They’re going to need a bigger boat.
For Capt. Dan Schade and his wife Vicky, owners of Classic Boat Rides, that legendary line from the movie “Jaws” pretty much sums up why they decided to bid on a paddle wheeler that the captain had seen for sale in Boats and Harbors magazine.
The Schades have been operating their cruise and charter business on the river since 2004, offering sunset cruises, music and dance cruises, mansion tours and fireworks excursions aboard their wooden boat, the Mariner. Their boat is also available for charter for group get-togethers and special celebrations. Their cruises are all about the fun. “We don’t do fishing,” Schade said.
But the Mariner’s maximum capacity is 40 people. With the popularity of their cruise business growing every year, the Schades decided the time was right to, well, get a bigger boat.
“A few of my friends had said, ‘Why don’t you get a paddle wheeler?’ ” Schade recalled.
When he happened upon the notice in Boats and Harbors of a paddle wheeler up for auction, he and his wife decided to put in a bid. When he saw the numbers on the bidding site, he assumed he’d been outbid. Then he got the call saying he had won.
He won’t say what he paid for the paddle wheeler, but it was far less than the $185,000 and change he thought was the winning bid. As it turned out, Schade said, that number was a bidder ID number, not the bid itself.
Six weeks
after he made his bid, Schade learned he’d become the proud owner of a bigger
boat.
Capt. Dan Schade and his wife Vicky have been operating pleasure cruises here since 2004. The Navesink Queen will soon join their wooden boat, the Mariner on the Shrewsbury and Navesink.
Photo courtesy Classic Boat Rides
Before its sale, the boat was owned by Hampton Roads Transit, making 30-minute ferry trips across the Elizabeth River in Virginia. It was an unglamorous occupation. He put in a call to Hampton Roads Transit to see what kind of shape the boat was in. “Is it running?” he asked. “Well, it was yesterday,” they told him. “It was well-maintained, but not really loved,” Schade said.
Now, this Cinderella of the water ways is being reborn as the Navesink Queen, undergoing a transformation that includes adding bathrooms (they were not needed for short crossings), bench seats, picnic tables and other enhancements. “We’re going to fine-tune the furniture,” he said.
The new vessel will have top deck passenger space as well as enclosed passenger space on the main deck, which will be heated for fall cruising. The Schades are also installing a Bluetooth sound system so passengers can play their own party mix.
As they’ve done on the Mariner for many years, the Schades will be happy to recommend musicians for clients wanting to charter the paddle wheeler. They’ll also offer live music cruises on the Navesink Queen as they do on the Mariner. The Schades are also hoping to acquire a second liquor license (the Mariner already has one) for the boat to accommodate parties and other special events.
Coincidentally, the paddle wheeler then known as the Elizabeth Ferry was built in the same place the Schades’ Mariner was constructed: Deltaville, Virginia.
The Navesink Queen can carry 100 people, making it possible for customers to book larger celebrations on the boat.
The couple named the new paddle wheeler in honor of the Navesink River and also in tribute to Vicky’s mother. “My wife is from England, so the queen thing kind of came in,” Schade said.
This Saturday the boat will make the journey from Yank’s Landing down by Cape May, where the Schades have been working on it since last January, to the Atlantic Highlands marina. “It needed lots of paint and cleaning, Schade said.
Because paddle wheelers are not fast boats, the 120-mile trip from the Cape May area to Atlantic Highlands will take 19 hours.
Once it settles in to its home berth in Atlantic Highlands, work on the interior will continue. When all the work is done, the boat will need to pass its U.S. Coast Guard inspection before it can begin taking passengers out on the water.
“You have to do the Coast Guard inspections. You have to get approvals. Once we get everything ready, we’ll probably do a friends and family cruise, and then later we’ll have an open house celebration cruise and give short boat rides around the river.”
And best of all, there’s no need to worry about sharks.
This article was first published in the May 23-29, 2019 print edition of The Two River Times.
