About

Yemaya is an African goddess of the sea. 

Yemaya, the vessel. is a custom built, one-of-a-kind fantail motor yacht designed and built by Turkish company, Ardumon. Although she tooks older, The vessel was completed and launched to make her maiden voyage on the Mediterranean Sea in 1992.

Yemaya operated as a private yacht on the Mediterranean coast for some time, and given her unique design, it’s hard to imagine a more fitting background. At some point she was sold and transferred to the United States, most likely by water. There are ships that move other boats, which is a fairly fascinating process. 

Once in the US, Yemaya was run out of New Orleans – another fitting port for her beautiful style. It is a labor of love to own a wood boat in a saltwater environment – especially in the warm waters of the Caribbean where worms and other sea life can damage the wood below the surface, while the tropical sun dries out and any exposed above. 

As repair and maintenance costs grew, Yemaya was more or less abandoned until spotted by Andrea Crossman who decided to give the boat a new lease on life. 

Yemaya is a custom built, possibly one of a kind, fantail motor yacht built to resemble the Trumpys and other vessels that were common in the 20’s, 30’s, and 40’s. It’s not difficult to picture it as the setting for a Great Gatsby chapter. 

The fantail term was given to yachts with a unique design feature – the last 10 or more feet of the boat (depending on overall length) are a cantilevered construction that gives the vessel more usable space without adding more hull surface at the waterline where it would create drag. 

In theory, a fantail design with 45 feet of hull in the water and 15 feet of fantail should be faster and more fuel efficient than a similar sized boat with all 60 feet of hull in the water. When boat’s this size were powered by 95 horsepower engines, it would have made a significant difference. Today, even Yemaya’s 320 hp engines are more than enough to push the boat as fast as the hull’s design will allow. 

The boat is mostly mahogany with some other wood – such as teak – in places like where they are a better choice. At 60 feet in length and 30 tons, she is a big boat, with a big, deep keel so she needs at least 5 feet of water to move. 

The boat is driven by two Caterpillar 3208 engines, both with 8 cylinders making 320 horsepower. By today’s standards, she could be considered underpowered and slow. Ask anyone who has gone for a sunset cruise and they tell you that going faster will not make the ride any more magical. 

Board the boat, and you have the choice to move forward and enjoy the view from the bow seating area, or head aft and step down into the u-shaped lounge area known as the fantail. Near the bow where guests board, there are also sliding doors which provide access to the wheelhouse, or bridge. 

Enter through the wheelhouse and you’ll see Yemaya has a mix of modern and dated gauges controls.She does have modern engine and electrical systems for bother the 12 and 24 volt engine and bilge systems, and the 110-220 volt  

The boat includes a small but functional galley, a beautiful, airy salon which opens aft to the fantail. In the salon, you’ll see a fireplace – it is strictly for appearances and does not function.

Forward of the salon, there is a day head at the top of the steps, then below is the main head that goes with the main stateroom. Check out the carved accents on the bed frame. Forward again puts you in the guest quarters which also has its own stateroom. 

Yemaya is beautiful, but she is not fast. She will cruise at anywhere from 5 to 10 miles per hour. The boat holds somewhere around 500 gallons of gas for both engines and her huge generator, which is capable of running all 5 of the boat’s HVAC units, or air conditioners. 

A quick look at Yemaya’s specs – 

1992 Ardumon-designed Fantail Motor Yacht

Fiberglass over mahogany hull, with mahogany and teak structure.

Country of Origin – Turkey

Length – 60 feet

Beam – 17 feet

Draft – 5 feet 5 inches

Weight – 65,000 lbs or 32 tons

Engines – Caterpillar 3208 Diesel Engines x 2 at 320 hp

Generator – MAAS 15 Kilowatt Diesel 

Cruising speed 7 – 9 mph

Top speed – 13 – 15 miles per hour