The unique story of Pelican One, told by her owner.
As a yacht dealer with years of experience, we already had many special boats in our portfolio. But when we received the request for this unique luxury yacht, we were immediately fascinated. Not only by the Pelican One luxury yacht itself, but also by her special history.
We asked the owner to tell us the whole story and here it is: enjoy reading!
The beginning of the love affair..
The sea has been my first love. I have owned many boats and lived many adventures at sea. The beauty of the sea is also that it is unpredictable. Therefore, the main characteristic in a boat for me is safety. Beside exploration, adventures, romanticism and tranquility at sea, I also love sport fishing. For all my life I have dreamt of fishing in the remote corners of the world, but unfortunately my Cabo 36 Express could not get me there without “dockwise”. That’s when my dream project started.
I scanned the market looking for the perfect boat. Something that could match my taste and requirements such as safety, seaworthiness, range and comfort. I needed a mothership that could tow my Cabo with safety. The search began to become frustrating and I soon realized my perfect boat didn’t exist. I had to build or convert one. I had almost given up my dream when, during a documentary filming expedition in the Washington state, something appeared in front of my eyes. There she was – the vessel I was looking for: The Pelican One!
Built by Berggren Shipyard in California in 1985 as a private fishing boat for sailing the Bering sea and the Alaskan waters, she spent 25 years of service in the Pacific. From San Francisco over Seattle to Vancouver, she sailed as a fishing boat with her guests.
The vision of a Luxury-Explorer-Yacht
I liked the special charm of this extraordinary yacht, where the rustic feel meets coziness. With her “go anywhere” character, I could get safe cruising, which gave me the very special feeling of freedom that I was always passionate about. I was free to sail wherever I wanted. Free to spend long periods of time on board and handle high seas. Free to stay for weeks in the wilderness, thanks to her enormous economies and capacities, carrying huge amounts of supplies.
With a lot of emotion and passion involved, I bought the Pelican One, shipped her to my home country Italy and had it converted into a luxury explorer yacht, whereby all existing attributes were improved, and a huge portion of luxury was added.
Together with Adriano, my longtime friend and captain, we put all our experience into this project. We realized that all our dreams and ideas of a perfect life aboard a yacht came true.
In San Benedetto del Tronto, at the Navaltecnica shipyard, the Pelican One was significantly overhauled, together with Marco and Giulio Piergallini in 2010, 2013 and 2016. For example:
- new engines
- new generators
- new navigation
- new interior
- completely new paintwork
- new stabilisers
- completely new teakdeck
- bulb optimization
Along with 500 other components, which would obviously make this list too long. Pelican One is technically a newly built yacht, suitable for all-weather cruising for the world’s oceans. We soon realized we had built not only a true safe expedition yacht, but also a “head turner”.
With lots of light wood finishes, white Carrara marble from Calcutta Gold in the bathroom, dining room and kitchen, plus fantastic acacia parquet flooring in all rooms, this warm and luxurious yacht feeling was created.
The Pelican One is unique in the world. With a range of 4000NM and the ability to carry toys and tenders, a true gentleman’s yacht for those looking for the next big adventure. Made with love for globetrotters and freedom lovers, for whom only the best is good enough. Large enough to enjoy all the comforts imaginable in complete safety and luxury. Also compact enough to have room in any marina or anchorage, but with the “wow” effect of a truly unique explorer yacht.
What a cool adventure! Do you also own a special yacht that you want to sell? We are excited to hear your story! Merk&Merk is your reliable partner for yacht sales. We know the most effective measures to sell your yacht easy and uncomplicated.