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Keith Johnston and friend saved from a dunking by a Selway Fisher-designed tender

Selway Fisher designed Skylark dinghy

Many of us become very attached to craft that serve us well – but tenders aren’t usually the object of our deep affections. However, Keith Johnston tells a story about an experience that taught him the value of his tender in a big way.

‘My friend and I have been sailing Devon Yawls for more than twenty five years simply because they are a modern fibreglass moulding of the Salcombe yawl.

‘Salcombe yawls are now hand built in top quality timbers and are £20,000 16’ dinghies that sail like serious deep sea boats and are a fiercely competed class in Salcombe. More importantly for me, they are based upon a very much tried and tested local inshore fishing boat. The locals know when a boat is good, and the Salcombe yawl is the best, so we’ve been sailing the Devon Yawl is an equivalent boat made in GRP from a mould taken off an a Salcombe yawl. (In fact, I have now graduated from the Devon Yawl to the Devon Dayboat, which is a Devon Yawl with a small cuddy) that provides a little shelter in rough weather or a camping shelter for two. Some of the original Devon Dayboats, like mine have a Stuart Turner 5hp inboard, which makes them reall useful all-round cruising boats.)

‘But back to my story. When we first started sailing yawls we moored the boat at various points on the River Tamar on the border between Cornwall and England. To get to her, we used a Fairey Duckling, which is a superb moulded double diagonal ply built dinghy loosely based on the World War II airborne lifeboats. These were made by Fairey Marine and were dropped from search and rescue planes so that ditched air crew in the North Atlantic and North Sea could rescue themselves. (For more on airborne lifeboats, click here; for more on Fairey Ducklings, click here.)

‘Believe me, the little Ducklings take after their big sister airborne lifeboats and are tough little boats, and we could just about carry the Duckling from the car to the tide line, which was sometimes 150 or 200 yards. As time went by, however, the Duckling seemed to get heavier (or had we got older?) and we realised the Duckling had become a collectors boat and was too valuable to be used as a general beach dinghy any longer. So we decided to try and find a cheap dinghy as a replacement.

‘The first boat I ever built Continue reading “Keith Johnston and friend saved from a dunking by a Selway Fisher-designed tender”

BBA student Francis Clarke builds a Bear Mountain Boats stripper canoe

Derek Thompson LRPS - Frank Clarke Chestnut Canoe - Boat Building Academy

Derek Thompson LRPS - Frank Clarke Chestnut Canoe Derek Thompson LRPS - Frank Clarke - Bob's Special - Chestnut Canoe Company Frank Clarke Bob's Special canoe - bow cramp method

Paul Dyer - Frank Clarke Canoe

Students on the long course at the Boat Building Academy often build a canoe or kayak rather than a boat, and that’s what Frank Clarke from Norfolk did this year, says regular BBA correspondent Emma Brice.

A professionally trained canoeist – but lacking a canoe – Frank chose to build a Bob’s Special – a 15ft open canoe from the Chestnut Canoe Company catalogue.

The canoe was modified for strip planking and drawn by Steve Killing who works with Bear Mountain Boats in the US. More information can be seen on the Bear Mountain Boats website.

Frank’s canoe is strip planked with Western red cedar and has oak rubbing strips, thwarts, decks and fittings.

Usually when building the hull the strips are held to the mould with staples until the glue cures, and then the staples are removed. However, Frank wanted to avoid the marks that the staples leave, and so he invented his own tool, which he named a ‘bow cramp’ for keeping the strips in place as the glue set. It worked a treat: click here to see the photographic diary of the build.

Frank says his project will always be a reminder of his time at Lyme Regis, as well as a demonstration of his craftsmanship.

Before the course Frank worked in various roles, from customer service to sales and taught English in China, gained qualifications in outdoor activities and completed a fine art degree in sculpture. However, he became seriously ill and was paralysed from the waist down for two years: on his recovering Frank joined the course in order to regain his career direction and re-energise his creativity.

Since graduating Frank has decided to become a teacher and hopes to pass on his skills and interest in woodworking and fine art.

The first photo of Frank’s bow cramp method was taken by BBA Administrator Gemma Stunt.

Humber keels and sloops

Humber keels racing

Humber sloops racing

Correction! I’ve received the following message from Dave Everatt of the Humber Keel and Sloop Preservation Society.

‘Gavin: To correct an error on my part, the photo I sent labelled Keel race was in fact not a race at all. Keel races were mainly in the 19th century and photos are rare and usually of very poor quality. When keels were racing they would usually set both mainsail and topsail and, because it was a special event, would also fly a burgee with the vessel’s name on it. The photo I sent you shows a group of keels heading down the Humber after ‘bunkering’ trawlers (that is, loading them with coal) in St Andrews Dock. They would be heading for the eastern docks, such as Alexandra Dock, to load a return cargo for the Aire & Calder or Sheffield &South Yorkshire Navigation. I have attached a further photo [pasted below – Ed] probably taken at the same time. Regards Dave’

Keels at Hull

I’m very pleased to be able to share these striking shots of Humber keels (top) and Humber sloops, thanks to Dave Everatt of the Humber Keel and Humber Sloop Society.

Taken in about 1900, the upper image in particular is a powerful reminder that many of us who come from the Eastern side of the UK are at least partly descended from the Vikings – and that there’s lots of genetic material to prove it.

The lower photo dates from the 1920s. In each case, click on the image for a much larger and clearer photo.

The society is currently celebrating its new website, so please check it out: www.keelsandsloops.org.uk. You’ll find that it cares for both a Humber keel and a Humber sloop, named Comrade and Amy Howson respectively.

While we’re on the subject, Youtube has a nice clip of the Humber sloop Spider T racing down the estuary on the tide.

PS – In the comments below Jim from Zanzibar asks about the paddle steamer in the lower photo. Here’s what HKHSS’s Dave Everatt has to say:

‘I cannot be 100 per cent sure but I believe the paddle steamer is the PS Humber. If so this is the information I could find on the vessel.

‘Of 131 tons, she was built by J T Eltringham & Co, South Shields 1895, and her propulsion was a paddle  driven by single cylinder engine by Hepple & Co of South Shields. Her tonnage was 131

‘She was owned by J Turner and operated from 1895.

‘She was built as a tug for use on the River Tyne and was converted for pleasure work after her tug career. She was iron-built, 100ft long, with a breadth of 19ft and a draught of 9ft. PS Humber made trips from Grimsby to Spurn, where she would land passengers by local rowing boats.

‘Regards

‘Dave Everatt’