Wow.
Helen and I had little other reaction as we approached Atsena Otie off Cedar Key on May 5 for the annual Cedar Key small boat gathering. We had been able to attend only one other rally, in 2005, and this time there seemed to be twice as many craft. It seemed like every available foot of beach on the island held a boat as we approached, and a dozen or so were sailing around in the light but steady mid-morning breezes.

Helen steers Oaracle toward Atsena Otie off Cedar Key in steady, light breezes.

There was something for any and every small craft afficionado. There was a small fleet of Sea Pearls for the dedicated fans of that design. (That included our friends from the Tallahassee area Noel and Christy Davis of the Furledsails.com podcast. Alas, we were so busy yakking and taking pictures and tanking in the incredible sights and sailing, I forgot to collect on my promised sail from Noel in a Sea Pearl.) For the adventuresome, there was a contingent of WaterTribe Everglades Challenge veterans on a variety of craft. There were kayaks both purchased and home built, and a staggering array of small sailboats with a seeming infinite variety of rigs, construction, arrangements, and number of hulls.

Just some of the boats at the Cedar Key meet. Something for almost any and every small boat taste.

Dave and Mindy Bolduc were there with their much traveled Little Cruiser, a Matt Layden design, and Glenn Maxwell brought back his immaculately constructed Zoe, another of Matt’s designs. Matt and wife Karen were there with noted Swedish voyager Sven Yrvind – how often can you stand on a sun-drenched beach and chat with a fellow who built several small sailboats and sailed one around Cape Horn! And pitchpoled backwards in another!

Matt Layden (left), Sven Yrvind, and Glenn Maxwell talk about boats on the beach. Behind them is Graham Brynes’ Southern Skimmer, winner of the 2007 WaterTribe Everglades Challenge.

A special thanks to Matt and Karen who invited us to lunch with Sven at Karen’s parents’ house, where we got to hear how Sven received a special award from the Swedish King and Queen in recognition of his small boat accomplishments. The Queen wore a stunning red dress, Sven dressed causally. Karen asked him if he bowed when meeting the royalty, and Sven replied if you don’t know how to act in a certain situation then, really, you don’t have to worry how you act and whether it is perceived as correct or not.

This pretty boat is departing Cedar Key for Atsena Otie.

But we digress. The day concluded with a cookout hosted by Florida’s West Coast Trailer Sailors Association, but alas, we had been able to get away only for the day and were headed back to Tallahassee as it really got cranked up. But it sounded like a great party.

Here are some of the pictures from that day. I vowed to get the name of every owner of every boat photographed, but with so many people wandering around on the beach and the difficulty of getting such information as you sail by on another boat, that promise was honored more in the breach. My apologies to those I missed, but our thanks for sharing your wonderful craft.

More boats leaving Island Place for Atsena Otie.

A Phil Bolger Surf design beautifully built by Rock Taber

Butch Erny’s cat built by Fred Shell (www.shellboats.com) sails by.

This lovely sailing canoe was built by William Clements and was proudly showed by owner Preston Watters.

If you got tired of looking at boats on the beach, there were always several sailing by.

It’s hard to get too much of looking at wonderful craft like this strip-built canoe.

Doug Cameron’s Shellback Dingy on the beach . . .

. . . and under sail.

A pair of Peep Hens on the beach.

This punt, called Kontender from www.stowawayboats.com, can be broken down into parts for transportation and storage.

Dave and Mindy Bolduc’s well traveled and lovingly maintained Little Cruiser. Check their site at www.microcruising.com.

Mark Stewart took a Sea Kayak 2 from Glen L, added amas from Chesapeake Light Craft and a sailing rig and wound up with this nifty trimaran.

A Sea Pearl ambles by in the light winds.

A Core Sound 17 being admired on the beach . . .

. . . and getting under sail.

Glen Maxwell’s Zoe.

One of the Hen boats, a Bay Hen model, well suited for the waters around Cedar Key. And those biminis can be nice as the sun gets up in the sky.

Several years ago, WoodenBoat magazine ran a how-to series on building the lovely Piccolo sailing canoe. Tom Stanford brought his and took our breath away.

Other articles by Gary Blankenship:

• Molded Boat Parts
• Lumpy-the carbon fiber sprit boom
• Watertribe Everglades Challenge
• LED Thoughts
• Two Ideas
• Sealing the Mast
• Wing Keel Travails
• EC Report
• Oaracle Upgrades
• Book Review: "The Traditional Guide to Traditional Small-Boat Sails