A little more than six months after a ferocious Northeast storm wrecked his 49-foot fishing boat, The Seal, in Bar Harbor, Eddie “Diver Ed” Monat launched a brand new boat to take its place.
Built by H&H Marine in Steuben, the 51-foot Osmond Beal-designed Starfish Enterprise slipped into the waters of the Narraguagus River in Milbridge June 17.
After a day of furious commissioning work, Monat and his wife and business partner, Edna Martin, delivered the boat to Bar Harbor, where it will serve as the new stage for the couple’s “Dive In” theater.
Audience members will be able to view live images on a large, LCD video screen that Monat transmits from under water.
Starfish Enterprise is a stretched version of the H&H 47-footer, and has a 19-foot-3-inch beam. It is powered by a 660-horsepower Caterpillar diesel engine and is expected to cruise at 14 knots.
With a solid Fiberglas hull and Divinycell-cored decks and cabin, the boat was built to meet Coast Guard requirements for certification to carry as many as 88 passengers. Monat and Martin did most of the finish and commissioning work on the boat themselves.