Birch Bark Canoe

Tomorrow I fly to the USA to build a birch bark canoe. This is one of the worlds great traditional woodwork projects and something I have dreamed about for nearly 20 years since first seeing the film Ceasars bark canoe. That film is now available free online thanks to the National Film Board of Canada so you can see just why I was so inspired.

Some years ago now I was contacted by a greenwoodworker in the USA who was getting into making spoons and bowls we exchanged a lot of emails and have become good friends, Jarrod has since visited Edale twice. In that first email he mentioned in passing that he built bark canoes. So after several years dreaming and planning I am now off to build the most iconic canoe of all. My daughter Jojo is coming with me too, it will be an amazing experience. This is Jarrod’s blog from building a canoe in 2011  and here is one of his finished canoes, they are functional sculpture. I’ll take plenty of pics and post them here when I am back.