Stewiacke cousins prepare to launch hand-built schooner

Two cousins in Stewiacke have built a 24-metre wooden schooner, just like their great-great-grandfather once did.

Evan Densmore was 22 when he started designing the schooner with his cousin Nick Densmore, then 20.

They set up shop in their backyard, a smaller operation than Cameron Shipyard, the business their great-great-grandfather started in South Maitland, southwest of Truro.

They've been working on the boat for five years and full-time for the last three, said Evan Densmore, now 27.

"When I started this, it was so far away that I couldn't even really dream of it," Densmore said. "It's pretty cool."

Neighbour Chester Gourley knew Densmore's grandfather, Dan Densmore, who passed away recently in his late 80s. While the family's been out of the shipbuilding industry for a century, the proud grandfather helped his grandsons with the design plans.

"The Densmore family's always been known as a very resourceful and bold and eccentric family," Gourley said. "The grandfather would build waterwheels in the garage."

The schooner rests on the banks of the Stewiacke River. Nearby a homemade sign is stuck in the mud: "Stewiacke ships start here," it reads. It's a "political ploy" on the advertising line Nova Scotia used when pitching for a $25-billion contract awarded in 2011, Gourley said.

Eventually the cousins want to sail tourists around the East Coast with the schooner.

"Two young men from Nova Scotia can do something like this," Gourley said. "It's exactly what Nova Scotia needs."

'Everything's going good'

Although in a province known for shipbuilding, and a region with deep history in the trade, it's no easy feat to build.

The schooner is designed based on a 100-year-old fishing schooner used around Georges Bank off Nova Scotia. It's made from a wood-epoxy composite with hand-selected Eastern Spruce and local Red Oak.

With masts, it'll weigh 65 tonnes.

"I built a lot of smaller boats when I was younger and it just kind of evolved into an obsession," Densmore said. "I've always been sort of one for adventure so this line of work fit right in."

"Everything's going good," Densmore said, as he prepared the boat for launching Tuesday.

Launch must match tides

The next big step is to launch it. The schooner was towed down the highway to rest on the banks of the Stewiacke River. Take Exit 11 on Highway 102 and head towards the Stewiacke River to catch a glimpse.

From there, it'll sail to the Shubenacadie Estuary, then Cobequid Bay and the Bay of Fundy.

"We're all pretty excited, but at this point, I really got to focus on tidying up a few finishing touches to make the boat seaworthy for the voyage and mapping out the river," Densmore said. "I've got a lot of things on my mind at the moment."

Both rivers have high tides, so the vessel will launch Tuesday at 2 p.m. when the tide is highest during the new moon tide. That'll be enough water to get the boat into the river and over shoals and sandbars. Otherwise, it could get stuck in the mud.

"I hope the banks are just packed with kids and friends and families and everyone comes out," Densmore said.

'Be bold. Think big'

The boat will end its maiden voyage in Parrsboro, to be tied up at a wharf where they'll add the masts. Over the winter they'll sail it to warmer waters to put the finishing touches on the vessel.

Always the encouraging neighbour, Gourley says he hopes other youth will be inspired.

"Be bold. Think big, and everybody will follow you," he said.