Wooden boats by the banks of Milford Haven

Evans Boatwork specialises in building, restoring and repairing wooden craft, and is located close to Milford Marina and the commercial docks at Milford Haven, one of the deepest and most protected harbours in the world.The area is particularly interesting to yachties because it offers cruising in the Bristol Channel and the Irish Sea, and the Cleddau river, which is part of the Pembrokeshire National Park. Evans has a nice little website featuring three of its restoration projects, two of which are of particular interest: a 1960s Shetland skiff and an X boat.

http://www.evansboatwork.co.uk

The Beale Park Thames Boat Show – and another shed

I was thinking today about the Beale Park Boat Show of 2005, and it occurred to me that some of you might be interested in some of the photos I brought back. Chuck Leinweber posted some of them on his excellent Duckworks e-magazine for small boat enthusiasts.

Here are my shots from 2005:

http://www.duckworksmagazine.com/05/gatherings/beale1/index.cfm

Here are my friend Chris Partridge’s from the same year. His eye was caught as much as mine was by Mike Smylie’s River Severn salmon punt :

http://www.duckworksmagazine.com/05/gatherings/beale2/index.cfm

And here’s Chris’s set from this year:

http://www.duckworksmagazine.com/06/gatherings/beale/index.htm

Back in 2005, why the photo of a shed at a show full of elegant boats? It’s Mike Smylie’s shed for smoking fish in his role as The Kipperman, his alter ego on a mission to convert us all to eating hand-smoked fish. They taste so good he might even win the battle one day.

I’m sure you’ll agree that it’s no ordinary shed. And don’t miss the coracle in the background casually trying to upstage it…

Mike’s website is at:
www.kipperland.org.uk

c2.jpg