Currents
N E WS
CENTURY CLASSIC CANOE DESIGN. PHOTO: JUDITH STRIEBY-RASKA
WCHA PRESIDENT, KEN KELLY, SHOWS OFF A TURN-OF-THE-
CANOE LOVERS CELEBRATE TRADITIONAL DESIGNS WITH PADDLING PARTY
TOMORROW’S CLASSICS
For wooden-canoe lovers, it’s the event of the year. Each year, the Wooden Canoe Heritage
Assembly draws hundreds of canoe aficio- nados from across Canada and the Unit- ed States to gather in Paul Smiths, New York to admire a vast collection of canoes, participate in workshops and discuss all things about the wooden craft. Celebrating its 35th anniversary this
July, the event showcases everything from cedar-strip to wood-and-canvas to tradi- tional birch bark designs and will be big- ger than ever. “Each year we feature a specific his-
toric 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,”
18 PADDLING MAGAZINE
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 Her- ald 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 skill work- shops, instruction in campcraft and in tra- ditional 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 wood-
en 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 build- ers, 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 qual- ity 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 to 20 at Paul Smiths Col- lege in Paul Smiths, New York. www.
wcha.org. Canoeroots and Family Camping maga-
zine went inside Ken Kelly’s antique canoe collection, one the largest private collections in North America, in the 2014 Spring is- sue. Read it at
www.rapidmedia.com/0150. —Kaydi Pyette
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