''Lostsoul by Hendrik Maroske: Early Stage of Folding "Greenland " Baidarka''

With this design, I wanted to reduce the height of the deck stringers. I always wondered if the one-hatch baidarka deck design really is the big thing, partly because I am making foldable baidarkas:

• A deck with a ridge like the baidarka's is difficult to climb upon after a wet exit
• I cannot find a good way to attach a paddle outrigger to the deck of my folding baidarka(s). With my brother's Greenland Style folding kayak, this is no problem. The reason is the deck ridge. His boat has none.
• At least I cannot lie down on the rear deck while sitting in the cockpit. This is needed for practicing Eskimo rolling techniques. The deck ridge is the problem.
• A flat deck allows neater hatches, both for rigid and foldable boats.
• I couldn't find a really good mounting point for my hand pump. A foldable boat is a sad place for this, but this deck ridge...
• Mounting a compass results in an essential item placed on this deck ridge, where it is easily ripped off. I cannot recess the compass in a foldable hull. With a flat deck, I can place the compass within a centered hatch cover.

Surely the Aleut people had their ways to cope with that, but I was struggling to make my craft seaworthy. According to today's accepted safety standards. I had to change it in order to get a foldable design, and the result of this are waterlines very alike to those of the Greenlanders.

• I very much appreciate the baidarka's carrying capacity. Loading the Baidarka always was something like "Put the bag in". In comparision to that, I have strong recalls about someone placing tiny bits of equipment onto the paddle and then carefully inching them into the narrow hull. Something alike the "baker man is beaking bread". And as slow. (Hi, Gerald :)

Well, this looks like something. I made a good rear hatch, with the pump installed and everything, skipped that rear deck stringer and now have a nicely fitting tilted cockpit. Seems like progress.

Click here to get responses from folks on the "baidarka list" to this.