Building On Tradition

Craftsmen learn the art of boat building, stem to stern

By Beth Anne Piehl

The skill of boat building has persevered from the earliest primitive birchbark canoes to the most tricked out Tiaras because of the passing on of talent and tradition. And while the amenities and the horsepower of today’s boats keep increasing, the ability to create watercraft still requires the same intimate coupling of smooth polished wood, exacting joinery and the time and care to bend and not break.

It’s an art form passed from instructors to craftsmen-in-the-making at the Great Lakes Boat Building School in the Les Cheneaux Islands of Northern Michigan. There are just four such dedicated schools in the country, and Michigan’s is known for turning out students who can step into jobs fine-tuning the woodwork of the most exclusive yachts.

“It grew out of the idea of what can be done to improve the area, though boat-building up here since the turn of the century has been a big deal,” said Dave Lesh, executive director of the four-year-old school in Cedarville.

In 2005, a group of residents from Cedarville and Hessel put their hulls together to devise a way to boost the local economy. The idea of a school that trains in the art of custom boat-crafting was broached and quickly agreed upon. The early plan was modeled after the successful Northwest School of Wooden Boatbuilding in Washington state.

A board of directors was formed, funding fell into place and the property for the campus was purchased. In November 2006, ground was broken on the 12,000-square-foot facility that includes a couple classrooms, library, main workshop, milling area for planers and joiners, and a finishing room.

In August 2007, the school opened with some free workshops to introduce the school to the community, and courses started that fall. In that first year, seven students enrolled. During the 2009-10 session, 18 students were mastering the craft.

“We’ve had some really terrific instructors. Our head instructor and program director, Patrick Mahon, came to us from Port Townsend, Wash., which is the location of the Northwest school where he taught for 10 years. And he’s a boat builder of 30 years,” said Lesh. “He’s on the floor teaching and he really is the cornerstone, in my opinion, of the whole school.”

A second instructor, Adam Burks, of Traverse City, was recently brought on board as the school continues to grow, Lesh added.

The nine-month program, held five days a week September through June, teaches students every aspect of crafting a boat. It begins with traditional wooden materials such as cedar, mahogany and oak, and evolves into lessons using more modern composite materials.

The students learn lofting (plan drafting), the use of hand tools such as chisels, planers and shavers, and work mostly without using power tools.

“They cut dovetail joints until their eyes roll back in their heads,” laughed Lesh.

Students start by building small boats such as kayaks and rowboats and eventually turn out larger launches, like a current project, a 27-foot high-end power boat being built in conjunction with Steve Van Dam of Van Dam Custom Boats in Boyne City.

“It’s a knockout,” said Lesh. “We hope by (summer 2010) to get that on the market and sell it.”

Funds from boat sales go back into the school and the training of the next generation of boat builders who may complete up to three years of programming. Up to 32 credits can also be transferred to North Central Michigan College in Petoskey toward an associate’s degree in wooden boat building.

Those interested in the hobby side of the craft can enroll in summer workshops where they learn how to build small vessels, taking their kayak or rowboat home at the end of the sessions.

“The school started as a way to help the community, and it’s grown into really a first-class boat-building program,” said Lesh, who cruises Burt Lake himself in an old wooden Chris-Craft. “We’re one of four what I would consider serious boat-building programs in the U.S., and we’re the only one in the Midwest. We’re definitely the new kids on the block, just getting our foot in the water.”

For more information, visit www.greatlakesboatbuilding.org.

During the second weekend of August, the Antique Wooden Boat Show has attracted thousands of visitors to the northern shore towns. The show, held since 1976, takes place in Hessel and boasts more than 170 antique and classic wood boats each year.

MBIA members near Hessel and Cedarville:

• Land N Sea Marine Sales, P.O. Box 595, Cedarville, (906) 484-5555
• Viking Boat Harbor Inc., 1121 S. Islington Road, Cedarville, (906) 484-3303
• Mertaugh Boat Works, Inc., Hessel Pointe Drive, P.O. Box 40, Hessel, (906) 484-2434

 

Michigan Boating 2010 » Building on Tradition: Boat Building Craftsmen