By JEFF EPSTEIN
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ASCUTNEY, Vt. — Travelers on Route 5 in Vermont heading toward Windsor may see something a bit unusual off to the right, soon after they pass the churches and municipal building. That large red-and-white object in the driveway has attracted attention. It is a houseboat, and the young couple who own it are going to be shopping for furnishings in this area, so they can turn the houseboat into a tiny floating residence next spring.
No, they don’t plan to put it into the Connecticut River. Due to various impediments, the river is not very navigable, at least not for their purpose, which is to get it to Portsmouth, where they live.
Joe Tarr and Cece Arrison bought the houseboat named “Miss Chiff” in August from a listing on Craigslist. The property where the boat is sitting belongs to Arrison’s father, an electrical engineer who pitches in on the project with advice and helping hands.
“Her dad has all the tools and expertise that can … help us,” Tarr said.
Since they got the boat here around Oct. 12, the couple have been ripping out all the old fittings and décor. The cabin is accessed via a couple of ladders at the aft end and a tight walk up to the bow. Once inside, a visitor can see the cabin is currently down to bare wood and walls, but Joe and Cece see potential in the boat as the equivalent of a “tiny house” — the elaborately designed-but-affordable type of housing that is both a fad and a regulatory vexation.
When asked about what inspections Portsmouth may have in mind when they get the boat there, Joe and Cece demur: It won’t be their permanent residence, they say, as they will stay in their current apartment. Instead the houseboat can be used for guests, possibly commercially as an AirBnB. In fact, they have tried that already while the houseboat was at its original Vermont location.
“The furniture that was inside was very dated, but it was warm, it was dry, and it was a very unique place to stay,” says Cece. Making it a regular AirBnB in Portsmouth could have its own issues, they know, but they will pass under that bridge when they get there.
It’s mostly a weekend project, as Joe is working toward a master’s degree in management, and Cece teaches diving at the University of New Hampshire.
They also are getting advice from marine pros, who told them that even though they plan to keep the boat in a protected bay cove in the Portsmouth area, they still need to keep it seaworthy.
“You have to keep the levels of moisture at a reasonable level,” Joe explains. “They talk about how you are on the water, but the water is your worst enemy. You’re always trying to figure out ways to keep water out of the boat.”
“They are all things that if you were to buy a regular house, you would have to put work into it anyway,” says Cece. “This is just a different kind of work.”
And in outfitting the boat, Joe and Cece — both recent graduates — are starting from scratch. “We don’t have nice furniture,” says Joe. So they will continue to look around Craigslist and the local area for what they want.
The couple hope the work will be completed by April, and when the boat is ready they will truck it to its new home in Portsmouth.
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