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This summer, sign up as an individual or as a team to build a wooden boat to keep that will last a lifetime with master boat builder, Ron Blue. Learn about the rich tradition of boat building, craftsmanship, and water safety while assembling, sanding, painting and finishing a 4x8 foot pram style boat that will seat two adults. This beautiful heirloom quality watercraft will be constructed of Marine Plywood, White Oak, Spanish Cedar, Cypress, and White Pine. Upon completion, this vessel can be powered by an electric trolling motor, a small gas outboard motor or oars with the optional oarlocks installed, and will be eligible for a title from Louisiana Wildlife and Fisheries. This boat will conveniently go in the back of a pick-up truck or tie on to the top of an SUV and would be great for families, scout groups, or any wood worker or boat enthusiast.

The boat building process will take five full days, and at the end of the last day in keeping with culture and tradition, there will be a ceremony to christen each boat. This boat building class will take place over the course of two weekends which begins on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, July 16, 17, and 18 and concludes on Saturday and Sunday, July 24 and 25 from 9 a.m. – 5 p.m. each day.

Ron Blue has been building boats for forty years and is considered the Gulf Coast’s premier wooden boat restoration specialist. He describes himself as an educator who passes down the things he has learned to help others master new skills. Mr. Blue’s boat building career has spanned from the East Coast to the Gulf Coast. He has worked on the restoration of tall ships including the Kalmar Nyckel and the Amistad and has built countless numbers of small boats. He started his own boat building school in Rockport. Texas with the help of a local maritime museum prior to moving to Louisiana where he now serves as the Director of Boat Building at the Lake Pontchartrain Basin Maritime Museum where he teaches adults and young people.

The maximum cost per boat including tuition and materials is $1,400. However, with supply donations to the program to help keep the craft of boat building alive or with any student providing some of their own materials, the cost can come down. A signed waiver and a fifty percent deposit will be required upon registration and the remaining cost will be due on the last weekend. The cost of participation is per boat and not per person. So, an individual or a group can go in together on one boat.

West Baton Rouge Museum is located at 845 N. Jefferson Avenue in Port Allen, LA just minutes away from downtown Baton Rouge. For more information, please call 225-336-2422 Ext. 200 or visit www.westbatonrougemuseum.org.