Picton Castle Bosun School Students Build Skiff At The Dory Shop

November 2, 2011 at 12:35 PM

In three weeks, Picton Castle Bosun School students turned a pile of lumber into a boat that actually floats.  Taking the lead from expert dory builder Jay Langford, the students did a short apprenticeship in the Dory Shop, a wooden boatbuilding business that has been in consistent operation on Lunenburg's waterfront since 1917. 

Using tropical hardwoods, including silver bali for the planking, and copper and stainless steel fasteners, the skiff is solid and built to last.  By constructing the boat from start to finish, students learned not only how to build a boat but also wooden boat carpentry techniques and how to fix things when they don't go as planned. 

The silver bali skiff was launched on the last Friday in October after almost three weeks of work to build it.  Robert Hirtle of the local newspaper attended the launch and posted this video.  Dory Plug, who blogs for the Dory Shop, also posted two updates on the building of the skiff and the launch.  And our own Eva, student in the Bosun School, was the guest writer for this Captain's Log entry that talks about what the students have been up to, including details of finishing the skiff.