Ashes Solo Day | WoodenBoat Magazine

The Solo Day is simple. She’s light, easily carried, and not for the fussy. Best results will be obtained if the builder can curtail the urge to use fancy marquetry, or exotic woods. Built as designed she will weigh as little as 30 pounds, will stand up to years of use in her intended environs, and will take her master on many an easily imagined adventure.

There are 13 stations in all; number 7 sits dead middle in the building jig, and each one thereafter is spaced at 12 inches on centre from the previous. The bow and stern stations are trimmed for stemless construction, an easy and elegant construction method that contributes to her minimalist lines.

Start with 3/16 inch thick cedar or basswood strips. 7/8 of an inch is as good a width as any and 16 foot clear stock will make the job a whole lot easier. Her gunnels are of laminated strips (two outer and three inner) shaped to please the builder’s eye.

She’s sheathed in 4 oz glass inside and out with reinforcement in her middle third (laid on the bias). Likewise, her ends are reinforced both inside and out with an extra layer of 4 oz glass, 6 inches wide and also laid on the bias. No decks are required. There’s a single thwart immediately behind the seat which can be hung from the rails or attached to cleats on the hull. The seat itself is a paddlers choice; she’d look very fine with one made of woven cane.

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