When, oh, when, will I be able to build this boat, you might ask. I've been asking myself that very question much of today. Full-time job. Two-year-old. A spouse. Family. An fellowship program. A reading group that meets 2 times a year. Etc. Etc. Oh, and a couple of friends.
There's not much time available.
And yet, surely, between now and June 1, I should be able to find 70 hours here and there to work on this soul-restoring project!
Last year, according to my recent estimate, I spent at least that many hours playing (and driving to and from) hockey. Maybe if I spend that same chunk of time every week...2-3 hours every Friday morning...for the next 40 weeks...yes! That should work...
Hopefully...
(Sigh.)
Wednesday, September 1, 2010
Sunday, August 29, 2010
The Boathouse
In thinking about where to build this boat, I have a couple of options. One possibility might be the basement, pictured here:
As you can see, the front half of the basement is filled with exercise equipment and a play area for our toddler. The rear half is the laundry "room." And neither is very big. A 14' kayak could be built here. There is light, there is heat (necessary for curing the epoxy), and there is a door through which to remove it once it's been built; but a boat built here would truly be in the way. This is much used space. So...no go.
The only other viable option is the garage, pictured here from our back deck:
It's a single car garage, which we use entirely for storage. You can see our 17' sea kayaks hanging on the outside wall. Which means, of course, that our garage is just about exactly 17' from front to back. But take a look inside:
On the left...garden and lawn care supplies and behind that, hockey equipment, golf clubs, and my bike. On the right...more lawn care tools hanging on the wall, 2 bikes, and behind them, some large tools, including a circular saw and a table saw. In the way back, on the shelves, which are about 3' deep, mostly camping and boating equipment. And, in the center, a long ladder, an inflatable kayak, a snow blower and a lawn mower.
And this is "neat."
From the front of the garage to the shelves in the back is just about exactly 14'. It would be tight. There is no electricity in the garage, either, so it will be cold and dark unless I run an extension cord from the back deck and import some lights and a space heater. Still, it's dry. And in the winter we only really need access to the snowblower.
To build the kayak here, I'd essentially need to clear out the right half of the garage from front to back. I will probably need to be able to angle the work table diagonally so that I can walk around the kayak while I'm building it. That will mean relocating some big items to the attic or within the garage itself and getting rid of some of the others, either selling them or giving them away.
That is where I will have to begin. Perhaps I'll even get a chance to spend a few hours on it beginning this week - after I take the toddler to daycare, but before I head to work. My hope is to have this phase of the project done before mid-September, and the work space set up, so that I can get that kit ordered. And before it arrives, I'd like to hang this sign that my wife bought above the garage door:
And then, we're on our way! If I can put in an average of 10 hours per month beginning in October, I should be able to launch by the beginning of May!
and here:
As you can see, the front half of the basement is filled with exercise equipment and a play area for our toddler. The rear half is the laundry "room." And neither is very big. A 14' kayak could be built here. There is light, there is heat (necessary for curing the epoxy), and there is a door through which to remove it once it's been built; but a boat built here would truly be in the way. This is much used space. So...no go.
The only other viable option is the garage, pictured here from our back deck:
It's a single car garage, which we use entirely for storage. You can see our 17' sea kayaks hanging on the outside wall. Which means, of course, that our garage is just about exactly 17' from front to back. But take a look inside:
 |
And this is "neat."
From the front of the garage to the shelves in the back is just about exactly 14'. It would be tight. There is no electricity in the garage, either, so it will be cold and dark unless I run an extension cord from the back deck and import some lights and a space heater. Still, it's dry. And in the winter we only really need access to the snowblower.
To build the kayak here, I'd essentially need to clear out the right half of the garage from front to back. I will probably need to be able to angle the work table diagonally so that I can walk around the kayak while I'm building it. That will mean relocating some big items to the attic or within the garage itself and getting rid of some of the others, either selling them or giving them away.
That is where I will have to begin. Perhaps I'll even get a chance to spend a few hours on it beginning this week - after I take the toddler to daycare, but before I head to work. My hope is to have this phase of the project done before mid-September, and the work space set up, so that I can get that kit ordered. And before it arrives, I'd like to hang this sign that my wife bought above the garage door:
And then, we're on our way! If I can put in an average of 10 hours per month beginning in October, I should be able to launch by the beginning of May!
Wednesday, August 18, 2010
The Boat
I spent some time on my vacation researching kayak kit options. "Re-researching," actually, as I'd begun looking into them 6 or 7 years ago. After clarifying my needs and weighing the options, I've decided to build the Arctic Tern 14 by Pygmy Boats, pictured here:
This is a hard-chined, 14 foot kayak that weighs just 32 lbs. It totally meets my own design requirements. It's easy on the eye. I've read as many reviews as I can find, and everyone seems to love this boat. It's stitch-and-glue construction and should take approximately 70 hours to build. It also fits my budget reasonably well.
But before I order the boat kit, I need to first figure out where I'm going to build it...
But before I order the boat kit, I need to first figure out where I'm going to build it...
Tuesday, August 17, 2010
The Boathouse Project
I've just returned from an inspiring vacation at my favorite home-away-from-home on the coast of Maine.
Only home twenty-four hours and already I'm missing the views of the Penobscot Bay, the smell of salt water, the voluminous tide, the dark sky filled with stars, swimming with the dogs on the leeward side of the island, and the time playing with the seals in the kayak trips to the point and back.
We've been planting ourselves on the same spot for 2-3 weeks each summer for about 10 years now, and every year I make mid-year resolutions about how I'd like my new year to be. Usually I'd like it to be more simple, more ecologically responsible, and more full of good self-care. This year is not much different, but there is one big take-away...I've decided to build another boat.
In 2002, I built a Nutshell Pram from a kit by WoodenBoat. I love it. The only place I've ever really used it - for both rowing and sailing - is along this same stretch of the Penobscot in Maine. I've had some nice adventures with it, but now that I no longer have my pick-up truck, it's a little more complicated to transport and to use. It only weighs 100 lbs. or so, but it's awkward to car-top and launch, and I haven't figured out a trailer option yet.
I also own a 17' Sea Lion sea kayak by Perception, but it's made of poly and weighs about 75 lbs, so it, too, has been a challenge to use when I want to or need to go out solo. Instead, for the last few years I've been getting out on the water in an inflatable kayak. It's great to have, easy and fun to use, but...well...it's an inflatable and it's really meant for poking around slowly on calm water. Fun on a quiet day in the bay, but really meant for the likes of the little pond in the center of my hometown.
What I want, what I long for, what I'm now feeling ready to build, is another sea kayak, but a smaller, lighter one. I also want it to be significantly different from my current sea kayak, which is a high volume, soft chined, very stable, tank-like boat - great for kayak camping expeditions. I don't want to get rid of it, I don't want to replace it, I just want to add another boat to the fleet that would be quick and easy to throw on top of the car AND fun to use in windy conditions with decently sized waves.
What I didn't do the last time I built a boat, but what I wished I had done, was to keep a written log to record the building process. That's my plan here. Someday soon I'll write more about the boat I plan to build and about where I plan to build it. Clearing out the space for this project will be a story and a half all by itself.
Stay tuned...
Only home twenty-four hours and already I'm missing the views of the Penobscot Bay, the smell of salt water, the voluminous tide, the dark sky filled with stars, swimming with the dogs on the leeward side of the island, and the time playing with the seals in the kayak trips to the point and back.
We've been planting ourselves on the same spot for 2-3 weeks each summer for about 10 years now, and every year I make mid-year resolutions about how I'd like my new year to be. Usually I'd like it to be more simple, more ecologically responsible, and more full of good self-care. This year is not much different, but there is one big take-away...I've decided to build another boat.
In 2002, I built a Nutshell Pram from a kit by WoodenBoat. I love it. The only place I've ever really used it - for both rowing and sailing - is along this same stretch of the Penobscot in Maine. I've had some nice adventures with it, but now that I no longer have my pick-up truck, it's a little more complicated to transport and to use. It only weighs 100 lbs. or so, but it's awkward to car-top and launch, and I haven't figured out a trailer option yet.
I also own a 17' Sea Lion sea kayak by Perception, but it's made of poly and weighs about 75 lbs, so it, too, has been a challenge to use when I want to or need to go out solo. Instead, for the last few years I've been getting out on the water in an inflatable kayak. It's great to have, easy and fun to use, but...well...it's an inflatable and it's really meant for poking around slowly on calm water. Fun on a quiet day in the bay, but really meant for the likes of the little pond in the center of my hometown.
What I want, what I long for, what I'm now feeling ready to build, is another sea kayak, but a smaller, lighter one. I also want it to be significantly different from my current sea kayak, which is a high volume, soft chined, very stable, tank-like boat - great for kayak camping expeditions. I don't want to get rid of it, I don't want to replace it, I just want to add another boat to the fleet that would be quick and easy to throw on top of the car AND fun to use in windy conditions with decently sized waves.
What I didn't do the last time I built a boat, but what I wished I had done, was to keep a written log to record the building process. That's my plan here. Someday soon I'll write more about the boat I plan to build and about where I plan to build it. Clearing out the space for this project will be a story and a half all by itself.
Stay tuned...
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