Tag Archives: craftsman Earl Soule
If hulls could talk: A summer of stories from the Ilwaco Boatyard
Earl Soule, 71, considers “re-corking,” or recaulking, a boat a lost art that requires a special touch. “The strength of a wooden boat is the seams,” Soule said. “Everybody thinks it’s the frame, but it’s the caulking. Caulking makes the whole boat tight.” Much of Soule’s work is done by sound and touch, a rare skill he’s cultivated over decades of working on wooden boats. “It’s all by feel,” Soule said in between swings of his mallet. “I can tell what it’s doing all the time because I can feel it.” Soule was helping Florian Mumford replace 12 ribs underneath the planks of Mumford’s 1953 wooden boat, ahead of the black cod season. He said he relies on the boatyard for haul out and repairs at least twice a year. photo’s, click here to read the story 09:08
