The Sigmundstad family of Fort Peck, Montana has spent the past year restoring a wooden sailing dinghy and are planning a maiden sail on Summer Sailstice.
They were looking for a shallow draft boat they could sail in the calmer waters below the Fort Peck dam where there are quite a few obstructions and sunken islands that would be hazardous in a keel equipped vessel. Dad Jason found the little boat near Lake Audubon in North Dakota and the verbal history has her originally built or bought for a Boy Scout troop near Milwaukee, Wisconsin in the 1940’s. She then was owned by a Madison, WI weatherman, passing to another owner before making her way west.
They’ve been unable to determine her make or exact age, even after researching the bronze Wilcox & Crittenden hardware, but jumped in to restore her to sailing glory. The biggest challenges were replacing the complete centerboard and trunk that were in poor condition. They built a new set slightly deeper than the original so that it would extend through the keelson instead of resting on top and also spent time refurbishing the oak ribs.
Woodworking and epoxy took more time and energy, followed by lots of sanding, priming and a new coat of seafoam green paint on her bottom between August and October. Over the winter months, they moved in to the garage and ran new standing/running rigging, replacing most of the mismatched screws and hardware on the mast.
Jason’s daughter named her Hwin, after the talking horse in C.S. Lewis' novel "A horse and his boy" from the Narnia series.
We’re looking forward to an update with pictures of Hwin on the water after Summer Sailstice.
