Seattle based Candere offers delightfully different day on the waterways

Seattle's lovely bays and inlets provide picturesque harbor for hundreds of boats, photographed near sunset from Candere.

IT'S PERSONALIZED, HISTORIC, COMFY, WITH SPLENDID SCENERY, COMMENTARY AND COCKTAILS!

Cookie takes notes as Candere glides into Lake Union.

STORY By CHRISTENE MEYERS

PHOTOS By BRUCE KELLER

Born and raised near Seattle's waters,

Captain Dylan knows his boat and town.

Among the houses you'll see is the "Sleepless in Seattle" one, at far right.

A DAY ON the waters with Candere offers a pleasant, friendly, welcoming way to enjoy an insider's look at Seattle's water pleasures.

In this day of mass production and "take a number" tours, Candere provides that rare opportunity to customize your own outing, to see what you want, drink what you like and enjoy literate, engaging commentary about a region beloved by the boat's captain.

WE CHOSE Candere after scouring dozens of brochures....... looking for a unique Seattle outing.  Having visited many times in all seasons, we wanted something fresh to photograph and write about.  We found it in spades. Or shall we say, "in a native son's waters."

Candere means "to glow or shine" and your trip does both.

A family endeavor and small, hands on enterprise, the operation is an entrepreneurial dare for a father-son team.

"We wanted to come up with something unusual," says Dylan McCoy, "so we devised the idea of a private cocktail cruise." He knows Seattle better than most, and told its lively history from the water's point of view -- from logging shacks and Depression era slums to millionaire hideaways and state-of-the-art technological creations.

THE COCKTAILS are indeed part of the attraction, but for us not the main event.  (I drink a bit of white wine and my partner-photographer Bruce Keller drinks non-alcoholic beer.)  Those with tastes for stronger spirits will not be disappointed as Dylan will ask your favorite beverage before you meet your custom tour.

Candere cruising will take you inside Seattle's lesser known waterways,

as well as into the more familiar parts of the city's vast water networks.

With his expert hand at the helm, we cruised Lake Union, viewing Seattle's wonders close-up: seaplane take-offs and landings and Seattle's much photographed Space Needle.  We checked out Gas Works Park, the Fremont Bridge and St. Marks Cathedral, with interesting trivia about the floating homes for which Seattle is known.

Candere is just the right size for a small party, with

a cover that can come down in case of rains.

While on the lake, we asked to see the house boat made famous by Meg Ryan and Tom Hanks in the classic romantic comedy, "Sleepless in Seattle." It sold for two million bucks three years ago and sits at the end of a story-book dock with a flower-lined entry off Westlake Avenue North on the lake, probably one of the most iconic properties in Seattle -- right up there with the Space Needle.

Cruising along, we perused the city's modestly maintained and oldest floating home.  Then there were the yachts -- nothing modest about them. Over the top, elegant, sleek.

Dylan regaled us with stories of the classic cruisers and multi-million-dollar vessels docked all along the waterways.

OUR TRIP offered a delightful way to enjoy Seattle's varied waterways and learn something about this fertile, interesting part of the Pacific Northwest. Our young entrepreneur, Captain Dylan, helped restore his beloved sailboat with his dad, and the two intend to keep their small, personable enterprise hands on.   You can book the motor boat or Dylan's sailing vessel, for a few couples, a single couple wanting privacy and romance or a family having a reunion or birthday party. Prices vary and are based on what you want to see and how long you will be out.

My husband is a sailor and helped with minor logistical sailing details but Dylan doesn't need help.  Recently, he began a partnership with another small charter company. "Our goal is to involve a variety of independent charter boats in the area to offer a mix of experiences and adventures on the water," Dylan says. "As we build, we hope to give back to our community. We're thinking 'Adventures with a purpose,' using profits to fund environmental projects and support worthy causes."

Architect Cesar Manrique gave the island its unique 

stamp.  His creative genius marks many of Lanzarote's buildings.

UP NEXT:  We visit Lanzarote, in the Canary Islands, our favorite of this quiet and diverse grouping of islands south of Spain. A remarkable man, the late Cesar Manrique is responsible for giving the island a unique architectural character with splendid buildings merging land and sea, creature comforts and the wonders of nature. Explore, learn and live and catch us each weekend for a novel approach to nature, travel and the arts.