Hobie...The "Pack" canoe?

[adirondakjack]

Grizz, what are ya using for skin? Reason I ask is I wanna build a light, waterproof shell for my motorcycle trailer so I can hauls stuff and keep it dry. Yer 'yak project gave me an idea.....

I misplaced the invoice so I might not have the weight exactly correct.

I got 8.5 oz polyester woven fabric from a kayak builder/supplier. It's heat shrinkable. And I will use helmsman polyurethane to coat it.

You can also use aircraft fabric and dope. I don't know if aircraft dope is compatable with this type of cloth. You can also get lighter and heavier cloth. I got a compromise between weight and durability. A search will bring lots of suppliers for aircraft and boats.

I like your trailer idea. Lots of kayaks are built with aluminum tubing for the frames. I will eventually build some that way. You would need a ftamework that will withstand the shrinking of the cloth. On kayaks it gets drum tight and it's very tough. Don't know if it has to be that tight, but it would be more aerodynamic. Hope this helps.
Grizz

OK, cool. I used to build R/C airplanes, up to as big as 10' span, and have used "silkspan" covering. It can be "doped" with urethane or even acrylic "fake varnish", or of course with butyrate dope. I'm assuming yer stuff is pretty similar, though heavier, maybe about like they use on Piper Cubs???

I'm actually thinking of a hinged 'clamshell" that opens from the side, but when closed, would be shaped about like the front half of a 'yak, with the other half on top, so ya end up with a pointy, covered nose and a flat(er) back end. (when not used in that mode, the top could be taken off, so I could use it as an open bed, with the ability to still tote my yak on top) It would end up covered and doped if I use the 'yak model, rather than a hard (heavy) shell. I'll likely make a basic "cage" of aluminum, and use ribs of stressed wood, probably steamed and bent to create some "set" rather than simply hauling em around the frame. The bugaboo until now was the shell. It needs to be fairly light, weatherproof, and not cost a fortune, Har!

[Grizz]

That sounds very cool. how about a boat that folds in half over itself to form the storage space, and clamps together to be the ride in the water?

You can make an adirondack guide boat using the same technique as these kayaks; so I'd imagine anything in-between would be possible.

I think the fabric I have is a little heavier than anything on airplanes, but it's the same exact idea.

[Grizz]

stovepipe,

that looks like a lot of fun. did you design your boat? what was the fleet size? what other types, if any, competed? are sails allowed? any kayaks?

[JerryB]

stovepipe, that must have been a great trip.

[stovepipe]

It`s called the Missouri 340...and this last one was the 3rd anual...they had 150boats total...the classes were men`s solo, women`s solo, men`s tandem, women`s tandem, mixed tandem, and team ( 3 or more)......

billed as the longest non-stop canoe race in the world.....

they are talking about allowing 200 entrants next year.....

It`s like the "cannonball run....or gumball rally" (all types of craft ie. canoes and kayaks) no sails allowed...must be "human muscle power only"

note the start in the Kansas River in KC (confluence with Missouri River)...notice the black powder send off with period correct Lewis & Clark re-enactors...




this is what a 27ft carbon fiber canoe looks like on a Honda Element ready to depart to Kansas...




I designed the boat to have a long waterline (for speed) and higher gunnels (for sea-worthieness)..and large displacement cause my teamate and I are 240 and 230 lbs....

I layed corecell "stripper" layers over "hull shape templets" and gorrilla glued them...then I "wetted in" the core with the carbon and glass fabrics...with epoxy resin....

[stovepipe]

stovepipe, that must have been a great trip.

you get a little "loopy" going all night....especially on the second night....it`s a GIGANTIC river and it has barge traffic that comes into play and the fatigue can test you pretty good...

here`s a picture of a six-man team from Belize "limping in" near the finish....they lost four "engines" along the way....
these were the two who stuck it out to the bitter end....they were the second boat home somthing like 37hours...
that is a carbon/fiber boat that is aprox39ft long...very specialized

note the four empty seats of thier "fallen compadres"...

[stovepipe]

this is the TEXAS team that won the whole thing and beat TEAM BELIZE for first place overall 33hrs...and all six teamates made it to the finish...!! they had a couple of "ringers" thrown in from CALIFORNIA....but that`s OK I guess....

[Coldfingers]

Stovepipe. Neat stuff there and quite the race.

There is some "talk" of getting an ironman canoe race organized on the Yukon. Tentative plans call for race from Whitehorse, YT to the Yukon River Bridge, 120 road miles up the Dalton from Fairbanks, AK.

Should be quite the little float trip and not for the faint of heart. Pretty much straight up wilderness for the duration. Race organizers are trying to second guess safety concerns.

That carbon fiber canoe will look GOOD on the Yukon

[stovepipe]

problem with the Yukon Race(s) is that they have some "spec" requirements for the entries ie: length and beam that take out alot of the "Texas River Racer" unlimited design style boats...they have a Voyager class that allows a multi-man canoe but it has length, beam and freeboard restrictions...

If I`m not mistaken the Yukon River Quest is 450 river miles but there are mandatory lay-overs required...

I think they are organizing a smaller 200ish mile race...on the Yukon and a super ULTRA marathon 1000mile race...

in the thousand miler the entrants are required to have one of those gps gadgets that send back data so that the officials can track and moniter the required stops...

those races have boat spec restrictions as well....

they say that you got about eight minutes before hypothermia if you go in the Yukon...a mid river "spill" could be trouble if you can`t re-enter your boat...for any reason...hmmm

If I were to go to the Yukon....it would be with my Win 71` for some hunting....


these Texans built a carbon multi-man "voyager" canoe to "spec"and raced it in the Yukon River Quest....they won!...beating the Canadian favorites....bringing the purse and trophy to TEXAS

[Coldfingers]

stovepipe...eight minutes is about seven minutes longer than I think I could make it in that particular crick. I don't know what would get you first, the cold or the silt filling your clothing and dragging you down. You can hear the silt on the hull constantly when floating it, a little raspy sound that never goes away. Not to mention the occasional fifty foot spruce tree that comes up from nowhere like a darn harpoon. When the wind is moving up the river valley, whitecaps and huge rollers inspire long lunches followed by longer naps.

I always exercise great care when on that river in any craft. I moose and bear hunt along it out of my Grumman Freighter. Our local scout troops float from Circle to the bridge. A nice little adventure but one that necessitates caution, common sense and bushcraft skills for the bad days.

[stovepipe]

AWESOME....I always hear the Yukon River Quest veterans talk about a place called Lake LaBarge...that has bad wind swept rollers on occasion...40 mile long wide spot in the river.....I think they start in a place called Dawson...

I would love to see that country before I take up the rockin-chair...!!

speaking of Grumman freighters....the race official (head judge) uses this one as the official sweeper/chase boat of the Missouri 340 race.....

[GANJIRO]

Would a 2 man outrigger canoe like this be legal for the Missouri 340 race? They are extremely lightweight and FAST.

[stovepipe]

Would a 2 man outrigger canoe like this be legal for the Missouri 340 race? They are extremely lightweight and FAST.

they are popular in that race and others....Huki surfski`s are the prefered boat...they are real $$$$ though....

the outrigger option is nice for stability in barge wakes and for the big boils and eddys...but some opt to run without them for the extra speed....

here is one that did well...this fella beat us by an hour and this is a picture of him at the FINISH after 51hours strait!

[Hobie]

Does anyone run guideboats? Oh, and is there a link to the race promoter/administrator?

[Coldfingers]

Now that feller looks whupped!

The Freighters are a real workhorse. They command a premium price in these parts. Our prefered "kicker" is the Johnson/Evenrude 15hp two stroke. Provides enough extra oomph to get the loaded grumman out of a tight spot or make a sharp turn in fast water while heavily loaded. The poor man's riverboat.

Next falls moose trip is planned around taking the Freighter down Hess Creek to the confluence of the Hess Cr mouth and the Yukon, then, motoring back up the Yukon to the bridge. Not many other craft are suited to that journey because of fuel logistics, water depth, sandbars and logjams.

[Grizz]

man alive Scott

I can't believe you published the directions to your cookie jar. Hope you don't find some tired bedraggled southeastern guy drifting around in an eleven foot kayak come the season... come to think of it, I hope ya do!

har har

[GANJIRO]

Are row boats also allowed? I would look at this race like a marathon with the goal not of winning but of completing, and a rowing Dory like my Pearson 15 I would think would be a comfortable boat for something like this.

[Coldfingers]

Grizz...You just float on down there in the Yak if yer of a mind to. The fifty or so mile upstream paddle on the Yukon (to get back to a takeout point) should give you plenty of time to gnaw a moose down to where half of it will fit in the yak anyways

I don't get too worried about others on the crick. It weeds out most everything in a few miles. Follow the course on Google Earth or something and pack accordingly!

[Coldfingers]

Ganjaro...if nothing else, do the trip just to do it. The logistics of arranging the put in/take out vehicles can be the worst part. Just the float from Circle to the Yukon River Bridge poses problems as the two roads (gravel) that access the river can be an adventure in their own right. Putting in at Eagle and taking out at the YRB would necessitate someone putting close to a thousand miles on their rig (again, on some wonderfull gravel roads)

Suggest a spring trip so the black bear hides are prime

[salvo]

Great pictures guy's, don't know how I missed this thread, better late than never

This is my SOT Kayak, I use it for fishing on the Colorado river and down in Baja. Nothing better than a boat one man can handle.

[Grizz]

OK, just so ya'all know I don't sleep ALL the time, here's a little kayak love update.



There are only a couple of pieces of wood in this frame that were in the previous early pictures.



This is a complete redesign from the prototype, including relocating the cockpit area and building it differently, replacing the keelson and end posts, making this frame a foot shorter, and making new frames to fit. So far I'm pleased with how it's looking and don't plan any big changes to this one.

Still have to do the floorboards, then install the deck ridges, then install the cockpit coaming which I decided to do the lamination style, so I'll rip a thin piece of cedar and wind it around a form and glue the layers to make a type of I-beam. After that the cloth, the finish, and the splash-in. Getting excited. Might be done by break-up if I keep at it. Heh.

I've already decided on my next kayak, k2. It will look similar to this:



except the bow won't have the extra "stuff" and I will build it with plywood frames, more western style, same type of construction as k1.

after that, if I like k2 as much as I think I will, I'll build a couple more that are a little bigger. Have to have some for large company, eh?

[ScottT]

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[Grizz]

That's awesome Scott. I used the first kayak I built for hunting deer and hauling water in Alaska. Never fished out of it 'cause I caught fish commercially and the thought never crossed my mind.



this was a fantastic boat. had lots of fun in it and harvested some venison too.

[ScottT]

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[Hobie]

I like the way you can drift right up to a Redfish and he just does not pay you any mind. I like catching them in the grass in maybe 8 inches of water. Not many other boats can get you in there.

I think that the small boats look like driftwood to the fish. I was thinking Redfish too, but... have you ever gigged flounder ?

[ScottT]

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[ScottT]

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[Grizz]

uh, was it something I said ? ?? wuwt ?

[GANJIRO]

Does anyone run guideboats?

I LOVE these guys Adirondack Guideboat (if that's what you meant).
http://www.adirondack-guide-boat.com/ke ... boats.html

[GANJIRO]

They also make a beautiful little 40 lb. Packboat:
http://www.adirondack-guide-boat.com/packboats.html

Wahine optional

[Coldfingers]

Ganjaro....Now THOSE are nice. Grizz..."one piece at a time"

Too bad I live in a place that has such a problem with hard water...These long arctic winters make for tough boating.

I may need to find a thread about 120mph crotch rockets mounted on ski's.

[Grizz]

Ganjaro....Now THOSE are nice. Grizz..."one piece at a time"

Too bad I live in a place that has such a problem with hard water...These long arctic winters make for tough boating.

I may need to find a thread about 120mph crotch rockets mounted on ski's.

Oh for Pete's sake Scott

you have the opportunity to INVENT the sport of kayak ICE sailing. get blades on the kayak and charge down the road. next thing you know you will instigate a race. then you will have an ice-kayak regatta. then you can hold an event, kayaks down the Yukon... on ice. Then you can organize the kayak ice-sailing world series, and after that you can petition the Olympic committee for an event using three thousand year old vessels, ON ICE. And then you can retire to your study and write the book and screenplay.

OPPORTUNITYISEVERYWHERE

[Coldfingers]

Tried that Grizz...kept hurtin my head dong the eskimo roll thingy

[Grizz]

Tried that Grizz...kept hurtin my head dong the eskimo roll thingy

Now that's funny right there