A 14-year dream, in the form of a mammoth boat, is coming to fruition for Bryce Dinneen.

The boat, named Wish 4 Fish, is an 18-metre, custom built catamaran designed to provide access to the ocean for the one million New Zealanders living with illness and disability.

Bryce dreamt up the boat whilst lying on his back in the Burwood Spinal Unit in 2007, after a shallow water diving accident severely damaged his spinal cord.

His wish is to enable people to wake up at Mayor Island and watch the sunrise, regardless of their disability or illness.

Now, in the next six-to-eight weeks, it will all become possible when the alloy high displacement cat is launched for the first time.

Bryce says it will be a game changer for people living with physical or mental illness and disability.

'It's going to break down barriers for those people,” he says. 'It will empower them and their family members and give them some quality of life back.”

The $2.5 million boat is designed with wheelchair access in mind; the bathroom and kitchen provide full access, and there is a lift to the fly bridge so people can spend time with the skipper and enjoy the view.

It has space for up to 25 people with varying levels of disabilities and is able to be customised for day trips or overnight stays for four disabled people and their carers.

The stern is decked out with custom-made fishing equipment that enables independent angling for those with disabilities.

Wish 4 Fish will have screens on the main deck and fly bridge that connect to cameras on the mast and bow, to show marine life they encounter and dolphins playing in the bow wave.

Bryce says project manager Ray Lowe has done an amazing job of trying to understand what it's like living with a disability and accommodating for it.

'We've tried to make it so that the chair is king or queen of the boat,” says Ray.

'The boat is all about experience for people who may never have been on a boat before and may never go on a boat again. It's all about giving people the total experience.”

The build began in May last year at Alloy Cats in Mount Maunganui, and Bryce is looking forward to having it on the water.

Wish 4 Fish is named after the charity Bryce started in 2011 that provides people with access to the ocean, mainly through fishing trips.

Currently they take around 100 people a year on charters, but once the boat is launched they hope to be able to increase that to 1000.

Although the boat is based in Tauranga, it is designed to travel the country and built to withstand New Zealand's coastal conditions.

It will also be available for commercial charters, with all proceeds going towards running costs.

People interested in a trip or charter can contact Wish 4 Fish general manager Tony Pearce via: tony@wish4fish.co.nz