Why did I want to build a kayak? I was after a new woodwork project, and having recently started kayaking it seemed a good idea to build a kayak, it would be much more rewarding than bookshelves and such like.

I told myself to think about this first and not rush. After a week and a holiday in Norway with magnificent Fjords, my mind was made up, I had to start now!

I joined the association of garage measurers. It turned out that a sixteen foot kayak was going to be the maximum length I could build in my garage.

The next step was to clear the garage of clutter, or what I thought was clutter.This raised suspicion with my husband and children, so I had to reveal my idea. I was not really taken seriously; but now I was even more determined. I ordered plans and manual from a Fyne Boats in the Lake District.

Once the marine ply arrived, and various other materials I was raring to go.Transferring the templates to ply, a bit of basic lofting and cutting out with a jig saw was straight forward. By September I had stitched the panels of the hull together with copper wire, glued it together and it looked like a canoe or unfinished kayak, which was very satisfying.

I got to the point of putting the glass cloth on quicker than expected; most of it could still be done in the garage, but than it got to cold for the epoxy to cure. So the kayak moved into the lounge (which I didn’t measure before, but it fitted) Cutting out the cockpit and hatches should have been simple enough, as long as everything was measured out properly.

It all went smoothly; until in my moment of madness I cut the opening for the front hatch on the wrong side of the bulkhead. I was now staring at my foot braces from the front hatch opening. Trying to figure out how to solve the problem, the rest of the family made sure I knew what they where thinking about this.

Anyway, I managed to fix it.I had intended to keep the deck just varnished, but it ended up with a painted design towards the front of the cockpit. The whole kayak had to be sanded down ready for painting and varnishing, a time consuming and dusty job. The last thing was to fit straps for the hatches and bungee onto the deck.

Easter Monday 2008 was the maiden voyage at Saltford with my family.

Very exciting, the boat initially felt unstable but it didn’t leak, went in a straight line, and I didn’t capsize.

We decided to celebrate in the pub rather than break a good bottle and waste it, which could also scratch this new boat.

According to the manual this project takes 50-70 hours.

She has since been to Pembrokeshire, the Scilly’s and down the Dorset coast.

I could have written this report a lot earlier, but had to find out how well she performs first. There is a problem with weather cocking, and I am thinking about fitting a rudder or skeg somehow, sometime.

Apart from that she handles well, is still in one piece and hopefully tougher than I think. I should really build another one as I have learned a lot and would approach some tasks slightly different or take more time over it, but I have run out of work space and patients for time being.

A big thank you to my husband Alan, Emma and James my children, for putting up with me when I turned the lounge into a workshop for a while. Fyne boats where I bought the plans from responded very quickly when I had a question.

More detailed information about building stitch and glue kayaks without the waffling can be found by simply typing it into Google.

Happy paddling

Esther

Click here to view more pictures and the maiden voyage