Picture this- you’re in the throes of winter going about your day, living your life, not necessarily spending too much time thinking about boats in general, until you come across The Guideboat. And now, more than anything, all you can think about is how much you need to have this boat. Its handcrafted curves surrounding you, keeping you afloat in the waters of life. Your body, securely held by the woven caned seat, is provided a practical comfort with a time-honored furniture making technique, all while framed in a luxurious and solid cherry wood.  

Constructed just like the originals in the Adirondacks of update New York, the makers of this boat hail from California and have maintained the exact reproduction of their founder’s extremely rare 1892 J. H. Rushton Saranac Lake Guideboat. Read about the history here. While guideboats share an aesthetic with canoes, they are not. They are rowed and not paddled, and remain among the fastest fixed seat rowboats ever built. The Guideboat is hand-laid biaxial composite, making it light and fast, and is finished in a deep midnight blue, hand waxed to perfection. And if you would like to fall in love even a bit more, as if it’s possible, check out the limited edition Caleb Chase Late-1800’s-Design Guideboat. Its beauty renders me speechless.  

So let’s imagine ourselves gliding across a still, morning lake in this most perfect vessel. The call of the loon in our ears, the mist of the early morning leaving a light dew on the picnic basket we’ve packed, complete with a vintage, tartan-patterned thermos of coffee. And next to us, a warm woolen blanket and extra sweaters fitted into our broken-in and favorite working tote. 

As old man winter rattles my windows reminding me of this beautiful but cold season, I am warmed and comforted by the promise of the thaw, and the dream of taking it all in while gently gliding away in my remarkably handsome guideboat. Who would like to come along?