Argonaut II

Designed by Edson B. Schock and built in 1922 at W.R. Menchions Shipyard in Vancouver, BC, Argonaut II was commissioned as “Greta M.” as a corporate yacht for the Powell River Paper & Pulp Company entertaining corporate guests and ferrying executives up coastal logging operations. In 1937, she was purchased by the United Church and renamed “Thomas Crosby IV” to serve as a mission boat that served thousands of people in coastal communities, lighthouses, canneries, logging operations, and First Nation villages along the remote coastline of British Columbia. In her later years, she was renamed “Argonaut II” as a commercial tugboat for a marine services company before retiring as a corporate yacht in 1971.

Nicholas Verrochi purchased Argonaut II in 2021 where he lives aboard and works full time chartering and restoring the vessel, documenting her history through video and building a growing community on the boat’s YouTube Channel, “Argonaut II.” The ongoing video series documents the beauty of the British Columbia coastline, the romance of cruising the Pacific Northwest, and the special history that Argonaut II has with thousands of people up and down the coastline. Follow along Argonaut’s story and her ongoing restoration here in Port Townsend, WA through Argonaut II’s social media channels, or step back in time and consider booking a charter aboard.

Argonaut II is powered by an air-start Garnder 6L3 Marine Diesel engine, and cruises around 8.2 knots at 850 rpm. She is originally planked with Port Orford Cedar on oak frames with 1″ ironbark ice sheathing at the waterline. In a recent 2023 haul-out, about 1/3 of her starboard side was replanked with Alaskan Yellow Cedar and oak frames. Her deck is original Douglas Fir with a teak house. Recent additions to the boat include the installation of 1600 watts of solar, an upgraded 24-volt electric system, and Douglass Fir flooring in the forward state room and galley. Currently, Argonaut II is raising money for a sizable haul-out planned in Port Townsend later this Fall, 2025 where her port side will be entirely replanked, including the two stern timbers.