Jersey boat builder looking for someone to take on project

Nigel Jones said he was trying to find someone to take on the project at a new location

A boat builder who had a dream to build a fishing vessel that was once in daily use is looking for someone to take on the project.

Nigel Jones started the build in 2020 after buying what he believed was one of Jersey's last remaining examples.

He said the work was taking longer than he had expected and "it absolutely exhausts me".

Mr Jones is now trying to find someone to take on the project at a new location.

'Helping hand'

"Really, at my age, my eyesight's not what it was, my knees are not what they were," he said.

"I can't easily get down on the floor and when I have to do all the physical work of the riveting, my goodness, it absolutely exhausts me."

Mr Jones said he thought it could be a group project.

"We need a younger person who is prepared to learn, who is prepared to experiment and put some of their life into it, but also there's an opportunity for what's called a men's shed or a community project, where all kinds of people can turn up, have a cup of tea and lend a helping hand," he said.

Mr Jones said the boat, which would have been used by Jersey fishermen in the early half of the last century, represented a gap in the island's maritime history.