Dutch Island

There are lots of islands in Narragansett Bay. Some large, some small, some inhabited, some uninhabited, some private, some open to the public. Dutch Island lies off Jamestown (Conanicut Island),  and its a "State Reservation", which I assume meant that its "open to the public"





This is Sheffield Cove. I had originally planned to put in at Ft. Getty, but they were still charging a whopping  $20 to park. The good fellow at the entrance suggested this nearby, free-parking place. 
Easy paddle over, right by Ft. Getty, with $20 still in pocket.

This concrete pier looked like a good landing place/landmark.
There is lots of Former Military Presence in Narragansett bay. Ft. Weatherill.  Ft Getty. Ft Adams. And this island has fortifications, which I forgot the name of. They mainly seem to date from the Civil War to WWI. They all have those "Disappearing Rifle"  emplacements. They must have been expecting an invasion of U-Boats.

 Interesting place, with lots of ruins and old foundations. It was in-between "civilization" and "ruin"- some traces of cleared land, now gone to meadow, sidewalks that went nowhere but into dense brush, all strung with this 6" high vining weed that made walking in flimsy paddle shoes a chore.  It seems that some use the place recreationally , there are signs of camping in some of the foundations.

 This fort is in the center of the island. Its pretty similar to Ft. Weatherill.
I find it interesting that these type of ruins are fairly accessible to the public. Pretty crumbly, plenty of places to get hurt, but nothing stops the hiker from traipsing all over them. Where I come from, the whole place would be OFF LIMITS!, strung about with barbed wire, and probably monitored.

Gun Emplacements.

Spooky, but surprisingly little graffiti. It really seems like few people ever come here. 
The hiking was difficult, since many of what I thought were "trails" were actually deer tracks. I startled deer at least four times.
I made my way, with difficulty, to the other end of the island, which was more "open" and rocky.

Shale eroded with neat holes.

A cute rectangular lighthouse. 

The walking was rough, even on the shoreline. There really was no clear path. On the way back, saw an imposing brick shell of a building, which I supposed must have been the barracks. I actually had trouble finding my way back to the pier, and nearly repeated by Whale Rock blunder, but tide & wind were favorable. Mighty rough on the feet, next time, I'll pack some proper hiking footwear.

3-11-13
I have since been informed that Dutch Island  is not open to the Public, and that I was actually trespassing. There were supposed to be signs posted, but vandals must have taken them down.

Ongoing Outfitting, and Stuff

I finally decided to install the hear hatch. After putting it in, I realized what a convenience it would have been when I went camping. In any case, lack of a Rear Hatch might have been a negative selling point.

I also decided that I wouldn't use foam bulkheads on the next build, so that gave me some 3" minicell to play with. I bought an angle grinder & carved this out. I  tried it for about 1/2 hour, and it didn't seem "right", so I whittled it down some more, and it still doesn't seem great. 
When I tried Jay's Outer Island, it had a custom-molded fiberglass seat. Absolutely  no padding, but the most comfortable seat I'd yet sat in. I'm going to try that next.

9/1
I Tried making a mold of my butt in cement. 1st attempt was not auspicious, because I (stupidly) got concrete instead of cement. I used a great deal of Plaster of Paris to try & smooth it out. Then I tried again with mortar , making the mix looser & wetter than everyone recommends. That one seemed more like a "mold".
I also did a little more whittling on the foam seat, and gave it a one-hour trial today. It was better than I thought-didn't feel nice and cushy, but after 2 half-hour paddles, no numb legs!

Thimbles Again

I decided to paddle around The Thimbles yesterday. Being a Sunday, I was a little worried about the limited parking at the Town Dock. I did find a space within "portage" distance of the launching area.
I saw two strip-built kayaks waiting to be launched, and asked their owners a few questions. The turned out to be Outer Islands. I had been considering this design for my next build. I like the name-a kayak not named after a bird, or a body of water, and with Local Interest. When I shot a few technical questions, one guy said "why not ask the designer?", and there he was-Jay Babina! Talk about luck! What are the chances of running into the designer of the kayak you're considering building, on a random day, all 1/2 mile from the actual island the design is named after?
He suggested that we paddle together, which was fun. We talked a lot about designs. You can get so much good information from someone who is friendly, and isn't trying to sell something. For example, when I mentioned that I didn't like the Night Heron, he said, "Oh, everybody hates it. Its a mistake". 

 Jay in his Outer Island. A great looking Greenland-style boat.

We stopped at Outer Thimble island, which was "open" for visitors, and he let me test-paddle his OI. A great boat. It has a small feet-first-entry type cockpit, which I was no longer used to, and my knees were braced firmly against the rather low deck. Jay says that the deck can be raised, and I can enlarge the cockpit if I want to. I thought my SW tracked well, but this thing seemed to want to stay on course. Comfortable stability, and despite reviews not hard to turn, if you know how. Jay also helped me solve my  quandary about leg discomfort. His OI's seat was the "tractor" style, molded of fiberglass, with no padding, and it was considerably more comfortable than mine. So, I'm starting to believe the "its not the padding, its the shape" School Of Thought. 
Interesting to paddle with these guys. The two in OI's both had Greenland paddles, and seemed to be expending very little energy to set a pace which I had to work a little to keep up with.
What a lucky day!

Urban Paddling

Went to a CLC demo on the Hudson River in Yonkers yesterday. A hot day for driving. Drove through "interesting" neighborhoods to get to the canoe club, which was directly across the street from the City Jail, and then had trouble parking. It seems that the more "urban" the location,the more stingily apportioned any scrap of shoreline is. The club claimed  a tiny beach of about 10 yards, and a few rocks.
It was crowded, and the space allowed for paddling was limited, so when I tried a Petrel and a Hi-Deck Night Heron, I didn't discover much. There was no room to get up to "sprint" pace. A man in a kayak bellowed directives: "Night Heron! Bear away from those rocks! Paddle on the right!", etc. Urban.
I stayed with the "urban" theme today, and tried the boat ramp under the Gold Star Bridge. Pretty average, as boat ramps go. Up into the harbor, against the wind, surprisingly rough, back downwind for some surfing. I still haven't perfected that art-it seem that the trick is to achieve the perfect "speed per wave".
I was somewhat disappointed with the 'yaks I tried yesterday. The NH felt very wobbly indeed, and while the Petrel was better, it was almost a little too "responsive". I may have to look farther for my next build.

Housatonic Lover's Leap

I decided to repeat last year's Housatonic trip today, despite the heat. Interesting how much a waterway can change in one year. The water level seemed low, due to drought, and there either was, or I noticed, much more weed and algae.
The stretch of flat water between Bull's Bridge and Kent School is quiet. Few waterfront residences, and I counted only three motorboats  on the shore-it must seem like there is "nowhere to go" in a motorboat.

I thought I saw a tree stump that looked like a deer's ass, but it turned out to be a deer's ass. This one held the "headlights" pose for so long, I almost thought it was fake:









I beached near this bridge, and walked a couple of blocks to a store, and bought a beverage.









I think I must have been in better shape than last year, because the trip seemed easier & shorter than last year.  Really hot, though. I resisted the urge to jump in several times, which is good, since the water was not very cool, and I'd only have gotten dirty.

On the way up, I had noticed a sign for "Lover's Leap State Park". I had also noticed it on the map, while checking out Lake Lillinoah. Funky little place!

 A nice iron bridge, which spans a gorge at the very head of the lake. 

 View from the bridge

The park has hiking trails (uphill in the heat, aagh!),one of which leads to this view:

 And others lead to architectural oddities: 

A most peculiar structure. Its split in half by a wall, and is held together by cables. It has upper & lower levels, connected by a little window. They must have run out of brick on the top.



Almost forgot to mention The Rocky River Hydroelectric plant. I had seen this place before, but only found it interesting after reading the history of Candlewood Lake. The Plant itself just looks like a typical Hydro Plant, so no photo, but you gotta see this pipe:

Thirteen feet wide. It filled 75% of Candlewood Lake, which lies right over the hill. It has a burly, turn-of-the-century-boilerplate look to it, all black & riveted, with a Diver Dan porthole.

A Very Small State Park

Had half a day off today, so rather than an "expedition", I went for a "local" paddle on Gardener Lake. There is a small island, 100 yards or so from the shore, which I was surprised to learn, comprises the State's Smallest State Park. Like, less than one acre small.



That's it, folks. One trail across it, and the only development is a single "No Camping" sign, and of course, The Secret Teenage Party Firepit.

Camping Out Of My Kayak

I haven't been camping in about 30 years. I thought it would be neat to camp on an island, accessible only by boat, so I tried Knight Island, in Lake Champlain.
Parked at Hero's Welcome general store, in North Hero. They had a steep boat ramp & dock for which they charged $3 to launch a kayak. Here, I made the embarrassing mistake of loading my boat with gear on the dock instead of in the water, nearly doubling its weight. Had to ask for a hand. 
The trip over was not bad. I had been a little concerned about how the 'yak would handle with  the extra weight , but it was fine. Wind was out of the south, so I headed into it south of my target, and rode in. About a 1' chop, nothing major.
I think I have trouble judging distances over open water, or trouble judging my speed or, both. I aimed for the Ranger's house, which started out looking like a gray dot. I judged my progress by details. Now the house looks rectangular. Now  I can see a window. Now I can see two windows, Now I can see an outbuilding, etc, until its closer than where I left from.
Met the friendly Ranger. Interesting: he said that a family had just left my campsite , and that he'd come over by bicycle "in about an hour" to "clean it up". I went straight to the site, found it neat as a pin, with firewood neatly stacked, and even a kindling pile in the fire pit. "Wes" arrived within minutes on his bike, and we had another chat, then he left. I think that was part of the "procedure", to check me out and make sure I wasn't unloading atomic bombs or anything.

This is the only site on the island without a lean-to shelter, but they seem to have made up for it by selecting the best spot. Great views of both sides of the island, and if you count "my" campsite as starting at the Famous Composting Privy (more on that later), a good 1/2 acre.

Camp set up, I had a swim, cup of coffee, and walk around the island. There are walking trails in the interior, with the campsites marked such as "ASPEN Campers Only", to insure privacy. I also tried to circumnavigate the island on shore, but was stopped by cliffs.

 Interesting rocks on the beach. 

Obligatory Sunset Photo. At this point, it was still fun-made a fire, some lousy freeze-dried stew, and had another swim.
Now comes the part where I was reminded why I haven't been camping in 30 years. Too early for sleep, read by head lamp for a while, heard unusual animal noises. Retired to tent, more noises. Went back out found a raccoon in my lamp, not happy to see me.Back in the tent, turned the light off, and he took a tour around my tent. Only leaving the light on all night kept him away. I think I got about 3 hours fitful sleep. And of course, it absolutely had to rain a little.

The aforementioned Privy. They seemed to proud of these. There is a poster inside, explaining how its set up to biodegrade your leavings. I was tempted to swipe some of the straw for padding, but I didn't. The system seems to work,because it barely had an odor. The crossed paddles in lieu of a crescent moon are a nice touch, too.

Sunrise, finally. 
By 9:00 the night before, the wind died down, and the lake was flat and glassy. My bright Idea was to leave in the early morning, "before the wind came up", but the wind came up during the night, and stayed "up". Had to paddle back in short-length, 4' waves, the roughest conditions I've yet encountered, on 3 hours sleep. Again, I had trouble judging the distance, and felt like I was making no progress, but sighted a green buoy at north Hero, and it did become larger & larger. It took twice as long to return as it did to get there. 
Maybe next time, I'll camp ashore, and paddle the lake for Fun instead of Necessity.

Lake Lillinoah

Its a wide place in the Housatonic River, behind a dam. It had some of the same "Man-Made" look as Candlewood, and about the same level of motorboat traffic.
Put in at Pond Brook. At least this time, it was free of charge, and since Lillinoah is already  infested with the Dreaded Zebra Mussel, I didn't have to undergo an interview.
Its green. At first, I thought I was looking at reflections of trees, or some other illusion, but it is, in fact green, due to algae bloom.

A nice 3-mile paddle.

The Narragansett Rune Stone

I found out about this thing while reading a web page about the Newport Tower. The problem, these days, is that everyone is an advocate for evidence supporting what they already believe, taking everything for "proof" of the wildest theories. This is supposed to be an inscription left by Wayward Northmen in the 1400's. We decided to check it out.
There is no public access to the shore in this area. We parked at the Country Club, and cut across the golf course as inconspicuously as possible. I had some misleading directions from another blog. 





We found this boulder. It looked like a good place to carve an inscription. I waded to it, and found no trace of an inscription, or, it looked as if any inscription would be underneath an inch of barnacles. I should have listened to my friend, who opined that it "didn't look like the picture". Lesson learned: When "determination" becomes "stubbornness" , you may fail.

I returned today.  On a whim, I decided to hike a little further north on the beach (contradictory to the "directions), and voila! there was a beach just like the picture!  The "real" rock seemed much smaller and lower than I would have imagined, and the bluff behind the beach had lots of put-there-deliberately seawall-type stones. I read that the Rune Stone was discovered by clam diggers, and sure enough, there were some in the vicinity. Waded out, scraped a little with a brush, and easily found the "Runes".

This rock would really be invisible at high tide. This being a New Moon low tide, I actually had to time my photos in between waves. Saw some other marks, probably made by others clearing away weeds.
It seems as though Runes are difficult to translate. One rune can mean two things, and a message in Runes does not contain all the parts of a sentence: one must liberally insert them. Here's one translation I found:
 UPPERLINE
Rune 1. GIFT (G)
Rune 2. SUN (S)
Rune 3. LAND, ISLAND (H)
Rune 4. RIDE, RED, RHODE (R)
Rune 5. HOME, PROPERTY (0)
Rune 6. MAN, MEN (M)
Rune 7. LAKE, SEA, OCEAN (L)
Rune 8. ICE, ICELAND (1)
LOWERLINE
Rune 9. GIFT (G)
Rune 10. GOD (A)
So, the correct TRANSLATION appears to be:
"GIFT of the SUN: RHODE ISLAND (Red Land), now HOME (property) of the MEN across the OCEAN from ICELAND; GIFT of GOD"

This is,of course, hotly debated online. Two things I thought that I knew: That The Northmen were suspected to have extended their  explorations along the American coast, possibly as far south as Mexico, but there was "insufficient evidence" to prove it, and that Rhode Island was named by English speakers in the seventeenth century, after Rhodes, Greece. It also seems that "Rhode" means "Red". Might these Northmen, accustomed to the black sand and gravel of Iceland's coast, interpreted the brown sand and mud flats of New England as "red"? Or the natives? 
Then there is the matter of "The Hooked X". This Rune was recently discovered in Europe, and appears in inscriptions In Rhode Island and Maine. If a hoax, the Stone shows many decades of wear. I also don't know what the probability of a carving from the 14th century surviving that long in the water is.
As a hoax, the Hoaxer would have had to have enough knowledge of Runic to tap out a fairly coherent message, including the obscure "hooked X". Most hoaxers want attention, and this one has sought none (unlike the crop circles).  It doesn't seem to be a very good place for an inscription, and it was only discovered in the 1980s. I also find the use of "Red" kind of suspect, as above mentioned. I'd also be more encouraged if it was discovered in the 1600s, instead of the 1980s.
Encouraging: The admixture of Pagan and Christian symbology. The Vikings had been Christianized by that time, but oddly held onto their Pagan roots. I'm doubting The Hoaxer's creativity, in throwing in that little bit of mystery. 
It still starts my imagination: A failed, one-way expedition comes to an end in this bay, and the survivors give thanks for being stranded in a not-too-terrible place. 

Update, July 2, 2012
I returned with my friend last week, to look for the stone, but I couldn't find it, which seems very weird, because it was perfectly obvious, once I had looked in the right place . We agreed to return on a spring low tide (today), and still couldn't find it!  It seems to be gone! I found this bit on a webpage:

 "The following photographs show the Narragansett Stone at low tide and an early photograph of the
Narragansett Stone taken by Malcolm Pearson. In 2007 Mr. Rick Lynch, a former officer of NEARA, was taking
steps with the State Agencies in Rhode Island to remove the stone from the tide water and the author supported
him in this effort. However, it is always difficult to get state permission to remove objects in tidewater and the
project is apparently still pending. There may well be other runes on this heavy rock on either the sides or on the
back and it is certainly worth a look."

Hmm.  

Candlewood Lake

I recently learned that its Man-Made, a reserve reservoir for a hydroelectric plant, and that its only been there since the 1930's. "They" flooded a lightly populated area, including a few small villages, houses, cars, etc. It does have kind of a "new" look to it-quite a few coves, bays, sizable islands, and tiny no-name islands.
So, now its Backyards Of The Rich & Famous. Lotsa $$$ around there. New $$$. I didn't even bother to take any pictures of the Opulent Lakefront Mansions, because they totally lacked interest or style.
Put in at the State Boat Launch, on the edge of adjoining Squantz Pond. An amazing $13 to park. I was then stopped by an official who was there to prevent the spread of the Zebra Mussel. He asked: 1.Where I had been last with my kayak, 2. If I washed it after use, and 3. If I had been to any of the following places... He gave me two informative pamphlets that explained it all. It was the most "monitored" put-in ever!

A long paddle on a beautiful day. I went north about two miles, to a thing they call "Chicken Rock". People jump in here. There are also two ropes to swing from.
Lots of boat traffic. I learned today that Wakes Can Be Fun. If a boat is traveling the same general direction as you are, you can surf down the wakes, and use them for propulsion.

Finished!

At a certain point, i decided to quit going for The Perfect Varnish Job, and just use the boat. I almost pulled the "its-a-kayak-not-a-piece-of-furniture" line, but my  rendition was "I'm going to re-varnish it next year, anyway".
It looks different outside of that tight basement. when I sat inside, to adjust the gear, I was happy to find that the stripping did not look crooked from inside the cockpit. it must have been some kind of illusion caused by always viewing the deck from one angle of another? It also looks longer & sleeker outside. I know where the flaws in the finish are, but they aren't apparent when the boat is viewed "as a whole"
When we arrived at my favorite secluded lake, a surprise awaited us.  There was  a canoe-shaped cardboard sign at the entrance that read "Canoe. Believe It!" The usually-empty lot was full of cars. It seems that two women had built a beautiful strip canoe, and they, too, were celebrating a Maiden Voyage!  We admired each others work.
It kind of reminded me of The First Ski Trip Of The Winter, where you expect to ski just as well as last spring, but don't. I was surprised at how rusty I was. However, I went back out the next day, and felt a little more like "myself" in the cockpit. I have about six weeks to get in shape for Lake Champlain....

Varnishing, Fitting out

I haven't posted in a while. The process was more of the usual stuff; sanding, epoxy, more sanding, more epoxy, etc. It basically went about the same as the last build, and while it may have gone better, there are still minor flaws. I guess that "minor flaws" are intrinsic to the Kayak Building Process.
I sold my old SW 17 last weekend, to a fellow who formerly owned a Pygmy Coho. I, of course, was stressed out about every little flaw, but he seemed impressed.
I like the layout and design of my deck more after it received a clear coat than I did while gluing, sanding, and glassing it. I also gave up on the idea of carving a seat of mini cel foam, since the stuff I bought from CLC was the "hard" variety, and I also know that a Hot Seat, with an extra layer of foam, will do nicely, so I saved the foam for future projects.
I started out using Epiphanes varnish , possibly under "less than ideal" conditions (humidity), and it seemed to take "forever" to cure. Switching back to Schooner Gold.
This stage is actually fun, especially Outfitting. Everything seems easy & straightforward. 

 I made a Velcro loop to hold a paddle shaft for paddle float recovery.

The Deck Saga Contines

I actually did a little bit of "fairing while still building the deck. In retrospect, I should have gotten the alignment of the the strips a little closer, because while I never "ran out of wood', I had lots of wood to remove in some spots.





 I used shrink wrap and duct tape to glue the deck on. I should have started in the middle with the shrink tape, because the duct tape "let go" a little, causing a small gap to be filled.

 I made a "fairing board" of plywood that holds two half-sheets of sandpaper. After using Every Tool In The Shop, including my beloved cabinet scraper, and hated random orbit sander, I found that it works the best, albeit tediously. 

 It looked and felt pretty smooth. Yes, there are some glue lines, but I'm gonna just have to live with them.

Somehow, this boat looks shorter and fatter than my first build. It may be because the light-colored strips around the perimeter accentuate the curves?






The deck 'glassed. I had miscalculated fiberglass usage, and had to use two pieces. This time, I used a masking tape that (I hope) will remove cleanly, and not self-destruct.

Building The Deck

As aforementioned, I milled the strips too thin to use cove-and-bead, and decided to go for the "rolling bevel" technique.And as always, the parts I thought would be difficult were easy, and vice versa.







The boat-length strips were the hardest. Each strip seems to take a twist aft of the cockpit, and it was difficult to get  the cut ends to meet neatly at the bow & stern. The usual motley assortment of clamps.

Starting from the King Plank, I was able to use C clamps for a while. I also used these little L-shaped brackets for subsequent planks. The tape and block is an attempt to hold the end joint flatter. I figured that I had enough thickness/ overlap to be able to fair those joints from both sides.
The "rolling bevel" is easier than it sounds, when I got to shorter strips and (softer) Red Cedar.

 A few strips a day. 

The rear deck was easier. I had some extra-wide material left over from when I milled the strips, so I used it for the first odd-shaped plank. 

And of course, the Obligatory Whiskey Plank Photo.


I managed to get the deck off in one piece, without sticking. It was slightly heavier than expected, due to the Yellow Cedar. I was actually surprised at how uniform the inside was, until it occurred to me that it should be, since I had laid nearly every plank flat on the forms.
The uneven areas at bow & stern didn't seem too thin after sanding, but I reinforced them anyway, with a little thickened epoxy.



 

Scarfing Strips

I made this jig for scarfing the deck strips together. The ratio is about 6:1. I have it arranged so I can cut both pieces through at once, with a pullsaw.

Deck Forms And Shear Clamp

This is a part of the project where it pays to follow the instructions explicitly. As I mentioned in an earlier post, I had trouble getting the shear clamp to conform to the curve of the side panel, and overlap the correct amount. I should have tried harder! The instructions also say that "more overlap is better than not enough", or something to that effect. The thing is, that those notches on the inside corners of the temporary deck forms are almost exactly the width of the shear clamp, and if the shear clamp wanders, so do the forms. If I had done a Perfect Job, I'd simply have to put the forms in, and plane the clamp to match the angle of the forms. As I did, I left much too much overlap in the stern, where the angle is low, and not enough near the cockpit, where the angle is high. I had to plane a lot away at the low-angle areas, and glue another piece onto the steep areas. I also had to reduce the height of two of the forms, to make everything line up right.
Finally got it done, and hope it works.

Glassing The Hull

Went about the same as the last time, including taking twice as long as I thought it would. This time, I skipped the second layer of glass that covers the bottom panels, commonly known as "The Football".  I did  use two reinforcing strips at the bow & stern.  Last summer, I only tapped ground lightly, a few times, resulting in a few scratches in only the varnish. I think the 'standard" instructions are intended to make the boat suitable for bouncing off rocks. I try never to touch the boat with anything but soft surfaces, and water.
This time, I took extra care to remove excess epoxy. I used a hair dryer to bring up air-it also reduced the viscosity, making it easier to remove excess.

Interior Hull Work

I fiber glassed the cockpit interior today. While it was much easier the second time, it was still kind of a fussy job. I believe that the last time, I definitely left too much epoxy on, so this time, I made sure to use the minimum for the 1st coat. I'm also glad that I left that 9oz. tape off the bottom puzzle joint. 
After reading a lot about the "Pastry Bag Method" of distributing the thickened epoxy in the seams, I tried it last build-and had the same problems-bag breaks, wastage, epoxy goes off early, etc. So I used-are you ready for this-a pastry bag! Actually,  it was a cake decorator. I got a bunch of disposable bags (which don't break), and a couple of nozzles. Total cost: $4, and works great.

I had originally wanted to use end blocks instead of end pours, but the intersection of the shear clamps would have made it complicated. I went to West Marine, and got a container of "microbaloons". $12 for a can of tiny plastic bubbles. I mixed them into the epoxy to a "toothpaste consistency", and used scraps of mini cell foam wrapped in saran as dams.
The stuff got decidedly warm as it cured, and expanded  visibly.

I painted the interior of the forward compartment, the location of the lone hatch. 

Tack Welding The Hull

I guess that was a "radical" curve in the shear panel, near the stern, because a section of it managed to pop free, while I was wiring. I re-glued it back into place, with a bit less curve, figuring that I can always plane off more material.
This time, I took a little more care in aligning the panels, even using a few steel wires in the stubborn spots. There is still about a 1mm gap for about 1 foot near the bow, but I can deal with it. I had the bright idea of using a cake decorator to apply the epoxy, but "ketchup consistency" was too runny. I used a small paintbrush instead.

Wiring

About the same as the last build. It may have gone a little easier, while I remembered all the persnickety details.
As usual, the parts I thought would be difficult are easy, and vice versa. This time, I managed to bring the shape of the bottom together more easily, by getting the bottoms of the bulkheads and temp forms centered to the bottom panels  first . However, gluing on the shear clamps was a pain-they take a pretty radical curve near the stern. I made my own shear clamps of cedar, instead of using the supplied cypress parts, for a weight savings of about one pound. Hmm.