Launchings

Construction began in 2002 with a set of plans and a stack of wood and finally finished in 2018. Starting a business, raising three kids, selling a business all got in the way — excuses, excuses, I know. Lola was planked with okoume plywood with mahogany knees, inwales, skeg, and breasthook.

Bill McCullom of Boxford, Massachusetts, took a lofting class at Lowell's Boat Shop in Amesbury, Massachusetts, before buying the plans for Walter Simmons's 17' lapstrake canoe.

At just 39 pounds, this canoe is designed for easy portages in Derek Coleman's home waters of Killarney Park, Ontario. Derek designed an asymmetric hull with an adjustable, removable seat and nicely decorated bow stern decks.

Oliver Cooney's IRISH MAID won two boat-show awards in her first few months of existence. He writes that this Arch Davis design always draws a lot of interest from onlookers. Oliver found Arch's drawings and follow up to be very helpful during construction.

Rich Parlee in Ucluelet BC built this power canoe to resemble the Nu Cha Nulth whaling canoes of the Native peoples of West Coast Vancouver Island. She was built “out of my head,” says the builder, out of five-eighth red Cedar strips.

Eddie Peterman, age 14, indicated an interest in woodworking and building a boat. His first boat was a Sam Devlin design stitch and glue 8′ rowing pram that had a couple minor design changes.

This boat was designed and built by Robert Wallace between October 2001 and May 2002. He launched her in May on White Oak Pond in northeastern Pennsylvania. The skiff has a 10' LOA and maximum beam of 39". She is a semi-V hull.

Gene Bjerke took a course from Ted Moore at the Mariners' Museum in Newport News, VA. The course was on fine woodstrip kayak construction, and Gene was lucky enough to end up with the boat he worked on in the class. It is a Steve Killing Resolute design (16'6" x 25").

1n 1999, David and Pauline Latham of Sydney, Australia asked James Frecheville to restore this Chris-Craft mahogany runabout, SILVER GULL, which was built about 1941. David's family had owned the boat since 1952.