Our Boat

Mary spent 4 years building the dugout canoe know as Makeba. Pronounced mah-KAY-buh, the boat is close to 11ft in length. Made from a cottonwood tree cut down by a friend in 2008, Makeba first weighed over 2,600lbs! She now possibly weighs around 300lbs. A 14" adze was used for the majority of construction. The boat was tested for buoyancy in the summer of 2011 and passed with flying colors... except for being a bit tippy. With Amy's help, Makeba was fit with a sail and outriggers shortly before leaving for the voyage of a lifetime in the summer of 2012. This boat has officially conquered the lake after 93 days out on the water. Leaky and creaky, at times, this little sailboat has absolutely proven her worth at sea, or rather, at great lake. Yes, we were usually the slowest out there and many times, the wettest - but this far beyond what is asked of any tree. She circumnavigated Lake Michigan.

5 comments:

  1. That's fantastic! This has really inspired me to finish my little sailboat. I've had a dream of sailing from Detroit to Chicago is a small boat for years now.

    Nice work!

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  2. Wow, truly great story and photos. Nice job, girls! Have you read The Voyage of the Liberdad? You'd sure like it!

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  3. Amy and Mary, some day you two need to take me out in Makeba... and I need to take you both out in sea kayaks....

    Tom Heineman

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  4. My friend Mike Kjos and his family owned a cabin in Michigan City. When we were kids we would go out in his Sun Fish. One day we decided we were going to sail to Chicago. We went out until we could no longer see land. Then the weather turned ugly so we turned around.

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