Dory Schooner, Hestur

I just got home from more than a week of work, out of town, to find a remarkable note from my good friend Chris Perkins, in Scotland.

The dory schooner, Hestur, built by Dan and Charlotte on the Loch Broom near Ullapool, Scotland has been launched after only two years in the shop. This dory is a just few feet shorter than my own dory, Mistral, which took ten years to build. So, not only am I in awe, but incredibly jealous of this impressive effort and the very beautiful product.

Jay Benford is a designer of impressive stature, so we should not be surprised to see a well crafted boat from his drawing board turn out so well.

The list of contributors to the success of this project is long and I suspect we will hear much more from Dan about that soon - after he catches up on his sleep, of course. A link for the blog documenting this new junk-rigged dory is located on the left side-bar, and also here.

Congratulations Dan and Charlotte!

And look at this! Dan's father showed up with a beautiful Caledonia Yawl he built, to observe the festivities from the water. What a talented family!

All images, copyright by Chris Perkins. Thank you Chris for your kind and generous permission.

Live-aboard Dory and other news from Scotland

So, I get this e-mail from Chris Perkins, which is always a delight. He has news from Leckmelm, Scotland that is right on-topic.









Apparently Dan Johnson and Charlotte Watters are building a brand new Badger dory from Jay Benford's design, in the old Cow Shed on the Loch Broom.

Dan says: "The ‘Badger’ has long been a boat of interest to us. When looking at the construction plans in detail, with a view to build, I became convinced. It looked like it should be fast and economical to construct and so far has proven to be so. I plan to do everything myself from casting the keel to sewing the sails".



This new Badger will be the same junk rigged dory design that has earned international acclaim. Nice job, Dan and Charlotte!



















In further news, Adrian Morgan is putting finishing touches on a traditionally built Iain Oughtred Tammie Norrie. Adrian has strong views of what constitutes a well built boat and often uses his own work as a bench mark. He will find no argument from me, though I hear that he has stooped so low as to use plywood on this one. If so, he has a lot of explaining to do!


More about Adrian's Tammie Norrie soon...














And... up there in the rafters of the Cow Shed is a very strange looking Merry Wherry.

This may be the best story of all.





Chris Duff made an effort this last summer to row from Scotland to Iceland in his modified Merry Wherry, which has to qualify for pure crazy. The weather was against Chris from the start and he will make another attempt next year. I can relate to Chris' sentiment when he decided to return to Scotland:


"The northern winds that have slowed me down all the way from Thurso to north Shetland have finally quit - now that I have decided to head south, of course. The south winds that I could have used all the way north have now developed and have been on the bow, slowing or stopping me completely as I head south."




So his boat rests and waits here in the rafters, in a land where summer is fleeting and gorgeous, for another day, another attempt at conquering the northern Atlantic, solo, in a diminutive boat.





Photos from the cow shed courtesy of Chris Perkins.
Tammie Norrie stem close-up by Adrian Morgan (what a beauty! Adrian is an artist)
Photos of Badger courtesy of Dan Johnson and Charlotte Watters.
and thank you, Chris Duff. You are an inspiration!