Guillemot Kayaks - Guillemot Kayaks

System Upgrade

Thu, 30 Aug 2007 08:58:36 -0400

My service provider upgraded some of the software used to run my website. As a result things some functions are broken. Please excuse the error messages that may be appearing until I get things working appropriately again.
Thanks,
Nick

Fictional Guillemot Kayaks

Wed, 22 Aug 2007 12:48:10 -0400

I got a call from Bob Van Dyke of CVSW the other day. He said he had just been reading a book by Clive Cussler called Polar Shift. He had just picked up the book recently and was shocked to read the following:
"The latest addition to his fleet was the custom-made Guillemot kayak. He had bought it on an earlier trip to Seattle. He liked its natural wood construction and the graceful design of the thin hul, which was based on an Aleut craft. Like all his boats, it was fast as well as beautiful."

WoodenBoat Show Concourse d'Elegance Winner

Mon, 02 Jul 2007 10:19:27 -0400

I decided to enter my Petrel into this year's Woodenboat Show Concourse d'Elegance. I am pleased to report that I ended receiving a nice 1st place mug in the professionally built manually powered boat group. There were a lot of beautiful boats there so I feel quite honored.

The show was held at Mystic Seaport this year under sunny skies. It is nice be talking boats among so many beautiful craft. I really enjoyed the chance to talk with so many people who had built or were building my designs, as well as those who are planning to. The word is that the show will be at Mystic again next year. If you were unable to make it this year, it is well worth the effort to try to attend next year.

Press Coverage

Fri, 02 Feb 2007 14:46:28 -0500

Robb Report
		Jonathon Ramesy of the Robb Report Collection featured Nicks boats in the 2006 list of 50 Holiday Surprises

WoodenBoat School and Curiosities of the World

Thu, 25 Jan 2007 16:10:12 -0500

I recently did a Google search on "WoodenBoat School" I noticed that my Build Your Own Night Heron course at the school came up as the second link after the actual WoodenBoat School site. Reading down the list I found a link to Matt Murphy's blog entry about the WoodenBoat School. When I went to his blog, I read his post about "The Third Most Curious Thing" where he note that one of his posts now is listed 3rd on a Google search for "curiosities of the world". Now if you do a search that particular post about the curiosity of becoming the 3rd most curious thing in the world is the 4th most curious thing when you do that search. Are you following this?

Kayak Gift Ideas

Mon, 20 Nov 2006 17:20:28 -0500

An a 18" model of the Night Heron carved from Mahogany and Ash with a Maple cockpit, mounted on a piece of Manzanita root.

If you are looking for a gift for your family kayak builder or paddling enthusiast, I have a couple ideas that might work. A wooden kayak model is a unique item to display on a mantel or book shelf.

Nymph - A New Double Paddle Strip Canoe Design

Thu, 17 Aug 2006 14:17:02 -0400

Plans Now Available

In July I finished up the prototype of a new canoe design. The Nymph is a 10' long by 28" wide solo double-paddle canoe. It is designed for paddlers under 150 lbs and the prototype weighs about 15 pounds. I am experimenting with building boats with domestic hardwoods to find alternatives for old-growth cedar. In this boat I used walnut and basswood cut into 1/8th inch thick strips. I then reinforced it with a carbon-Kevlar hybrid cloth on the inside and high-strength "S-Glass" on the outside. The gunwales are basswood under a layer of 4 ounce E-Glass and the stems are cherry.

Vacation in Maine

Wed, 26 Jul 2006 19:42:11 -0400

I'm heading up to Maine for a bit of paddling and to exhibit at the Maine Boats, Homes & Harbors Show in Rockland. I'll be gone from July 28 through August 14. I'll be paddling with friends and thinking up new ideas for boats. If you are in the Rockland Maine area August 11, 12, or 13, please stop in at the show to say hi.

If have any questions I will be out of touch for awhile, so I hope they can wait. Orders will continue to be sent out while I'm gone.

Stitch and Glue Kits from Chesapeake Light Craft

Thu, 29 Jun 2006 09:19:27 -0400

I was talking to John Harris at Chesapeake Light Craft last fall. As the conversation wandered around various boats and projects we were working on, it became apparent that we each had some issues that we might be able help each other with. I had some designs that I had not had the time to develop usable plans and instructions for, and he had a demand for some boats that he didn't have time to develop designs for. People had been hounding him for a Sit-on-Top (SOT) kayak kit, and people had been hounding me to release my stitch and glue SOT design. I also had a surf kayak design that I thought was pretty cool but had not had the time to prepare usable instructions for.

Getting Publicity

Mon, 03 Apr 2006 09:54:24 -0400

Steve Grant is a writer for the Hartford Courant who tends to write articles about the outdoors and environmental issues. A couple weeks ago he gave me a call to see if I would be a willing subject of an article. Seemed like a good idea to me. I'm not about to pass up free publicity.

The article came out on Sunday.

Technical Support

Mon, 20 Mar 2006 11:54:50 -0500

I want to make the building process as easy as possible. To that end my Book attempts to provide clear and concise instructions in building a strip-built boat building, but it is inevitable that some people are going to end up with questions while building their boat. Feel free to contact me via email or phone. I find email works well for building questions because it provides a written record that avoids memory failures when you get back to the project.

But one of the best resources to help people who are building a small boat is boat building section of my KayakForum discussion group. This site gets thousands of visitors a day, ranging from people who have never built a thing and have lots of questions and experienced, professional builders who have seen it all. Almost any question you have can be answered here quickly and comprehensively.

Plans Price Increase - April 1st 2006

Mon, 20 Mar 2006 11:33:20 -0500

After a lot of thought, I have decided to increase the prices on my boat plans. I do this reluctantly because I hope to keep the activity of building your own boat affordable, but I have not increased my prices since I started the business in 1993 and the costs of operating keep on going up. This price increase will help me maintain a high level of service for small boat builders with things like the KayakForum and personal technical support.

The price increase will not go into effect until April 1st, 2006, so if you are thinking of purchasing plans this spring, you have a chance to get them before the prices go up.

About Guillemot Kayaks

Fri, 23 Sep 2005 14:33:52 -0400

Photo montage by Carl Tjerandsen

Guillemot Kayaks was created by Nick Schade in 1993 to share the kayak designs he created for his own use.

Nick grew up around canoes and kayaks. After beginning a career as an engineer for the US Navy, he knew he wanted to get back on the water himself. But as a recent graduate, he could not afford the kind of boat he wanted. So he decided to design and build a kayak using a technique he had seen used to create canoes: the “strip-built” method. This method was popular for canoe construction but was not commonly adapted for kayaks. Nick and his brother Eric worked together to develop the processes needed to make kayaks using the “strip-built” method.

Contact

Mon, 10 May 2004 00:28:52 -0400

If you have any questions that you can't find the answers for in the FAQ or you would like more information about a boat than is available in the design catalog please feel free to contact us at the address below, or email Nick here.

Guillemot Kayaks
824 Thompson St, Suite I
Glastonbury, CT 06033

Phone:(860) 659-8847

You may email Nick here.

We display boats at a select series of shows and exhibitions throughout the year. The events at the left are some of the upcoming opportunities to see our boats and visit. If you would like to visit our workshop please contact us first.