For wooden-canoe lovers, it’s the event of the year.
Each year, the Wooden Canoe Heritage Assembly draws hundreds of canoe aficionados from across Canada and the United States to gather in Paul Smiths, New York and admire a vast collection of canoes, participate in workshops and discuss all things about the wooden craft.
Celebrating its 35th anniversary this July and committed to being bigger than ever before, the event showcases everything from cedar-strip to wood-and-canvas to traditional birch bark designs.
“Each year we feature a specific historic canoe maker to focus on—this year we’ve made a little exception to the norm and will feature our current professional builders and their new wooden canoes,” says Ken Kelly, president of the Wooden Canoe Heritage Association, which hosts the six-day event.
“Just as we all get excited today about old BN Morris, JR Rushton or Dan Heralds models, some day, canoe enthusiasts will get excited about the canoes our builders are making now,” says Kelly.
Titled “Tomorrow’s Classics”, the event will host more than twenty modern-day wooden canoe builders, showing their models and demonstrating them. More than just show-and-tell, the event boasts full-day programs of paddling skills workshops, instruction in campcraft and in traditional crafts, such as quilt making and paddle carving. In the evenings, attendees are entertained by evening presentations on prolific paddlers or inspiring adventures.
“In many ways, we think modern wooden canoes may be even more highly prized some day,” adds Kelly. “We’ve learned a lot from the examination and restoration of 100-year-old canoes and witnessed what techniques and materials hold up the best.” Kelly adds that the current builders, driven by a relatively small demand by discerning clients, can put more time and quality into their builds.
“Now that collectors are restoring and preserving these old canoes we take a lot of interest in their quality. Today’s builders have the benefit of this perspective and a little larger budget to build a higher quality canoe. These canoes are also used more for entertainment and recreation than the canoes of 100 years ago. They’re lighter and even more fun to paddle than the workhorse canoes of old,” adds Kelly.
Discover these future wooden canoe classics July 15-20 at Paul Smiths College in Paul Smiths, New York. www.wcha.org.
Canoeroots and Family Camping magazine went inside Ken Kelly’s antique canoe collection, one the largest private collections in North America, in the 2014 Spring issue—get it here!
This article was first published in the February issue of Paddling Magazine. Download our free iPad/iPhone/iPod Touch App or Android App or read it here.
