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Prologue

April 26, 2002

Anyone who has ever canoed the upper Missouri River knows what a welcome sight a grove of cottonwoods can be. They provide shade, shelter and fuel. For Indian ponies, they provided food. For the Corps of Discovery, they provided wheels, wagons and canoes.

Pioneering Lewis and Clark scholar Paul Russell Cutright pays the cottonwood an appropriate tribute: "Of all the western trees it contributed more to the success of the expedition than any other. Lewis and Clark were men of great talent and resourcefulness, masters of ingenuity and improvisation. Though we think it probable that they would have successfully crossed the continent without the cottonwood, donÕt ask us how!" (Ambrose, Undaunted Courage p. 250)

I am banking on the success of this project, and have gone ahead and ordered a chainsaw, its gonna be a big motha', they had to go to the pacific northwest to find a bar big enough, but nothing less will be able to handle these delta cottonwoods. its supposed to come in today or monday, and i've got wesley, anthony & lee (my two interns) on retainer for cutting next week. my plan is to have it roughed out within a month.

April 29, 2002

i have found some websites with information on dugouts, mostly about those from the pacific northwest. still have not found any good info about building one out of cottonwood. But, i've got six logs available, and experience is the best teacher. Actually, it was the sweetgum log that taught me how to carve it, i mean the canoe shape just seemed to come naturally out of the log. its not a perfectly proportioned canoe, but then no dugout is mathematically precise.

April 30, 2002

My plan is to build us an eighteen foot canoe, 3 foot wide at the beam. Its overall form will be more or less in the "prospector" shape, like the Ladybug. three foot beam is a lot for a small canoe, but this will provide extra stability. If we happen to take on a passenger for a day or two, this canoe could accomodate another person, or say we need extra food & water for a particularly desolate section, or happen to take a deer or an antelope Ð this canoe will have the extra space.

It will be spacious & comfortable on the water. It will be heavy to portage.

Okay, as i understand, our equipment requirements are as follows:

• 2 #3 dry bags, 2 food boxes,
• 1 technology box,
• 1 painting case,
• 2- 5 gallon jugs,
• assorted bags and loose equipment

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Big Medicine Dugout Journal Day 1: Monday, July 8, 2002

Sean and Dean came by at ten in the morning, I was having a slow time coming to consciousness even though I had awoken at six, probably the lingering effects of jet lag.

We positioned the log. Dean drove the truck while Sarah, Sean and I handled the peeves (log hooks) and iron bar. It took an hour, but we finally got the log oriented to our satisfaction. We had to use come-a-longs to fine tune it. There is a discernible bow in the log, maybe four inches over twenty feet. So we said the concave side will be parallel to the bow of the canoe. Therefore, the bow became side A, opposite the bow, side B. We laboriously rolled it until the AB axis (a straight line drawn through the center of the log) was vertical, and then blocked the bottom to keep it from rolling. Now we pulled out the 36 inch chain saw and said a prayer (John), which went something like this:

Dear Lord, Great Spirit, Big Medicine: we were brought together by this log, which live 93 years growing out of the delta soil, living on the nutrients of the Mississippi valley, themselves a conglomeration of America from Montana to the smokies, from the ozarks to the Appalachians,

for ninety three years this log stood over the movement of people and animals, the wind and the rain, and now it rests at our feet and so we are thankful for its life.

Thanks to Kay Merritt for donating this log from her favorite tree which stood 93 years on the edge of Cassidy Bayou and then was struck by lightning August 2001 and died, and when Kay heard about our expedition she donated the tree. Thanks to Mike Clark and Big Muddy Adventures for having the vision to see the Ruskey & Clark expedition thus far. Thanks to Wesley "Mississippi Junebug" Jefferson for driving truck and always being there. Thanks to Tater (Foster Wiley) for helping to fell this tree and placing the chocks at the right moment to save it from falling over the wrong way. Thanks to Dean and Sean for traveling across the Great Plains from Colorado to donate their Summer vacation to help carve this log. Thanks to Doris who is on her way. Thanks to Sarah for her love and patience.

Dear Lord, Great Spirit, Big Medicine, we know that you brought us all together to commence upon this journey, and we are thankful for the opportunity to carve together, to work together, to make this elderly cottonwood trunk into a beautiful vessel, a vessel which will part the waters of the Big Muddy Missouri and see the passage of pilgrims in their expedition from the fount of the Rocky Mountains to meeting of waters at the confluence of the Mississippi in St. Louis.

Guide us in our carving. Make safe our work and watch over our progress. Help us make canoe lines that are pleasing to the eye and smooth in the water. Let us carve this log in such a way that enables the tree which it comes from to keep on growing. Keep us from harm and injury. Sustain us in our moments of confusion, and help us to enjoy the sweat of the work, the unavoidable travails of the job.

Help us celebrate the work we have done, as we celebrate the life you created in this tree: the log which we now hone to continue its life, in another form, as a river vessel, in the shape developed over the millennia by the original inhabitants of this continent. It is their knowledge which we now employ. As well as the secrets sequestered in the shape of the trunk. We employ the knowledge of time & existence and mix it with the technology and tools of today.

We do this in your name, and remain your humble craftsmen. Amen.

Carvers: Sean Dean Lambert Foster Wiley Sarah Crisler John Ruskey

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Day II: Tuesday, July 9, 2002

We agreed to a schedule as follows:

10am start carving
12noon dinner
1pm resume carving
3pm Dean goes to museum blues class Weâall carve until light fails, the "mosquetors" become too "verry" troublesome, or we get too tired.

Log Dimensions:
238 inches long (2 inches short of 20 feet),
diameter at butt: 42"
opposite diameter: 35"

There is an eight inch difference in the diameter of the log, butt to opposite, so we started our carving job by first leveling the log. Our goal in levelling is to make the log parallel to the ground so that we have an even log diameter to work with. This was done with string lines and levels and a tape measure. We made our marks with red paint and a ¸ inch brush.

I cut the log with the 36" bar chain saw (a Stihl 088). It proved very troublesome ripping with a chainsaw blade intended for cross cuts. A ripping blade needs to be set a 50 degrees and ours was set at thirty. Next we painted the profile curve of the gunnels, or the canoe as viewed from the side. We did this by marking center line. Next we marked one foot in from the ends (which will be eventually cut off, the finished canoe to be 18 feet long). Next we marked three feet in from the ends (to indicate the stems fore and aft). Then I painted the profile, allowing 24 inches of draft at the beam, starting out level, then gradually curving up towards the ends.

All curves in a canoe are parabolas with ever-increasing angularity, eventually becoming spiral, as in the spiral seen in a conch. It's just that the spiral is implied, never completed (I wonder why?).

Using the 088 we sliced the area above the gunnels in paralell lines perpendicular to the log axis. The resulting fins of wood were chopped out with boat builders chisels, adzes, axes and a sledge hammer. Sean sharpened blades and we took turns carving. Antonio came late in the day and helped carve. He bought a round of refreshments from the Corner Grocery. We stopped at 6pm. 8 hours.

Carvers: Antonio Sean Dean Lambert Foster Wiley Sarah Crisler John Ruskey

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Day III: Wednesday, July 10, 2002

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I keep wondering what keeps me going in this, so much work and so little gain, so much risk and uncertainty. But I never doubt my actions, because it always feels right. I remember how pleased Dad would be with this project. How eagerly he would want to know what progress we made. How hungrily he would devour each detail, his attention riveted on the little things like the hawks flying above our afternoon work. He would want to be there when we launch it, just as he would offer his resources in the project. Sometimes, in my moments of self-reflection, it is the thought of him that keeps me focused in this. It is not that I have self-doubt, because I donât, its just the weight of the project at hand at times threatens to be overwhelming. It is certainly one of the single biggest challenges I have undertaken.

Wesley and his son Cliff came and we started at ten, they put hinges on the tool shed while Dean and Sean sharpened adzes & axes and I did made the first cuts into the belly of the log with the chainsaw, deep cuts made in a checkerboard pattern which we will chop out. First cuts were made with the big chainsaw parallel to the length of the canoe, second cuts were made perpendicular with the small chainsaw.

First I cleaned off the edges so that we could make good lines with our red paint. Next I scored the gunnel lines, of which I instructed my men not to cross, it being of supreme importance to keep a solid gunnel intact. Then I made five lines parallel and about forty perpendicular. Also, I sharpened the ends with the big chainsaw, four long cuts, about six feet long, slicing the ends parallel to our AB axis, cutting three inches from the diameter on each side, at an angle outward, gradually exiting the log through the bark, as I said, six feet towards the beam.

This left four huge sections of cottonwood, each shaped like a cylinder cut by a plane (the result a parabola, curve up). Each weighs four or five hundred pounds. Also, I cut off the ends, so now we are working with log stock the length of the final canoe: eighteen feet.

Now the fun begins: with the English big boat-builder's chisels, the adzes and the axes we began to chop out the checker-cut (diced) wood stock. Wesley made great progress using the chisel. The wood is quite wet within, and fairly easy to remove. (There is nothing easy about wood removal). There are few knot holes. However we did hit several places where there seemed to be swirls in the grain, perhaps old limbs, and here the wood was extremely dense, almost like oak, and required repeated cutting and chopping to remove.

We made great progress, everyone surprised by the work we did. But we need to be wary of speed. Once we rough cut the canoe it is going to be extremely fragile to the heat and sensitive to the effects of being quickly dried out, cottonwood being prone to cracking & checking. I directed Sean to apply paint to the ends. As soon as we rough cut the interior we will apply a coat of varnish to thus protect it while we work on the exterior hull.

I am thinking the final canoe will need extra protection, but how? Fiberglass? Some sort of Gel Coat? For Lewis & Clark the caulking of the canoes was almost a daily routine. At the end of the day we were left with a huge pile of wood chunks, sawdust, shavings, and the aforementioned sections. We probably removed several thousand pounds of material. But from here on, each day, the effects of our labor will be less noticeable. The amount of wood removal will be less and less, the job more & more refined. We finished at five thirty, 7 1/2 hours of work for six people. An hour later I went over to Mara's for a swim and she reported that Dean and Sean were fast asleep. Anthony & Lee visited and said "theyâd be back."

Carvers: Wesley, Cliff, Tater, Dean, Sean, & John

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Day IV Thursday, July 11, 2002

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The good news and bad news: the bad news for today is that this is going to be a lot of work & sweat labor. The good news is that when weâre done, its over. We can celebrate, relax, go on to the next project.

Due to the awful heat this week, we agreed to a new schedule: 8am ö commence carving; 12noon ö siesta; 3pm ö recommence; 6pm ö stop. This schedule will get us out of the heat of the day. There is a medium sized elm tree growing between us and the sunflower river, which after three oâclock shades our carving area, so we will be afforded afternoon shade. The air has been so thick it seems like you could cut it with a carving knife.

Today we finished roughing out the interior. I rounded the ends and shaved the gunnels. All end wood and gunnel lines we coated with some ãmis-tintedä paint I got from Winkel Paints. The roughing out involved nothing short of hard work, swinging the adze blade, removing the wood stock of the belly chunk by chunk. The advantage to having a group of people involved in this is that the burden of the labor is shared by all, hence no one gets completely exhausted. No more than two adze swinging carvers can work in the belly area, so two carve, two remove sawdust and chunks, two sharpen. And then we switch.

This is a journey in itself, the construction of the dugout canoe, and each of us depends on the other to see it through. Sean is complaining of earaches today. His head is aching, so I sent him inside to sharpen, and to work on the expedition map. Punch and three of his friends visited on their bicycles, looking to help out. I told them to check back, but that we have enough carvers, Too many carvers might be a dangerous thing.

By the way, I keep forgetting to mention the triplets we have been raising. Three Starling chicks, just feathering out, not more than a week old, were blown out of their nest by Mondayâs severe thunderstorm. We have been feeding them worms, toast, and scraps of fried egg. Yes, fried egg, which they greedily gobble down. They like it fried in olive oil with garlic. They have become tuned to the sounds and smells of my cooking. Whenever I start banging a pan they start screaming loudly, their tiny triangular beaks reaching for the sky. They have become our mascots. Their were originally five. Two of them died the first night. Somehow the struggle for life of the remaining three have become part of our dugout journey. It being almost impossible to raise a wild bird in captivity. Their struggle is a motivation for us to keep chopping away, to release the canoe from the log by the swinging of the adze and cutting of the saw. Their struggle to fly is our struggle to float. We carved Îtil five thirty, the belly cavity mostly smoothed out. Now we gathered all six and rolled the log 180 degrees towards the river, axis AB became BA. We debarked the log, sealed the stems, and called it a day.

Carvers: Welsey, Cliff, Tater, Dean, Sean & John

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Day V Friday, July 12, 2002

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It was raining first thing this morning, then it cleared, a heavy humidity lingering in the air, air so thick you could carve it with an adze. Good weather for the canoe ö it will keep the wood from drying out too quick.

We worked through the morning, then were shut down by rain before lunch. John returned later in the afternoon and cleaned the cuts made in a slight drizzle. 8:00am: Wesley sharpened the small chainsaw while Dean and Sean sharpened the hand tools. Sean cleaned up some of the indoor mess we made the previous day. Cliff brought the triplet Starlings outside while Sean vacuumed so as not to upset them with the noise. I leveled the canoe and made marks so that we could flatten the hull, the canoe still upside down as we had left it the day before.

I just realized I called it a ãcanoeä instead of ãa log,ä as indeed it is more a canoe now than the other, so I guess that shows the progress we have made. Leveling the hull proved to be more difficult than anticipated. Either that or all of us were exhausted from the effort put forth the previous four days in the heat & humidity. I had a hard time concentrating. It required great effort to get the lines right. The chainsaw kept stalling on me as well. Wesley suggested the air filter needed attention, and indeed he was right: it was clogged with sawdust.

To level the hull it is first necessary to level the log, both vertically and horizontally, as closely as possible. Next, score a center line. Getting a good center line is the cornerstone to a good hull. Everything forward in hull carving is built upon the centerline. All curves and rounded surfaces emanate from the centerline downwards towards the sheer-line. Not only does centerline determine the keel, but the rounded shape of the sides as well, the tumblehome, &c. It will make the difference between a canoe that tracks well and one that is askew. It will affect the overall balance and handling of the finished canoe.

With that weighty introduction, now comes the discouraging truth: it almost impossible to draw a ãtrueä center line on a log that is not a proper cylinder. Next piece of discouraging information: no log is a true cylinder. For instance, on our log, the center line must accommodate an eight inch increase in diameter over twenty feet. It must balance a slight bow (four inches) at the top end of the log. It must somehow mediate the slight undulations of the trunk, the prominences created by the knot holes, and the burl that we found near the base. As noted we had previously oriented the log end-to-end fairly accurately with a contractorâs level, and made our first end cuts fairly symmetrically in coordination with a perpendicular there drawn across the face of the log. Now, I made marks indicating centerline in respect to imaginary perpendiculars drawn across the end points. Then I stood up on the log and eyeballed a series of perpendiculars in between, marking centers as well sighting through my level. Now we stretched a string-line between the ends, placing it first on the centers drawn at the end points, then adjusting it slightly to connect as many of the perpendicular centers as possible, balancing those that fall on one side of the line with those on the other, in effect, ãaveragingä the center line through the constellation of center points.

This done, it is now necessary to stand back away from the log, and sight the line completely by the artistic eye. The math completed, it is now required to engage right brain sense of balance and proportion. It is possible only with this last step to find a workable center line. After all of the geometry and engineerâs tools have done their work, the most accurate line is that envisioned by the artistic eye. Only the artistic eye can make all of the minute checks and balances over the length of the log, taking in account the undulations and the knot holes, the slight bow, and the increase in diameter. This is the artistic ãfeel.ä The best line will look right when viewed from the distance. Youâre not sure exactly why but it does. If given a choice between the math and the eye, the latter is certainly the stronger. We are fortunate to be able to engage both. I wonder how Lewis & Clark determined their center line, certainly they were able to use their eyes, but I wonder if they applied a ãscienceä to it as well. If they did, I have found no indication in their journals.

Carvers: Welsey, Cliff, Tater, Dean, Sean & John

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Saturday, July 13-14, 2002

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Web Master notes: John's email today confirms that Saturday and Sunday will be days of rest for the carvers. John sent the drawing above that details the design aspects of the dugout canoe.

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