Boatbuilding: Meanders and Handles

If you've made it this far, thanks for sticking with the Chuckanut 15 kayak building project. I've been surprised how many folks are interested. Only the details are left to cover and we'll put it in the water. The kayak is ready to go now but I don't want to get distracted meandering down the river and not finish it.

Speaking of meandering, I've decided that a meander is just what I need to add a little color and uniqueness to the kayak.  Our word "meander" comes from the ancient Greek "Maeander" which is the name of a celebrated river located in what is now southwestern Turkey. The Maeander River was known for its extremely winding path that seemed endless. It is also responsible for the repeated motif we see in the decorative borders we now call Greek key. Anyway, the design symbolizes the idea of infinity and unity and is among the most celebrated in history appearing on everything from war shields of Greek and Roman kings to ancient pottery. And, as a side note I found that Old Town Canoe Co. used the meander or Greek key design on some of their canoes in the 1930s.

So it seems just right to add a little meander to the project. I've thought a lot about meandering along a winding river in a kayak with no place in particular to go. I like it.

The size of the design was based on the way the chines form the shape of the sides at the bow. I drew it up in several sizes and this one looked best. The design was painted on both sides using an exterior acrylic latex paint.

When I got to this point the red braided rope handles that I installed earlier in the build no longer looked right so I cut them off and came up with another idea. I think the natural fiber of manila rope fits the overall look much better. To increase the lifespan of the rope and make it less susceptible to moisture and sun damage I soaked it overnight in a mixture of linseed oil, varnish and mineral spirits. After drying it's still pliable but really holds its shape well.

It's probable that the meander design and paint work will evolve over time. For now, it's finished.

Universal foam kayak carrier blocks and straps from Yakima make it a simple process to load and support the kayak on our Suburban. I haven't checked it but I'm guessing the kayak weighs in at in about 40 lbs. Next stop is the Elk River. I'll be sure to post pictures of the launching soon.

A Final Thought or Two

Several times early in the building stages I thought of things I wanted to change or do differently. At other places in the process I thought that the directions should have been clearer and that I had a better idea of how to do it. But you know, that was coming from someone who had never built a kayak before. And I've certainly never designed one. The further I got into it the more things made sense.

So now I'm looking at the finished project sitting on top of my truck and my perspective has changed. As it turns out Dave Gentry  has designed a great skin on frame kayak in the Chuckanut 15.  The parts of the plans and instructions that didn't make sense to me at the time certainly do now. I'm sure it all makes perfect sense to Dave too because he's gone through the process lots of times. What I've ended up with is a really good looking and pretty well built kayak that I'm proud of. I'm glad I didn't get hung up on the details or put off starting it waiting to find the perfect plans.

That's kind of the way our life is. We're involved in lots of building stages. Along the way we encounter plans and directions that we think should be a lot clearer. We think we've got a better way.  Sometimes it's better to get a little experience and practice under our belts before we spend much time criticizing the theory or the plans of others. That's why I don't have much use anymore for online forums about how to do stuff. While there's always useful information available when we listen to others share real life experience, I find it very hard to listen to 'never started a project know it alls' who'll spend the rest of their lives shooting down the efforts and projects of others simply because they are too afraid to start one themselves. The web is full of them. So do some research, pick a project and go for it. Never let the fear of failure keep you from learning how to do something you've never done.     

And that comes from an experienced kayak builder ;)