About guideboatsfrom Wikipedia:Adirondack guideboats were built since the early 1800s and evolved from a hunting skiff to today's highly refined design, virtually unchanged since the late 1800s. The Adirondack guideboat was originally designed to benefit the professional sporting guide who carried the boat and provided all the propulsion for his paying passengers, who were hunters or fishermen who traveled to the Adirondack region of upstate New York from New York City. It was in the guides' best interest to make their craft both lightweight and easy to carry over the typically unimproved roads and trails between the lakes and streams of the Adirondack region. While the boat is known as the fastest fixed seat rowing boat, the stability of the Adirondack Guideboat has often been described as merely adequate for the sporting purposes (hunting and fishing) for which they were originally built. The New York craft were famous for their on-center tenderness, a trade-off from their remarkable speed.  Loveliest of watercraft
Although these boats resemble canoes, they are not. They are built in the same manner as a skiff and rowed, not paddled, except for short distances with a "sneak" paddle. The boat is more stable than a canoe because the occupants are sitting lower, about 6" off the bottom. Adirondack guideboats have won open water rowing races in some very challenging conditions. Modern reproduction Adirondack guideboat hulls are made of kevlar, fiberglass or wood strips. Some hulls use both materials, with a wood hull and a fiberglass laminate applied to the outer surface for greater durability. The boat is usually fitted with a fixed seat. Since 1962 the annual Willard Hanmer Guideboat & Canoe Race has been held in July in Saranac Lake, New York a 10 - mile canoe and kayak race on Lake Flower and down the Saranac River. There is also a Guideboat class in the Adirondack Canoe Classic, the three day 90-Miler from Old Forge to Saranac Lake. The Adirondack Museum has several classic examples in its collection. About John Gardiner I was very lucky to have spent my summers as a child in the Adirondacks, and luckier still to have spent them living in a boat house with a guideboat downstairs. Someone once identified that boat as a Hanmer, however I was not able to verify it at the time. It was like no other rowboat I had tried, beautiful, light and fast. I spent many hours rowing it and always appreciated how much better it was than the tubs I had been exposed to up until then. I am not a marine architect, nor do I have impressive engineering credentials to list here. I have worked as a carpenter and home renovator, and now find myself working as a Web developer. This site centers around a long time hobby of small boat design and construction. I built my first boat at age 13 and long wanted to build a guideboat, but never had the time or money. 
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Address John Gardiner OrderingPlans for the 16ft guideboat are US $45.00. (Includes building instructions and technical support.)Payment can be made by major credit cards, PayPal, cheque or money order in US funds to the above address. Cheques will take longer to process. Please contact me for prices in other currencies. Plans for the 21ft guideboat are not for sale—this was a custom order. Please feel free to contact me about custom orders. |