Hunky Dory began life in 1979 at Cheoy Lee’s Penny’s Bay shipyard on Lantau Island in Hong Kong, where her hull and major construction were completed. She was then shipped across the Pacific to Seattle, where Davis Marine completed the final fit-out and commissioning.
From Seattle, Hunky Dory began a long and varied life on the water. Her first owner eventually took her to California. A later owner from Louisiana purchased the boat and brought her from California to the Gulf Coast by way of the Panama Canal, beginning a long chapter in which Hunky Dory spent much of her life in Louisiana and surrounding Gulf waters.
She later changed hands again and spent several years in Belize before returning to the United States. During the years that followed, Hunky Dory was owned and operated by several different owners along the Gulf states and underwent a partial refit along the way.
Nearly five decades of cruising, changing owners, distant ports, repairs, upgrades, and everyday life aboard have left Hunky Dory with a history that is only partly known. She has crossed oceans, passed through the Panama Canal, weathered tropical waters, and served as home, refuge, and adventure for generations of owners.
Some of those stories have been preserved. Many others have been lost to time.
If only her walls could talk, Hunky Dory would have quite a story to tell.