210 
FOREST AND STREAM 
May, 1921 
A TAKE-DOWN CANOE RUNWAY 
A VERY handy adjunct to the camp 
of a canoeist is a runway that 
can be taken apart and trans- 
ported easily. It can be made very sim- 
ply and inexpensively. 
The total length may vary according 
to the hbight of the river or lake bank. 
Extra sections can be made and hooked 
up on the land end of the runway, mak- 
ing it possible to leave the canoe or ca- 
noes on the track over night. 
The main idea being to make it possi- 
ble to easily pull a canoe up on the bank 
and unload it. 
It is especially valuable if the canoe 
loads are heavy and the landing place 
is rough and high. 
The wooden Sides are made of best 
long grain yellow pine containing as few 
knots as possible. 
The sides, or main frame pieces, 
should be selected from long grained 
wood and should be solid. They are 
held in position by iron rods which have 
a separator sleeve, and half-spool roll- 
ers, which are held in position by thrust 
washers and cotter pins. 
E are depending upon the 
friends and admirers of our 
old correspondent Nessmuk to make 
this department worthy of his 
name. No man knew the woods 
better than Nessmuk or wrote of 
them with quainter charm. Many 
of his practical ideas on camping 
and “ going light ” have been 
adopted by the United States 
Army; his canoe has been preserved 
in the Smithsonian Institution; and 
we hope that all good woodsmen 
will contribute to this department 
their Hints and Kinks and trail- 
tested contrivances . — [Editors.] 
The stakes are driven down so the 
lower end of the frame will be under 
water to proper depth. The lower rod 
should have a roller all the way across 
so canoe keel will start up readily and 
be steered against it easily by the 
painter. 
The rods can be procured from any 
The two main points, as at B, show 
the section of frame held in place at the 
proper angle by driving in oak stakes, 
size about 2" x 3" x 4'-0 to 6'-0". 
Make two side plates of light plate 
brass. The square loops over them 
make a strong support for the stakes. 
The stakes each have a %" hole bored 
through center 4%" from the top, 
through which a pin is slipped after 
frame is set over the stakes. 
blacksmith. They are %" diameter by 
overall width of run. Headed on one 
end with washer, the other end is 
threaded and drilled for pin holes. The 
spools can be obtained from some spin- 
ning mill which uses these large spools 
for cotton spinning. 
Cut them in half and smooth large 
ends with sand paper. The separators 
shown allow enough clearance for spools 
so they will revolve smoothly on the 
rods. They are held in place by a thrust 
washer and cotter pin. The outside lock 
nut and washer are also protected by 
cotter pins. 
The sections are bolted together with 
%" bolts. This arrangement makes the 
runway frame easy to take down and 
can be carried in the bottom of the ca- 
noe. The wood should be filled and var- 
nished with best spar varnish. The 
iron work should be given two coats best 
iron paint. 
All screws and short bolts to be %" 
galvanized. 
Any number of sections may be at- 
tached and run along the camping 
grounds. 
P. P. Avery, New Jersey. 
SALVAGING THE OLD CANOE 
T HERE are undoubtedly a few hun- 
dred canoes in the land in a dilap- 
idated condition after many years 
of hard use, and considerable abuse, that 
can be restored at a small fraction of 
the present cost of a new one. 
As the work is not difficult, anyone 
of ordinary ability can turn out a first 
class job. If one can get a pair of high 
horses, such as draughtsmen use, by 
turning the canoe upside down on them 
it will be at the right height to work on. 
First remove bang iron from each end, 
marking bow iron with a piece of cord, 
then unscrew the keel from inside. With 
a wide screw driver, or cold chisel, take 
off all finishing strips from the gun- 
wales and mark bow ends of each one 
and keel, with cord. Thus marked, each 
part can readily be put back in its orig- 
inal position. 
B EFORE removing the canvas, note 
carefully how and where it is 
tacked, so the new work will re- 
semble the old, giving particular atten- 
tion to the lap on each end. All tacks, 
nails and screws should be thrown away, 
and a new lot of exactly the same size, 
shape and material purchased. Under 
no circumstances use any fastenings not 
of brass or copper. The new canvas 
must be six inches wider and a foot 
longer than the old to allow for laps and 
a hold for stretching. As the quality 
carried by most retail stores is not suf- 
ficiently high for this work, nor wide 
enough either, it is necessary to pur- 
chase from a first class wholesale house. 
Specify the best grade of ten ounce 
goods in one width, mentioning the use 
to which it is to be put, as some houses 
carry special grades for canoe covering. 
