Canoe Freaks (dugouts)

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Spider Savage

Mountain climber

The shaggy fringe of Los Angeles

Oct 4, 2016 - 09:09am PT

NICE boat! How much fun can a guy have with that.

Q- Ball

Mountain climber

but to scared to climb them anymore

Topic Author's Reply - Oct 13, 2016 - 12:01pm PT

Just got a phone call from a tropical wood expert and it was identified as Gluta renghas. This tree is found in the lowlands of the Malay peninsula, Borneo and some Indonesian Islands!

How the hell it got from Borneo to Knoxville Tennessee we will never know!
-Q-ball

johntp

Trad climber

socal

Oct 13, 2016 - 12:10pm PT

Nice find and good on ya for rescuing it.

Q- Ball

Mountain climber

but to scared to climb them anymore

Topic Author's Reply - Oct 13, 2016 - 12:54pm PT

Thanks for the picture Dingus! Here is a little about that species of tree.

The reddish-brown wood is not very hard, very strong, fairly light, durable and easy to split [46, 451]. It has splendid markings and is used for furniture, building material for houses, canoes, fancy articles and inlay work [46, 451].

A resinous exudate from the wood can cause severe skin irritation [451]. The poisonous constituent of the resinous sap is volatile and will gradually disappear. For this reason, the timber of rengas trees must be dried and exposed for several years as it is otherwise dangerous to handle. Lacquered articles or furniture made from the dried timber may still be toxic to persons who are especially susceptible [451]. Credit Botanist at UT.

Reilly

Mountain climber

The Other Monrovia- CA

Oct 13, 2016 - 01:02pm PT

Pretty amazing that something so large would have no provenance. I thought
universities were all about keeping records? There probably is a record
somewhere, but they lost the record of where the record is. ;-)

So what are you gonna do with it? ;-)

If you want to offload it the Osa and Martin Johnson Museum in Chanute,
Kansas might be interested. The Johnsons got started in Borneo.

Q- Ball

Mountain climber

but to scared to climb them anymore

Topic Author's Reply - Oct 13, 2016 - 01:42pm PT

Reilly, for now I am glad it is safe in my barn. After I feed the livestock each night a drink a beer and admire the craftsmanship!

I gave my buddy who supplied not only the F-350 and giant gooseneck but his muscle a 50% ownership. I joke that 8 of us picked up one end while Stu picked up the other!

Down the road if we find a good safe home for it we are happy to donate. For now I like it in the barn!

edit- Reilly,I sent that museum a message to pick at their brain on knowledge. Thanks.

Q- Ball

Mountain climber

but to scared to climb them anymore

Topic Author's Reply - Oct 22, 2016 - 08:07pm PT

I have been in contact with several folks in Malaysia (Sabah Borneo and Malay Penn.) One lady sent pictures from the Semelai folks that look SIMILAR but different. She explained they are used in the peat swamps but the bow/stern looked different on my canoe.

Q- Ball

Mountain climber

but to scared to climb them anymore

Topic Author's Reply - Jun 15, 2017 - 06:52pm PT

The canoe has been raised!!! My 23 foot ceilings are perfect for a 22.5 ft canoe! Hard part was getting it in the house!

c wilmot

climber

Jun 15, 2017 - 07:01pm PT

You need to stop posting q ball. You are are making lazy folks like me look bad...
Perhaps try under achieving for a change?

donini

Trad climber

Ouray, Colorado

Jun 15, 2017 - 07:43pm PT

This goes for dugout on the Orinoco

Gnome Ofthe Diabase

climber

Out Of Bed

Jun 16, 2017 - 02:43am PT

I can close my eyes, drift back in time
~ the sweet smell of the of honey-suckle, thick stands, guarding over-hanging, like a hedge-row ~
catfish getting after frogs on the banks. Invasive carp, released/escaped Koi, stopped mid stream against the current, blinking in the sun-
I really miss my klepper.

And further more

Reilly, Mountain climber, The Other Monrovia- CA
Jun 16, 2017 - 03:07pm PT
as always a great Snap!

Doesn't everybody pack a yak on the Tube? WTF?

Thank you Reilly Moss! the knower of so many things ~ thank you for being the eyes and sharing what you see!

https://vimeo.com/167761559

Contractor

Boulder climber

Jun 16, 2017 - 06:35am PT

That's an amazing item!

When traveling through the Mentawai archipelago off the Sumatran coast, we were struck by the canoes as much as anything.
The craftsmanship was amazing, the utility was obvious.

A local Islander was willing to sell me one of these masterpieces for $200. A dugout takes three weeks of hard work by at least three craftsman and is constructed from an old growth forest hardwood- I couldn't do it.
These conoes are built for nomadic living, traveling through Mangroves and open ocean and are different than the conoe you have.

John Duffield

Mountain climber

New York

Jun 16, 2017 - 09:03am PT

Interesting! I wonder if they can still make them there?

The last dugout in Washington State, was made in the 1940s. Per roadside exhibit I saw on the way to North Cascades last Summer.

Q- Ball

Mountain climber

but to scared to climb them anymore

Topic Author's Reply - Jun 16, 2017 - 10:38am PT

Contractor,
I agree that these canoes are masterpieces I could never make! I have quizzed my Pech friend on construction. They still make them in Honduras.

He says he prefers mahogany or a tree they call cedar. When he finds a good tree while hunting he puts a mark on it to claim. Kind of like a brand that other Indians will respect. Then you kill a couple pigs and have a feast to recruit folks to help knock it down and drag it to the river.

He says you need 30-50 people to move the log (this is for a 30 ft canoe). Sometimes the log is about a mile from the river.

Once he has it home he said with three people and a chainsaw he can have it finished in 5 days. With just using an adze it takes 7 days! Unbelievable what these guys can do!

I find the details fascinating

.

Qball