Jon Aborn rowing his Monument River Wherry #3 at the Wellfleet Rowing Rendezvous , 2015.  Barry Donahue photo.

This page will be dedicated to rowing for pleasure. I will be sharing knowledge, speculation, photos, and whatever comes to mind on the subject

3/15/24

Here is the invitation for the Spring Rendezvous hosted by the Cape Cod Chapter, TSCA , at Kalmas Beach, Hyannis, May 18 2024, 10AM to 2PM. See you there!

1/5/23

The Cape Cod chapter, TSCA, held a New Year’s row on 1/2/23 starting at Arey’s Pond Boat Yard in Orleans. We went up to Meetinghouse Pond and back, about 6.5 miles. Weather was good for rowing, mostly overcast, wind about 10 or so. I think we had about 8 boats and 14 people . Some photos below.

12/8/22

A few weeks ago, I went up to Lowell’s Boat Shop in Amesbury, MA, probably the oldest working boat shop on the East Coast. It’s said that the Banks dory was invented in this shop, and many thousands were built there. I went to visit this Mecca of boat building, and to meet with Brad Dimmock , who along with his partner Cricket, was conducting a workshop on building a drift boat/river dory (actually 2). The construction of these boats is somewhat unique, in that the builders assume these boats are going to get beat up a bit and need repairs. A lot of the parts are screwed or bolted together with no glue or bedding, so the broken bits can easily be removed and replaced. Check out Brad’s website to learn about these unique boats. Below is a short slide show of my visit.

2/4/21- Great article in Small Boats by Leigh Dorsey and Dameon Colbry on the Savo 650 Finnish racing boats. The article really captures the feel of the boats, I am very proud to have built both boats. The original Savo 650D, Norppa, was built to the original plans, very light, not a pound extra in the structure as it is a racing boat. The second boat, Mursa, I call the 650E, as it was built for the R2AK race and it is more rugged than the original. I added some extra frames, reinforced the planking forward with fiberglass sheathing inside, strengthened the stem and transom, built bulkheads for storage and flotation, reinforced the rails, etc. Check it out, you may need a subscription but here’s the link.

1/5/21

Here’s a short piece from Jon Aborn on sculling- thanks, Jon!

SCULLING

The skiffs that I used growing up in Rhode Island always had an oarlock socket in the transom for sculling (propelling the boat with a single oar extended over the stern) and at an early age my father showed me how to sweep the oar from the transom in a figure eight pattern to propel the skiff forward.  It was useful for short jaunts out to the sailboat on the mooring but for any long distances it was more efficient to row conventionally.  Skip forward 60+ years and sculling is a lost art.  

The other morning  I’m coming into the dock beside the boat ramp at Monument Beach in my rowing wherry and  I’m trying to get next to the dock with the wind not cooperating and pushing me away.  I ship the dockside oar and scull myself sideways using the outboard oar still in it’s oarlock with that familiar figure eight pattern.  Against the wind, into the dock, slick as can be.  And as I throw a hitch around the cleat I glance around hoping somebody saw that brilliant piece of maneuvering! 

Thanks, Dad for taking the time so many years ago to show me stuff like that.  

11/3/20

Here’s a copy of the email I recently sent to Jon Persson commenting on my Atlantic 17, Punkin.

“Hi Jon- It has been a crazy year so far, but I have managed to put a few miles on my Atlantic 17, named Punkin. I have had about 22 rows this year so far, about 3 miles each, so I have put about 60- 70 miles on the boat. I have rowed both single and double. Speed depends a lot on wind and tide, but I have rowed single at 2.5 to 3 knots average, double at 3 knots plus. Top speed around 4 knots. She surfs pretty well going down wind with the tide. In a beam wind she seems to want a little more bite in the stern, I am going to experiment a little with shifting ballast. I am using 8’ oars, and have tried 2 different styles so far. I am using the Australian Gaco oarlocks https://www.gacooarlocks.com/gaco-oarlock.html , which I like a lot . First set were a pair of Culler - style oars, with square looms and long blades with a bit of spoon at the tips. These did not play well with the Gaco oarlocks- the square part did not mate well with the oval part of the lock. I am going to try these with regular bronze open locks later. The second set I made up using the plans and blades supplied by John Murray, the developer of the Gaco oarlocks , https://www.gacooarlocks.com/gaco-oars.html . I bought a pair of his carbon fiber Turbo blades and made the shafts according to his design. These have trapezoidal looms, and are very light. I do not like the blades, they have too much cup in them, and tend to get hung up in rough water.I am going to build a new pair this winter with the trapezoidal looms and longer, narrow blades curved in one direction only. I like the overall concept of these oars, light and stiff, but the blade shape is pretty much a flat water blade.Now I know why all those oar shapes built by people who row in rough conditions are long and pretty flat!

Overall I do like the boat a lot, the movable seats are great, shape is beautiful, rows very well. Sides are low enough so she doesn’t get blown around too much. I get a lot of comments and compliments on the boat. Here is a photo showing the boat in the water, with the Culler oars along side. Let me know if you want more photos. Thanks for a great boat. “

Here is that photo, plus a couple more showing the Gaco oars, etc.

10/28/20

I was in Maine recently, and made it up to Belfast, where I visited Leigh and Dameon, owners of 2 Savo 650’s, the original Norrpa and Mursu, the Savo 650E that I built for them to row in the R2AK, the Race To Alaska. The boats were in great shape. I especially wanted to check out Mursu, after it was towed across the country twice, and rowed for 750 miles. Dameon was very happy with the boat, as they were the only totally human powered boat to finish the race. Here are a couple of photos…

In Finnish, Norrpa is a certain seal, and Mursu means walrus…

7/8/20

The R2AK 2020 was cancelled this year, and the organizers have been posting a series of articles about past races. They call it the Time Machine. One of the recent posts was on Team Backwards AF, who rowed the modified Save 650E that I built for them. They do have the fastest time for an oars-only boat. Here’s the link.

4/22/20

Here’s a nice little article on Oarlocks and how the shafts should fit properly in the sockets. Most sockets are “as cast” or just drilled roughly to the required diameter. For the best efficiency and long life, oarlock shafts and sockets should be machined to fit properly. The only machined oarlocks and sockets I can find are those made by Walt Simmons at Ducktrap in Maine, and those made by Mark Anderson for Adirondack Guide Boats, whose web site is no longer available. Thanks to Bob Hicks at Messing About in Boats for permission to reproduce the article, which was in the October 2019 issue.

2/27/20

Here’s a very nice article just published in “Messing About in Boats”, written by Jon Aborn about the evolution of his Monument River Wherry design. He used the above photo in the article, I think that’s the first one, Model 1.0. the one that I built. Scroll down past the build of the A17 for a photo of the 5.0, taken at the last Wellfleet Rowing Rendezvous. I rowed this boat, his best yet. If you want a great single this is one of them. As stated in the article, contact me or Jon if you are interested in having one built.

1/9/20

Here is the start of the construction of the Atlantic 17. This boat is kind of a cross between the LF Herreshoff pleasure rowing boat and the John Gardner gunning dory, designed by Jon Persson ( more info on the Atlantic 17 design on Jon’s pages). The boat is double ended, both ends exactly the same. I modified the design a little by placing the frames in the traditional position- forward frames forward of the station lines, aft frames aft. This requires the frames to be bevelled. Jon places the frames on the other side of the station lines, which requires the resulting spaces between the planking and frames be filled with epoxy putty. Since I want to oil the interior, I decided to bevel the frames.

1/21/20- added a series on planking the boat. Bottom is 3/8”- 9mm Okoume, scarfed into one piece. Garboards and sheer are 1/4”-6mm Okoume with 1/4”-6mm Sapele marine ply butt blocks. Using butt blocks made planking a bit easier since I could do one piece at a time.

2/11/20- added 4 photos - skeg, waterline , off the strong back, frames trimmed…

3/5/20 - added 9 photos- finishing out- breast hooks, rub rails, oarlock blocks, paint…

3/10/20 - added the last 4 photos of the A17 build- all done for now.

10/31/19- Here’s a photo of Jon Aborn’s new boat. (That’s Jon in the photo at the top of the page). He has been working on his design for a one person rowing boat for many years, and has built at least 3 or 4 different models- I built the first one. We sold the last one this spring, and this is the replacement. I rowed this boat at the last Rendezvous, Sept 21. 2019, and I think it is his best one, having rowed all of them. It has a nice blend of stability and speed, very comfortable to row. If you are looking for a great one person boat, this is high on the list. Contact me, and either Jon or I will be happy to build one for you.

7/31/19

I have added a dedicated Wellfleet Rowing Rendezvous page here. It will contain information on the Rendezvous.

6/24/10

THEY DID IT!! Team Backwards AF finished the R2K yesterday, the only totally human powered vessel left in the race!

Here’s the link to the latest post, lots on the Facebook page…

6/5/19 - The modified Savo 650 I built this spring is in Victoria,BC, Canada, waiting for the start of the second leg of the R2AK. Named Mursu, which is Finnish for Walrus, the owners are on a great adventure! Here is a link to their latest post. Stage 2 of the Race starts June 6, 12 noon.

5/22/19

The Row on Saturday was great- great weather, great boats, great people. I posted some photos on the home page, and on the Facebook page - take a look.

2/21/19

I was catching up on my “Messing About In Boats” subscription the other day, and came upon an interesting article in the July 2018 issue. It was an article published 25 years ago, written by Andre deBardalaben, reprinted in the magazine. It was an opinion by Andre, who has a lot of interesting thoughts on rowing. You can read more of his ideas on his web site, Middle Path Boats. Although the article itself was interesting, he began with a quote from the Master, L.Francis Herreshoff. I was intrigued by the quote, so I got a copy of “The Common Sense of Yacht Design” from the library and looked it up. It was in the “Small Boats” chapter. I scanned the relevant pages, and here they are. Some interesting thoughts, still appropriate today. Also included are the lines for his idea of an interesting rowing boat, which have been expanded on recently. One interesting offshoot is the Atlantic 17 Dory, a cross between LFH’s idea and John Gardner’s Gunning Dory. ( I would love to build the Atlantic 17 some day). Enough words, here are the scans…

1/31/19

Next boat will be an expedition version of the Savo 650D that I built in 2013. See the home page for more info…

11/9/18

New Boat for Sale!

Jon Aborn’s Monument River Wherry is for sale. I think this is the 3rd or 4th version of his fast wherry series, built by Jon in 2014. Looks very similar to the boat above. He wants to build another one, it will be interesting to see how he modifies this design.

11/5/18

Here’s belated congratulations to Dameon and Leigh for their excellent showing in the recent Head of the Weir-first in class, 3rd overall!

10/11/18

Here’s a short video shot by Deb Giza at the recent WRR#6, She was aboard the Interceptor, a 32’ Cornish Pilot Gig. The gig was brought to the Rendezvous by Massachusetts Bay Open Water Rowing, Inc. . Thanks to Bob Fuller of South Shore Boatworks and the Team Saquish crew.

9/18/18

Some photos from the Wellfleet Rowing Rendezvous #5, last year…

8/3/18

Announcing the 6th Annual 

Wellfleet Rowing Rendezvous

September29,2018

Noon to 4PM

Mayo Beach, Wellfleet, MA 02667

41º55.81N/70º1.92W

We are proud to announce the Sixth Annual Wellfleet Rowing Rendezvous, to be held Saturday, September 29, 2018, at Mayo Beach, Wellfleet, Noon to 4PM. The purpose of this free event is to promote rowing, and to be able to try and compare different boats . We will have  boats to row, and you are invited to bring your boat for others to row. Last year we had 19 different boats. Boats can be launched for free from trailers at the boat ramp at the Wellfleet Marina, next to the beach, or hand launched at the Town landing right next to the commercial pier. Please bring PFD’s and an anchor for your boat. This event is free, but please register via email or phone  if you are planning to attend. More details will be available as we get closer to the event.

Register at : walter@oldwharf.com         Phone- 508-349-2383                      

                                                       Hope to see you there !

10/20/17

Here's a scan of the photo and thanks published in the Provincetown Banner last week... 

The 5th Annual Wellfleet Rowing Rendezvous was a great success, with 15 boats and about 50-60 people attending and rowing. Here's  one comment:"Walter,  Just wanted to thank you for hosting the glorious event last Saturday. We had a great time and look forward to attending this rendezvous in the future. " Weather was foggy and misty, but that did not affect the rowing. Here's a small gallery of photos I took, there are a lot more on the Facebook page...

6/1/17

Here's a link to a short photo album of the Spring Rowing Rendezvous put on by the Caps Cod Chapter of the TSCA, mentioned below. It was a beautiful day, about 10 boats were there, I rowed most of them. Nice job, Bill Stirling and the boys.

5/8/17

The Cape Cod Chapter of the TSCA is holding a Spring Rowing Rendezvous in Hyannis. I will be there with the Pat Brown Adirondack Guide Boat I have for sale. Come on down and take it for a row!

4/27/17

Finally a little something new on this page-! Here's a photo of my Gloucester Gull getting some paint prep. Weather went to crap after this photo was taken, so no progress due to a  couple of weeks rain...

12/6/16

Every year I get a calendar of photographs of commercial fishing in New England from C.E. Beckman Co. These photos are mostly from about 100 years ago up to recently. The cover of the 2017 calendar shows a working Swampscott dory that I thought would be fun to post.

11/2/16

Here is a short slide show of the Savo 575 that I built recently - see it at the 11th Annual Cape Cod Boat Builder's Show next February!

8/5/16

I am proud to announce that the 4th Annual Wellfleet Rowing Rendezvous will be held on September 24, 2016, Mayo Beach, Wellfleet MA 02667, from 2 to 5 pm. Bring a boat to row, or just come on down and enjoy an afternoon on the water, "messing about in boats". This event is free.

9/6/15

Here's a beautiful photo of a Natant Dory I built for Lee Scarborough in 2005. The dory lives in Nova Scotia, where this photo was taken. Lee rows with his wife,  and sails the boat also. Here's a comment from Lee -

"....she has been an incredibly successful boat for us - my wife is handicapped now but fine from the waist up, and she loves to row around the many islands and slate outcroppings in our area with me. (the boat is named Duet for that reason).  I sail her also, and with her deep centerboard, narrow beam, and generous rig she sails extremely well.  I sail her like a dingy, hiking out in the Atlantica half mile from our float, and surfing the waves back into harbor in a strong SW wind.  "

Thanks for this great photo, Lee.

6/10/16

Here are a couple of photos of the Bevin's Skiff that I built for the Wellfleet Historical Society last fall. They are going to raffle off the skiff this summer. The skiff is set up for rowing and sailing, and comes with 7'6" Shaw & Tenney oars and the full sail rig including all spars, sail, running rigging, etc. Contact me if you want tickets, $10.00 each, 5 for $40.00. 

5/6/16

Here's a link to a very interesting rowing site from Australia - Gaco Oarlocks . I will be trying out his oarlocks sometime this summer. His oar design also looks very interesting.

4/15/16

Here's a short report on the sea trials  (actually a pond trial...) of the Sinne 610 I built this past winter. We launched the boat into Gull Pond, Wellfleet on a beautiful Saturday morning, 4/9/16, and rowed both single and double. The 8' oars fit in the stern great, I would definitely use 8's in the stern, flat blades. I had a pair of 7'6'' for the bow, they overlapped about 6'', a hand's width. I prefer not to overlap, so 7' oars would work great in the bow. With 2 old guys rowing, we hit 4 knots easily. With some practice I think you could hit 5 kts no problem, and row at 3-3 1/2 kts all day. The boat is very steady. It is a bit heavier than the racing boats, right at 200 lbs (100 kilos or so), so it takes a couple of strokes to get moving, but when you get up to speed, it feels like it can go forever . It carries way between strokes very well, and I think that when it's loaded with gear it will have good momentum. One person rowing from the stern is very comfortable and feels well balanced. Rowing facing forward I got an easy 2 knots, and pulling 3 knots was an easy pace. Photos are below.

Here's a link to a very interesting rowing blog - Oar Cruising . Info on long distance rowing, gear, boats, etc.

My current fall/winter 2015/16 build is the Siine 610, another design by Ruud Van Veelen.This is an expedition/camping cruiser, pretty big and beamy with lots of storage space and plenty of stability. We are not using the wheels, nor the tent. Check out the build photos on my Facebook page.

Here is a drawing of the Atlantic 17, a very nice rowing boat designed by Jon Persson. I rowed this boat at the last Wellfleet Rowing Rendezvous, and liked it very much. It is a combination of L. Francis Herreshoff's  Row Boat and the Chamberlain Gunning Dory. It can be rowed by one or two persons, has adjustable thwarts , and can slide on or off a beach with the narrow flat bottom. I am seriously considering this boat for my next rowing craft. Give me a call or send an email if you would like to have one built.Click on the Atlantic 17 link above to go to the designer's web site for some more photos and information.