I'd rather be in my boat with a drink on the rocks than in the drink with my boat on the rocks.
--Unknown
There is nothing- absolutely nothing- half so much worth doing as simply messing about in boats. -- Ratty said to Mole
Raise your sail one foot and you get ten feet of wind.-- Chinese Proverb
Life is either a daring adventure or nothing. Security does not exist in nature, nor do the children of men as a whole experience it. Avoiding danger is no safer in the long run than exposure.
--Helen Keller
I must study politics and war that my sons may have liberty to study mathematics and philosophy. My sons ought to study mathematics and philosophy, geography, natural history, naval architecture, navigation, commerce, and agriculture, in order to give their children a right to study painting, poetry, music, architecture, statuary, tapestry, and porcelain.
--John Adams (1735 - 1826)
If one does not know to which port one is sailing, no wind is favorable.
--Seneca (5 BC - 65 AD)
All of us have in our veins the exact same percentage of salt in our blood that exists in the ocean, and, therefore, we have salt in our blood, in our sweat, in our tears. We are tied to the ocean. And when we go back to the sea -- whether it is to sail or to watch it -- we are going back from whence we came.
--John F. Kennedy (1917 - 1963)
A ship in port is safe, but that's not what ships are built for.
--Grace Murray Hopper (1906 - 1992)
"The sail, the play of its pulse so like our own lives: so thin and yet so full of life, so noiseless when it labors hardest, so noisy and impatient when least effective."
-Henry David Thoreau
"Ships are the nearest things to dreams that hands have ever made, for somewhere deep in their oaken hearts the soul of a song is laid."
-Robert N. Rose
So between work, the new house and everything else I have not worked on the Wa'apa outrigger canoe build for a while. I did get some new tools for the shop which will get put to good use building my new Ultimate Tool Stand. So between lurking the Proa forum on Yahoo, and others on WoodenBoat etc, I have bumped into multiple "get off your ass and build" motivational sites.
Top on my list is Geoff who is building in the jungle
And I found a nice group a video's about sailing a Wa'apa near Long Island:
Wa'apa Build Has Begun
Written by admin
Saturday, 23 July 2011 13:06
Finally making some progress on actually building, rather than watching what others are doing online and day dreaming.
Glad to be back at it! I don't know how long it has been since I posted, it has been even longer since I was working on a project. I picked a boat of my list, actually 3 boats of my list. I really wanted to build the Ulua, because it is damn prettty and I like working with the strip built method. But, I had the plans for Wharram's Melanesia. I actually bought plywood and started out making the steering oar until I was asking around on the Yahoo Proafile group, and they suggested the Wa'apa. This boat has been on my list for a loooooong time. It really fits my needs as a simple inexpensive build. The modular nature will be great for the build since I'm currently without a shop. When done, I won't need a trailer (doesn't mean I won't want one). 3 8' sections, so we can use him (pacific islanders charactarised their boats as "him" as oppossed to the european "her") as a 16' boat, or a 24'. More rig choices than I can count. Modularity is what this craft is about. I'm hoping we will use it for fun dayplay, camp cruising around Florida, maybe as a scuba platform for scallops up around Weeki Wachi. Sail it, paddle it, put a small outboard or trolling motor. Plus endless combinations of rigs to play with. Who knows, I may even build a second and try it as a double canoe.
So, the build in my current setup is a challenge. Actually, I really do like working with hand tools. It forces me to slow down, pay attention and enjoy the process. Which is the point after all. I mean other than getting him launched and drinking some cold beers as we zip out to 3 Rooker!
Here are some build pics so far. This album will grow, so eventually you should see the whole project through completion here.
Putting the Sail back in FLSAIL
Written by admin
Wednesday, 26 January 2011 21:56
Um, so its been a while since I've posted anything, even longer since I have had anything to post about sailing. Since selling the San Juan 28 I have needed to scratch the sailing itch. My father-in-law is letting me use his wind surfer and rig, but I need a few pieces. I know it is missing the wish bone rig, and the mast step. Problem, I have no clue how to size them or where to find just those pieces used. Any ideas for sourcing these parts in or around Tampa FL?
I have a mast, mast extension, 5.6 m sail, and a 6.3 m sail.
