|  Posted on January 16th,2012I also read,in recent times,Tim Severin‘s “The Jason Voyage”,his attempt at following the mythical story of Jason and the Argonauts. He had a Bronze Age Aegean galley built using archeological evidence and historical texts.  This was the real deal –it would have banks of rowers toiling away and the characteristic “ram”bow. He set off from Greece and headed for the Dardanelles,following the legend’s trail and,once again,finding evidence that the myth may have been based on reality. Among the most fascinating aspects of the voyage was that it debunked the longstanding reason for it being myth:a vessel of that era could not have transited to notorious currents of the Dardanelles and Bosporus. Severin,though,figured out how to use back-eddies and other local nuances of the waterway to successful complete the trip from the Aegean to the Black Sea. Once there,the voyage continued to current-day Georgia,wherein Severin and crew “seal the deal”by identifying the likely source for the golden fleece as well as numerous other facts that match the stories. I was almost tempted to make this book second to The Brendan Voyage,if only because the myth-to-facts aspect of the book are so compelling. In the end,I gave The Sinbad Voyage the honor,but this is a close third. The year after he completed this voyage,Severin took the same boat on another voyage to trace Ulysses’s voyage in “The Odyssey”. That book is in the on-deck-circle on my bed-side table and I look forward to sharing a review with you all soon. Posted on January 15th,2012 I have had some time to sift through the back catalog here at Chine bLog headquarters and noted that I never covered a few key books I read in the last couple years. In particular,after knocking off Tim Severin‘s The China Voyage and then his The Brendan Voyage,I moved on to his some of his other like books. Severin’s trip in BRENDAN,the authentic 9th century curragh,got his wheels spinning,it seems,and he hit on another mythical journey to test:the adventures of Sinbad.  It was commonly accepted at the time (~1980),that these writings were pure myth. Severin arranged to build a replica 9th century dhow in Oman,scouring the Arabian Sea shores for period materials,especially the coconut husk fiber builders of the day used to lash the boat together. Yes,these were plank–on-frame boats that were fully lashed. He and a crew then sailed the boat from Oman to China,identifying sources for the supposedly mythical elements and,thereby,suggesting the Sinbad stories may have been based on an amalgamation of true events.
The first quarter or so of the book is all about the boat and its materials,and that alone makes it worth reading. The actual voyage is not as gripping as that of the BRENDAN,but it is still an engaging story. If you haven’t read any Severin,I’d start with The Brendan Voyage and then grab this one immediately afterwards. Here is a summary piece if you need more convincing. Posted on October 26th,2011 On Sunday afternoon I took AL DEMANY CHIMAN out for probably the last time this season. It was a stunning Fall day and there were only a few other folks out with me on the Patuxent River. There were some birds about and a couple fish jumping,but,for the most part,things were quiet and autumnal. As I put the boat back on the car and drove home I reflected on what a great boating season it has been. The story of the season was obviously AL DEMANY CHIMAN. This was her first full season in existence and she gave me all I had hoped she would. From the first paddles in May,she continued to prove light and easy to transport. She took the whole family out and did fine (except for the part where we all leaned to starboard) and even carried my boss and colleagues. From there she carried me and five days gear around Muscongus Bay,ME in what will go down as one of my great voyages. This is the adventure she was built for,whether I had articulated it or not,and she served me fabulously. The heat of summer and my desire to complete the sailing rig slowed us some,but when September arrived,AL DEMANY CHIMAN became my social yacht. I had some great outings with friends and,a couple times,with friends and sons. She proved a great draw and a fun boat for talking or for fishing. Throughout all these interactions,I was thrilled with the reception AL DEMANY CHIMAN got. I have been so touched by the clearly sincere compliments she has received. People have been drawn to her and it has been thrilling to see and hear. It will now be a long wait for the Spring… Posted on October 3rd,2011 Toward the end of the day Saturday,I happened to be on hand when John Harris,father of Chesapeake Light Craft,took a spin in one of the two cocktail class racers that were about. For those who don’t know,these boats are 8′plywood outboard boats that barely hold a single man. They go fast and have a devoted following. John was getting into the boat and setting of when one fo the other guys from CLC yelled out “John! Stop! You’re in the wrong boat! It has a MOTOR! [as John heads out] Uhhh…he’s gone to the dark side.”LOL. John came back after an out-and-back run looking somewhat exhilerated and more than mildly terrified. In the next three minutes I heard him say “the steering is really an art”no less than five times with his eyes the size of bulkhead ports. I wouldn’t be holding your breath for the CLC cocktail class kit. Posted on October 2nd,2011 I wanted to get these pictures of the 2011 Mid-Atlantic Small Craft Festival up right away;I’ll be adding captions soon. [UPDATE] Captions are now on there. I encourage you to browse through. There were some AMAZING AMAZING boats there. I’d highlight the sailing canoe SEVEN STARS,the Melonseeds,the sailing canoe in pictures 4 and 31,and,of course,the Coquina. Posted on October 1st,2011 
For those scoring at home,your 2011 Mid-Atlantic Small Craft Festival sailing race winner was a Sunfish. A non-traditional,plastic boat –kinda violates my sensibilities. But well done. I am eager to get going with the paddling race as it is COLD here in St. Michael’s,MD. [UPDATE] It was me and four kayaks. I got shallaced…again. Time to get my double paddle working with this boat (tried once and I could get my position right). At least the race committee noted I was the only single paddle and called me my own class. So they gave me recognition. Posted on October 1st,2011 Posted on October 1st,2011 
It’s a chilly,breezy day here,but a kayak with amas and a bat-wing sail is out on the water and a few other folks and getting their boats ready. Getting ready to do a serious tour. Posted on July 16th,2011 This is a continuation of the story of my 2011 camp cruise in my skin-on-frame outrigger canoe AL DEMANY CHIMAN (the introductory post and map is here). 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. In the meantime,get out on the Maine Island Trail and support MITA! 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! Posted on July 14th,2011 This is a continuation of the story of my 2011 camp cruise in my skin-on-frame outrigger canoe AL DEMANY CHIMAN (the introductory post and map is here). Day 3,In which we log some miles
On day 3 I awoke –still groggy –at 7:45! I didn’t get on the water until 10:00,a pretty poor performance. The rest of the day was to make up or it. My original plan was to paddle up some intriguing looking narrow passages to Friendship,then head west back into the main body of the bay and up the Medomak River to Hungry Island. I set out as planned between Friendship Long Island and Cranberry Island,the first narrow passage I had seen. The tide was dead low,so it was an especially narrow waterway,but no problem for us. It was one of those gunkholing experiences that make camp cruising so exciting. When I got to the end,though,and glanced to the east and realized,in consulting the chart,that the northern set of Georges Islands were not far away. I decided to follow the next narrow passage,between Friendship Long Island and Morse,and the circle around the north side of Morse to emerge back in the same bay by Gay Island. This I did,feeling excited that the weather was again letting me get further afield. As I passed south of Caldwell,enjoying the day fully,I again looked east and saw that Port Clyde was not a great stretch more. I needed water anyway,and,in stopping there,I could tag the eastern edge of Muscongus Bay. I pushed on and bummed water,inadvertently,from the owner of a private dock. Not my fault you have your own dock that looks like a small marina,pal! Actually he was very gracious and impressed by my voyage. I spun back out of Port Clyde in a freshening breeze and hard a long pull across the mouth of the St. Georges River. I had noted another interesting narrow passage,Pleasant Point Gut,and the tide more than made this stunning channel accessible to me. I still had barely stopped for a rest,never mind lunch,but I pushed on towards Friendship as the afternoon was creeping by. I finally grabbed a quick bit at the northern tip of Friendship Long Island,gazing out at the only Friendship Sloop to be seen there. Under still sunny skies and a solid afternoon breeze,I headed through Friendship Harbor,buzzing a nice-looking motorsailer,and west to Martin Point and the Medomak. There I turned mostly down wind and had an easy final couple miles to Hungry Island,arriving at 5:30 tired,but not exhausted. Again I was alone and again the spot was pretty,with views across to some small islands and,to the side,down the bay. I unhurriedly pitched camp and then glanced through the trees to the west to see ominous clouds. NOAA was reporting severe storms to the south,but I just got rain and nearby thunder. The weather coming in created some amazing clouds,though. Day 4,In which we steal away,again,to Thief Island
Day 4 dawned foggy,but,with the sun clearly peaking out,did not remain that way. I headed north up the Medomak River as far as Havener Island,a small MITA island that looked really cool but would have been hard to land on with AL DEMANY CHIMAN. I spent the rest of the morning heading down Hockomock Channel,staying on the Bremen Long Island Shore,before getting to Strawberry Island for lunch before noon. Tons of mussel shoals exposed at lower tides there made the area particularly interesting (and muddy when one stepped off the boat). I set off with a stronger northwest wind mostly behind me,crossing down to Thief Island again with little issue. Thief is a stunning island,particularly in a nice,clearing northwesterly. It is in the middle of the bay and is high enough to afford views well up the bay and off to the east and west. I was alone,as before,and was able to select a lovely camp site right on the bluff above the rocky beach. I walked around the island,greatly annoying an osprey on the nest,and catching sweeping views to the south. I got treated to a lovely sunset before climbing into bed and falling asleep to a loon calling. Day 5,In which all good things…
Day 5 was again calm,but more overcast. I got ready and headed southwest through Marsh Harbor,around Ross Island (toward the mouth of the bay) and then north along Louds Island toward Round Pond. I dawdled,trying to find interesting wildlife amidst the kelp beds,but nothing showed itself. At mid-day I paddled into Round Pond again,ogled some nice boats,and brought to end,nearly 55 miles later,one amazing voyage. I strongly recommend others try this kind of trip. | |
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