canoe maker

Came across this EBay ad (just 8 hrs left in the auction) for an antique Maine Guide style paddle with the following description...

Recently found here in Maine. A very old, entirely handmade and hand decorated, 66"long Maine canoe paddle. Initialed F.L.R. on one side of top of grip and Nokomis Bangor on reverse, this is one of the nicer antique paddles thatI've found in a long time. One side of the paddle blade is decorated with a polychromed Indian Chief & 2 crossed paddles while the other side is free of decoration. Made from what appears to be a soft maple, this measures 66"long and 5.5"wide at the middle of the blade. Alligatored varnish finish throughout except where varnish is worn down to the wood. 3" split at bottom of blade.

Seller: mctiques

This cute Bubble Street comic seemed appropriate for the lovey dovey day that is Valentine's. The wife didn't get a chuckle out of this one as much as I did...go figure.

Last night, the 2010 Olympic Winter Games opened in Vancouver. The ceremonies were filled with a rich array of various aspects of Canada's diverse cultural identity. A great post and photo overview of the whole spectacle is found over WoodnCanvas' great blog.

Since many of the events are hosted on lands belonging to various First Nations groups, there was a significant aboriginal presence at the games. In particular the Four Host First Nations welcomed the audience in their own tongue. Being the paddle addict I've become, I was immediately drawn to the image of a member of the Squamish Nation holding a decorated cedar paddle. Looks to be a classic West Coast design with pointed tip and flared blade. While most paddles of this type are usually richly carved with native pictographs, this simple, contrasting red and black painted design would certainly be more visible from a distance.








Pics Via: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/02/12/vancouver-olympics-2010-o_n_461057.html

In front of the historic town hall in downtown Huntsville is a statue of legendary Canadian artist, Tom Thomson whose raw impressionist style marked the beginning a new era in Canadian wilderness art. His suspicious death in 1917 while paddling on Canoe Lake in Algonquin Park served to increase his fame and elevated him to a sort of legendary status. A great website detailing all the mystery can be found here.


The statue was sculpted and cast by local a artist, Brenda Wainman-Goulet. It features Thomson in his characteristic wool cap painting a sketch while sitting on a tree stump. Next to him rests an overturned 12 foot canoe and a paddle that eerily looks like the Birch Tripper made in '08. The canoe was sculpted in wax, cut into sections, cast and reassembled in bronze. The total weight of the bronze canoe is 900 lbs (portage that!) and is apparently the first bronze canoe of its kind in Canada.






For Thomson enthusiasts, there's a bit of a lengend regarding his canoe. Historical sources say it was a Chestnut brand purchased in 1915 although I've yet to read anything about the specific model - so I'm not sure if he really used a tiny 12 footer. According to this page, two different 12 foot models called the Teddy and Trapper were made between the years of 1904-1921 so I suppose it is possible.

Another inquisitive canoe enthusiast has done more research on the topic of Thomson's supposed canoe model by posting on the WCHA forums. His wonderfully detailed conclusions can be on his blog, Reflections On The Outdoors Naturally.

The unique thing Thomson's canoe was that he painted it his own unique shade that has been described in a variety of sources as "grey", "dove-grey" or "greenish-gray". Obviously no colour photos exist, but when his canoe was found floating upside down in the lake, people immediately knew it was Thomson's boat. People still talk about a grey coloured "ghost canoe" plowing the early morning mist on Canoe Lake.

The other mystery has to do with his paddles. Apparently when found, one of his paddles was lashed into the canoe for portaging while the other one (a suspected murder weapon) was never found, despite the obvious fact that that lake had been thoroughly searched by Algonquin Park guides and paddles, of course, float. Out of interest's sake, I've tried to find any pictures that show Thomson with a clear image of his paddle and the shot below is the only one I've been able to source.


Though difficul to make out, Thomson seems to have a large tripper style paddle (with a logo?) which seems to corroborate the design of the statue. In any event, the mystery and legend continues.

For those interested, the dedication on the canoe's overturned hull reads:

To the Memory of Tom Thomson 1877 � 1917
An artist, woodsman, guide and dreamer, whose brilliant vision defined the Canadian wilderness and captured the majesty and many colourful moods of Algonquin Park.

From the Candian Museum of Civilization, an Eastern Woodlands paddle with two toned painted decoration on the blade. This "yin/yang" style of dark and light decoration has a similar theme to the tip decoration on the famous McCord Museum paddle


Artifact Number: III-X-320
Inscription: incised on one side of blade "A. HATT"
Begin Date 1845/01/01
End Date 1855/12/31
Measurements Length 125.0 cm, Width 9.0 cm, Depth 2.7 cm
Other Cultural Affiliation Eastern Woodlands

Here are some pics from a brief article in the Dec 1, 1941 issue of LIFE magazine detailing an Algonquin guide named Tuwassi carving a bush paddle from a birch log in one hour. Amazing skills. One day I hope to be this proficient with the axe and crooked knife.

Kathryn Klos over at the Wooden Canoe Heritage Forums posted a link of a YouTube video by none other than Graham Warren, author of the main textbook of modern paddlemaking. The 6 1/2 minute video entitled "Song of the Spokeshave" shows Warren carving out a maple paddle with an Algonquin blade and a scalloped grip. Perhaps the youtube release is a preview of his Paddlemaking DVD I blogged about earlier

Great footage with a super sharp spokeshave tool which makes his carving seem effortless. I was quite surprised to see the initial thickness of the blank being cut out with the bandsaw. Seems to be 2 inches (or more) thick! To save time and effort, the blade was thinned with an electric planer before finishing touches (the background music certainly masks the horrific noise of this power tool).

I especially like the final shots of the scalloped grip, a design I tried out on my first paddle at the Canadian Canoe Museum. At the time, I didn't know exactly how to carve out the shape so just kept working on it until it felt comfortable. All in all, a great little video feature of carving out a paddle.