Chine bLog - 2A. Canoes & Kayaks

The Center for Wooden Boats - Part 3: Build a sweet baidarka

nospam@example.com (Tim) — Sun, 22 Jun 2008 14:55:00 +0200

My very first finding at the Center for Wooden Boats, even before my Cape Ann dory sail and my close-up with Haida dugout canoes, was the biggest surprise. I walked into the Center and was immediately confronted by a few folks working away on some skin-on-frame Aleut baidarkas. It sure looked like a class, and indeed it was. Holy smokes, I thought, this place runs boatbuilding classes too? It does offer boatbuilding classes - lots - and a bunch of other kinds of classes too.

It seems they have run this class before, as there were a few finished baidarkas on the floats. I found these to be really lovely kayaks. I confess I am much more a fan of other forms of kayaks - some baidarkas just look funny to me - but these ones worked really well. The class was doing a fantastic job too. They were building the boats entirely with pegs and lashing and the details were great. I was particularly struck by the bows.

It seems that the various classes run the mix from being day or weekend classes to full-week ones, like this baidarka one. This would be a great destination. We haven't even touched on Puget Sound beyond...

Location: Kodiak, AK, USA

The Center for Wooden Boats - Part 2: Real Haida dugout canoes!

nospam@example.com (Tim) — Sun, 22 Jun 2008 04:47:00 +0200

Hopefully you enjoyed my last post on my first rental experience at the the Center for Wooden Boats in Seattle. Let me now step back to some of the other treasures I saw there.

I thought they might have a Haida dugout canoe there, and I was itching to see a real one. They do not, though, have one. They have two and quarter. Behold.

They had one in the water; I am not sure if it is open for rent (though I will be asking next time). It is one fine-looking chunk of cedar, though, eh? I find these boats beautiful, not just for the lines, but also for the artwork. Native Northwest art is incredible, and seeing it on a boat is seeing it in a truly natural form.

The second canoe was up on land; not sure what its status is. Her artwork is well displayed, though:

Continue reading "The Center for Wooden Boats - Part 2: Real Haida dugout canoes!"

Sweet Hawaiian sailing canoes - The Hawaiian Sailing Canoe Association [Hawaii, USA]

nospam@example.com (Tim) — Thu, 20 Mar 2008 02:57:37 +0100

I came upon the site for the Hawaiian Sailing Canoe Association tonight. Mostly info about their race series, but they do have a nice photo gallery that is worth looking at. Looks like these boats absolutely fly - I need to try one.

Photo by Terry Galpin

Location: Hawaii, USA

Welcome to the world Canoe Sailing Magazine!

nospam@example.com (Tim) — Thu, 24 Jan 2008 02:59:00 +0100

Some of our kindred spirits have been hard at work. Canoe Sailing Magazine has launched online - congrats to the proud authors! I just noticed its birth just this evening and haven't looked at it much, but I am fairly confident I won't live to regret giving it the Chine bLog stamp of approval in the form of a place in our Honor Roll and RSS reader. Todd Bradshaw, he of Canoe Rig fame, seems to be in the mix, so I'm in based on that alone. This looks fantastic, folks - well done!

Iraqi wooden boats part II - more canoes of the Ma'dan

nospam@example.com (Tim) — Sun, 20 Jan 2008 03:23:00 +0100

As I have said before, we bloggers are easy to please: give us a nice comment and we are set for a couple weeks. I was thus thrilled with the comment Suzie Alwash left on my recent post on the traditional wooden canoes of the Ma'dan (Marsh Arabs) of todays Southern Iraq. Suzie gave us great additional information, including the type of boat: "mashhoof" and construction. Sweet! Suzie should know. She is Senior Project Advisor with a project called Eden Again, dedicated to restoring the marshlands of Mesopotamia. In other words, she knows the area well and is just back from there. The best part - yes, there is more than her informative comment - is her offer of more photos. Needless to say, I gladly accepted and am happy to share them below on her behalf (if you enjoy them, you might thank her by seeing how you can help her organization).

Incidentally, these marshes and their restoration seem to be much in the news. Here is an article today from The Times.

Location: Al Chabaish, Iraq

To Iraq - traditional canoes of the Ma'dan

nospam@example.com (Tim) — Sun, 13 Jan 2008 04:10:09 +0100

So I am going to wade into Iraq. Oh if you want to hear about the war, you're at the wrong blog; I think there are about 3 million others who can oblige you on that one. No, we are staying true to topic here at Chine bLog. As I often say, cool boats show up in all kinds of places. I opened the recent issue of Zoogoer, the magazine of the National Zoo here in DC, and I came upon an article on restoring ruined wetlands. In it was a shot of a nice looking wooden canoe which is the traditional craft of the Ma'dan (also called the Marsh Arabs). Welcome to Iraq coverage, Chine bLog style.

US Army Corps photo

You may recall hearing of the Ma'dan in the more prominent Iraq talk - they have lived in the wetlands at the confluence of the Tigris and Euphrates rivers for millennia. Saddam Hussein drained these marshes in the 1990's as retribution for an uprising and basically put a huge crimp on the life style of the Ma'dan. The marshes are now coming back, and that means a return of Ma'dan traditions. Well, if you live in a marsh, you need boats. And in narrow, shallow channels, you want a canoe. These are some nice ones.

Photo courtesy of Land and Water Magazine

Actually, the image above is taken from a bad angle and doesn't show the spectacular sheer line evidenced in the picture in the magazine. The picture here gives a bit better sense - the up-swept ends are stunning. The builders - who I am sure do this by eye and feel - definitely nail these. They are clearly well-suited to their task but also, like so many traditional craft, show that artistry is always in the mix. That warms my heart.

It wasn't clear to me how these boats were constructed. I was initially guessing dugouts, but was having trouble picturing sufficient trees in that area. I was able to find one picture though, courtesy of our good friends at NPR, that shows a little of the construction. Basically the boats are flat-bottomed with planked sides. It looks like there might be a large number of ribs / frames with exterior and interior planking. They have some athwartships members for support, but they are mostly open - these are work boats, after all. There is also some kind of substance - not sure what it is - used for sealing and structural support. Some kind of clay - anyone know? Always some new twists. Needless to say, I dig these boats.

Location: Al Chabaish, Iraq

Dugout canoe from the Congo River basin

nospam@example.com (Tim) — Fri, 14 Dec 2007 03:52:33 +0100

One of my favorite web sites is that for the African Wildlife Foundation (full disclosure: it was designed and build by my company, Forum One Communications). It is packed full of gorgeous images, but I kept running into one that stuck with me, for obvious reasons.

This, my friends, is a lovely dugout canoe from the Congo River basin in central Africa. The canoe represents AWF's programs in its Congo Heartland (protecting wildlife means partnering with the communities of the area) and conveys that message well, but I just love how the boat looks. The long overhang and subtle, up-swept sheer - Mmm-mmm-mmm. Once again, people in the region have built these boats for centuries for transport and fishing, but they did not sacrifice grace and beauty in the "design."

(More on the image)

Location: Bongandonga, Congo

More on proa racing in the Marshall Islands - videos on YouTube

nospam@example.com (Tim) — Mon, 10 Dec 2007 01:46:31 +0100

Location: Majuro, Marshall Islands

The other night, I added a post about the return of proa racing to the Marshall Islands. Don't you know, then, that days later, we now have some video of the 2001 races. "aqlunafoo" added a post to the Proa-file yahoo group with four interesting videos. Many thanks!

Here are some race videos. As with much on YouTube, it is really a music video, with the ame footage repeated a few time. No matter, its well done and show the boats going through their paces. They look like a blast.

Here is another video, this of a bigger boat from the Marshalls. This looks like it might be a fishing boat, but it is clear it is pretty fast. Another gem here.

Check it out - the kite-proa

nospam@example.com (Tim) — Thu, 29 Nov 2007 04:52:28 +0100

The Proa File Yahoo! Group has an interesting discussion around one member's experimental kite-powered proa. It seems to be an interesting concept with kinks still enmeshed. The first post includes a link to some videos, which aren't as dramatic as I had hoped. It isn't clear how fast the boat was going, but it seems less than I expected. It was a shake-down cruise, though...

The 2007 Peace Canoe project - an index

nospam@example.com (Tim) — Sat, 17 Nov 2007 04:31:20 +0100

I decided it might be helpful for folks that are coming to see info about my Peace Canoe, PEACE OF THE PUZZLE, to have a little better overview page for the project. Below, therefore, please find a list of all the related posts, along with the topics covered.

Walking the walk - a wooden boat (Peace Canoe) for Chine bLog! - Rationale for choosing to build this boat right now.
Beginning work on the Peace Canoe - Materials, making seats, and cutting the chine logs.
More on the Peace Canoe - scarfing sheer clamps and chine logs - Some pointers on scarfing the sheer clamps and chine logs, but please read this one in partnership with the entry below on issues I had.
The Peace Canoe progresses - have plywood, will start cuttin' - Cutting out plywood side panels and using butt-blocks to create the full panel length. Includes problems with the butt-block method.
The Peace Canoe gets seats and gets closer to full sides - Seat unit construction and fitting chine logs to stem and sternpost.
Building the Peace Canoe - time on the Moaning Chair - Problems in scarfing; problems with stems / sternpost bevels; repairing sheer clamps.
Back in business - the Peace Canoe - Fitting the bottom.
Structurally complete! The Peace Canoe gets a bottom - Pictures of the boat before final finishing.
Getting closer - ready to paint the Peace Canoe - Picture of the boat pre-painting.
And that's a wrap! The Peace Canoe is complete! - Pictures of the completed boat in the yard, with better close-ups that the ones below.
Successful christening and launch of the Peace Canoe! - pictures of the boat on the beach and underway.
Initial performance thoughts on the Peace Canoe - What is the Peace Canoe like as a boat?

I hope this series is fun and useful! Enjoy PEACE OF THE PUZZLE!

Movie you need to see: "Ten Canoes"

nospam@example.com (Tim) — Tue, 13 Nov 2007 01:54:00 +0100

Here's a movie you Chine bLog readers should see: "Ten Canoes." The movie recounts an Australian Aboriginal myth, highlighting the culture and practices of the people of far Northern Australia in the process. It is another in the genre of movie that features actual members of an indigenous community in the area where the film is set. I happen to go for this type - these "untrained actors" always do an amazing job and, in this case as well as others, create a lovely tale.

Here is the bonus: as the title suggests, local traditional canoes, and the making of them, play a hefty "supporting actor" role. I clipped the image here from the movie site. They are bark canoes (the tree species is not identified). The builders basically cut around the circumference of the trunk at the bottom and then make another cut around it about 15 feet for so up the trunk. Apparently it has to be the right season so the bark is supple. They then cut a straight line down the trunk, thus allowing them to unroll a roughly 15 foot buy three foot sheet. As best I could tell, they then stitch the ends together, stitching two rows in the bow to create a flat surface. Somewhere in here they also some branches as athwartship "frames." Finally, they cut the bow shape out of the stitched end. Voila, a bark canoe, down-under style.

As I have mentioned before, I am always impressed to see how different boaters around the world design their craft...

Continue reading "Movie you need to see: "Ten Canoes""

Successful christening and launch of the Peace Canoe!

nospam@example.com (Tim) — Sun, 14 Oct 2007 21:36:00 +0200

Gorgeous October day here outside DC, a perfect day to be on the water. Gulls and an osprey wheeling about, gusty nor'wester keeping things clear and cool, the pleasant surroundings of Mason Neck State Park (map) - just the environment to christen and launch the Peace Canoe. So christen it we did (the kids helped), using the very nastiest champaign I could inadvertently pick up. She is now PEACE OF THE PUZZLE. Enjoy some pictures of her first outing (we were lucky enough to come upon some friendly kayakers, one of whom took our picture and was kind enough to send it).

Thank you to all who have read about PEACE OF THE PUZZLE's birth and provided encouragement along the way. It was a blast and I look forward to some great family adventures ahead!

Initial performance thoughts on the Peace Canoe

nospam@example.com (Tim) — Sun, 14 Oct 2007 21:33:00 +0200

So we have a short paddle in PEACE OF THE PUZZLE under our belts now. I spent a couple months building it (a few have asked me for hours - I have no idea, but it was a good many) - aftre all that work, what is this boat like? Obviously I'll need much more time to assess, but some initial thoughts:

Strengths:

Appearance - The Peace Canoe is a pretty boat, no question about it, particularly in the water. We got compliments on and off the water, including things like "unusual," in a very complimentary sense. I expect we'll get noticed in this boat for the right reasons.
Stability - This boat will be a good family boat. I am fairly confident that one could have half the Rockettes do a kick-line on the starboard rail and she wouldn't go over. In more practical terms, this means a good boat for a family with young children (check) and a good boat for fishing (seems like a good idea).
Tracking - Of course being long and not very rockered, the boat seems to track pretty well.

Weaknesses:

Weight - The boat is a lot heavier than I expected it would be. It is basically unmanageable alone, and even my wife and I, two reasonably strong adults, had to work a bit to put it on the car.
Beam - The stability is a plus, but it comes from being quite beamy. With the sides flared as they are, the boat actually does not fit upside down on our standard car roof-rack. It rode OK right-side up, but I wasn't wildly comfortable with it like that. I will need to get some additional attachments, and it will be fine, but it isn't as car-topable as it might seem.
Freeboard - Maybe it is a function of the weight, but with four of us in the boat - and two of us are small children - the boat sat deeper in the water than I expected, leaving less freeboard than I might like for more open water. I had been planning on trips in the Bay and such, but I will be a bit more cautious for those ventures. This may be more of a true flatwater boat.

More as I learn more... In particular, I haven't gotten much of a feel for core paddling ability. The weight seems like a slowing factor, but we'll see.

And that's a wrap! The Peace Canoe is complete!

nospam@example.com (Tim) — Sat, 13 Oct 2007 22:53:00 +0200

I have spent much of my free daylight hours over the last couple weeks putting paint on the Peace Canoe. Today, at about 10:30 AM local, I made some final touch-ups and called her done.

Obviously there are little things that make me cringe (that only I will likely notice, for the most part), but on the whole, I am pleased with the boat. If I do say so, the colors work well. I agonized a bit on this point, so it is good that the results are so positive.

Part of the reason the results are so good is that the design is a good one. I had moved the boat into the front yard to paint (we have an oak the rains acorns), and as I began to see the boat from a shallow angle on the port side, I began to fall in love with the sheer.

Well done, John Harris.

By the way, I wish I had moved to the front yard months ago. I have gotten tons of complements from folks walking by (we live on a main path to the local coffee shop), as well as several drive-bys (including a "Damn! Good job, sir!" from a dude in a utility van). It has been a thrill. Of course, if I had been working there earlier, there may have been more commentary on the work in progress ("yes, I DO know that that piece is cracked!!!")...

Boats of Lake Malawi (Lake Nyasa), Africa

nospam@example.com (Tim) — Thu, 04 Oct 2007 04:06:19 +0200

We bloggers tend to pay a great deal of attention to our web stats - page views, visitors, visits, etc. It is a tangible validation that somebody is paying attention. Or, in my case, 50-75 somebodies a month, pretty consistently (you know who you are). One area I am always eager to see is the geographic location of visitors. A visitor from a new country - even just one person - is such an exciting and exotic touch-point. It sends me looking for more on a theretofore less known land

Tonight was no different, and tonights treat was a visit from Malawi, in Southern Africa. Why so interesting, it being land-locked and all? Ah, but it sits astride Lake Malawi (also Lake Nyasa), one of the largest lakes in Africa (in fact, 9th largest in the world). I figure any large body of water must be navigated, and I was curious to see what kinds of boats one would find there. There weren't many sources to find, but I did get a couple good glimpses via Vintage Africa Safari's site.

Click to enlarge

It appears that the boats are a mix of pirogue-type flat-bottomed canoes and dugout canoes. The dugouts are interesting in that they are shorter and more enclosed than others I have seen. They appear to keep more of the top of the log, giving the boats pronounced tumblehome and not a ton of room for the crew. It would be fascinating to know more about why this is the case - the nature of available wood? Something about the fishing techniques on the lake? Custom? Please comment if you can add any insight here.

By the way, Malawi looks beautiful and the lake appears to have some small boat touring going on. Add this one to the list...

Location: Monkey Bay, Malawi

Getting closer - ready to paint the Peace Canoe

nospam@example.com (Tim) — Tue, 02 Oct 2007 03:27:03 +0200

And after a couple weeks of planing and sanding and one final clean-up, she is ready to paint. Voila!

I have also chosen the colors, not an easy task for me. She will look something like this:

Structurally complete! The Peace Canoe gets a bottom

nospam@example.com (Tim) — Sun, 09 Sep 2007 03:40:00 +0200

And then, after a final push, in the gathering twilight, the Peace Canoe had a bottom. And that, gentle readers, means she is structurally complete. Houston, we have a boat!

Just a whole lotta planning and sanding, plus a mother lode of plastic wood, and we will be cracking open a paint can or four!

Rediscovering Never Sea Land and its ULUA in progress

nospam@example.com (Tim) — Sat, 08 Sep 2007 04:21:00 +0200

I have written before (with admiration) of Gary Dierking's ULUA, a sailing outrigger canoe. I recently noticed a comment from David over at Never Sea Land, one of Chine bLog's sister blogs in this space. It turns out he is building an ULUA, and is blogging about it. This category is also interspersed with a variety of useful links of outrigger canoes. David, great looking effort, keep up the good work. Consider your RSS fed.

Back in business - the Peace Canoe

nospam@example.com (Tim) — Sat, 01 Sep 2007 03:19:00 +0200

At long last, I believe I have the sheer clamps replaced in a working manner. Man, oh man, was that an mistake that added time to the project! Just getting the broken ones off took several nights of careful digging for the nails with a tack-puller and cutting the goop with a utility knife. Exhausting and frustrating. But, I persevered. And now, I am ready to move forward!

So it looks pretty good. That there is a boat. So let's see... what next...

Continue reading "Back in business - the Peace Canoe"

Building the Peace Canoe - time on the Moaning Chair

nospam@example.com (Tim) — Mon, 06 Aug 2007 03:55:09 +0200

At the beginning of Howard Chapelle's seminal tome Boatbuilding, there is a 4-page introduction in which Chapelle goes through the entire building process at a 10,000' level. After talking through getting out molds, cutting the rabbet, and installing deck beams, Chapelle devotes the final paragraph to a subject that one must assume is of equal importance to the others: the "moaning chair." He writes:

In every amateur boatbuilder's shop there should be a "moaning chair"; this should be a comfortable seat from which the boat can be easily seen and in which the builder can sit, smoke, chew, drink, or swear as the moment demands.

I raise this, obviously, because I have had to spend some time in my own "moaning chair" of late, and since I don't smoke or chew and had already had my nightly beer, it was swearing that was the business of the day.

You will notice two things in this recent picture. On the good news front, I finally have attached the seats to one side panel unit and then attached the other side panel unit to the opposite sides of the seats and brought both sides together at the stem and stern post. In doing that, I should have been working with completed side panel units, chine log and sheer clamp attached. So what are those clamps doing along the sheer, you may ask? Therein lies a tale...

Continue reading "Building the Peace Canoe - time on the Moaning Chair"

The Peace Canoe gets seats and gets closer to full sides

nospam@example.com (Tim) — Fri, 13 Jul 2007 04:53:40 +0200

Voila, the seats are ready. I have been working on them at night or during glue cures, and they have come along well. Here is the middle one. The plans specify cut-outs on the ends of the seats; I added my own flavor of these cut-outs.

I have also installed both chine logs, and last night the bow and stern stems on one side. Here is my handiwork on the bevel for the chine logs meeting the stems, since I moved them inboard. It wasn't too bad to cut and my joints are close enough. I am ready to begin the process of attaching the seats to one side panel and then the other. Stay tuned...

Relief - The Smithsonian Folklife Festival delivers

nospam@example.com (Tim) — Sun, 01 Jul 2007 05:04:00 +0200

I called out the Smithsonian Folklife Festival recently and I am pleased to say I was wrong. There was indeed an exhibit on traditional boatbuilding along the Mekong, albeit one boat from one group of people. It was not a total loss, so bravo for not having the big miss I initially suspected.

The exhibit in question featured a group of Bahnar people from West-central Vietnam [Editor's later addition: strictly speaking, it seems these people do not live on the Mekong]. They were build a traditional log canoe using a decidedly untraditional, for them, poplar log. There is a great write-up in the Washington Post on their story of getting to and being at the festival. Suffice it to say they are a remote people and this was a big voyage into very unfamiliar territory.

Continue reading "Relief - The Smithsonian Folklife Festival delivers"

The Peace Canoe progresses - have plywood, will start cuttin'

nospam@example.com (Tim) — Fri, 29 Jun 2007 03:59:00 +0200

So I got the plywood, some good quality, from what I can tell, marine fir. That in hand, it was time to start getting big pieces together, starting with the sides.

The plans call for five 4x8 sheets of 1/4" plywood, 2 1/3 of which go into the sides. The Getting Started in Boats write-up assumes one has a nice, big, level area on which to do the layout. I was using our lawn, that leaves a bit to be desired in the "level" dept. To keep things in line, I used clamps to keep the sheets aligned while I plotted the side panels. I was blessed with a) having spline weights from my design dabbling and b) having a nice off-cut of 12' 1x that was a perfect batten. I had to pend a bunch of time and hands-and-knees with a straightedge and pencil, but I was able to get the sides out fairly easily.

Continue reading "The Peace Canoe progresses - have plywood, will start cuttin'"

More on the Peace Canoe - scarfing sheer clamps and chine logs

nospam@example.com (Tim) — Sun, 24 Jun 2007 04:42:00 +0200

While I wait on the plywood I have been preparing the sheer clamps and chine logs, which I took out of 10' and 12' 1x. I thus have had to - and the write-up in Getting Started in Boats assumes this - scarf pieces together for these fore-and-aft members. I am not a very steady had with a hand-saw - though I finally bought a Japanese saw and am in heaven with it - so I developed this system where I find the angle, clamp a guide to the main piece, and cut along the guide. That has worked well.

I was worried about keeping the pieces of the joint from slipping around in the process. I decided I would reinforce the joint with nails anyway, so I decided to drive them just enough to provide a little bite to help hold the pieces. Bingo - pretty good joints, all.

Beginning work on the Peace Canoe

nospam@example.com (Tim) — Mon, 18 Jun 2007 03:38:45 +0200

I have begun gathering the lumber and hardware for the Peace Canoe project. It is, by the way, AMAZINGLY difficult to find appropriate plywood. Even specialty places around here - and while we are not a maritime center here in DC, we aren't land-locked, either - seemed to have a hard time once "marine grade" entered the equation. Then the quotes that came back suggested that multiple people didn't know what they were talking about. The designer, Chesapeake Light Craft, actually sells Okoume for a pretty reasonable price (though I just can't bring myself to go there for this boat). I hope I don't regret the decision...

I did have pretty good luck with the other material. I managed to find - in Home Depot, no less - some straight, pretty clear pine that I am some way through turning into sheer clamps and chine logs. I also have turned out the seat supports.

Continue reading "Beginning work on the Peace Canoe"

Beautiful sailing canoe via intheboatshed

nospam@example.com (Tim) — Wed, 13 Jun 2007 02:40:49 +0200

Our friend Gavin at intheboatshed highlighted a beautiful Iain Oughtred sailing canoe today. Definitely worth a look.

Walking the walk - a wooden boat (Peace Canoe) for Chine bLog!

nospam@example.com (Tim) — Sun, 10 Jun 2007 03:08:13 +0200

So here is the situation: as I have mentioned I have a family with small children. I get to go out in my kayak sometimes, but if we had our own boat, I would get out much more because it can be a family activity. Rentals are possible, but leave things to chance (availability) and limit expeditions to a few places. There wasn't much interesting on Craig's List, and I was having a hard time thinking about adding ANOTHER non-wooden boat to the family fleet. Buying a wooden one was too expensive and I don't have the room to build one I'd really want. T'was a conundrum.

What I needed was to find a easily built boat - meaning I could pull it off over short period of time in my back yard - that didn't seem bland or non-functional. I admit this was a tall order - I am a bit snobby on this front. Well, fate began to intervene recently in the form of the recent two issues of Getting Started in Boats, WoodenBoat's companion publication. Volume 3 of this new publication came a couple months ago showing the Peace Canoe, a design by John Harris of Chesapeake Light Craft. I admit - again - I dismissed it as another boat that was great for getting people started building, but wasn't, ahem, a "real" boat (yes, I will get over myself at some point). Volume 4 the arrived recently, just as I was chewing on the dilemma above. I looked again. I studied it a bit more. I started to like its lines. Lo and behold, it fit the bill.

Continue reading "Walking the walk - a wooden boat (Peace Canoe) for Chine bLog!"

Stunning traditional boat images by San Francisco's Lisa Kristine

nospam@example.com (Tim) — Wed, 16 May 2007 03:13:48 +0200

I recently had to go to a conference in Sonoma, CA. It was a rough assignment, what with all that wine tasting, but I managed to pull through. Along the way I stumbled on the gallery of Lisa Kristine, a San Francisco-based photographer. Ms. Kristine specializes in images of indigenous peoples and the nice thing about this subject is that one tends to capture great boats in the process of studying the people. And that Ms. Kristine has done. I offer some samples below, but go to her site to view them all (select the Water image) - you will not be disappointed (and may be moved to buy one - I am looking into it...).

First up, a nice sail in a lanteen rigged boat off Zanzibar, Tanzania... get in before that weather comes, fellas!

Continue reading "Stunning traditional boat images by San Francisco's Lisa Kristine"

A final sighting - for now - at Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum

nospam@example.com (Tim) — Tue, 17 Apr 2007 04:13:44 +0200

A final note from Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum - I mentioned Dan Sutherland below. I parked, not yet beknownst to me, next to his truck, which had an interesting looking boat on top of it. I was pretty sure I correctly pegged it as a replica of an old sailing canoe, and right I was. Here she is, I believe:

There is more about this beautiful boat at the American Canoe Association's National Sailing Committee site.

Incidentally, you heard it here first: in about 10 hours, Gavin over at intheboatshed.net is going to set the world hyperlinking speed record in putting this site up there. ;^) I just know we're kindred spirits on this one...

Location: Hammondsport, NY, USA

A new find - Vintas of the Southern Philippines

nospam@example.com (Tim) — Wed, 28 Feb 2007 03:50:20 +0100

In my effort to expand my knowledge of traditional craft from around the world I have resorted to deep, scientific inquiry: Google. And that led me to a definitive source: Wikipedia. I tell you - nothing but serious primary research here on Chine bLog! Anyway, I was looking in a few different directions, and discovered that Wikipedia has a list of rigs at the bottom its pages on the subject, e.g., this one on Dhows. Through that, I came upon the Vinta, a traditional double outrigger sailing craft from the Southern Philippines. I couldn't find much additional info, but these look like neat boats. Cool sails. Here are a couple models for sale.

Location: Davao, Philippines

Hidden gems - sailing canoes on intheboatshed.net

nospam@example.com (Tim) — Sun, 25 Feb 2007 04:18:11 +0100

Of course, Gavin Atkin over at intheboatshed.net has posted like 50 times since my last one, and there is what I am coming to realize is the usual array of interesting stuff in there. I was particularly interested to see Gavin's discussion of sailing canoes. He begins:

One of the biggest surprises Ive had during the short life of intheboatshed.net has been the level of interest in sailing canoes and canoe yawls: posts on these attract more attention than almost any others.

I agree that there is a small, burning need in a group of people to get more of a taste for traditional small sailing craft. At Chine bLog, I get lots of interest in my discussions of Iain Oughtred craft. Of course that could be because the good man has no web site and there are only a handful where one can find much of anything....

As my two-to-three long-time readers know, I am fully in the camp of people have a thing for boats like these sailing canoes. So it was with much excitement that I found that Gavin had unearthed a set of lines drawings for a number of sailing canoes from various eras. On a quick glance, some really good stuff. This is courtesy of, as far as I can tell, the Canadian arm of the International Canoe Federation's site. I am eager to explore this more, but here is a nice sample:

This would be Wren, by Rushton, always a nice place to start. Here are the lines:

Continue reading "Hidden gems - sailing canoes on intheboatshed.net"

"Canoe Rig" - an amazing way to expand the possibilities of what a canoe adventure could be

nospam@example.com (Tim) — Sun, 26 Nov 2006 03:02:35 +0100

Canoe Rig: The Essence and the Art, Sailpower for Antique and Traditional Canoes, by Todd Bradshaw, is one of those books that stakes out a new piece of turf in your mind. In this case, that turf is the possibilities of adding spars and canvas to the traditional canoe. Bradshaw presents, in great, well-illustrated detail, a set a rig options and associated hardware for setting sail in a canoe. He also outlines, canoe background and sailing theory, as well as I have seen it done. His artwork captures the concepts amazingly well.

The canoe, as my father noted in flipping through the book, is not the most obvious choice for conversion to a sailing rig. Bradshaw seems to accept this point, noting that the sailing experience in some of the scenarios he sketches out is fairly exciting and that one may need more attention to matters hand than one does in, say, a Flying Scot. Maybe that is what is so compelling to me about the book - it presumes traditional designs and hardware yet sketches out a world we don't think about. It is not new, of course - many ideas come from the days of Rushton. The arts of this little realm of boating, though, have been lost to modern options, and Bradshaw's rescue of them is as commendable as it is exciting. As is apparent, my idea of adventure involves the small, simple, and traditional. Bradshaw's rigs taking an able adventure craft and give it new possibilities. This one is definitely a keeper.

Nymph - new double paddle canoe from Guillemot

nospam@example.com (Tim) — Mon, 06 Nov 2006 03:32:34 +0100

Years ago I came a across a boat in WoodenBoat that had me fixated for months. It was a little lapstrake double paddle canoe. Something about the boat was so exciting - it was small and nimble - perfect for poking into nooks of various estuaries. A real messing about kind of boat. I've had a soft spot for this type of boat ever since.

It's not the same boat, but Nike Shade at Guillemot Kayaks seems to be offering a nice take on the double paddle canoe. This one is even more light and nimble than "mine," but also seems like it would demand even more protected waters - there isn't a lot there on this one! Still, for a peaceful solo meander on a quiet harbor, lake, or river, this would be a nice choice.

Pygmy Boats - great looking kayaks from a kit

nospam@example.com (Tim) — Sat, 28 Oct 2006 04:02:00 +0200

So I was out for a walk by the river with my daughter a couple weekends back and came across a guy taking a beautiful multi-chine wooden kayak off his car. I complemented him and inquired about the boat and learned he built it from a kit sold by Pygmy Boats out of Washington State.

I think this model, the Coho, was the one in question. I had heard of this shop but never seen one and I was quite impressed. For starters, this guy had done a great job building her - I wish I could name him here and give him credit. The multi-chine lines, however, added to the look. She was much sharper than the typical hard-chine kits you often see. If you are interested in going this route to build a kayak I would say you should definitely give these folks a look.

More from Rare - traditional dugout canoes for Honduran ecotourism

nospam@example.com (Tim) — Thu, 05 Oct 2006 05:12:57 +0200

My new client, Rare, who had a project I blogged about recently, has redone their web site and now includes, among many other nice features, some nice photos from its work supporting an ecotourism venture in Honduras. Such work is always exciting because it tends to be such a win-win-win-etc. proposition. One highlight of this story, in my mind, are pictures of tours in traditional dugout canoes they call pipantes. They are gorgeous boats - long and low and exquisitely carved. They seem tender as heck, but in the right hands... they clearly are not reserved for flat water. I love that this venture is incorporating traditional boats into its larger offering. Not only will this preserve the craft of building these boats boat it also introduces visitors to the great boating skills the people of the region must possess.

Check out La Ruta Moskitia for more info - this looks like another venture worth supporting.

Location: Cusuna, Honduras

Marzan Boats' Island Racer OC1 - a lovely taste of Polynesia... in Pittsburgh?!

nospam@example.com (Tim) — Wed, 20 Sep 2006 04:01:08 +0200

I always try to carefully flip through the classifieds at the end of WoodenBoat to see if there are any interesting new craft out there. There are a number of usual suspects, many of which are interesting but old news. So imagine my pleasure this month at running into a new face: the Island Racer OC1, a plywood outrigger canoe single sold as a kit by Marzan Boats.. The outrigger canoe seems to be developing a nice little following (I count myself as interested, if not yet participating, in this mini-scene) and I was hoping we'd start to see a nice wooden counterpoint to the composite racing boats out there. Here it is - a beautiful offering that looks like it would be accessible to many builders. Great work, Marzan.

Having never heard of Marzan, I had to see where this shop was located. I assumed it would be Maui or Oahu or at least somewhere on the West Coast. Oh so wrong. The contact address is the sunny South Pacific Isle of Pittsburgh, PA. Go figure. I guess there is a Polynesian sensation in the Steel City who doesn't dress in black and yellow and have "POLAMALU" on the back of his shirt. ;^)

"Cold Days on Lake Superior" - Week two of the Superior Waters Project Trip is Up

nospam@example.com (Tim) — Thu, 14 Sep 2006 19:06:54 +0200

Check out entry two of the Superior Waters Project trip journal.

Mixing business with pleasure... innovation in the whitewater kayak world

nospam@example.com (Tim) — Mon, 14 Aug 2006 04:21:00 +0200

Harvard Business School's Working Knowledge site has a great article on innovation, using rodeo kayaks as the case study. Rarely do I get to mix business with pleasure so much as reading this article. It turns out that an interesting user-generated innovation model happens in industries where there is a) room to explore and b) the cost of design changes are available to an individual. Sounds like small boating as a whole - how many designs emerged from the shop of one bright soul who was out to solve a tough problem (e.g., how to get the fish home better, carry more stuff, get myself upwind, etc.). It is not too businessy and definitely worth a read - we need to think about ways to keep harnessing the model but bring about a return to traditional-looking designs and, generally, "natural" materials. Basically, everyone with a sweet boat needs to go out and do something awesome - tomorrow!

Q: Do user innovations flourish more in some industries than others, or with certain types of products more than others?

A: Definitely. For user innovation to be a force, the cost of creating a new design must be within the reach of a single user, whose reward is solely the improvement of his or her own experience. The cost I'm referring to can take many forms: It can be time and effort, knowledge, or money. But the cost has to be reasonably low, and the perceived psychic reward to the user has to be high enough to justify the cost.

Perceived rewards are high when people are passionate about something. I think this is why we see a lot of user innovation in design spaces related to new sports, like rodeo kayaking and kite surfing. The participants care passionately about their sport, and (because it is new), its design spaces are still largely unexplored.

Canoes bring democracy in the Congo

nospam@example.com (Tim) — Tue, 01 Aug 2006 04:21:23 +0200

I love these stories, like this one from Reuters or this one from the UN about dugout canoes bring ballots to parts of the Congo. Who says traditonal boats don't still have important geopolitical roles to play?

Hmmm - Guillemot Kayak / Chesapeake Light Craft partnership

nospam@example.com (Tim) — Wed, 12 Jul 2006 05:07:17 +0200

I see in Nick Shade's blog that he has been talking to Chesapeake Light Craft about partnering on a sit-on-top boat. Interesting alliance. Nick seems to be playing with downmarket options (not meant to be perjorative - I speak in terms of access for builders) and CLC probably needs some fresh ideas. I wonder if they also want some upmarket options. Be interesting to see where this goes...

An important player: Chesapeake Light Craft

nospam@example.com (Tim) — Sat, 17 Jun 2006 04:56:00 +0200

I found myslef thinking about Chesapeake Light Craft recently. Here is an organization that is bringing good-looking wooden boats - and boatbuilding - to a wider audience but marketing an array of kits. How can I not love this idea? There boats are mostly plywood stitch & glue deals, and the results are good, if not spectacular. They certainly produce better results than many of the plastic ones out there (I know, including mine). In short, they serve an important niche and I hope they continue to prosper.

Top designer / builder: Nick Shade

nospam@example.com (Tim) — Thu, 15 Jun 2006 03:17:00 +0200

Nick Shade is the man behind Guillemot Kayaks, producer of some of the nicer-looking wooden kayaks around. I mentioned Nick via his book, The Strip-Built Sea Kayak, a couple months back. Most of Nick's stuff is strip built, and he seems to do nice work. Apparently one of his boats is in the Museum of Modern Art in New York.

Continue reading "Top designer / builder: Nick Shade"

Polynesia in Switzerland - one builder's nice work on Ulua

nospam@example.com (Tim) — Wed, 05 Apr 2006 20:15:00 +0200

Paul Luginbuhl, who, I believe, is Swiss, posted a nice photo album of his project building Ulua, the outrigger canoe I profiled a little while back.

This would be a good site to keep handy if anyone is building one themselves. The designer, Gary Dierking, has posted some other nice photos of completed ones on his site.

Hawaiian outrigger canoe - another treasure at NMAI

nospam@example.com (Tim) — Sun, 26 Feb 2006 04:37:26 +0100

The other treasure to be found at The National Museum of the American Indian is a Hawaiian outrigger canoe.

I love this boat - the native Koa wood is so rich - you can see why there was such a ritual around the treatment of these trees.

Continue reading "Hawaiian outrigger canoe - another treasure at NMAI"

Useful site devoted to native Canadian watercraft

nospam@example.com (Tim) — Mon, 13 Feb 2006 04:24:50 +0100

I found this last night: Civilization.ca's section on watercraft built by Canada's First Nations People. For a web-based resource, it appears to have a nice overview of some traditional boats. I find these dugouts in particular to be quite lovely.

It also covers kayaks, umiaks, birchbarks, and other flavors of dugout. Seems to have wider resources for those interested in broader First Nations cultural info.

[By the way, the Canadian term for indigenous North Americans, "First Nations People," is just a heck of a lot better than our various forms. "Native Americans," while proper, seems bland. I am really curious why - and I have never heard - why those who created The National Museum of the American Indian wanted "Indian" in there. Seems a bit ridiculous to keep using a term that derives from a European guy's colossal navigational blunder. Don't get me wrong, I am all for self-naming, but I think we could do better.]

Location: Port Clements, BC, Canada

Kayak Wiki - a nice idea with some good potential

nospam@example.com (Tim) — Sun, 12 Feb 2006 04:10:34 +0100

I recently came across an intersting new site: Kayak Wiki. If you don't know, a Wiki is a type of web site using specialized software that allows anyone to edit a page. They are designed for collaborative content creation. This one is a good start, though it feels like it needs some additional support. Check it out, sign-up, and add / edit as you see fit.

Ulua, a great-looking sailing outrigger canoe from New Zealand

nospam@example.com (Tim) — Wed, 01 Feb 2006 03:14:00 +0100

Ulua is a lovely sailing outrigger canoe from New Zealand (a nice fit, given that NZ is the southern tip of the Polynesian Triangle). She has excellent authentic features, especially at the ends. The rig also evokes her heritage, though I am curious about how well it performs. She was designed by Gary Dierking, who will provide plans for her and a few other related designs (some other OCs and some proas). All are wonderful interpretations of some of the greatest adventure craft of all time. Kudos.

Continue reading "Ulua, a great-looking sailing outrigger canoe from New Zealand"

Inuit skin-on-frame kayak building at ASF

nospam@example.com (Tim) — Wed, 28 Dec 2005 04:23:00 +0100

Among the cooler things Alexandria Seaport Foundation did recently was to host two boatbuilders from Nunavut in Canada.

Continue reading "Inuit skin-on-frame kayak building at ASF"