Service Learning: Canoe Carving - Francis

Service Learning: Canoe Carving - Francis

I did my service learning project on March 16, 2017. It was a sunny and slightly warm winter day. It was just about the perfect condition for an outdoor activity. I arrived at the Edmonds Community College Cultural Kitchen at 2:45 pm and was going to stay for about an hour but it was not until 5:20 pm that I finally convinced myself to leave. The chilly winds in the evening was also a factor. John Zinser is the one in charge of the Canoe Carving Project at the facility. He carves mostly native American style canoes. He loves to teach student volunteers. His warm and respectful demeanor creates a good atmosphere for learning. We had a good conversation which extended beyond canoes.

Figure 1: A picture of the setting. Canoe lying upside down.

 

Before we started, John presented me with a safety agreement form which I signed without hesitation. The truth is, carving tools are very sharp and pose many dangers; one needs to be careful when using them. As a beginner, he decided to first show me how to smoothen the rough surfaces. We had to work along the wood grain to avoid damage to the wood. It also made it easy to carve. He did a demonstration with a chisel-looking device called the Slick. During this period, he told me though different types of wood could be used in carving a canoe, what we were working on was cedar. I took over after that and shortly perfected the skill. Cedar was somehow soft and easy to work with. He then showed me how to remove big chunks of wood with another device called Adze. The slightly concave tip of the Adze blade really served its purpose. In a short while, I was on my own and helping build the next canoe.

Figure 2: Picture of me working on the canoe.

 

Figure 3: A carver using a slick to smoothen a surface. Picture from google.

 

Figure 4: A carver holding an adze. Picture from google.

One thing that surprised me was when he pulled a spirit level and tried to show me how to balance the sides of the canoe. Who knew carving a canoe required measurements, precision and this amount of detail? I had always thought a canoe needed to be hollow and whatever happened on the outside did not matter much. The carefully measured markings on the base of the canoe reminded me that mathematics and science are important in almost everything we do. By ensuring that the sides are equal, a canoe can balance properly in water.

Figure 5: A spirit level. Picture from google.

 

Canoes have been around for a long time. Throughout generations, they have been used to move from one place to the other. According to the evolution of locomotion or mobility in animal development, organisms have benefitted by been able to move from one place to the other to find prey or food, to escape predators, to attract mates, to survey their habitat and even to find new breeding places. Canoes have likewise provided humans numerous services. From the ancient days till date, people have used canoes for fishing, hunting, trading, for defense as in wars and to find and colonize new habitats. Crossing waterbodies would be a problem if not for the invention of the canoe and its further evolution.

This service learning project was an adventure and an unforgettable one. Nevertheless, a few questions were raised. Some, John had confident answers but others he was doubtful and even resorted to the many stories that had been told. For instance, he could not specifically tell me the origin of the canoe. However, he adequately answered the questions; why he used the spirit level, the different types of wood used in making a canoe, how he cut the inside of the canoe and why he chose to just be a canoe carver when he could practice other fields of the trade? Though it takes him months to produce a complete canoe, John is devoted to canoe carving and would help anyone learn it. Interested people can reach him at zinsercanoe@gmail.com.