BUILT: 2 0 0 3 P RICE: £ 1 6 0 , 0 0 0
Sat right in the middle of Botnia’s Targa nine-strong range of boats that span 23ft to 46ft, the Targa 35 epitomises all that is great about these boats. It’s a model that originally launched in 1998, and remained conceptually unchanged until 2005 when Botnia introduced two significant improvements available as options; the ‘+’ with extended transom (which adds 2ft to the hull length extending the waterline and engine bay plus a more attractive reverse sheer sloping transom) and the HiFly flybridge (which moved the original smaller flybridge from behind the wheelhouse up to the roof of the wheelhouse, giving significantly more space and seating). As ever though, while the concept remains intact, Botnia is always refining its models.
INTERIOR
A walkaround boat, the Targa 35 wheelhouse/saloon is accessed via twin sliding doors either side of the internal helm. There’s a small galley forward to port which is mostly a twin-burner hob and a sink, with the fridge beneath one of the helm seats. Further aft, a table slides down a pole to turn the L-shaped settee into a dinette. The lower deck layout is intriguing, split between an aft cabin with a single and double berth plus the heads, and a forecabin with two single berths.
EXTERIOR
No slave to convention, the main cockpit area is actually forward of the wheelhouse, where a deep U-shaped seating area nestles into the bow. The aft deck lifts to provide engine access but also creates more outside social space, and f
