Small Craft Weekend

A photo essay

When two great events happen at the same time, it can be hard to decide which way to go. But then, a busy summer schedule often trumps, which was the case for Doryman last weekend.

The closest event was a gathering of Coots on Fern Ridge Reservoir, in the beautiful Willamette Valley, near Eugene Oregon. So, I dropped by just in time Saturday to visit as the boats returned to the docks from a day on the water. This is my home team, so you've seen some of these boats before.

First up is Bob Larken in his Wavewatcher, a Bolger designed Birdwatcher. Bob is an electronics and computer wizard and his boat is tricked out with amazing stuff. He recently installed a remote controlled tiller pilot so he can steer from any location on the boat.

This is John Kohnen's Redwing, Lazy Jack. He bought this boat recently from a fellow Coot and I think he's happy as a man can be.

Dennis McComber just finished this little runabout from a batteau.com plan. His son started the build and abandoned it. Dennis picked up where he left off and did a great job.

Cal Drake designed and built this Garvey and it's the powerhouse of the group. I don't know how much horsepower it has, but it's a lot. You might have noticed, some of the Coots are moving toward being a power squadron!

Not entirely. Hal Colvin brought his Pacific Pelican, Retta Ann. I've sailed with Hal before in this boat. A very capable craft.

And Lou Brochetti came with his newly refurbished Devlin Egret. So new, she doesn't have a name yet.

Lou likes to tinker with a design as much as I do. He says the sail rig is a bit small and too far forward. We're looking for the upgrade soon Lou!

This is the beauty that caught my eye. The new caretakers of Richardson State Park and the custodians of these docks, own this boat.

She's a Sam Rabl Picaroon and the story is, she was built in 1954 by Sam himself. Obviously the boat has undergone some extensive refitting and I'd like to know more.

A planked Picaroon is rare. The examples I've seen were all made from plywood.


A proper little yacht.

Speaking of proper yachts, north of here a few hundred miles was the first ever Pocket Yacht Palooza, in beautiful Port Townsend, Washington State. This new event was organized by the Port Townsend Pocket Yachters, co-sponsored by the Small Craft Skills Academy and Northwest Maritime Center, and held May 19 at the NWMC.



Marty Loken worked hard to make this inaugural event a success. Give the man a hand!

Photos can be found on the Packet Yachters' website and additional information is provided by Joel Bergen on his Navigator site.

Watch for this one next year.



Here's a teaser from last Saturday, sent in by our friend Brandon.......

Pocket Yacht Palooza 2012

Photos by Brandon Ford

Winter Christening

My friend Greg just finished his new Brockway Skiff and brought it to the coast yesterday for it's christening launch. You can see by the multiple layers of gear that it was pretty cold. The breeze was out of the north, straight from Alaska. Some people will say that winter hasn't arrived until the Solstice, but I beg to differ.




A slide show of the launch. The other skiff is also a Brockway. A very simple, functional, hard working low power vessel.
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Grapeview Point Boat Works

On the lower Puget Sound in Washington State you will find Case Inlet. As with so much of the Salish Sea, it is a beautiful place.

Just north of Grapeview is Grapeview Point Boat Works, the scene of a gathering, last Saturday, of die hard sailors.

Marine weather is unpredictable, which is a defining element for sailors of the dyed-in-the wool type. Even in the mid-summer of early August, stable high pressure systems can be displaced overnight by a plunging barometer.

It's raining outside and perspiring inside your rain gear, so you get wet either way.

No reason to miss a fine day on the water.








The Puget Sound Chapter of the TSCA gathered at Tom and Suzanne Regan's boat shop with a great BBQ on the bulkhead and a hearty gathering of watermen and women showed up to revel in the rain.






It's a six hour drive from Doryman's front door to Grapeview, so the day started at daybreak. The Culler skiff Paku was intended to attend, so a few days prior to the event, she received the attention deserving a presidential yacht. At the last minute it was apparent that the brake lights on the trailer were not going to cooperate.

Undeterred, we hit the road without the boat.

On occasion I'd recommend showing up for a boating event without your boat. It's the best excuse for accepting an invitation to crew on someone else's!
I spent the afternoon with Elizabeth and Nik on their Caledonia Yawl, Sutil.

What a treat! Iain Oughtred's Caledonia Yawl exceeds any expectation. It's roomy, responsive and fast. Even on a blustery day, on the verge of a first reef, Sutil was dry and comfortable.





I'm sorry that I don't know all of the good folks of the Puget Sound TSCA by name, nor the names of their fine craft. But hopefully a slide show will tell the story. Beautiful boats, good food and fine company.










Does it get any better than this?





Thanks to Tom, Suzanne and all the good folks of the Puget Sound Chapter of the Traditional Small Craft Association.

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