It's no secret that I love power tools. Like any fine instrument a quality power tool is an extension of the mind of the sculptor. For me, sliding a carbide steel miter saw blade down a perfect pencil line evokes deep satisfaction. My work is clean, probably as clean as it will ever get. Yet, after building dozens of kayaks I felt the need to cast aside the precision steel and milling equipment. It was with uncertainty that I contemplated building a kayak with hand tools out of found wood. To help with the project I collaborated with Kiliii Yu, hunter, forager, and native skills expert.
http://www.dancinghawk.com
Together over the course of four days we constructed this kayak from wood we found on the beach and in the scrap piles of my wood shop. We even made tools on site; a mortise chisel from an old screwdriver, a drawknife from a carving knife, and a drill bit from a sharpened bronze nail. Camping in beautiful lowland meadow on a narrow spit between Nehalem Bay and the Pacific Ocean, Kiliii (also a professional photographer) taught me how to use my digital SLR camera. In a not so traditional manner, we shot seals and deer.
http://www.dancinghawk.com
Together over the course of four days we constructed this kayak from wood we found on the beach and in the scrap piles of my wood shop. We even made tools on site; a mortise chisel from an old screwdriver, a drawknife from a carving knife, and a drill bit from a sharpened bronze nail. Camping in beautiful lowland meadow on a narrow spit between Nehalem Bay and the Pacific Ocean, Kiliii (also a professional photographer) taught me how to use my digital SLR camera. In a not so traditional manner, we shot seals and deer.
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In September Kiliii will take this kayak frame to the Rabbitstick Rendezvous to skin it with animal hides!
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