[bolger] Re: Lake Victora Dhow
The fishing dhows where we were (Dunga Beach near Kisumu, Kenya) came
in two varieties.
One type is a cross-planked, very sharpie/dory like boat. The
construction is straight up plank on frame, with cotton felt and
roofing jack for caulking. The largest of these are powered
exclusively by oars, carry a crew of four and siene fish at night for
small baitfish locally referred to as herring. These are processed by
sun drying.
The second type (seen in the picture) is called a "streamline". At
its heart, it's a five panel stitch and glue boat, and has some very
interesting joinery indeed. The panels are planks about an inch
thick. The joints you see along the top plank are scarfs for both
length and shape. Between the planks there's cotton felt and roofing
jack, covered with bicycle innertube with a strip of sheet metal
tacked over the top. (You can just barely make out the nail line in
the photo.)
Streamlines and the smaller cross-planked boats head out in the
morning while the wind is offshore (from the East) with a crew of two
or three. The two most important species are Nile Perch and Tilapia.
We saw both types gill netting and longlining, but the flat-bottomed
boats are better suited to gill netting because of their greater
initial stability. By the late morning or early afternoon the wind
switches to onshore, and the boats return. By the mid afternoon the
winds is 10-15k, and the boats that come in late are really moving
along!
Both types use a big paddle braced with a rope as a rudder. Tacking
is accomplished by pulling the sail around the front of the forward
raking mast. That is a bottle on the backstay; it's there to scare
away birds. Neither type has any sort of keel/center board, but the
one we rode in did go to weather a little. The go like hell on a beam
reach. Maybe the long, skinny hull provides the lateral resistance.
A few disheartening facts:
The Nile Perch was introduced to Lake Victoria about 40 years ago to
improve the fishery. Although there is an export market for Nile
Perch (not from the Nile and not a Perch), its introduction has
radically altered the ecology of the lake. Nile Perch grow to 400+
pounds and eat everything. I have read that as much as half the
native species have been eaten into extinction by the Nile Perch,
especially those species that fed on algae, changing the vary nature
of the water column. Among these algae eating species, and of
particular impact to the fishermen of Lake Victoria is the herring.
Herring had provided the backbone of the indigenous fishery. Herring
can be processed/preserved simply by drying in the sun. After that
they can go to markets all over the rest of Kenya by truck. If market
conditions are unfavorable, the dried fish can be stored until
conditions improve.
With the decline in the herring fishery, larger fish must be
targeted. These are either be sold locally fresh (but the market is
limited) or dried over fire (collecting firewood for drying has
contributed to deforestation around the lake). While there is an
export market for Nile Perch, the companies that own the filleting,
freezing and shipping facilities have more influence over the market
than the individual perch fishermen. For them choice is simple: sell
at the price the processor will pay, or lose their catch to spoilage.
Of course they could always stay ashore and try to drive the price
up. But organization is weak among the fishermen.
In December of 2002 Kenyan's voted the Daniel Moi out of power. In 25
years of single party rule, Moi managed to transform Kenya from East
Africa's leading nation to both one of the world's poorest and
highest disparity of wealth. Will the new government do any better,
or make a difference to the fisherman and community of Dunga Beach? I
wouldn't hazard a guess.
YIBB,
David
C.E.P.
415 W.46th Street
New York, New York 10036
http://www.crumblingempire.com
Mobile (646) 325-8325
Office (212) 247-0296
in two varieties.
One type is a cross-planked, very sharpie/dory like boat. The
construction is straight up plank on frame, with cotton felt and
roofing jack for caulking. The largest of these are powered
exclusively by oars, carry a crew of four and siene fish at night for
small baitfish locally referred to as herring. These are processed by
sun drying.
The second type (seen in the picture) is called a "streamline". At
its heart, it's a five panel stitch and glue boat, and has some very
interesting joinery indeed. The panels are planks about an inch
thick. The joints you see along the top plank are scarfs for both
length and shape. Between the planks there's cotton felt and roofing
jack, covered with bicycle innertube with a strip of sheet metal
tacked over the top. (You can just barely make out the nail line in
the photo.)
Streamlines and the smaller cross-planked boats head out in the
morning while the wind is offshore (from the East) with a crew of two
or three. The two most important species are Nile Perch and Tilapia.
We saw both types gill netting and longlining, but the flat-bottomed
boats are better suited to gill netting because of their greater
initial stability. By the late morning or early afternoon the wind
switches to onshore, and the boats return. By the mid afternoon the
winds is 10-15k, and the boats that come in late are really moving
along!
Both types use a big paddle braced with a rope as a rudder. Tacking
is accomplished by pulling the sail around the front of the forward
raking mast. That is a bottle on the backstay; it's there to scare
away birds. Neither type has any sort of keel/center board, but the
one we rode in did go to weather a little. The go like hell on a beam
reach. Maybe the long, skinny hull provides the lateral resistance.
A few disheartening facts:
The Nile Perch was introduced to Lake Victoria about 40 years ago to
improve the fishery. Although there is an export market for Nile
Perch (not from the Nile and not a Perch), its introduction has
radically altered the ecology of the lake. Nile Perch grow to 400+
pounds and eat everything. I have read that as much as half the
native species have been eaten into extinction by the Nile Perch,
especially those species that fed on algae, changing the vary nature
of the water column. Among these algae eating species, and of
particular impact to the fishermen of Lake Victoria is the herring.
Herring had provided the backbone of the indigenous fishery. Herring
can be processed/preserved simply by drying in the sun. After that
they can go to markets all over the rest of Kenya by truck. If market
conditions are unfavorable, the dried fish can be stored until
conditions improve.
With the decline in the herring fishery, larger fish must be
targeted. These are either be sold locally fresh (but the market is
limited) or dried over fire (collecting firewood for drying has
contributed to deforestation around the lake). While there is an
export market for Nile Perch, the companies that own the filleting,
freezing and shipping facilities have more influence over the market
than the individual perch fishermen. For them choice is simple: sell
at the price the processor will pay, or lose their catch to spoilage.
Of course they could always stay ashore and try to drive the price
up. But organization is weak among the fishermen.
In December of 2002 Kenyan's voted the Daniel Moi out of power. In 25
years of single party rule, Moi managed to transform Kenya from East
Africa's leading nation to both one of the world's poorest and
highest disparity of wealth. Will the new government do any better,
or make a difference to the fisherman and community of Dunga Beach? I
wouldn't hazard a guess.
YIBB,
David
>--
>Very COOL! Thats some interesting looking joinery. Sounds like a
>great trip - can you tell us more? Did you get some more detailed
>pictures of the small craft? How are they built? Whats with the
>water bottle on the backstay? Or is that a backstay?
>
>Frank
>
>--- Inbolger@yahoogroups.com, David Ryan <david@c...> wrote:
>> FBBB,
>>
>> If you'd like to see a picture of me and Bob Wise floating on Lake
>> Victoria in a dhow, point your browser to:
>>
>>http://www.crumblingempire.com/dhow.jpg
>> --
>>
>> C.E.P.
>> 415 W.46th Street
>> New York, New York 10036
>>http://www.crumblingempire.com
>> Mobile (646) 325-8325
>> Office (212) 247-0296
>
>
>
>Bolger rules!!!
>- no cursing, flaming, trolling, spamming, or flogging dead horses
>- stay on topic, stay on thread, punctuate, no 'Ed, thanks, Fred' posts
>- add your comments at the TOP and SIGN your posts and <snip> away
>- To order plans: Mr. Philip C. Bolger, P.O. Box 1209, Gloucester,
>MA, 01930, Fax: (978) 282-1349
>- Unsubscribe:bolger-unsubscribe@yahoogroups.com
>- Open discussion:bolger_coffee_lounge-subscribe@yahoogroups.com
>
>Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject tohttp://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
C.E.P.
415 W.46th Street
New York, New York 10036
http://www.crumblingempire.com
Mobile (646) 325-8325
Office (212) 247-0296
David
Very COOL! Thats some interesting looking joinery. Sounds like a
great trip - can you tell us more? Did you get some more detailed
pictures of the small craft? How are they built? Whats with the
water bottle on the backstay? Or is that a backstay?
Frank
Very COOL! Thats some interesting looking joinery. Sounds like a
great trip - can you tell us more? Did you get some more detailed
pictures of the small craft? How are they built? Whats with the
water bottle on the backstay? Or is that a backstay?
Frank
--- Inbolger@yahoogroups.com, David Ryan <david@c...> wrote:
> FBBB,
>
> If you'd like to see a picture of me and Bob Wise floating on Lake
> Victoria in a dhow, point your browser to:
>
>http://www.crumblingempire.com/dhow.jpg
> --
>
> C.E.P.
> 415 W.46th Street
> New York, New York 10036
>http://www.crumblingempire.com
> Mobile (646) 325-8325
> Office (212) 247-0296
FBBB,
If you'd like to see a picture of me and Bob Wise floating on Lake
Victoria in a dhow, point your browser to:
http://www.crumblingempire.com/dhow.jpg
--
C.E.P.
415 W.46th Street
New York, New York 10036
http://www.crumblingempire.com
Mobile (646) 325-8325
Office (212) 247-0296
If you'd like to see a picture of me and Bob Wise floating on Lake
Victoria in a dhow, point your browser to:
http://www.crumblingempire.com/dhow.jpg
--
C.E.P.
415 W.46th Street
New York, New York 10036
http://www.crumblingempire.com
Mobile (646) 325-8325
Office (212) 247-0296