Category: Canoes

Canoes, kayaks, sailin canoes, open canoes, paddles, skin on frame canoes, canoe plans

A Cinderella in Colombia

An example of my small open canoe design intended for quick building, the Cinderella, has been made in Colombia. See the free boat plans page.

Hearing from people all around the world is one of the great pleasures of having designed some small boats, and this one has certainly been built with loving care.

Here’s what the latest Cinderella’s builder, Franklin Peñaranda has to say:

‘Mr . Atkin,

‘It is a pleasure to finally e-mail you. I live in Barranquilla, Colombia and I have built the Cinderella canoe that you designed and wrote about in your book Ultrasimple Boatbuilding.

‘The book was given to me by a good neighbor as a gift about 6 years ago, and I have been dreaming of one day building that canoe.

‘My interest in boats and boatbuilding dates to the teenage years (I will be 48 in March).

‘I am sending you a few pictures of my interpretation of your wonderfully designed Cinderella. It took me more than 11 months to construct it, mostly due to difficulties in finding fiberglass and paint help, and I made a few errors that had to be rectified, but it has been a wonderful learning experience.

‘I do not have any training or experience in boatbuilding, and nor any family, friends or neighbors. My background and profession is in truck driving.

‘The Cinderella has had such a great response from people that I am going to build small boats for a living. Imagine that!

‘Thank you for writing and publishing your work, and for inspiring and us novices.

‘Sincerely, Franklin Peñaranda’

Matthew Atkin photographs the outrigger canoes of Olango and Mactan

Here are some more of my brother’s stunning photos from the Far East. Today’s shots of mainly outrigger canoes – mostly what are known as bancas – come from Olango and Mactan in the Phillipines.

Click on the images for a much bigger and better view.

Thanks Matt!

BBA students build a new design composite sailing canoe

Boat Building Academy students Richard Lyford from Portland and Steve Roberts built and launched a newly designed 14ft 5in composite sailing canoe as part of a 38-week boatbuilding course. The photos are by Janine Cashin, Liz Griffiths, Becky Joseph, John  Pritchard, Grant Morris and Jenny Steer.

Richard took a career break to attend the course.

Richard believes that with interest in the Victorian idea of sailing canoes is growing in the UK and that we’re on the way to a real revival. So he worked with sailing canoe specialist company Solway Dory to develop and design a new light-weight composite sailing canoe and built a prototype as part of his course.

Water sports enthusiast Steve joined the course from a career in the Royal Navy where here worked as a mine clearance diver.

The two created a tulip-wood hull plug, which was then glass and epoxied to create the mould, which was lifted off the plug, polished and used to create the canoe.

Rock Pipit can be paddled or sailed, and has an unstayed Bermuda rig, which Richard argues is simple to rig and easy to reef.

She looked elegant in white and royal blue, so much so that BBA technician Steve Hewins, a man who has seen countless boats, watched her go out and said ‘One day I’m going to have one of those… ‘

Richard returns to his job as a Submarine Systems Engineer in July. Steve has already started work at Compass Tenders, Port Hamble, building bespoke tenders for superyachts.

The Rock Pipit design will become part of the Solway Dory range. If you are on the Devon or Cornwall coast or estuaries look out for Richard, who intends to use his new sailing canoe as often as possible.