Hello Everyone,
I think some of you enjoyed some of the stuff I wrote about Vegas when
I had Katia Sofia and some of the stuff I wrote about traveling and
sailing otherwise. So, if it's not trespassing on the Vega site I'd
like to invite you to read some more recent stuff. . .think of it as a
dinghy posting.
I'm back in Viet Nam still working on my (still forthcoming) book on
Vietnamese wooden boats. I've just stumbled on a small fleet (perhaps
200 boats) that work off the beaches in Central Viet Nam under sail and
oar. They are mixed in with the much more common diesel powered surf
boats and not very conspicuous on the beach, their rigs stow very
tidily. They use either a gunter lug or a standing lug (both are
traditional sails here). They work off the beach and back on again
under oars, then step the rig when safely outside the break. . .and take
it down again outside. . .so you can't get good photos of the boats
sailing from the beach. I got one fisherman to set up and take down the
rig on the beach though and the photos came out pretty well. The boats
do not use a centerboard or daggerboard, just a large rudder that rakes
forward somewhat. The wind here seems to blow mainly along shore
though, so they only need to sail well on a reach, and that they do.
What will eventually be a chapter in the book is now posted on the
website at www.BoatsAndRice.com Wooden Work Boats of Indochina: Vietnam, Cambodia & Laos . There is
very little working sail left in Viet Nam and none that I know of on the
coast of Cambodia, so this is a real treat to find. You are cordially
invited to have a look.
Ken Preston--Seattle and (at the moment) Hue, Viet Nam
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
I think some of you enjoyed some of the stuff I wrote about Vegas when
I had Katia Sofia and some of the stuff I wrote about traveling and
sailing otherwise. So, if it's not trespassing on the Vega site I'd
like to invite you to read some more recent stuff. . .think of it as a
dinghy posting.
I'm back in Viet Nam still working on my (still forthcoming) book on
Vietnamese wooden boats. I've just stumbled on a small fleet (perhaps
200 boats) that work off the beaches in Central Viet Nam under sail and
oar. They are mixed in with the much more common diesel powered surf
boats and not very conspicuous on the beach, their rigs stow very
tidily. They use either a gunter lug or a standing lug (both are
traditional sails here). They work off the beach and back on again
under oars, then step the rig when safely outside the break. . .and take
it down again outside. . .so you can't get good photos of the boats
sailing from the beach. I got one fisherman to set up and take down the
rig on the beach though and the photos came out pretty well. The boats
do not use a centerboard or daggerboard, just a large rudder that rakes
forward somewhat. The wind here seems to blow mainly along shore
though, so they only need to sail well on a reach, and that they do.
What will eventually be a chapter in the book is now posted on the
website at www.BoatsAndRice.com Wooden Work Boats of Indochina: Vietnam, Cambodia & Laos . There is
very little working sail left in Viet Nam and none that I know of on the
coast of Cambodia, so this is a real treat to find. You are cordially
invited to have a look.
Ken Preston--Seattle and (at the moment) Hue, Viet Nam
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]