Lower Mainland Scull float hunters ?

[northernsculler]

Howdy, I am temporarily residing in Vancouver for the fall and was wondering if there are any scull float hunters down here in the lower mainland? I have been hunting a float for a while now up north and have yet to meet another sculler or laid eyes on another float in B.C or Alberta but with all the perfect scull water down here I thought maybe there might be someone else who likes doing things the hard way. I was told by Bankes Boats that they delivered a scull out here years ago and a Mr Macdonald out in Delta was the first person I ever met who recgonized what a float was so I suspect there might be a quiet pocket of scullers somewhere?

Basically I'd be interested in comparing boats, oars, gear and swapping lies. I am building a second float this winter for my son and would love to learn something about the B.C heritage/design/construction of scull floats (if it exists?) I hunt an aliviso and would be happy to let someone try it in exchange for a chance to try a different hull. I have a stack of oars. (I'd be willing to give any non scullers who are curious a chance to try my float. I can be throw it in the water at Jericho on a calm non weekend evening for you)

also if anyone knows of any old floats rotting in the weeds I'd be keen to take some measurements off them.

Like any sculler I am all for under the radar silence so by all means PM or email.

[sparkes3]

i have not sculled a boat since i was a kid and dads old 4 hp atlantic shit the bed on us

[northernsculler]

Cause ya said Atlantic and not Easthope I am guessing you hail originally from the rock? were ya hunting eiders that day?

[sparkes3]

yeah im from the rock and that day we were on the way home from the cabin

[rides bike to work]

Ill bite what's a skull,skuller?

[Crazy_Farmer]

Based on most waterfowlers in BC I'd say when first asked about sculling they'd had no clue. It's never been that popular. Something I'll do for brant one of these years.

I have a few friends in Washington and Oregon with sculls and they plan on bringing them up to hunt sometime. A few one mans and a couple two man scull boats.

i have the blueprints and plans for a merrymeeting two man scull boat but never got around to building it.

a scull boat in BC waters would be truely deadly. Almost like cheating here. You'd be bumping sleeping ducks off your bow!

[northernsculler]

Farmer, Yeah brant are high on my to do list as well. If by cheating you mean laying in cold water on your back with your wrist and shoulder and neck cramped to heck for an hour only to have the birds peel off at the 60 yard mark then yep it is just like cheating LOL. It is a pile of work but super addictive. I mean addictive.

A Merrymeeting would be good for anyone wanting to hunt the Fraser R, Boundary Area etc. Enough boat to handle a motor that can keep up with tide and current and enough boat to survive a barge wake and chop. I contemplated one but needed something that could travel on a vehicle roof and be launched with out a ramp. If I lived down here all the time I'd build one in a hurry.

[Crazy_Farmer]

Figure of speech. A buddy while we were in Arkansas said that to me about his son hunting canvasbacks out of a scull. They were bumping sleeping cans they got so close.

Boundary bay would be ideal for a scull. I'm sure you'd even get a euro if picky enough and watched them before sculling into them. That's what all the guys I know do down on the coast. Trophy selection for taxidermy.

Ive floated down the Fraser in my Momarsh fatboy. Not a true scull but low enough profile and design. Have a 7hp mud motor on it for other spots.

Let's see a picture! I can count on one hand the number of scullers in BC!

[northernsculler]

Yes sculling is the ideal way to get specimens. More important though it is the way to get the plumpest birds for eating. For fun I carried the sheep scope out a couple times to look for bands. Totally frigged someone's data as the double below were banded on the same day. LOL. One had his head under his wing and his buddy was paying to much attention to the eagles. Did'nt bump em just close enough for the pattern to touch both. I do not have alot for pics but here are couple.

Local water:
http://i1295.photobucket.com/albums/b636/northernsculler/IMG_0005_zps22fc6cb6.jpg (http://s1295.photobucket.com/user/northernsculler/media/IMG_0005_zps22fc6cb6.jpg.html)

All trimmed up:
http://i1295.photobucket.com/albums/b636/northernsculler/trimset_zps324c3732.jpg (http://s1295.photobucket.com/user/northernsculler/media/trimset_zps324c3732.jpg.html)

Early season bird:
http://i1295.photobucket.com/albums/b636/northernsculler/bandedmallard_zps4089dac4.jpg (http://s1295.photobucket.com/user/northernsculler/media/bandedmallard_zps4089dac4.jpg.html)

7 nice drakes and someone else's half rotten cripple.
http://i1295.photobucket.com/albums/b636/northernsculler/spotandstalklimit_zps69ddc36f.jpg (http://s1295.photobucket.com/user/northernsculler/media/spotandstalklimit_zps69ddc36f.jpg.html)

Spot and stalk birds:

http://i1295.photobucket.com/albums/b636/northernsculler/doublebandday_zps42355eef.jpg (http://s1295.photobucket.com/user/northernsculler/media/doublebandday_zps42355eef.jpg.html)

[Foxton Gundogs]

Ill bite what's a skull,skuller?
AKA layout punt :-D

[Crazy_Farmer]

Great pics and nice boat! how much weight has it taken to trim in down?

[MB_Boy]

Pretty cool!

What makes them so deadly??? Looking at the pic with the lined up mallard drakes, does the grey not spook the birds? I see you have some burlap but do you cover it all up?

If you ever put it in at Jericho or even Vanier please let me know, would like to check it out if I am around.

[lorneparker1]

Farmer, Yeah brant are high on my to do list as well. If by cheating you mean laying in cold water on your back with your wrist and shoulder and neck cramped to heck for an hour only to have the birds peel off at the 60 yard mark then yep it is just like cheating LOL. It is a pile of work but super addictive. I mean addictive.

A Merrymeeting would be good for anyone wanting to hunt the Fraser R, Boundary Area etc. Enough boat to handle a motor that can keep up with tide and current and enough boat to survive a barge wake and chop. I contemplated one but needed something that could travel on a vehicle roof and be launched with out a ramp. If I lived down here all the time I'd build one in a hurry.

We used to scull back in Ontario for cans, redheads and bluebills. Lots of times the birds would jump before getting into range. However, I think adam was referring to it be cheating out here is that for the most part, birds on open water out here are very very dumb and receive almost no pressure.

[lorneparker1]

Pretty cool!

What makes them so deadly??? Looking at the pic with the lined up mallard drakes, does the grey not spook the birds? I see you have some burlap but do you cover it all up?

If you ever put it in at Jericho or even Vanier please let me know, would like to check it out if I am around.

On open water grey disappears. that's why most sculls, and most open water layouts are painted "battleship grey"

P.s NS sweet rig sir!

[northernsculler]

Battle ship grey is actually a pigment developed by Artists for the pre radar naval days. It is a mixture of pigments that looks grey to your eye but actually reflects the wavelengths of light which hit it. My scull is acutally just painted regular porch paint grey but it works OK. My Dory is a real battleship grey. At 100 yrds you simply wont see it. If your interested in how camo works study the WWI landscape artists that the USN and the RN hired to hide boats. We have regressed big time in the past 100 years.
Here is a pic that shows how grey works but you'll notice the lower part of the boat is showing a non desirable shadow. If it was painted with Battleship grey you would not see that so prominently. Wetting the boat also helps to reflect the right light.

http://i1295.photobucket.com/albums/b636/northernsculler/IMG_0014_zpscb69ffe2.jpg (http://s1295.photobucket.com/user/northernsculler/media/IMG_0014_zpscb69ffe2.jpg.html)

With this style of hunting is not about camo it is about not showing ANY movement.

[northernsculler]

MB boy,

I am just a minute from the Jericho boat club so anytime you want we can throw it in. PM for a telephone #.

[northernsculler]

Crazy Farmer,

Ah the questions that count!
Ballast? More is better. I currently run two bags of shot in the nose, 500-245 grain slugs in a box behind that and then I use a 5 gallon water jug of water. The set up is always changing. MORE is always better. more wieght Increases your drift for that last 20 yards where any wiggle spoils an hours work. When she is ballasted properly for sneaking and if you row it with oars each stroke drives the nose into the water and covers the deck 3 feet back.

[Ian F.]

Yours has the lines of a Joppa flats boat, I built a fibreglass great bay scull from the mystic lines when I lived back east. It stayed behind and carpal tunnel syndrome and sculling don't get along. Morro bay has quite a heritage and up a little into Oregon, with bill pinches I believe the center....

been em years since I talked sculls

[northernsculler]

Ian, your right about repetitive stress injuries. What I do is mix it up constantly. I Scull alternating left and right hands and alternating arm over, arm beside arm under the oar. Alternate facing forward, laying on your back laying your side. My nemesis is an old rotor cuff injury so I hear what you are saying.

You would'nt still have the offsets/lines for the Great bay boat? Where back east did you scull? Bay of Fundy? Were there many sculls there? Some year I am gonna take a scull back to the Kennebecasis marshes.

Yeah the Joppa and Aliviso from Aeoulus are pretty similiar looking. I hear an awful lot good about the Joppa boat. You have a good eye cause I tightened up the forward section of my boat to be skinny like the Joppa's.

[Ian F.]

Here's a few pics, built this before our first digital camera...
http://i1216.photobucket.com/albums/dd372/irfeir/sculling_zps597e994e.jpg (http://s1216.photobucket.com/user/irfeir/media/sculling_zps597e994e.jpg.html)

http://i1216.photobucket.com/albums/dd372/irfeir/MVC-003S_4_zps0d19ac90.jpg (http://s1216.photobucket.com/user/irfeir/media/MVC-003S_4_zps0d19ac90.jpg.html)

http://i1216.photobucket.com/albums/dd372/irfeir/MVC-005S_zps6f2235ce.jpg (http://s1216.photobucket.com/user/irfeir/media/MVC-005S_zps6f2235ce.jpg.html)

http://i1216.photobucket.com/albums/dd372/irfeir/MVC-006S_zps02674d84.jpg (http://s1216.photobucket.com/user/irfeir/media/MVC-006S_zps02674d84.jpg.html)

[Ian F.]

I should still have the lines, also have the lines for a Merrymeeting, as close to the penultimate duck boat as one can get.

I lived in Miramichi when I built and hunted the Great Bay, never hunted fundy with it, but did plenty of times with my BBSB. I have quite a collection of duck boat writings and plans, mainly focused on BBSB's lots on sculls too. Have some oar plans too, your welcome to borrow, happy to see the stuff used. I live in Maple Ridge, work in Surrey if you ever want to sit down and shoot the shit

Very best,

Ian

[northernsculler]

Ian:

Yep I'll be in touch to arrange a visit! I'll bring an apple pie. Looking forward to seeing your Barnegate and would love to photocopy the merrymeeting and great bay offsets/lines.
Most of my Ancestors are buried over looking the Miramichi. Doyles but don't hold that against me. Fished up there when I was a kid but never hunted.

Thanks