The Hybrid Night Heron It Is

I resolved to build a kayak as my second boat whilst waiting last December for my very first boat kit, the Passagemaker Dinghy, the building of which was chronicled on the In a Nutshell blog. Yep, that's right, I actually planned my second boat before building my first one.

Heck, it's all I could think of as I waited impatiently for the arrival of my first boat kit - for nearly a month. Let's just say that I was rather intoxicated by the keen excitement that I would be building several boats - if not more. And gosh, the catalog of the Chesapeake Light Craft (CLC) company offered so many tempting options.  It was just a questions of which boat to build.

I was pretty sure that it would be a kayak simply because I had taken to paddling for several years already - on a 12-foot Pungo, a nice recreational kayak made by Wilderness Systems. I had bought the boat as a tender to my SJ21 but mostly I used it to explore the nooks and crannies of lakes and rivers in the region and it also proved to be a stable platform for birding around the water.

Bow-Detail of Dan Thaler's Hybrid Shearwater 16

My initial research on what type of kayak to build lead me to decide on the 17-foot Shearwater Hybrid as the most likely candidate. The hybrid option means that the bottom of the hull is constructed in the basic stitch and glue method whereas the deck (top) of the boat is strip-plank construction. CLC offers three shades of Cedar which allows for some creative designs.

This past spring I headed to the OkoumeFest which the Chesapeake Light Craft company hosts annually. Boat builders bring their most recent creations to the Chesapeake, talk shop, attend informative demonstrations, rub shoulders with star builders and designers and - last but not least - get to try out any of the boats offered by CLC. Speaking with Nick Schade about his perspective of his various designs was particularly valuable. With the latter foremost in mind, I climbed in to a number of Shearwater 17's and was thrilled with the superb performance of this design.

Paddling the Petrel - a fast water version of the Night Heron

Even so, there were other boats to try. And so I did - all along quite certain that I'd be building the Shearwater 17.  But then I took off in the somewhat more formidable Night Heron. I was initially intimidated by the sheer length (18') of this very slender hull (20"). But with a few strokes of  my paddles I realized that I sat in a totally amazing craft... smokin' - Wow! What can I say: Paddling passion was ignited!

Fast and efficient, the hull tracks well, is prone to surf on the smallest waves and carves a fast turn. That'll suit me just fine, thank you! Performance on the water aside, this boat is a magnificent design. Of course, the ultimate appearance is up to each building in as much as the deck requires a very personal touch.

By the way, an example of the designers personal construction of the Night Heron is in the permanent collection at the Museum Of Modern Art (MOMA). But let there be not mistake about it, this boat wants to be in the water.

On a account of an OkoumeFest special deal for attendees, the kit was ordered shortly after my visit to the OkoumeFest and has been stored in my garage - patiently awaiting its being brought to life on the seas.

Prior to getting started in earnest, a number of preparations were required.