Saliga serial number 3 65 4272

[Tom Widney]

55Saliga

I ashed a former Charley guide who works in the bases canoe yard s a voulinteer each summer about the availability of the old base bow logos his reply follows

Re: bow decal for sommers canoe base
The old decal was the Indian on a blue background. The new decals have the symbol for all three bases, Ely, Atakokain, and Bissett. It is not a Charles L. Sommers Wilderness Canoe Base sticker but a Northern Tier High Adventure sticker. I can get all you want, within reason of those this summer. But there aint no moe Chucky Sommers Boat Camp stickers.

Icould pick you up a couple of these this Labor Day at the Base alumni reunion but I don't think the new one is what you want as Joe's canoes were history by the time the new decals appeared on the scene, see attached image of the new one it's over all design is similar but the indian and the canoe are gone.

Still waiting for reply on red circle diameter methinks this canoe is hanging in the rafters so that one may take a while, will let you know as soon as I get a reply

Tom

 

[55seliga]

Tom,
Thanks for inquiring. I contacted Chuck Rose of the Sommers Alums and he said he was 87.2% sure they were 10" diameter. I am going to make some up that are 10" from the scans of my original 3" decal. The big ones probably will be stickers not decals though. Since they are not authentic, it probably doesn't matter all that much and they should be more durable. I will use 65 as the boat number unless I can somehow find out the number originally assigned to this canoe.
I love the picture. Did you know John Graham? He was the guide for my very first trip at Chucks Boat Base in `71. Very, very good guy. He could bake with a reflector oven better than anyone I have ever known.
John

 

[Tom Widney]

55Saliga

The ten inch sounds good.... attached are a couplle of images which might help with the scale. The canoes under portage have the old decal the new ones in the other image are most likely the same size, As for John his image doesn't jump immediatley to mind but its been fourty years and I would probabley recognize his image if I saw it,,,as for the reflector ovens they were hand made stainless steel and were being discontinued in 71. It was the year of a big change over in equipment, out with the canvas tents and food packs in with nylon gear. I got hurt that year mid season or would have had a reflector oven and probabley a Saliga to spend my $45 a week pay on.
"Keep on Trucking"
Tom

 

[nickb]

There is the number "95" embossed into the bow deck of my 1954 Sommers-Base Seliga. I would assume this to be the number assigned to this particular boat by the camp. Assuming they numbered sequentially your 1955 would probably be only a slightly higher number. Dan could probably even tell you how many Seliga serial numbers between our two boats went to Sommers, and taking into consideration any purchases by other manufacturers, you could probably get close to the actual original number of your boat.