Canoe Build: Weekend Five

Jeff and Lucas returned to do the hard work of sanding the inner hull and spent about a half hour placing the fibreglass in preparation for epoxy day. Lucas drilled holes in our seats as well! Great job Lucas and Jeff!

We all went back to epoxy the inner hull which only required 2 coats. Again, it is always nice to work together as a team and then to receive these results-what a bonus!

We are very pleased with how it has turned out. Now we have about 15 hours of work left approximately to add the deck, gunnels, yolk, seats and so on.

There are mixed feelings here-on one level, we want to see it finished, but on another, Jeff doesn't want to stop going back. Perhaps Roger will end up with another volunteer from time to time in the future! :) As I write this, Jeff is finishing up some work on the canoe by himself while we wait for our friends to arrive from Barrie. He's getting as much time as he can before going back to work next week. We'll see if he got some shots on his blackberry!

Canoe Build: Weekend Four

This post shows the canoe after Jeff and Roger had sanded it on the evening of the 23rd of December, which led to some aches for Jeff the next day! It was tempting to touch it as it was so smooth, but we avoided letting the oils from our fingers get on the canoe before it was fibreglassed.

The next session was a longer one with several breaks as we fibreglassed the outer hull of the canoe. While the day was long, it was a good one. All of us were able to help and working as a team is always satisfying, especially, when you get results like we did! We lay the fibreglass over the canoe like a sheath, prepared epoxy and applied it in a timely fashion. After 25 minutes, excess epoxy was 'squidgied' off (technical term:)) we gave it time to dry and then repeated the process 2 more times to reach this glossy finish! We were happy to see the wood highlighted, the 'eyes', the 'arrows' and the bird-like features...we loved the contrast in light and dark and look forward to seeing it from the inside perspective.

Next, Jeff and Lucas will be spending the day power-sanding the inside because it can now come off the mould! Yay!

Following that, we will all go and fibreglass the inside of the canoe which will be done on Thursday! After that, we have final details to add like the seats, yolk, and gunnels... we can't believe how fast we have progressed. Jeff doesn't want to rush the process on one level, as he's going to miss going when we are done. There is something very fulfilling about building something special with your hands...:)

Canoe Build: Weekend Three

This past Saturday, we worked on our canoe for about 4 hours... all the cedar strips are on! Yay! The last piece was tough and you can see how much the second-last piece had to bend to fit into its spot!

Another highlight was that I used a power tool for the first time! Yes, people, I used a drill! I drilled holes in the stems! After, I made a concoction of epoxy and filled the holes in....I also used the beloved spoke-shave again and carved some of the curved wood on the canoe to minimize sanding afterward. Jeff did some of this as well and worked on the final strips. He also epoxied our seats together. We all worked on removing more staples also, which is always fun. The boys did the last sanding on our paddles before their final coat of varnish goes on.

Incidentally, Lucas sprained his left thumb badly while sledding and was unable to help. :( We hope he'll be better for fibreglass day!

Next session will be Jeff and helpers sanding the canoe. Following that, we will fibreglass the canoe and then it can come off the mould! Yay! Yay! Yay!

Stay tuned, more pictures to come!

Good luck getting ready during these last days before Christmas!

Tree Cutting With Friends!

At the beginning of December, we made our way through the forest of trees on the property with the Platt's and the Quarrington's to find our Christmas trees.

We all had been looking forward to this moment for some time. It's really exciting to be able to walk out your front door and come back with your tree-on foot!

And heavy, large trees they were! The biggest we've ever had!

Everyone helped each other out and once we were finished, Lisa made some yummy hot chocolate to help us warm up.

Once inside, it was obvious that more decorations were needed! So, Lucas and I went off to find some ornaments while Jeff and the boys stayed home and set up the tree and lights.

That wonderful Christmas tree aroma filled the air when we got back and we enjoyed decorating while a Christmas movie played in the background.

One of those warm fuzzy good memory kinda days!

Canoe Build: Weekend Two

As you can see, we are making headway with our canoe.

We have been selecting and lining up strips of cedar, gluing, wiping, stapling, removing staples, sawing, carving and chiselling.

Next week should get us to the point whereby all the wood is on and then by the next session, we can apply the fibreglass. Once that is done, it can come of the mould!

We hope to make a lot of progress over the winter holidays as Jeff has some time off.

It has been a very satisfying process so far-and the visits to the bakery in Carlisle have been quite tasty also! :)

As I look at the snow and feel the chill, I have visions of a sun shiny day on a calm lake, floating along in our special canoe. ahhhhh Can't wait!

Canoe Build: Weekend One

This weekend we started building our canoe with Roger Foster at Carlisle Canoe Company!

The sun was shining and it was chilly, but O so pretty at Roger's forested place in Freelton.

We are very pleased at the progress we made in about 9 hours of work. Our canoe is on the mold and we are adding strips of Western Red Cedar one by one. It's very interesting to experience how it is put together along with the artistry and alignment of the wood as it's put on. When it's done, one might see a whale's eye or an arrow or two! :)

We also thoroughly enjoyed the fact that there are 3 bakery/cafes in the vicinity and won't mind that one bit on weekends to come!

Hope everyone is staying warm and well and keep watching for updates on our canoe!

Canoe Paddle Carving!

Well, we did it! We completed the carving of two paddles for our family in one day!

Quite an intro to our canoe-building-process!

I'm hoping that if I can make it through canoe paddle carving, building a canoe will be a piece of cake! hmmm

For those of you who do not know, our family has decided to build a cedar strip canoe this winter at Carlisle Canoe Company in Freelton with the guidance and mentorship of Roger Foster, the owner, craftsman and artisan.

Roger has had over 20 years of experience building and restoring canoes. His demeanor is approachable, calm and light-hearted. When we walked into his workshop and saw a finished 16 foot Prospector that had been built by another family, we were blown away and fell in love right on the spot!

Our whole family can fit in the Prospector as it holds up to 950 pounds and weighs less than 50... Perfect!

It will take us about two to three months to build, depending on how much time we can devote to it... extra helping hands will speed up the process too!

Jeff and I think this will be an invaluable learning and bonding experience for our family. What is especially wonderful is that building the canoe is just the start of the adventure...when it's done, we hope to spend many hours on the water together!

I haven't decided if I will chronicle this process here or in a new blog. I'll let you know. We start our canoe on Saturday-wish us luck!