Would There Be Wood?

I told her and she didn't believe me. When I helped Kathy build her first boat, I told her I bet she couldn't build just one. Sure enough, she paddled her boat one year on various river trips, and then last year she begged me to let her paddle my solo canoe just one day. Immediately, she started coveting my boat. I told her "thou shall not covet" and she said, "You're not my boss (any more.)" End result of all that was that I've been on a wood buying mission while in the Northwest this summer since clear Western Red Cedar doesn't exist south of Crescent Bay - at least not in the lumber yards I've visited.

After we got all settled into our moochdocking spot in Newberg, I started by checking out the nearest lumberyard. They had a bunch of clear cedar stacked in one corner including some really nice 18' pieces. I knew it wouldn't be cheap, but their price was more than I wanted to pay.

The son of a friend of a friend, or maybe it was just a friend of a friend, said to check out a different place. This place was clearly the professionals yard - they aren't even open on weekends. When we asked, they sort of pointed over their shoulder - over there. We found what we were looking for, on the top rack. The "help" was going to crawl up the rack and hand us a pair of 2x6 but I wanted to pick them out myself so he had to get a forklift.

The friend who had a friend even carried them out to the truck but we'll keep it blurry to protect his identity. Who knows, there must be a law against exporting good lumber to Arizona.

Two 12' 2x6s should make enough strips to just about build a 15' solo canoe, but I still needed wood for the gunnels, thwarts, seat frame, and deck. We were hoping to use Port Orford Cedar if I could find some.

After dropping off the friend and his better half at the airport, I headed back south to Lebanon to visit Steve Steele at Steele's Boats & Trailers. When I met him at the Boat Festival he said he had a stash of Port Orford Cedar from his father. I included a picture of one bay of his shop so Kathy would understand the type of work space I'm assuming she'll provide for the canoe project.

I think that one 1x6 of Port Orford is all that we'll need, but since I was there, I decided to get two. The Port Orford hasn't been planed yet, but has been in dry storage for years. It will be special to use wood connected to the history of dories in the Grand Canyon in Kathy's canoe. I'm feeling a little covetousness.