La canoa rancha and other nautical adventures

 La Canoa Rancha means something like 'the moldy canoe' and is a famous cumbia song by Grupo Niche from Colombia.  We have an actual moldy and slightly rotten 18 foot dugout canoe that was recovered from being sunk and filled with rocks several weeks after it was stolen.  Our friend and volunteer Josue who is back in Peru after being sponsored by us for a residency in Germany at a Camp Hill facility where he learned German and cared for developmentally disabled adults fortunately found the canoe while diving.

Now I am repairing the canoe, which was in a rather beat-up condition, with wood and some modern materials including fiberglass so it will have a new lease on life.  I'm adding one inch of freeboard, meaning the height above the water, to strengthen it and make it safer in choppy conditions.

I have also repaired and painted this 17 foot rowing and sailing skiff made of ana, a local water-resistant wood with properties similar to teak. I go out rowing often at sundown when the heat is diminishing and the sunset lights up the sky.  Sometimes Lourdes and dog Bondo come along as well.

The rowboat now has a boathouse with a new swim ladder that doubles for rowboat access.  When the dugout canoe is finally repaired and painted it will be docked to the right of the rowing skiff.

During the months of lockdown I worked on our 33 foot (10 meter) sailing trimaran Estrella del Lago improving the roofs so we now do not bang our heads when entering under the canopies, re-epoxying and painting the main mast and various hull repairs.  Lately we have had strong winds which have been fun and I tested out a new boom which managed to resist some 25 knot gusts without mishap.

              Old boom made from bamboo, picturesque but with tendency to break in high winds.

                                          New boom made from ana, much stronger. The challenge was to find a piece of wood 6 meters long.