The Life of Boats Blog
Designer, boatbuilder, writer, and CLC owner John C. Harris has posted his thoughts on boat design and other distractions for decades. Some of them end up here.
The Big Little Dinghy That Could
The Passagemaker Dinghy is the result of a commission, in 2005, by Bill Parlatore, then-editor of Passagemaker Magazine. He was concerned (as was I) about the dreary aesthetics of the...
The Big Little Dinghy That Could
The Passagemaker Dinghy is the result of a commission, in 2005, by Bill Parlatore, then-editor of Passagemaker Magazine. He was concerned (as was I) about the dreary aesthetics of the...
23 Years of the Skerry: A Retrospective
The first sketches of the boat that would become the Skerry date from 2000. There was an early prototype that was less sleek, with a deeper midsection. I was attempting...
23 Years of the Skerry: A Retrospective
The first sketches of the boat that would become the Skerry date from 2000. There was an early prototype that was less sleek, with a deeper midsection. I was attempting...
A Midwinter PocketShip Cruise
In early March I slipped away for a bit of PocketShip sailing on the west coast of Florida. Timing my arrival to view the start of the annual Everglades Challenge,...
A Midwinter PocketShip Cruise
In early March I slipped away for a bit of PocketShip sailing on the west coast of Florida. Timing my arrival to view the start of the annual Everglades Challenge,...
Three Hulls: A Sailing Outrigger for Adventures...
I'll let the multihull gurus fight over the question of whether this is a "trimaran" or an "outrigger." I think of trimarans as boats that are optimized purely for sailing....
Three Hulls: A Sailing Outrigger for Adventures...
I'll let the multihull gurus fight over the question of whether this is a "trimaran" or an "outrigger." I think of trimarans as boats that are optimized purely for sailing....
Lugs and Jibs: An Update on Autumn Leaves
The Shallow Water Sailors are an informal collection of small boat nuts who for over 40 years have been gathering on the Chesapeake to cruise. I've had the privilege of...
Lugs and Jibs: An Update on Autumn Leaves
The Shallow Water Sailors are an informal collection of small boat nuts who for over 40 years have been gathering on the Chesapeake to cruise. I've had the privilege of...
Ollie: Another Pretty Canoe Yawl for Sailing Pu...
I've written often of my lifelong vice of daydreaming, to the detriment of school grades, deadlines, paying work, and in general being present in the world. My 6th-grade math teacher...
Ollie: Another Pretty Canoe Yawl for Sailing Pu...
I've written often of my lifelong vice of daydreaming, to the detriment of school grades, deadlines, paying work, and in general being present in the world. My 6th-grade math teacher...
"Small Wooden Boat Design": A Panel Discussion
Here's a video filmed in August 2020 as part of the "virtual" 2020 Wooden Boat Festival in Port Townsend.Entitled "Small Wooden Boat Design," this is a panel discussion featuring John...
"Small Wooden Boat Design": A Panel Discussion
Here's a video filmed in August 2020 as part of the "virtual" 2020 Wooden Boat Festival in Port Townsend.Entitled "Small Wooden Boat Design," this is a panel discussion featuring John...
SKETCHBOOK: "Rover"
Dillon Majoros, Vice President of Design, Commentary: A little dinghy with an emphasis on flexibility. Bench seats stow under the deck for an open cockpit, or slide to centerline for...
SKETCHBOOK: "Rover"
Dillon Majoros, Vice President of Design, Commentary: A little dinghy with an emphasis on flexibility. Bench seats stow under the deck for an open cockpit, or slide to centerline for...
SKETCHBOOK: "The Guider" (First Draft)
John C. Harris, CLC Managing Director, Commentary: Here and there you'll see the CLC "Guider" design referenced as "Guider 2.0". This implies that there was a Guider 1.0, and in...
SKETCHBOOK: "The Guider" (First Draft)
John C. Harris, CLC Managing Director, Commentary: Here and there you'll see the CLC "Guider" design referenced as "Guider 2.0". This implies that there was a Guider 1.0, and in...
SKETCHBOOK: "Blue Monk"
John C. Harris, CLC Managing Director Commentary This was a drafting exercise, the sort of thing I work on when normal people are doing crossword puzzles. A few years ago...
SKETCHBOOK: "Blue Monk"
John C. Harris, CLC Managing Director Commentary This was a drafting exercise, the sort of thing I work on when normal people are doing crossword puzzles. A few years ago...
SKETCHBOOK: "Seabrook"
John C. Harris, CLC Managing Director, Commentary We mill miles and miles and miles of bead-and-cover cedar strips for kayak building. This led me to ponder what sort of small,...
SKETCHBOOK: "Seabrook"
John C. Harris, CLC Managing Director, Commentary We mill miles and miles and miles of bead-and-cover cedar strips for kayak building. This led me to ponder what sort of small,...
SKETCHBOOK: "Mullet"
Dillon Majoros, Vice President of Design Commentary "Mullet": Business in the front, party in the back. Forward helm station for visibility and line handling, aft cockpit for lounging without clutter....
SKETCHBOOK: "Mullet"
Dillon Majoros, Vice President of Design Commentary "Mullet": Business in the front, party in the back. Forward helm station for visibility and line handling, aft cockpit for lounging without clutter....
SKETCHBOOK: "John's Faering Cruiser"
John C. Harris, CLC Managing Director, Commentary: After much hard work on the unusual Faering Cruiser, I still had some energy to fool with the idea, and doodled a version...
SKETCHBOOK: "John's Faering Cruiser"
John C. Harris, CLC Managing Director, Commentary: After much hard work on the unusual Faering Cruiser, I still had some energy to fool with the idea, and doodled a version...
SKETCHBOOK: "Shanty Boat"
Dillon Majoros, Vice President of Design, Commentary: Funky little shanty boat for lakes or rivers. Room to sleep four, but intended for two. Integral davits for a tender, fold-down swim...
SKETCHBOOK: "Shanty Boat"
Dillon Majoros, Vice President of Design, Commentary: Funky little shanty boat for lakes or rivers. Room to sleep four, but intended for two. Integral davits for a tender, fold-down swim...
SKETCHBOOK: "Lex"
Dillion Majoros, Vice President of Design, Commentary: Contemporary runabout – big on style, low on utility. Glass windows punctuate the hull sides and terminate at stainless steel air intakes for...
SKETCHBOOK: "Lex"
Dillion Majoros, Vice President of Design, Commentary: Contemporary runabout – big on style, low on utility. Glass windows punctuate the hull sides and terminate at stainless steel air intakes for...
SKETCHBOOK: "11'6" Beach Cruiser"
John C. Harris, CLC Managing Director, Commentary: My 3000th attempt at a really small, comfortable beach cruiser. I find it appealing though from certain angles the cockpit would resemble a...
SKETCHBOOK: "11'6" Beach Cruiser"
John C. Harris, CLC Managing Director, Commentary: My 3000th attempt at a really small, comfortable beach cruiser. I find it appealing though from certain angles the cockpit would resemble a...
The Sharpie That Got Away
In 2007 my colleagues Bill and Matt, father and son, were looking for a daysailer to build as an evening project. They suggested that a sharpie would be fun. A...
The Sharpie That Got Away
In 2007 my colleagues Bill and Matt, father and son, were looking for a daysailer to build as an evening project. They suggested that a sharpie would be fun. A...
SKETCHBOOK: "Endurance Rowing Boat"
John C. Harris, CLC Managing Director Commentary: I'm often asked about "cruising rowing boats" with accommodations. Most people are thinking of this, but such things are dreadful unless you're rowing...
SKETCHBOOK: "Endurance Rowing Boat"
John C. Harris, CLC Managing Director Commentary: I'm often asked about "cruising rowing boats" with accommodations. Most people are thinking of this, but such things are dreadful unless you're rowing...
SKETCHBOOK: Jasper's Boat
Dillon Majoros, Vice President of Design: Commentary: A big, comfy camp-cruiser with an emphasis on comfortable seating in the cockpit. Spartan accommodations but plenty of storage. Suited for a week...
SKETCHBOOK: Jasper's Boat
Dillon Majoros, Vice President of Design: Commentary: A big, comfy camp-cruiser with an emphasis on comfortable seating in the cockpit. Spartan accommodations but plenty of storage. Suited for a week...
Modifying a Northeaster Dory for Camp-Cruising
More than a thousand CLC Northeaster Dories have been built. I credit the Northeaster Dory's success to the intrinsic qualities of a wooden dory. A dory is a great value...
Modifying a Northeaster Dory for Camp-Cruising
More than a thousand CLC Northeaster Dories have been built. I credit the Northeaster Dory's success to the intrinsic qualities of a wooden dory. A dory is a great value...
Encore, Autumn Leaves: The Canoe Yawl Sails
Interesting things happen when there is no profit motive. Unusual boats get built, and checking accounts dwindle. Having been resigned to the latter as long as I've had a checking...
Encore, Autumn Leaves: The Canoe Yawl Sails
Interesting things happen when there is no profit motive. Unusual boats get built, and checking accounts dwindle. Having been resigned to the latter as long as I've had a checking...
The Most Peculiar Client
After almost 25 years of being paid to design small boats, I thought I'd seen it all, but this design inquiry came out of left field. While most people are...
The Most Peculiar Client
After almost 25 years of being paid to design small boats, I thought I'd seen it all, but this design inquiry came out of left field. While most people are...
WoodenBoat Magazine #256: 'Marine Plywood: A Co...
This article was commissioned by WoodenBoat back in 2017. The editors there are meticulous and often prescribe careful and specific outlines for a given assignment, and I was thinking this...
WoodenBoat Magazine #256: 'Marine Plywood: A Co...
This article was commissioned by WoodenBoat back in 2017. The editors there are meticulous and often prescribe careful and specific outlines for a given assignment, and I was thinking this...
NanoShip: An Adventure in Small Boat Design
NanoShip is a 13-foot daysailer/camp-cruiser, based on the "Devon Beer Luggers" of the UK south coast. The prototype was built by several teams of students at the WoodenBoat School over...
NanoShip: An Adventure in Small Boat Design
NanoShip is a 13-foot daysailer/camp-cruiser, based on the "Devon Beer Luggers" of the UK south coast. The prototype was built by several teams of students at the WoodenBoat School over...