Social Media Images

[Benson Gray]

A FROSTY MORNING LAUNCH FOR “TICONDEROGA”: Member Joseph Brown and his son Eric spent over a year restoring this 1941 Old Town HW model with serial number 130087 – what a beautiful job on their first restoration project! Launch day was November 7th and it was 27 degrees, but that did not dampen their enthusiasm for the long awaited day. “Ticonderoga” was refloated on the West Branch of the Westfield River, in Huntington, MA. Joseph says, “The time spent on this project with my son was priceless. That is the magic of wooden canoes”. #wcha #wchaorg #canoe #woodencanoeheritageassociation #woodencanoe #oldtowncanoe #westfieldriver

 

[Benson Gray]

Member Zack Smith restored this canoe between 2015 and 2019. It appears to be from C. P. Nutting in Waltham, Massachusetts on the Charles River. Nutting started on June 28th, 1884 and was making about 150 canoes annually by 1905. The removable bow seat in this one is very unusual. #wcha #wchaorg #canoe #woodencanoeheritageassociation #woodencanoe #nuttingcanoe #charlesriver

 

[Benson Gray]

IT’S A DOG’S LIFE: Craig Johnson’s chocolate Labrador, Kofi, relaxing beneath the dogwoods in his 15 foot long, circa 1927 Kennebec at Forked Run State Park in Ohio. A good canoe dog is worth their weight in gold… or chocolate! Enjoy your paddle, Kofi. Photo by Craig Johnson. #wcha #wchaorg #canoe #woodencanoeheritageassociation #woodencanoe #kennebeccanoe #forkedrunstatepark

 

[Benson Gray]

A NICELY RESTORED MORRIS IN THE ADIRONDACKS: A unique Adirondack boathouse, with a decidedly oriental influence, forms the backdrop for a 100+ year old Morris canoe paddled by member Chris Pearson. Chris advises that the canoe came from an Adirondack area estate, and believes the restoration work was done by member Gil Cramer. #wcha #wchaorg #canoe #woodencanoeheritageassociation #woodencanoe #morriscanoe #adirondacks

 

[Benson Gray]

A CLASSIC CANOE ON A CLASSIC FALL DAY: Larry Pixley gunkholing along Sebasticook Stream and Great Moose Lake near Hartland, Maine in his 16’ Maliseet-style birchbark canoe. The canoe was made by students at a 2013 workshop taught by member-builder Steve Cayard. Aside from birchbark, the canoe is made of maple and cedar fastened together with red spruce roots, and sealed with pine pitch, moose fat, and bees wax. #wcha #wchaorg #canoe #woodencanoeheritageassociation #woodencanoe #birchbarkcanoe #stevecayard #sebasticookstream #greatmooselake

 

[Shari Gnolek]

sealed with pine pitch, moose fat, and bees wax.

Inquiring minds want to know... is "moose fat" a common birch-bark canoe sealant? Where does one buy it, or do you have to take up moose hunting as the first step of birch-bark canoe building? Could Crisco be substituted? I envision this as a floating smorgasbord for the local bears!

 

[Benson Gray]

Paddlers Tyson Schoelzel and Adam Kawaski enjoy the spectacular beauty of a fall afternoon on Plainfield Pond, Plainfield, Mass. The canoes are both 17’ Chicots (pronounced shee-koh), built by the paddlers at Salmon Falls Canoe, under the direction of Dylan and Emily Schoelzel. #wcha #wchaorg #canoe #woodencanoeheritageassociation #woodencanoe #plainfieldpond #salmonfallscanoe

 

[Benson Gray]

Many canoe builders made small models for display and marketing purposes. Auctioneers occasionally call them 'salesman samples' although they don't appear to have ever been used in that way. Frequently these are found today in very bad condition due to hard use as children's toys or poorly executed attempts to repaint and repair them. Member Roger Young has seen many of these and the attached pictures document his restoration of a five foot long Kennebec from the late teens. It had been covered with light green house paint so the first step was to remove this paint using a sharp jackknife tediously and carefully drawn broadside along the hull. This revealed the original factory-issue appearance of green one side, red the other, and large block gold leaf lettering “KENNEBEC” along its gunwales. This became the basis of a very careful restoration. #wcha #wchaorg #canoe #woodencanoeheritageassociation #woodencanoe #kennebeccanoe #modelcanoe

 

[Benson Gray]

THE CALM BEFORE THE STORM: Storm clouds seem to be gathering as Lisa Berry paddles across the glassy surface of Winney Pond, in the Adirondack Mountains near Northville, NY. Member Ron Dennis restored the 17-foot, 1916 Old Town OTCA, AA grade, #45724. Photo by Ron Dennis. #wchaorg #canoe #woodencanoeheritageassociation #woodencanoe #adirondacks #winneypond #oldtowncanoe

 

[Benson Gray]

This was originally posted on February 28th, 2019 but should probably also be saved here for reference.

Extra Storage: The Old Town Canoe Company would occasionally run out of space to store canoes at the factory while the filler cured. Sam Gray's back yard is one place where canoes would be stacked for storage. His children would help by going out to sweep them off when it snowed. This picture is not dated but these boys were born in 1912 and 1913 so it was not too many years after that. #wcha #canoe #woodencanoeheritageassociation #woodencanoe #oldtowncanoe #oldtownmaine

 

[Benson Gray]

LAST PADDLE OF THE SEASON: An October 2010 afternoon at Chester Lake, on the edge of the Boundary Waters Canoe Area in north east Minnesota. A beautiful 17’4” Atkinson Traveler awaits the evening paddle and the hunt for German brown trout. Member Jerry Fruetel built the canoe, his first, which includes exquisite cherry inlays on the ash decks, and a wonderful paint scheme. Paddles of ash and cherry built by Tom McLaughlin. #wcha #wchaorg #canoe #woodencanoeheritageassociation #woodencanoe #atkinsontraveler #chesterlake

 

[dtdcanoes]

WOW, what an image ! The balance is extraordinary......the bold line at the gunnel and then the accompanying treatment in red beginning at the stem and so well conceived and executed as the whole side of the canoe is redefined and acts as a control almost.
POSTER WORTHY, YEAH !

 

[Benson Gray]

THE ELECTRIC BLUE CANOE IN THE BAYOU: Ariana McCaughey paddles a striking wood/canvas canoe among the Bald Cypress and Red Maples of the Louisiana Bayou. The canoe is a Prospector built by Mike Snider of Iowa City, Iowa, and the location is a small slough off of the Old Sabine River near Starks, Louisiana. #wcha #wchaorg #canoe #woodencanoeheritageassociation #woodencanoe #oldsabineriver #louisianabayou #prospectorcanoe

 

[Benson Gray]

Happy Halloween! This image was shared on Facebook's Home In New England group by Kiel James Patrick. #wcha #wchaorg #canoe #woodencanoeheritageassociation #woodencanoe

 

[Benson Gray]

WILDERNESS: Alexandra Conover paddles one of builder Steve Cayard’s birchbark canoes past Allagash Falls along the Allagash River in northern Maine. Photo by Garrett Conover. #wcha #wchaorg #canoe #woodencanoeheritageassociation #allagashfalls #allagashriver #woodencanoe #stevecayard #birchbarkcanoe

 

[Benson Gray]

Restoration of an Early Old Town Molitor: These pictures show a 1921 Molitor model from the Old Town Canoe Company with serial number 65775. This appears to have been custom built for a Detroit dealer named Charles J. Molitor but ultimately shipped to Auburn, Maine. It is now able to be used again, nearly a hundred years after it left the factory. Many thanks to Rollin, Elisa, and everyone else at the Northwoods Canoe Company for making this possible. #wcha #wchaorg #canoe #woodencanoeheritageassociation #woodencanoe #molitorcanoe #oldtowncanoe #northwoodscanoe

 

[Benson Gray]

EARLY MORNING PADDLE: Member Ron Hampton, of the Delaware Valley Chapter of WCHA, out for an early morning paddle on Lower St. Regis Lake at Assembly 2014. His canoe is a cedar strip model of a Wee Lassie II, designed by Mac McCarthy and built by Dan Frye of Williamsport, Pennsylvania. Photo by Betsy Wilson. #wcha #wchaorg #canoe #woodencanoeheritageassociation #woodencanoe #weelassie #macmccarthy #adirondacks

 

[Benson Gray]

REFLECTIONS: A beautiful canoe on a beautiful fall afternoon! This was Columbus Day weekend at the 2008 meeting of the Delaware Chapter on Atsion Lake, Atsion, New Jersey. Al and Jean Bratton brought their 16’ Mallard from Al’s shop, Woodstrip Watercraft Co. The canoe is western red cedar with mahogany and ash trim – look at the perfect reflections in the water! #wcha #wchaorg #canoe #woodencanoeheritageassociation #woodencanoe #atsionlake #woodstripwatercraft

 

[Benson Gray]

A LABOR OF LOVE: This 16 foot long, CS (common sense or middle) grade, Old Town Yankee was shipped to Mamaroneck, NY in 1923. It spent the last 40 years in Vermont and the last 20 in a basement. Considering the condition of the boat when it arrived in Ralph Nimtz’s shop, this was a restoration only a true wooden canoe lover would undertake. Ralph meticulously brought it back to its original beauty! Photo by Ralph Nimtz. #wcha #wchaorg #canoe #woodencanoeheritageassociation #woodencanoe #oldtowncanoe #ralphscanoes

 

[Benson Gray]

GRANDFATHER AND GRANDSON IN THE MIST: Member Gary Larson and grandson Cooper search for eagles in the trees and loons on the lake. They are paddling a 1915 Old Town OTCA that was restored by Gary. Judy Larson caught this magical moment just before the morning mist burned off of a remote lake in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula. #wcha #wchaorg #canoe #woodencanoeheritageassociation #woodencanoe #oldtowncanoe