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"There
is nothing-
absolutely nothing-
half so much worth doing
as simply messing
about in boats."
from
The Wind in the Willows
by Kenneth Grahame

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Love at first sight . . .
I saw my first guide-boat in
1989. The boat was built by Steve Kaulback of The
Adirondack Guide-Boat boatshop for Bernie Calkins and I immediately
fell in love with guide-boats and the work of Steve Kaulback. Here was
a design that was both elegant and utilitarian, and a work of
art yet a hard working boat. I was not alone in thinking the boat was
a work of art, Bernie often displayed the boat in the lobby of his office
building. As beautiful as the boat was, it was meant to be used and over
the next few years I continued to run into Bernie and his boat at local
messabouts. I also had the pleasure of meeting the designer/builder, Steve
Kaulback, at the Mid-Atlantic Small Craft Festival. I was so taken with
the boat that on more than one occasion I told Bernie to call me if he
ever considered selling the boat. After several years I lost track of
Bernie and his boat, however my love affair with guide-boats went on.
I read about guide-boats and
studied examples of them whenever the opportunity presented itself. Ever
so slowly the hook was set deeper and deeper. In June 2001, I was working
a booth at the WoodenBoat Show and right across the aisle was Steve Kaulback
building one of his guide-boats. It had been years since I last saw Steve
and it was fun to renew our acquaintance and see how his boatshop had
prospered. The Adirondack Guide-Boat boatshop had grown from a one man
operation to one employing a number of craftsmen and Steve now had a partner
to handle the business end of things. One thing had not changed with all
this growth and that was the beauty and craftsmanship of the boats. Often
times the memory of something becomes larger than life, however these
boats were as wonderful as I remembered.
About a week or so after the
WoodenBoat Show a classified ad in Messing About In Boats magazine
caught my eye. The ad was short and to the point; "15' Adirondack Guide
Boat, '84, Steve Kaulback blt, mint cond. BO. Anthony Calkins, Bethesda,
MD, (301) 254-...., leave message.". Could this be my secret love? To
be honest I did not remember the owner's name, however the boat's location
fit so I called the number more out of curiosity than any desire to add
a fifth boat to my fleet. When Tony returned my call I attempted to determine
if this was my long lost guide-boat. Well it could be, replied Tony, the
boat was my father's and he often took it to boat gatherings. Tony's father,
Bernie Calkins, had passed away and Tony was in the middle of settling
his father's affairs. I knew the question that could determine if this
was the same boat, so I asked it. "Did your father ever display the boat
in the lobby of his office building?" "Oh yes, many times", came the answer.
Tony and I talked for awhile and later I visited him to look at the boat.
It was as lovely as ever and I couldn't get it out of my mind. Of course
as I said earlier, I was not in the market for a boat. That being said,
these things are not always within our control. Both my wife, Mary, and
Tony felt that fate had brought us together and that I was destined to
be the new owner of this guide-boat. Within a few weeks there was a meeting
of the minds and Secret Water now occupies a prime spot in my boat
shed.

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