It's an RV. It's a boat. It's Flounder the Alberta boaterhome making a splash online - Action News
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It's an RV. It's a boat. It's Flounder the Alberta boaterhome making a splash online

Are you in the market for a 23-foot-long RV coated in airplane aluminum thats also a pontoon?

Amphibious vehicle was a legacy handed down

Dude! It's a floating RV!

2 years ago
Duration 2:09
It's an RV. It's a boat. It's Flounder.

Are you in the market for a 23-foot-long RV coated in airplane aluminum that's also a pontoon?

Then Gordon McKenzie has the van-boat for you. When McKenzie listed the one of a kind vehicle on the Calgary buy and sell Facebook pageit garnered thousands of views, andattention from Pakistan to Australia. Originally listed for$11,000, McKenzielater realized he couldn't part with it for less than $32,000, due to its sentimental value and the years of work put into it.

The floating van which has pontoons built into the frame is the life's work of his friend Stanley, who created it in the 70s.

"When he passed, he left it to me and I've been trying to keep his legacy alive," he told the Calgary Eyeopener.

"His son said he hated it because all he remembered growing up was holding rivets, so he wanted rid of it. I was lucky enough to be the guy that got my hands on it."

Gordon McKenzie, left, and his floating van, right, created by his friend Stanley. (Submitted by Gordon McKenzie)

He says he owned the RV for about four years before he got an inkling that it might float.

So he took it to Ghost Lake, just west of Calgary.

"I added foam underneath just to cover my behind, because basically, I didn't really want to have to call the scuba guys to come and get my car back," he said.

"I took it out there and backed it into the lake and she floated not great the first time, the second time it was just wonderful."

Though the boat can drive on the highway and is registered and insured once it hits the water it's paddle-powered, via an oar out the window.

WATCH | Gordon McKenzie takes Flounder out to the lake

McKenzie says he's put in a lot of work into what was at one point a pick-up truck. When he received the vehicle it was blue and white, and he dubbed it Flounder.

"When I took the paint off and polished the aluminum, it didn't quite suit Flounder, but you can't rename your children," he said.

McKenzie says Flounder belongs in a museum, and he's looking for the right buyer who will understand how precious the piece is, and has the resources and skills to fix it up.

"I was thinking a floating food truck might be an option."

With files from the Calgary Eyeopener