Speaking of waterside loafers, land sharks and small cruising yachts

Cooke

Writing shortly after the Great War, F B Cooke has every bit of the bluff, blokey do-exactly-as-I-say-and-everything-will-be-all-right style that was popular in his era, but today seems bossy and a little odd.

For Cooke the popular yachting harbours may have been full of good chaps but they were also home to waterside loafers and land sharks who would find a dozen ways to rob the poor innocent yachtsman. Rather like a sheriff in a Wild-West movie, Cooke could distinguish between them in a moment, knew exactly how to handle both types and briskly tells us how to [ad name=”intheboatshed-post”] Continue reading “Speaking of waterside loafers, land sharks and small cruising yachts”

Jim’s canoe gets new sails

Jim’s canoe gets new sails

Jim’s canoe gets new sails Jim’s canoe gets new sails Jim’s canoe gets new sails

Jim’s canoe gets new sails Jim’s canoe gets new sails
Zanzibar sailing with her new sails on Saturday afternoon

My pal Jim Van Den Bos and I spent Saturday afternoon near our homes at Bewl Water in Kent, England, trying out some new sails kindly sewn up by Jim’s mum for his canoe Zanzibar.

The little boat attracted a lot of attention from fellow small-boat sailors who kept Jim busy for quite a time while I swooped across the water.

We were both pleased with Continue reading “Jim’s canoe gets new sails”

Some romantic Light Trow photos

Light Trow on the  beach

Light Trow on the  beach Light Trow on the  beach

Onawind Blue on the beach for a photo session

Dreamer that he is, Ben Crawshaw took his handsome Light Trow named Onawind Blue down to the beach for some more photos. See:
Whisky and soda at the Invisible Workshop.

I love the way this boat is coming together and the painterly way he often photographs her- as this is the prototype, I pray almost nightly that it works as well as it looks!

For more on the Light Trow and its ancestor the Fleet Trow:
‘Phwoar!’, says Light Trow builder Ben Crawshaw

Download the Light Trow plans here:

http://www.duckworksbbs.com/plans/gavin/lighttrow/trow.zip

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