Algonquin- A Canadian Rowing Canoe

[Nick Dennis]

I thought I would share with you folks on the otherwise of the pond the tale of my new acquisition. I have been trying to find out more about her and have had various schools of thought from several sources in Canada. There was a tale which came a bit like Chinese Whispers, that she once belonged to the Canadian Coast Guard but that has been scuppered. She had been in the same family here in the UK for 75 years having been brought to England in 1941 from Ontario. She was described to me when I acquired her as a Canadian rowing Canoe hence the thread title. Dan Miller has been over here and has a look, scratched his head, stroked his beard and simply said "nice". He confirmed that she is built of cedar.

I am just putting the last coats of varnish on and will have her back in the water at Easter which is in a few weeks time.

i will update the thread and blogg as I finish but you can follow my progress here:

http://www.songofthepaddle.co.uk/forum/showthread.php/52898-Algonquin

If anyone wishes to throw their penny worth in, please do so. At the end of the day she is a lovely craft, will be perfect for summer evenings on the river with a picnic and a bottle of Chablis and There is probably nothing else like her here in the UK

All the best,

Nick

 

[alick burt]

Hi Nick
Good to see she floats
Alick

 

[Nick Dennis]

Hi Nick
Good to see she floats
Alick

that was when I first got her. She was a tad incontenant

 

[Pook]

Wow! Very good looking boat.
But really having been brought to England in 1941 from Ontario

I can't imagine anyone importing anything into Britain that wasn't war materiel in 1941. Can't imagine there was room allowed on freighters unless it had a military use.

Interesting.

Bruce

 

[Nick Dennis]

Wow! Very good looking boat.
But really having been brought to England in 1941 from Ontario

I can't imagine anyone importing anything into Britain that wasn't war materiel in 1941. Can't imagine there was room allowed on freighters unless it had a military use.

Interesting.

Bruce

This fact came direct from the family who owned the boat before me. It was not an uncommon scenario; I can remember watching a documentary on the TV about a guy in service abroad during the war. He fell in love with a sloop in the south seas and whacked it on the back deck of a war ship returning to the UK where it was deposited awaiting his return!

Nick

 

[Nick Dennis]

Well I finished her and re-launched on the Norfolk Broads over the Easter weekend. No leaks which is a good thing and she rows beautifully but also turns on a sixpence (or dime).

 

[Pook]

Love it!

From the Land Rover with the 2 canoes atop and a trailer to the picture of the Black Lab watching from shore...
Great looking boat with very interesting history.

Thanks for sharing.
In a similar vein i re-launched my restored and re-canvassed Chestnut Pal over the Easter weekend but in 15cm of snow...

Bruce

 

[Nick Dennis]

I had the skiff with me on our WCHA display stand at the Beale Park Boat show on the River Thames earlier this month. A chap came to see me and explained " Younhave my dads boat " It transpires that his father owned Algonquin whilst working in Canada and then brought her back to the UK in the 1940's. He has subsequently sent me a couple of photos. One of the canoe with his mother and friend with dog on a lake near where they were based at Chalk River Ontario in the 40's . The other is the son rowing Algonquin on the Thames in the 1960, s

 

[Pook]

That's very cool!
Great to have that kind of historic photographic documentation.
That lake looks like Perch Lake.
Chalk River, eh? Assuming the father was involved in the Canadian nuclear program. Chalk River, on the Ottawa River, northeast of Ottawa was/is the Atomic Energy of Canada laboratory set up as joint Canada/Britain project in 1944.

Would still like to know the full story of bringing the boat back to UK during wartime.
Bruce

 

[Nick Dennis]

Yes ; the family were there 1944-47 working on the first nuclear energy program with the Canadian Government. I suspect that on the original date of the boat coming to England, someone misread 1947 as 1941 which makes more sense with the latest information provided to me by the son of the original owner. I will now go and see if the boat glows in the dark !

 

[Pook]

Aha!
Thanks for confirming.
and love the glow in dark comment!

Bruce