

When he saw the plans for Nootka Sound he decided that it was what he had been looking for. He had been thinking of an escort-mother ship to go along with the canoes. The inboard rudder swings up and can be removed by pulling a plug from its trunk.īob's Friend Sam McKinney had been operating group canoe cruises on the west coast of Vancouver Island. The board is steel plate, with the trunk offset to give better foot room. Fixed foam flotation under them can provide stability if the boat is filled with water. The benches on each side form the cockpit seats and.

All joints are joined with fiberglass tape and epoxy and the exterior is sheathed with fiberglass cloth and epoxy. Marine grade fir plywood is used for all structure. Boatbuilding skills are not required, and the average amateur can do a very creditable job the first time. This system makes a boat that is light but very strong.
#Marine weather nootka sound plus
The flat bottom is a big plus for trailering. It has the flat bottom of the dory-but the bilge sections are filled in somewhat, increasing the displacement and minimizing the "tiddly" nature of the dory. The hull form is pretty much Swampscott Dory, with a bit of whaleboat mixed in. This makes towing without special equipment possible for most of the present crop of smaller cars. Nootka Sound and trailer can be made to gross out at under 1000 pounds. Such distances make one appreciate the advantages of a lightweight rig. From Los Angeles it is about 1200 miles to Port Townsend, 1100 to Yellowstone Park and 1200 to the tip of the Baja California peninsula. Here on the west Coast we sometimes drive a long way for our boating. Provisions for sleeping aboard enable the crew to use campground facilities on long hauls that require stopping overnight. Later he had a 21 foot yawl which overcame those deficiencies but lacked the easy portability of his canoes, Modern light, trailered boats now available can provide what the canoes lacked and portability too. MacGregor said that the drawback of his little canoes was that progress was mainly dependant on muscular effort, that food must be had from shore, and that he could not sleep on the water.

The main requirement, though, was cruising facilities for two people, somewhat better than backpacking, if not up to luxury yacht standards.Ĭamp cruising has been going on at least since John MacGregor with his Rob Roy canoes beginning in 1865. Among the requirements were: Light weight for good trailerability with normal family cars shoal draft good performance with sail, oars or a small outboard motor and. It was an original design for Bob Young of Lake Oswego, Oregon, but generally similar to several earlier designs.
