Sunday, September 07, 2025

What should I build next?

Current state of assembly.  I have been busy with other things (travel, home purchase, taxes) and am awaiting an online order for more epoxy.  This hull will be 13 feet long, but the mid-section is parallel between the center two frames; I could make it one foot shorter just by leaving out one section with all other dimensions unchanged.


 When we were out on a lake recently with our kayaks, I noted that rarely was speed the goal when paddling; we were just poking around in the channels of a flooded forest in a reservoir backwater, seeing ducks, geese, and even eagles.  And I thought, "I could build a boat for that type of outing."

I have started sketching out the dimensions for such a boat:  I imagined: a bit shorter, wider, and more open, less decking in order to reduce weight.  Right now, I am considering a hull 156" long and 30" wide, but I still have more numbers to calculate and sketches to create.  I envision it as a double-ended-paddle canoe, but right now I only have numbers to look at.   

I don't see any making any further modifications to my latest kayak design/build.  It fits our uses well, but the joy and challenge of building another boat is still calling.  This could be my next project.

Finally, a day at the local lake.  On a sunny day at 7,000 feet elevation, you need sun protection.  That is my wife, Dawn, in the kayak I built for her.

This kayak is similar, but not identical to my wife's kayak.  Just a few inches longer and a half inch narrower.


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