Boat used on ‘Gilligan’s Island’ set put up for sale

PARKSVILLE, B.C. – If you’re interested in a three-hour tour, George Schultz of Parksville has just the boat for you.

For about $89,000, you can buy the boat famous for setting aground on an uncharted desert isle to set the stage for the 1960s television classic “Gilligan’s Island.”

The S.S. Minnow was supposedly off for a three-hour tour when, as the theme song explained, “The weather started getting rough; the tiny ship was tossed. If not for the courage of the fearless crew, the Minnow would be lost.”

The real-life Minnow also ran aground.

The twin-diesel, 36-foot mahogany Wheeler Express Cruiser hit a reef in Hecate Strait as the former owner was taking the vessel down the coast from Alaska. Scotty Taylor of Parksville said the owner sold the 46-year-old boat to him for salvage on condition that he promise to restore it.

Schultz, a boat broker, estimated Sunday that the work cost more than $180,000.

Kind of like the old definition of a boat as a hole in the water into which to pour money?

“You better believe it!” Schultz said with a laugh.

Taylor is selling the storied vessel because he’s tired of it.

“He’s going on 70 now and doesn’t want to bother with it anymore,” Schultz said. “It would make a great investment for a three-hour tour.”

According to the Gilligan’s Island Web site, the boat is the third of four vessels used in the show. Taylor’s Minnow was used in the opening credits of the second season.