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A Boy's First Wooden Sea Kayak

By Jim Harless

What motivates a person to build his own wooden sea kayak ? I wish I had asked that question about seven months ago !!

Just kidding, I really did have a blast building this boat. But why build rather than buy? To try to find out, I checked one company's description of their "average customer," which consists of a male, age of around fifty, with a desire to place a meaningful part of their life into a project built with their own hands . . . Hmmm. Since my fiftieth birthday was drawing close, I placed the order in December, 2002. Additionally, seeing Kenny McKenney in his wood strip Guillemot-designed sea kayak convinced me to do the same. However, since my carpentry skills are limited, I decided to tackle a mahogany plywood kit kayak first. Which brings up the concept that virtually anyone with time, patience and energy can build a kit and produce a very nice kayak. Sheila said to write that it helps to have a very patient wife as well. But then again, it was her bargain with the devil that gave me the living room as a temporary kayak construction room !!!!

I had spent a fair amount of time researching the kits and contemplating various hull design features. I chose a Chesapeake Light Craft model, though I was torn between that and the Pygmy (from Pt. Townsend). Both companies offer a myriad of models and lengths. The construction is "stitch and glue," which basically involves stitching the thin plywood panels into shape with wire, and epoxy-gluing the joints. The hull is then covered with fiberglass and 4 coats of epoxy.

The deck is added and fiberglassed on top. Hatches, coaming and etc. all follow. CLC says to budget about 70 to 80 hours, which is about the time mine took. My kayak is a 16 footer (to match my lighter weight), moderate width (for moderate stability and efficiency), moderate rocker (for waves), and adequate deck height to hold a week's worth of gear. The designer doesn't push a rudder unless one anticipates consistent winds and/or current, but a couple of squalls during my initial test drive on Lake Coeur d'Alene quickly convinced me to add the rudder. The hard chine of the design favors secondary stability over primary, and indeed the kayak feels a tad tippy to me when first entering, but firms up when leaned.

One consideration I faced was the perception that wooden boats are easily damaged or hard to take care of. The wooden boat companies stress that the wood is protected by fiberglass and epoxy and varnish, making these boats durable even if used regularly in harsh conditions. To test that theory, I strapped the kayak on top of the car on the day that I completed the final touches, and took it to Bowron Lake Provincial Park for a nine day spin through the B.C. inland lake wilderness.

Tracy Wilson-Burns and I had cajoled each other into taking our sea kayaks to B.C., and teamed up our spouses Sheila and Brian in Brian's Wenonah Spirit II. Larry and Mary Wright completed the crew with their Wenonah Odyssey. We did our portages there with wheels, which I did by strapping the cart under the bulkhead behind the seat and relieving some weight in the front by unloading the front compartment into a medium back pack. The wheel cart was strapped to the rear top of the kayak while paddling, as were my portage boots (looking more Appalachian than British Columbian, really). Though this took a little more time to get ready at the portages, the system worked fine and I made up time by hustling on the portages. I did put several scratches in the bottom of the kayak, as noted later by Brian & Larry from the vantage point of the car rack. Most of the scratches are from dragging the kayak onto beaches and portage landings instead of asking for help. None penetrated through the epoxied glass, thus sparing the wood, and I am content with the durability. Mine is a working boat, and not a show boat !

The sea kayaks really worked absolutely top-notch in what Brian refers to as "canoe country." Though Tracy and I worried about the class 2 "Chute" and "Roller Coaster" for our entire paddle down Isaac Lake, those turned out pretty straightforward, and we ran them without removing any gear. I think Tracy really liked the waves crashing over her bow in the Roller Coaster ! Paddling the Cariboo River required some dexterity, and I pulled up my rudder to back ferry away from obstacles and around the blind corners in a sure blend of white-water techniques.

Some sea kayakers I talked with and the literature I read suggested I would have no trouble keeping up with the canoes, but I am not sure any of those sources have paddled around Wenonah canoes before (especially with bow-person motors like Sheila and Mary). I did work fairly hard to keep up with the brisk clip set by the canoes, but didn't lag by an uncomfortable amount. However, I did goad the Wenonah teams into racing to camp a couple of times, just to test some lingering theory questions (brought on by reading too much hull design physics on the web sites). Under the pressure of racing, I was able to hold up to the pace of the 18 1/2 ft. Odyssey, which amazed me more than anyone. I am working on some new hull efficiency theories now, and will gladly share them if you have a spare half hour (hey, where'd everybody go ???).

To summarize, I think anyone of reasonable skill and determination could easily complete a sea kayak kit. Mine has proved to be lake-worthy and adequately durable, and I can't wait to go try it in the salt water !!

[Photo of Jim and his sea kayak in the May 2003 Eddy Line]