Mike’s Guideboat

It always makes me feel great when I get feedback on my book Tale of an Historic Adirondack Guideboat and How to Build One.  A while back I received an email from Mike who was just finishing a beautiful guideboat built in the traditional Adirondack fashion.  Mike is just the one I envisioned who would benefit from my book.  Why?  Well I spent some time in the Adirondack Museum’s boat shop  as a docent.  My job was to answer questions while Allyson built guideboats.  Many of the questions were routine like “What is it made of” and “How long does it take to build?”.  Then, every so often, someone would express real interest in building a guideboat.  They would ask” Is there a course on how to build a guideboat?” or “Is there a book on building a guideboat?’  In both instances I would have to reply “No”.  Finally after disappointing enough visitors I vowed to write a book on how to build a guideboat.  That came about while I was building my second guideboat Showboat.

I thought at the time, “How outrageous of me to think I can write a book on building the Adirondack icon.  Over many years Adirondack fathers have passed down to sons and uncles to nephews the art of building a guideboat.  All I had going for me was some prior boat building experience and a love of guideboats.  Little did I know what long hours and tedious effort lay ahead.  Mike seemed to grasp what I went through.  He said “I appreciate the great care and time you put into taking the measurements and lines off of the Queen Anne…then to write it down for others to use…tremendous work”.

He goes on to say “As a visual learner I found that seeing the diagrams immensely helpful,  I am sure others will too.  You would have enjoyed seeing xeroxed copies of some key pages of your book taped to  the ribs as I was lining the hull for the strakes to be hung,”  Mike goes on to say “I found myself saying many times as I was translating what you wrote into a real product…”This is what he means”,

Thanks Mike for your honesty and openness.  One of the great fears I had when I published the book was “Have I forgotten anything?  Is there anything I wrote that would mislead someone and cause them to go astray?” Your narrative and reports from others have reassured me that all is well.  It makes all the many, many hours taking the lines off the Queen Anne and the many, many, many hour to write the book and get it published. all worthwhile.

Now let’s look at the boat Mike built.  His boat has the elements of three guideboats in it.  He took Jim Cameron’s bottom board pattern and combined it with John Michne’s  rib patterns from the Virginia and the dimensions for the Queen Anne’s strakes from my book.

Here is the nearly finished product (seats need caning).  What a beauty!

Mike’s guideboat

A side view. The strakes are of Spanish Cedar except for the sheer which is of Alaskan Yellow  Cedar.  The gunnel is of Black Cherry.  The tack work is amazing.!

Side view of Mike’s guideboat.

The deck,  Eastern white pine with a bird’s eye maple center strip.

The deck.

Mike’s final words to me “Thank you for writing your book and passing along such valuable information to help preserve a beautiful work of art and craftmanship.”

My reply “Thank you Mike for sharing your story with all of us.

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