Skip to primary navigation Skip to content Skip to footer

About the Boat

The Shawnodese

The boat was built in 1966 in San Diego as a ferry to Coronado Island. It spent a few years on Lake Mead as a tour and fishing boat with a six-pack license. At this point, it had twin diesel engines midships with straight shaft & rudder. From there, it went to San Francisco as a crew boat taking crew personnel out to larger ships. It was also used to lay cable in the bay.

In the early ’80s, it was stripped of all running gear and shipped to Idaho as part of a settlement one of the previous business partners had made when they sold out of the boat business in San Francisco. It sat for about ten years waiting for the owner to make a personal yacht for use on Lake Pend Oreille. The founders of Lake Pend Oreille Cruises purchased it for the hull only in 1992. It was hauled to Sagle and sat for another six to eight months waiting for a new design and approval by the US Coast Guard. After plan approval, it took two more years to complete. On July 26, 1995, the hull got wet again.

This was the largest change the hull has gone through in its lifetime. This time just one engine, a diesel, with an outdrive for better steerage and now cruises at around 7 knots. It features a fully enclosed lower deck which it never had, an open upper deck and a good-sized wheelhouse. It weighs in at 15 tons of aluminum, wood, and metal. The hull and superstructure are welded aluminum. The interior was done in mahogany to give a softer and older look to the aluminum hull. All systems are new including the engine, drive, electric, plumbing and electronics.

Specifications

  • Length – 40′ @ water line, 43′ over all
  • Width – 14′
  • Draft – 4′
  • Displacement – 30,000 lbs.
  • Power – 7.3 Liter Ford Diesel, naturally aspirated
  • Horse Power – 200
  • Speed – max 10 km @ 2900 rpm, cruise 7 km @ 2000 rpm
  • Transmission – Borg Warner Velvet drive Model #113 with 1 to 1.66 ratio
  • Out drive – Stern Power w/ 19″ x 12″ LH prop
  • Steering – Internal Manual Hydraulic
  • Auto Pilot
  • Visual Navigation Suite connected to GPS and Auto Pilot
  • Radar
  • Sounder
  • GPS
  • Galley – sink, refrigerator, diesel fired heat cook stove, bar
  • Dinette – seats 6
  • Main Salon – 11′ x 15′
  • Head – with shower
  • Upper Deck – 11′ X 18′
  • Wheel house – 10′ x 8′
  • US Coast Guard approved for 36 passengers
  • Not Handicap Accessible

The Crew

Captain EJ | Owner
EJ previously spent sixteen seasons in Sitka, Alaska where he became lead charter boat captain of a fishing lodge. He is now able to combine his degree in Environmental Science from Western Washington University with all those years of experience by running Lake Pend Oreille Cruises.

Kimberly | First Mate
Kimberly is a Sandpoint local who obtained her degree in Resort and Recreation Management with aspirations of working on cruise ships. She’s been working with Lake Pend Oreille Cruises for over a decade.

Emily | First Mate
Emily is an outdoor enthusiast and tends to gravitate towards the water. She’s the head coach of the local swim team and a former whitewater raft guide spending time on the Salmon River, Idaho and in Valdez, Alaska. She studied Recreation and Outdoor Leadership at the University of Idaho.

Linda | Co-founder & Naturalist
Linda and her husband Curtis founded Lake Pend Oreille Cruises and Curtis designed and built The Shawnodese from the hull up. Today, Linda is still sharing her wealth of knowledge on our local history, geography, birds of prey and just about anything there is to know about our beautiful lake.