Ferry home travels Whidbey’s coast

Years ago, while sunbathing, Kat Redmon smelled the stench of the friendly critters who stopped by her house to eat a snack: a pod of gray whales swimming in the middle of Penn Cove.

Kat and Dennis Redmon’s home has attracted a variety of visitors, from marine mammals to curious strangers asking the same old questions while holding their binoculars: “Is that a ferry?” “Is that a boat house?”

To the Redmons it’s just “Annabelle,” a member of the family since “her” adoption in 1994, when they transformed her from an old ferry boat into their mobile home, or as Kat called her, “The fastest house on water.”

For some time, Annabelle was docked at the Coupeville Wharf, making some wonder if Coupeville’s iconic red building had once again turned into a ferry terminal. Earlier this summer, the floating home was docked at Cornet Bay on the North End of the island.

After 30 years in the care of the Redmon family, it’s time for Annabelle to leave the nest and find a new family. Her price tag is $725,000, and is listed on nwyachtnet.com.

With her 72 feet of length and 34 feet of height, it’s hard for this temporary neighbor to go unnoticed while towering over the wharf.

No matter the location, some people have succumbed to curiosity in many instances. As the couple sat in the living room for an interview, a man stuck his head through the Dutch door’s window.

“Are you lonesome?” the man asked, before inquiring if the house was a regular houseboat.

Kat laughed, politely answering the stranger’s question. This was one of many similar encounters, so it didn’t particularly catch the Redmons by surprise nor did it seem to bother them.

For the most part, they said, they don’t mind talking with people, and don’t discourage friendly encounters. But sometimes, after a long day, people’s curiosity can be an annoyance. In one instance, while docked in Tacoma, a group of teenagers just took a self-guided tour of the house, uninvited.

The bizarre encounters, however, are compensated with the many fond memories from the years the family has spent living with Annabelle, such as watching the Fourth of July fireworks show, hosting a grunge band and inviting the Blue Angels on board during Seafair in 2000, being approached by a group of 20 or more orcas, and exploring the Puget Sound’s islands with their daughter, Sierra.

With Annabelle, it was love at first sight. It was the early 1990s, and Kat and Dennis lived in Seattle with their infant daughter. Not being able to afford a home on the waterfront, they considered buying a houseboat or tugboat.

One day, while in Shelton, they spotted “Annabelle S” sitting all by herself on some pilings. Kat recalled they thought she was “cute” and full of potential. Eight months later, while reading the newspaper, they made a happy discovery: the boat was up for sale.

Annabelle was named after Annabelle Smith, the daughter of the builder, Charlie Smith. The boat was built with old growth timber at The Dalles, a city in Oregon, and served as a ferry connecting Washington and Oregon until 1955. It later transported cars to and from Herron Island until 1989, finally sitting in Shelton where it was discovered by the Redmons, who purchased it in 1994.

After the purchase, they dropped the “S” from the name and hired Kat’s brother, who is an architectural historian, to design the house, which was built on top of the deck in the span of six to eight months. The original home was smaller and featured a rooftop garden, while a playground with a “ginormous” swing and a sandbox sat on one end of the ferry, Dennis said.

The family moved in in 1995, keeping Annabelle docked at the Tacoma marina where the neighborhood consisted of boats.

Aside from the unusual abode and the attention from locals and tourists, their lives went on as normal, with Sierra attending school with her peers, Kat working as a physician assistant and Dennis working for the state Department of Revenue. Still, in some instances, convincing others that they lived on a ferry was a bit of a challenge.

When she was in the first grade, Sierra lamented to her parents that her classmates did not believe her and called her a liar.

“I just got ahold of her teacher and we did a field trip every year after that,” Dennis said.

The first design of the house lasted about 10 years before being expanded to a three-story building with three bedrooms and a total surface of 2,350 square feet, sitting on a 72-foot-long and 40-foot-wide deck.

Annabelle can travel up to eight or nine miles per hour, and is unfit for open ocean navigation, the Redmons said.

Her engines run on diesel, while the solar panels feed the household’s electrical systems. The house and the outdoor hot tub are heated with a diesel boiler heating system, and the sewage is held in tanks and pumped out every two weeks.

“Everything kind of acts like you’re in a normal house, but it’s not engineered like a normal house at all,” Dennis said.

Kat and Dennis have been trying to sell Annabelle for about three years now. About two and a half years ago, they moved to Whidbey to take care of Dennis’ parents, who later passed away. Since then, they have been living in their new “forever home” on Monroe Landing, where they now get to greet the occasional hungry deer.

Despite their love for Annabelle, the Redmons expect that maintaining a ferry home will become more challenging as they age. Furthermore, now that they’re both retired, they want to enjoy their free time traveling overseas and living new experiences.

Yet, it will take more than a $725,000 paycheck to convince her owners to give her away.

“We’re somewhat reluctant sellers,” Kat said.

On top of being skilled boaters who can handle large vessels, the Redmons are looking for owners who will love Annabelle and are willing to live with her to best maintain her. At the same time, they plan to keep in touch with the new owners to help them adjust to the new lifestyle and Annabelle’s needs.

Though they will miss her greatly, she will still be part of their lives.

Correction: a previous version of this story inaccurately stated the surface of the house was 23,050 square feet. It actually is 2,350 square feet. We regret the error.

“Annabelle S” in her early years of life looked much different than she does now. (Photo provided)

Kat and Dennis Redmon smile from the top floor of their 34-foot-tall ferry home while docked at the Coupeville Wharf. (Photo by Luisa Loi)

Kat and Dennis Redmon chat while enjoying the view of Penn Cove and music from a busker’s performance on Front Street. (Photo by Luisa Loi)

Dennis Redmon, who owns a captain’s license, drives his ferry house Annabelle. (Photo by Luisa Loi)

Dennis and Kat smile through the dutch door’s window. (Photo by Luisa Loi)

Kat and Dennis Redmon admire the view from the top floor of their ferry house. (Photo by Luisa Loi)

Dennis and Kat Redmon walk around the ferry they transformed into a home. (Photo by Luisa Loi)

Dennis Redmon poses behind the steering wheel. The boat’s two steering wheels are the only part of the original boat that are left above the engine room area. Originally the wheels were wrapped with ropes that went down through pulleys and moved the rudder. The Redmons kept the appearence of the original wheels which now control hydraulic steering pumps. (Photo by Luisa Loi)