summers day.
Want to know more about Piper boats?
If you think you might like to be the owner, of a Piper boat, pre-loved or brand new, it’s best to contact Simon Piper through https://www.prelovedpiper.com or 0044 7769 702521.
And who knows … there might be one more short cruise to blog about before we hand her over.
goodshipcalliope 