In 2001, Erin and I bought a 36-foot Down East "Monk" Trawler. It was built in Taiwan in 1984. It has a 220-horsepower Yanmar turbo-diesel engine. It has control stations on the fly-bridge and another in the cabin. 

The interior is what is known as a galley-up design. This means that the galley, seating area, and steering with controls are on the entrance level. The forward and aft cabins are down three steps from the galley area. The two cabins are virtually below the water line of the vessel. Each of the cabins has a head (bathroom) and a shower. The aft cabin has a cowboy (small) bathtub. The forward cabin has a Port (left) double bunk with a shelf and seating area on the Starboard (right) side. The aft stateroom features a walk-around queen bed with a side table, desk, and eight feet of hanging locker space with loovered teak doors. The booth-style seating in the main cabin converts to a double bed.

The interior and the trim on the top side are made of teak.

The name of the boat is the Jessie-James, after our two children.

We lived aboard for five years and owned the boat for eleven.

When we bought the trawler, it was at Pier 39 in San Francisco. We soon secured a berth at Jack London Square in Oakland, where it stayed the entire time we owned it.

Boat life was a dream I had since I was a child. I always wanted to live on a boat. The space is a bit tight, but for Erin and me, it was perfect. The movement of the vessel made sleeping wonderful.

Having family and friends aboard was an ongoing event. We never felt isolated for very long. We did holidays, like Christmas, New Year, Easter, Fourth of July, and many birthdays on the Jessie James.

More images of family and friends around the dock and boat

Below are some photos from around the San Francisco Bay taken while we were out and about.