Plywood Canoes

It’s a guaranteed conversation starter. Paddling down the river in your homemade plywood canoe, you are sure to garner comments, questions and compliments. Just ask Ted Haviland of Summersville. He’s been making plywood boats for some 20 years and paddling them mostly on the Jacks Fork and Current Rivers in the Ozark National Scenic Riverways. Often referred to as Old Man River, Ted has been a river rat from way back. He and his wife, Pat, have been leaders in the Scenic Rivers Stream Team Association for 30 years. Countless river cleanups, float trips and water quality screenings later, Ted is still passionate about the rivers and paddling. And about building boats.

For himself, he has built five canoes, two kayaks and is working on a third kayak. But his passion isn’t limited to his own boats. To the delight and good fortune of others, Ted teaches annual (except during the pandemic) workshops on how to build your own 14-foot plywood solo canoe. The most recent was held in October at Paddle Stop in New Haven, on the Missouri River. Sponsored by Scenic Rivers Stream Team Association and Missouri Stream Team 713, the workshop amazed and intrigued the 10 lucky participants. This was Ted’s sixteenth workshop, plus he has helped eight individuals to build their own boats.

“My greatest pleasure,” says Ted, “is introducing others to a craft that they can use to get on the river—building a boat.”

During the two-day workshop, each student receives printed directions on how to build a boat and hands-on experience actually doing it. They work on two boats, alternating between the boats to allow time for the materials to dry. Ted and early arrivals get one boat started on Friday so that it is dry and ready to work on when the entire class arrives Saturday.

“This workshop was such a treat,” says Sarah Wright, of St. Louis. “It was so cool to walk in the first morning to a pile of plywood and watch it turn into a vessel. The group fit together right away; between Ted's personality and the relaxed atmosphere of Paddle Stop, we all felt comfortable jumping in.”

No special woodworking skills are needed to participate in the workshop, just a willingness to pitch in and help. Ted’s hope is that people will get the basics they need to go home and build their own. The finished canoes are lightweight, less than 40 pounds, making them easy to carry and load.

“There were techniques and tools that were new to me,” says Sarah, “but between Ted and other participants, there was always help nearby. I'd really like to try my hand at this again. This weekend knocked down the wall and made this approachable.”

At the end of the weekend workshop, a drawing is held for one of the boats, and Ted takes the other one home to finish it up and it is then raffled off as a Stream Team fundraiser. This year, Dave Tobey, of Eminence, was the happy winner.