The "Sauvie Island boat"
by Bob Young
The Sauvie Island boat was a gift from a person who had sold his small, NW Cornell Road farm and wished to find a proper home for an old boat (and its oars) that had come with the his original farm purchase. His phone call to me explained that this boat had originally been used to and from Sauvie Island across the Columbia River to the several small settlements in Washington.
With the help of Irv Jones (Past RiversWest President (now deceased), we visited the boat and could see the beauty of design and construction. It was sitting on a somewhat abused boat trailer. Irv and I were able to make cursory repairs to the trailer and were able to haul it to the (then) Oaks Park RiversWest boat shop. The boat was cleaned up, and minor repairs made. When RiversWest changed locations the boat went along and was used for display and for rowing instruction.
Certainly the boats shear and features shows that an experienced boatman built the boat. When used on the Columbia, the curved sheer and free board was most useful in coping with the short chop and wind conditions of the large Columbia River. The picture also shows the RiversWest members who were the main source of care and restoration of this treasure. Thank you boatmen.
With the help of Irv Jones (Past RiversWest President (now deceased), we visited the boat and could see the beauty of design and construction. It was sitting on a somewhat abused boat trailer. Irv and I were able to make cursory repairs to the trailer and were able to haul it to the (then) Oaks Park RiversWest boat shop. The boat was cleaned up, and minor repairs made. When RiversWest changed locations the boat went along and was used for display and for rowing instruction.
Certainly the boats shear and features shows that an experienced boatman built the boat. When used on the Columbia, the curved sheer and free board was most useful in coping with the short chop and wind conditions of the large Columbia River. The picture also shows the RiversWest members who were the main source of care and restoration of this treasure. Thank you boatmen.