Review: Barden’s Boat Yard

RECOMMENDED: Last month, I posted a review of Burr Brothers Boats, one of the two boat yards located in Marion Massachusetts. This month I will focus on Barden’s Boat Yard which is Calypso’s winter home. Barden’s is located at the end of Island Wharf Road in the center of Marion. At this location you will find the yard’s main office, repair facility, and fuel dock. Public restroom facilities are available next door in the Harbormasters office building. Barden’s maintains dock space along with moorings for rent in Sippican Harbor. Launch service is available as well. The facility is a multi- generation family-owned operation and is a full-service yard with maintenance and repair service available along with a 35 ton travel lift for launching and retrieving boats. Barden’ s also offers a unique to the area dry dock service for boats up to 34 feet. Here your boat will be kept dry on land and launched when needed. The crew at Barden’s is always friendly and very helpful. They work with owners to find the best solution at reasonable rates.

Winter boat storage is managed at both the island wharf location and the Benson Brook marine park located a short distance away. At this location, are four sheds for inside storage plus an open yard for outside storage. The location is safe and secure. One of the nice things about Barden’s is that they allow owners to work on their boats if they are stored outside. For folks like myself who like to do small projects on the boat, this is a great arrangement. Unfortunately, bottom painting is no longer allowed due to environmental regulations. This change is common at many yards today. I have done business with Barden’s for seven years and the relationship has been excellent. I highly recommend considering this boat yard if Marion is your home port. Look for an upcoming 5 minute video review on the Cruising Calypso YouTube channel.