Here we’re watching SYNTAX being returned to the water at the Brooklin Boat Yard last week. Seeing her while US-Cuba relations had returned to front pages conjured up memories of prize-winning author Ernest Hemingway and his 1934, 38-foot Wheeler sportfishing boat, PILAR.
SYNTAX, a 55-foot Wheeler, reportedly was designed to capture the adventuresome look, luxury and performance of PILAR, as enhanced by today’s materials and mechanics. She was built by BBY in 2024 with the latest refinements.
Some research on Hemingway’s jaunty boat reveals that PILAR had immense fuel tanks and two gasoline-powered motors. She had a 75-horsepower engine for cruising and a 40-hp one for casting and trolling for the massive, big-game fish that Hemmingway loved to stalk and fight – especially swordfish, bluefin tuna, and blue and black marlin.
“Pilar” apparently was Hemingway’s pet name for journalist Pauline Pfieffer, his second wife. It’s also the name of the brave female guerilla leader in his heralded 1940 book “For Whom the Bell Tolls.” PILAR, the boat, was last homeported in Cojimar, Cuba, a fishing village east of Havana.
SYNTAX reportedly is named as a tribute to Hemmingway’s distinctive and clear writing voice. It also seemingly reflects the boat’s natural blend of 1930’s brawny flair with modern technology. Among other updates, SYNTAX reportedly has twin 1000-hp V-8 diesel engines (2000-hp output), a 960-gallon fuel tank and a Starlink communications system. Her indicated home port is Oak Island, a small island in Boothbay Harbor, Maine.
(Images taken in Brooklin, Maine, on May 20, 2026.)