On Saturday I decided that I couldn't wait any longer. I still have a lot of clean up work and sanding to do on the boat but it have it glassed outside and six inches up on the inside already. I still needed to make seats but somehow I knew it was time to hit the water. I cut up a 2x4, turned the pieces up on their short sides and screwed 7- 1x2's across the top of each pair to make a couple of temp seats. We put folded up towels on top of them and they worked pretty well for being made in about 30 minutes, out of scrap I already had lying around the garage
I issued the warning order to the wife that we were leaving at 0700 and asked her to get up early enough to put together a couple of sandwiches and be ready to go by then. Then I went to the store for "supplies" and picked up 2- 8 oz mini bottles of champagne from the local store. I haven't had that much trouble sleeping since I was a kid on Christmas eve. I woke up at 0530 and immediately started loading the boat while my wife slept. It is 16' 6" and I wouldn't wanna guess how heavy as this is my first boat build, so I know I overbuilt it. It was light as air to me and I couldn't stop giggling as I tied it to the roof of the truck. I am attaching a pic of the the truck with the boat on it. The truck is AWD with a 250 hp Honda V-6 and Honda 5 speed automatic in it but I have never loved it more than when it had a boat strapped to it.
Well we got it on the water at about 0800 and proceeded to paddle it around while generally heading toward a beach on an island in the lake. It tracked well, didn't leak and it would float for quite a distance on each paddle stroke on the calm lake. We made our way about a kilometer across the lake to the beach, I had my fingers crossed, and pulled up onto a beautiful beach with very clear water. I pulled out the champagne and we had a toast to the floating pile of plywood and epoxy. It was an experience that most of you know, I'm sure, but for me it was a new sensation and hard to describe. My wife looked at me with that sparkle in her eye that I wish I would see more often than I do. It was instantly worth all of the blood, sweat and tears. It was bliss and I am including the pic that shows my view from that beach.
I have a boat that floats
For me this is the beginning. I have decided this new hobby is now in the top three. It now goes fishing, hunting and then boatbuilding. I can't begin to thank the people on this forum, your expertise, sense of humor and willingness to answer questions for the new guys has been invaluable. More to come....
