Sailboat that washed ashore on East Beach sold, new owner hopes to restore it
SANTA BARBARA, Calif. – One of two boats that washed ashore in Santa Barbara during this week's storm is being given a second chance.
The Varuna — a 40-foot wooden sailboat — has been sold and is in the process of being recovered. Todd Black says his brother saw the boat on the beach and thought his company could help the owner move it.
Instead, the former owner sold the boat to Black for $100.
Black plans to ship the boat to his family’s home in Los Osos, repair it, and hopefully, sail it again in Morro Bay.
“It’s a glorious boat," Black said. "It’s why I was down to save it. This thing is worth saving. I don’t want to smash it up."
The boat spent the past couple of decades in Santa Barbara. It washed ashore on East Beach Tuesday morning following Monday's storm.
Radio and TV personality Red Skelton was said to have owned the boat before its previous owner. That owner says the rutter broke before the storm and hopes to see it fixed and back on the water soon.
Black said he's willing to put in the work to restore the boat to its former glory.
"I’m going through every means possible that I have to make it happen,” he said.
A few miles south, a fishing vessel washed ashore in Montecito at Butterfly Beach. The family that owns the boat named "Surfish," as well as a handful of local volunteers, worked early Wednesday morning to try and free the boat in hopes of getting it upright when high tide comes in.
"We are trying to get it off the beach not only to protect the beach but this is our livelihood, I mean this is everything for us so really hoping we can get it up and going," said Rose Brown, owner of Surfish.
The owner of the other boat that washed ashore on East Beach during Monday's storm said they had no plans to put it back in the water. Officials said each owner would have 72 hours to get the boat cleaned up off the beach.
