Dads cruise to San Diego Wooden Boat Festival

Dads cruise to San Diego Wooden Boat Festival

SAN DIEGO –Wooden boat aficionados can spend their special day boarding classic vessels during Koehler Kraft’s 24th annual San Diego Wooden Boat Festival held on Father’s Day weekend.

Dads and families will walked the docks during the annual show held June 14-15 at the Koehler Kraft boatyard on Shelter Island. Featuring more than 50 vessels, the show will make for an ideal weekend for boating enthusiasts.

Guests will have the opportunity to board wooden boats and chat with wooden boat aficionados. From small rowing, sailing and power boats to schooners and workboats, all these boats will welcome people aboard.

Two boats that have not been displayed at the show before will be featured at the festival: The Mayan and Marjorie. The Mayan, a 59-foot Alden Schooner, recently underwent an extensive refit. Marjorie, a 59-foot Stephens Ketch, will stop by the show before it heads off to the Caribbean.

“There will be a few first timers at the festival and some of the boats that come every year will be here,” said CF Koehler, owner and operator of Koehler Kraft boatyard.

Festival attendees can watch the extensive rebuild of a Kettenburg, he explained.

“They can ask questions and see what’s being done,” he added.

Several boats featured at the festival are still being restored, while others are completed and ready to be boarded.

The 2013 Koehler Kraft 28 express launch Neptune and the 1928 60 foot 10 meter class sloop, Sally will also be at the festival. Neptune is a custom deigned motorboat for a local San Diego resident, which features the latest technology in wood composite construction, propulsion and electronics. Sally, one of the oldest active sailing yachts, underwent a two-year reconstruction that included an extensive overhaul with replacements of its planks, original lower composite structure using the latest technology in wood epoxy lamination technique.

Other boats on the festival’s roster include Fame, a 40-foot schooner owned by Dennis Conner and his 40-foot sloop, Splendor; and Marvin and Katherine Bohannon’s 57-foot Sparkman and Stephens yawl, Circe.

“When we started 24 years ago, we thought we should do something for the public to have awareness of ownership of wooden boats and celebrate the existence of the wooden boat and get new interest in these boats,” Koehler said.

The festival welcomes vessels of any size and in any stage of their restoration process, with spaces available in and out of the water.

Additional family-friendly activities include free steamboat rides, live music, food and beverages, and craft projects hosted by local vendors. Attendees will have the opportunity to vote for their favorite wooden boat, with awards presented on Saturday night.

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