Fiddler is a DeFever 46 Raised Pilothouse. It was designed by Arthur DeFever who is often credited with introducing the concept of trawler-type yachts for pleasure cruising. Design features duplicated from his early commercial tuna clippers include a high bow, raised pilothouse, Portuguese bridge, long keels, weight and stability. He died in 2013 at the age of 94 and was buried at sea. This rendezvous was the first in the PNW for the DeFever Cruising Club and was held in Poulsbo, WA. Cathleen, our friend Diane, and I attended. Poulsbo is 2.5 hours from Seattle and the weather was perfect for the weekend event.
We arrived Friday evening as docktails and appetizers were well under way for the group. Diane, owner of Diane’s Market Kitchen in Seattle treated us to grilled pork tenderloin, fresh green beans, and huckleberry/feta/cucumber salad for dinner!
Saturday’s events included various informative seminars including cruising around the San Juan Islands and to Alaska and troubleshooting electrical issues on your boat. After the seminars, attendees that came on boats opened them up for all to tour.
It was really interesting to see the other DeFevers. Several were very old and made of wood, another made of steel. Two of the boats there were previously owned by Arthur DeFever. Here are pictures of several of the boats.
Saturday afternoon Cathleen and Diane walked around Poulsbo and went to the Farmer’s Market and the Slippery Pig Brewery.
Saturday evening we had a group BBQ at a local restaurant and heard a presentation on the history of DeFevers.
For breakfast Sunday Diane made us french toast and bacon. The rendezvous ended after breakfast and most everyone departed in the morning. We left shortly after noon. The rendezvous was a great success and plans will soon be under way for the next one!
Fiddler 