I called my canoe "Lookfar" after the wizard Sparrowhawk's sail boat in Ursula LeGuinn's wonderful trilogy "A Wizard of Earth Sea"
I spent yesterday assembling my collection of bits and pieces and this is the result.
The Optimist sail and rig was retired from the learn to sail fleet here in Rawene when my son donated new sails last season.
Paul Bowker kindly gave me the old items. I took them home, washed the sail and set to with a needle and polyester thread to repair the loose seems and batten pockets.
I needed to run a cord into the luff tabling pockets as the brass rings had corroded away. The tack, clew and peak rings I reinforced with monofilament nylon line using a rolling blanket stitch.
I built a mast step cradle for the canoe from triangles of plywood glued to a base block of cedar. I drilled a hole through the block for the mast step and capped the base with an aluminium plate.
To fit the mast cradle into the canoe I removed the front seat, a molded plastic panel, to reveal the two tubular cross thwart frames.
I fitted the cradle in between the two tubes and rested the base block on the keelson.
I then replaced the seat panel and refitted it through its original fixing holes with long stainless screws securing both the seat and the mast cradle together into position. For extra strength I lashed the four corners of my new cradle to the thwart tubes and to the tubular keelson.
I chose a point behind the midship thwart on the keelson to attach the two parts of the main sheet.
For lee boards I modified the old ogive section blades that I kept from Toroa's earlier incarnation.
These were perfectly suited to being cut down and bolted through the gunwale with stainless steel threaded rod, nuts and washers. I pinched the bolts up tight which allowed for rotation of the pivot with enough friction to hold them in any position I
choose.
Here's the result.
Prior to lee board attachment.
Lawn sailing.
Launch site is the little beach at the bottom of our property
I wonder how it will sail?
Lee board down, sheet in, Hmm not bad!
Steering paddle is restrained midway down the shaft with a measured length of cord attached to the keelson tube behind my sitting position. I can toss the paddle from side to side and it just sits there waiting for me to grasp it.
Ease sheet, very responsive.
Into 6 knots of breeze from the North East
Bye bye.
Time to come back and reassure Julie.
I look cool sailing along. Look ma no hands! Actually I can sail this thing without a rudder just shift my weight and or the lee board position forward or aft to alter course, butt steering still rules, Sweet.
Still looking cool.
Coming in to land.
Easy peasy. Even the birds like it, I'm a bird magnet!
All photos by Julie Holton.
If you want a selection of solutions for your canoe conversion then here's a great web page on the subject.
