There were a few items I thought it would be useful to touch upon in summary.
Muscongus Bay Let me start with the area I picked. Simply put,I am not sure why I had never discovered Muscongus Bay before,but it is a total gem. Beautiful islands and waterways,a mix of open and protected passages,and numerous lovely islands. It is a stunning spot. It was some compelling,in its own right,that when I got to Port Clyde and realized I could probably achieve my earlier plan of entering Penobscot Bay and exploring the Mussel Ridge Channel,I decided I’d rather stay in Muscongus and do it better. And I don’t regret that for a moment.
This leads me to muse,however:where was everyone?! It was the week of the Fourth of July,weather was amazing,and I ran into three other sets of campers (two on the first night,on a different island,and two using motor boats). I didn’t even see many cruising sailboats! How can people be missing this spot?! It makes no sense. People are missing out!
The Maine Island Trail I want to call out the Maine Island Trail Association again. This organization has created an absolutely first class resource and,in my limited experience,the standard by which water trails should be judged. There are many camp sites reflecting a variety of needs / desires of a party. Those I saw were well-maintained and well-chosen for convenience to the water. Better yet,they are generally spaced well-enough to ensure one can travel a long length of coast or explore an area deeply,without having to get far off the water. There is also a guide book and web site with detailed information on sites and an array of background and safety information.
Look,I am clearly not an expert in water trials,but they do fascinate me and I have done some research on some which are closer to home here in DC. The characteristics above seem like what you need in a true water trail:camping all along the trail,a long and/or deep possible voyage,and excellent resources for planning a trip and using the trail. I haven’t seen that elsewhere. The Patuxent Water Trail is close by and certainly covers a lovely stretch of water,but it offers only about three camping spots and those are all in one general area. The Captain John Smith Chesapeake National Historic Trail [gasp for breath] is really a collection of sites,with a few local trails,none of which have the same kind of water-convenient camping. I was able to find similar smatterings of not-really connected,not really camp-friendly trails in North Carolina. I know it isn’t easy to get trails done like MITA has,especially here in a more developed area. My point is not to criticize these other efforts as much as it is to hold up MITA’s stunning achievement as an example others should try to emulate. We need more trails like Maine’s and there are plenty of other waterways with strong potential.
AL DEMANY CHIMAN as a camp cruiser So,you may ask,how’d the boat do through all this? Overall,I’d say well. In her first heavy use,AL DEMANY CHIMAN proved a good boat for this purpose,though she was not without issues.
The good
Head-turning quotient –Oh let me have this one. The fact is that people all along the route took notice of AL DEMANY CHIMAN and we got many compliments. I definitely felt proud paddling around Muscongus Bay in this boat.
Stability –AL DEMANY CHIMAN proved plenty stable for my needs. With just me and my stuff,she showed no signs of capsize,even when encountering large wakes.
Dryness –In the whole trip there was only one case where AL DEMANY CHIMAN took water over side,and that was in a close hit by a pretty big lobster boat wake. She rode up over waves,as a skin-on-frame boat should.
Tracking in calm –The boat has a rocker,so it is not going to track spectacularly,but it wasn’t a problem when it was calm.
Capacity –I was able to load up the boat with five dry bags,and anchor bag,and bunch of water and still be plenty comfortable. If there had been two along it might have been tighter,but I still think it would have been doable.
Weight –This skin-on-frame boat definitely lived up to its weight advantages. In general I had to break the boat down (take off the iakos and ama) each night,but I could manage the main canoe hull (wa’a) alone,even on rocky beaches.
Durability –The skin took a few scratches from shells on the beaches,but none was remotely catastrophic.
Ease of paddling –See more on my speed below,but,overall,I was able to cover a good deal of ground,er,water,without working abnormally hard.
The bad
The ama –As I referenced in the introductory post,the ama needs a redo. The biggest issue was that,even after some judicious caulking,it still shipped a fair bit of water in any kind of chop,necessitating a trip to shallows for a dump-out. I could not go for any lengthy stretch without a shallow-water bail-out option. The fact is that it is hollow but uses the skin-on-frame medium,which creates a great many ways for water to get in (unlike,say,a strip-planked one). I am going to have to redesign the ama to be either solid (e.g.,with foam) or watertight (e.g.,with gobs of epoxy). I am leaning to the former. A re-working is also necessary because…
Tracking in a wind –When the breeze comes up,the boat tends to want to pivot such that it is not-quite broadside to the wind. Obviously this makes such passages a bit hard. I believe a good bit of the issue is that the ama rides with its aft end digging into the water too much. I need to re-do the aft iako connection and re-work the aft end of the ama.
My speed I kept a log of the trip and thus have a record of time and distance. I think my speed was fine. I think the boat has good characteristics in the regard,but with a single paddle,only so much driving force is possible. What was interesting is the consistency across days and distances,pretty much always two-and-change knots:
Overall,I am extremely pleased with the boat and the trip!
Spring is springing here in metro-Washington,DC and the waters will soon be calling the fleet to them. I have been focused on the sailing rig for AL DEMANY CHIMAN,the skin-on-frame outrigger canoe. I gave a hint of this in a prior post. Since then,the sail arrived (yeah!) and it looks great. Its arrival forced me to get going on the spars,which I have done. I have ensured my mast is nice and straight and rounded it off [editor's note:is there a better entry in the "boatbuilding phrases that sound dirty but aren't?" category? Didn't think so. Moving on...] and the boom is glued up and ready for similar treatment. I have built a chock for the steer-oar as well,which I will be fitting soon,I hope. Good progress,all told. Pictures soon.
I spent some of Easter afternoon painting the Peace Canoe,PEACE OF THE PUZZLE. I’ll be putting her on the market in short order. If anyone wants a hand-built,18′canoe,please let me know.
For those of you that have been following the progress of my skin-on-frame outrigger canoe,AL DEMANY CHIMAN,I thought I’d provide an update. I have gotten a sail-plan more or less in place,working with Todd Bradshaw of “Canoe Rig”fame.
I have added a boom from the original conception. It is now an Arabian lateen with a boom;please don’t call it a balanced lug. ;^) Unlike the drawing,the sail will not be laced to the boom. I hope it will be faux tanbark.
I have also begun work on building pieces of the sailing rig. I have a roughed out take on the leeboard,which I a proud to say uses a bunch of scrap wood I’d been itching to use. I expect it will still look great once sanded.
I had not been aware that in the Persian Gulf region they sail modern racing dhows. Imagine a sandbagger crossed with a traditional lateen rig crossed with modern construction and rigging. These look fun fun fun! Fusion of Tradition-y too.
High boat peeps. I am having a hard time tracking down leather for use in anti-chaffing capacities on AL DEMANY CHIMAN. I have found oar leather kits,but I need it less pre-prepared than that. Anyone have any good sources?
I have started inquiring about sailmakers for AL DEMANY CHIMAN’s rig. I have much less comfort with this process,so I am looking forward to working it through with someone. My inquiries turned up a consistent recommendation in this area:Dabbler Sails,on Virginia’s Northern Neck. I have an email in to proprietor Stuart Hopkins,so no idea if this will work out,but,based on his site,I certainly hope it does. Check out his portfolio. Good odds I am in the right place!
One of the questions people have had in looking at the skin-on-frame outrigger canoe AL DEMANY CHIMAN under construction was “will it hold more than just you?”I confidently said “I certainly hope it will take the whole family.”From the design,I was pretty confident she would be fine with us all aboard,and when I launched her and noted plenty of available freeboard with just me aboard I felt even better. A week ago Sunday,however,the theory got put to the test and the results were perfect.
We took the boat out to my favorite launching spot on Jug Bay on the Patuxent River,in Maryland. Its a spectacular spot –extensive wetland / forest preserve and not too heavily traveled. It was a stunning day,but the river was close to empty. We all go in Al DEMANY CHIMAN and she rode nice and high in the water. We set off upriver and she tracked well and moved along easily. The kids (8 1/2 and 6) played in the water and seemed comfortable in the center section while my wife manned the bow and I the stern. As we moved up-river multiple Vs of geese flew over and a water snake popped up to check us out before darting back underwater. When we got back to the ramp some kayakers were in and Al DEMANY CHIMAN got some nice compliments. It was a wonderful outing. I am really going to like this boat.
Our friend Tom over at 70.8 took a nice set of pictures at the Mid-Atlantic Small Craft Festival,including this one of yours truly at the helm of AL DEMANY CHIMAN. We actually met face-to-face for the first time,which was a hoot. You get a good feel for some of the other nice boats there.
Periodically I checked in with AL DEMANY CHIMAN and was thrilled to hear many compliments,some quite enthusiastic. What was hilarious was the reaction of people to the skin. Almost everyone asked what the material was and this was usually preceded by them touching it gently and tenuously like it was rice paper. It happened time and again and made me chuckle inside each time.
After an early lunch I got out on the water again in AL DEMANY CHIMAN. Light wind,bright sun,and pretty boats all around. The boat was a ton more fun in a more typical wind. She moves nicely and I got a bit better fell for her stability. Soon the sailboats came out for their race and just immersed myself in the fleet. Everywhere I looked there were gorgeous boats. After they started and headed off on a reach,I headed upwind,sat down on the floorboards,and just chilled out. It was wonderful.
On somewhat of a whim,I entered the rowing / paddling race. AL DEMANY’and I got our butts whooped by the kayakers and sliding seat rowers,but that was to be expected. It was fun,nonetheless.
So –a great day. There was a cherry on this sundae,though. The judges gave AL DEMANY CHIMAN second place in the paddling division. Obviously with this and the compliments I am feeling psyched with the reaction to my creation. Now I’ve got to make the most of the last of the season…
Friday,October 1,dawned overcast and blustery and remained so as I put the skin-on-frame outrigger canoe on top of the car and headed to a protected spot for a quick launch. Or saw I thought. I arrived at the small beach at Pohick Bay Regional Park to find that there was PLENTY of fetch over the marsh at the head of the bay for the gusty Nor’wester to build up a head of steam. Undeterred,and leaning on an interested passerby,I put the skin-on-frame outrigger canoe together on the beach and christened her AL DEMANY CHIMAN (“al”is “The”in Arabic;“demany”is “sail”in Malagasy;“chiman”is “canoe”in Algonkian). Let the record show that the sun was nowhere near the yardarm and I had to work later in the day. I christened her with orange seltzer.
He had a generally successful first voyage,though the wind made paddling a challenge. Light boat + high freeboard + solo paddler + some rocker in the keel = directional instability. But I am getting to know my new creation,and we’ll work out the kinks over time (the second and third voyages were a great success,but that’s another post…).
Thanks to the many who helped bring phase 1 of this project to a successful completion. I have already mentioned Robert Morris’s book “Building Skin-on-Frame Boats,”which provided the backbone of the knowledge for the project . Corey Freedman at Skinboats.org provided numerous bits of advice and the key skin materials. Gary Dierking’s “Building Outrigger Sailing Canoes”provided help with design guidance. Joe Youcha at the Alexandria Seaport Foundation provided some key thoughts on lumber. Several readers chipped in with encouragement and advice,which was great. Finally,I’ll single out Dan Sutherland and Rich Scofield at the Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum provided a wealth of skills and inspiration through their Apprentice for a Day program. I doubt I would have gone through with the project without the experiences I got there. Many thanks all.
Posted on July 16th,2011
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