The Waters and the Wild
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In 2019 I built a canoe and paddled it the length of Ireland along a network of rivers and canals.
Setting out from the shores of Lough Erne in Northern Ireland I navigated a 400 km journey along inland waterways - Shannon/Erne Waterway, River Shannon, the Grand Canal and River Barrow. I travelled alone for much of the voyage, wild camping on deserted islands, canal towpaths and river banks. The Waters and the Wild, an illustrated account of the voyage, was published by Merrion Press in April 2023. 
Minnow
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Canoe Construction
The Sassafras 12 is a double-paddle canoe designed by Chris Kulczycki, founder of Chesapeake Light Craft, Inc. The plans called for a lapstrake 'stitch and glue' method of construction. I used four sheets of okoume plywood for the main body, oak for the thwart and larch for the gunnels. The interior and keel is covered in a thin skin of fiberglass. Length overall is twelve-foot (3.6m). With two watertight bulkheads there is just enough leg room and space to carry four days camping supplies.
The Sassafras 12 is a double-paddle canoe designed by Chris Kulczycki, founder of Chesapeake Light Craft, Inc. The plans called for a lapstrake 'stitch and glue' method of construction. I used four sheets of okoume plywood for the main body, oak for the thwart and larch for the gunnels. The interior and keel is covered in a thin skin of fiberglass. Length overall is twelve-foot (3.6m). With two watertight bulkheads there is just enough leg room and space to carry four days camping supplies.
The journey - from Lower Lough Erne in Co. Fermanagh to the River Barrow in Co. Carlow