July 2024 Archives - Small Boats Magazine

The Shrike-R rolling kayak from CNC Kayaks, and the Friend-Ship canal boat designed by Phil Thiel are featured in this month’s Boat Profiles. A no-nonsense waterproof jacket with versions for both men and women, and a combination small-boat paddle/pump are put through their paces in our Product Review pages, while equipping a small-boat trailer with a walkway to more easily launch rowboats is described in our Technique feature. A first-time boatbuilder works off-grid in the heart of a forest to construct a flat-bottomed scow of his own design, and a seasoned ocean sailor converts a used sailboat from the 1970s into a coastal-cruising motorboat for the 2020s. Our editor recalls meeting and being inspired by Maligiaq Padilla, Greenland’s foremost kayak champion.

From The Editor

Maligiaq

Greenland’s longest-reigning kayak champion

Maligiaq Padilla, the grandson and great-grandson of Greenlanders who hunted from kayaks, started on his way to become the country’s longest-reigning kayak champion when he was just 16 and since then he has been preserving and promoting native skills at home and abroad.

Boat Profile

The Shrike Kayaks

CNC’s modern sea kayaks steeped in Inuit tradition

Based on an original Inuit Disko Bay kayak in the collection of the Canadian Museum of Civilization, the Shrikes, from CNC Kayaks, are designed to be built as simply and as lightly as possible. The result is a range of boats that connect the paddler with the environment and reward the user with speed, agility, and grace.

Boat Profile

The Friend·Ship Canal Boat

A comfortable cruising boat for sheltered waters

Phil Thiel’s canal boat, suitable for at-home building by moderately experienced woodworkers is a comfortably appointed boat for long, leisurely trips on sheltered lakes, rivers, and canals and can accommodate six adults overnight.

Adventures

Boatbuilding in the Woods

Off the road and off the grid, a scow takes shape in the forest

First-time boatbuilder Greg Goodman set up camp on a family-owned piece of land in the heart of a western-Michigan forest, created a workshop under a tarp, and built a flat-bottomed scow of his own design, learning valuable lessons along the way.

Technique

A Walkway for a Trailex Trailer

Modifying a trailer for dry-feet launching

For owners with smaller rowing and paddling boats that can be launched at a ramp without submerging the trailer, having a central walkway along the trailer is a useful modification.

Product Reviews

Paddle Pump

A space-saving innovation for small boats

Designed by seaplane pilots, the Paddle Pump is a space-saving innovation that serves two purposes vital to small-boat users: propelling the boat and dewatering the bilge.

Product Reviews

Taku Essential Jacket

A waterproof and breathable jacket kept simple

Mustang’s jacket for inshore and coastal use provides waterproof comfort without the addition of more features than you may really need.

Reader Built Boats

From Sailboat to Motorboat

Converting a tired sailboat hull into a new family motor cruiser

When Vancouver Island resident Quentin Verhaegen went in search of an inexpensive motorboat for his family, he found the choices limited and beyond his budget. Not to be thwarted, he bought a 40-year-old fiberglass sailboat and repurposed it as an outboard cruiser.

Past Issues

From The Archives

January 2016

May 2015

Small Boats Annual 2008

September 2023

View All

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