Canoe aficionados from across Canada and the United States gathered earlier this month at Paul Smith’s College in Paul Smith’s, New York to admire a vast collection of canoes, take part in workshops, and most importantly, discuss all things canoeing.
The Wooden Canoe Assembly is an annual event, hosted by the Wooden Canoe Heritage Association (WHCA), a non-profit organization, whose focus is – you guessed it – wooden and bark canoes. The event celebrated its 34th year, and folks travelled from as far away as Texas to come admire the several hundred vintage canoes that were on display throughout the five day event.
“This year, 365 members and friends attended,” says coordinator Rob Stevens, “there were about 50 first time Assembly attendees and several drop-ins from the local area.”
A smattering of boats were spread out on the college green, including those from Chestnut, Robertson, Old Town, Gerrish and the Thompson Brothers Canoe Company, to name a few, which kept attendees buzzing.
“There were newer -modern and vintage wooden canoes,” say Stevens, “they ranged from Indian built, to the whole gamut of wood-canvas, all wood and cedar strip construction.”
Beautifully restored wooden canoes aren’t the only draw to the assembly, several workshops and activities took place throughout the week. Participants can pre-register for a variety of workshops, including paddle making, digital photography workshops or even quilting.
There are of course, paddling clinics as well, with instruction ranging from beginner tandem, to more focused clinics such as the traditional Northwoods style paddling strokes. Highlights this year included a presentation on boat building, and observing some sailing canoes.
“There were several sailing canoes which enjoyed Lower St. Regis Lake when the wind was up,” Stevens says, “we also had a presentation on traditional construction of Adirondack guideboats.”
Over 12 vendors attended the event this year, ranging from booksellers to canoe builders. Several displays were also set up by organizations such as the Canadian Canoe Museum, which is based out of Peterborough, Ontario. The Adirondack Museum of Blue Mountain, New York, also offered a guided tour of some of their warehoused canoes at the site of the assembly. Attendees also had the opportunity to hike nearby Mount St. Regis, or take part in a guided tour of the Paul Smith College Visitor Interpretive Centre.
Next year marks the 35th anniversary of the event, which promises to be another enjoyable experience as they celebrate WHCA members who build and paddle their own vessels, and in turn, are keeping wooden canoe building alive.
For more information visit http://www.wcha.org/annual-assembly/
