Once in a very great while something wonderful appears that is ever so right and so hard to resist. The Gunning Dory has been that temptation for me, and perhaps when you explore the information here you’ll understand why and feel the same excitement.

The Gunning Dory has a shape and sheer line to swoon for.

I have had the pleasure of rowing a Gunning Dory off and on for almost three decades, and my strong appreciation for just how good the boat is has continued to spark in me the desire to put it into production. Over the years, my commitments to building the Melonseed Skiff and the Swampscott Sailing Dory have always taken precedence, but now it’s time to give the Gunning Dory its turn at being appreciated and enjoyed by others.

Designed specifically for bird hunting off the rugged Atlantic coastline, gunning dories were first built on the North Shore of Massachusetts about a century ago. They share characteristics with other true dories in that they are graceful and beautiful in their design, very efficient to row, and, pound for pound, some of the most seaworthy small boats in the world.

“The handsomest of all the pulling dories is unquestionably the long, slim, but richly curving double-ender.” (John Gardner)

In The Dory Book, John Gardner, legendary boat builder, historian, and arguably the most knowledgeable dory expert ever, explains that pictures and verbal descriptions fail to “evoke the full perfection of the design. It is necessary to see, and, if possible, to row a gunning dory.”

Like the other small craft built here at Crawford Boat Building, the Gunning Dory has a shape and sheer line to swoon for. If the expression “if it looks good, it is good” ever applied to a boat, it applies to the Gunning Dory. Someone recently described our Gunning Dory as “Elegant, simply elegant.”

“Elegant, simply elegant.”

In 1978, my friend and extremely talented boat builder and designer Jon Blanchard built the first of this 15’ version of the Gunning Dory. Jon found a very old wooden gunning dory rotting away in the woods beside a lake on Cape Cod, dragged it home and redesigned it. Jon is one of those men with a talent and genius for creating perfect sheer lines and shapes in small boats. He built a mold for his new design, and from that mold we built several of these Gunning Dories in the late 1970's for ourselves and a few very lucky friends. While the project eventually fell by the wayside under the pressure of other designs to build, the few that were built back then were really appreciated by their owners and all who rowed them. In the 1980’s, the Gunning Dory was the surprise winner of TWO Oarmaster Trials, a round robin race for fixed seat traditional rowing boats, beating all of the other boats that were supposed to be much faster. In 1991 a friend of mine, David Stookey, took advantage of the seaworthiness of the design by rowing my Gunning Dory from Roque Bluffs, Maine across the Bay Of Fundy to Digby, Nova Scotia! (**Read some of David’s notes at the end of these comments) Those of us fortunate folks who have had a chance to enjoy this boat since 1978 have rowed it in flat water, rough water, surf, whitewater, strong winds, and she performed capably in all conditions and with a good load if necessary. The ocean hasn’t changed in millennia, and time honored traditional dory designs work as well now as they did a century ago! You may only use this boat for recreational purposes, but it will serve you as well as it did the sporting and working watermen of previous centuries.

The first of this new generation of the Gunning Dory, with minute bits of redefinition of the shape, was built and launched in May ’05, and tested all that summer here around the shop on the coast of southeast Massachusetts, and also for two weeks in the beautiful and spectacular waters off the rough and rocky shores of Acadia in Maine. The performance of the boat and the function of the interior arrangement exceeded expectations.

Ready for a row in Acadia National Park

This is the simple recipe for attainable, affordable boating pleasure.

The boat is 15’ LOA X 3’ 9” beam at the sheer x 1’ 8” beam on the bottom. The (five lap “lapstrake”) fiberglass hull alone weighs less than 80 lbs, and the finished boat (interior, wood and hardware) will likely weigh in about 160 lbs. The woodwork is all solid teak, with 1 1/2” wide x 3/4” thick gunwales on the inside and outside of the sheer, breast hooks bow and stern and 7/8” thick teak seats. Fasteners are stainless steel and the hardware is bronze. The boat is equipped with three oarlock stations and easily adjustable seats that allow rowing for one person, two persons, or rowing for one person and one to two passengers. Positive flotation is provided by foam-filled buoyancy chambers incorporated into the boat.

This is the simple recipe for attainable, affordable boating pleasure.

The boat is 15’ LOA X 3’ 9” beam at the sheer x 1’ 8” beam on the bottom. The (five lap “lapstrake”) fiberglass hull alone weighs less than 80 lbs, and the finished boat (interior, wood and hardware) will likely weigh in about 125 lbs. The woodwork is all solid teak, with 1 1/2” wide x 3/4” thick gunwales on the inside and outside of the sheer, breast hooks bow and stern and 7/8” thick teak seats. Fasteners are stainless steel and the hardware is bronze. The boat is equipped with three oarlock stations and easily adjustable seats that allow rowing for one person, two persons, or rowing for one person and one to two passengers. Positive flotation is provided by foam-filled buoyancy chambers incorporated into the boat.

A few words about quality; all boat builders will at some point describe their boats using the same cliches and inevitably the word “quality.” While some may in fact be good, there are some premier builders in the category of fiberglass hull/wood trim small boats. Crawford Boat Building has been producing elegant fiberglass reproductions of traditional small craft since 1976, and has a well deserved reputation for building boats at the very highest quality level. That custom will continue with the Gunning Dory. Each boat will be an expression of our desire to continue to practice the art and craft of boat building to those standards.

A few words about quality; all boat builders will at some point describe their boats using the same cliches and inevitably the word “quality.” While some may in fact be good, there are some premier builders in the category of fiberglass hull/wood trim small boats. Crawford Boat Building has been producing elegant fiberglass reproductions of traditional small craft since 1976, and has a well deserved reputation for building boats at the very highest quality level. That custom will continue with the Gunning Dory. Each boat will be an expression of our desire to continue to practice the art and craft of boat building to those standards.

This is an intelligently simple boat.

Since early childhood we all recognize that water is just a wonderful thing to play with. As adults, one of the easiest ways to continue those pleasures is to row a fine boat, and anyone can quickly learn to how. Basic boating skills are often best learned in a small rowboat, and as the Gunning Dory can easily accommodate both an instructor and student together, you’ll find it an ideal craft to use when teaching a child, friend or spouse primary rowing and boat handling skills. The lessons you learn there will be with you and benefit you for a lifetime.

I look forward to hearing from you either by email roger@melonseed.com

or give me a call at the boat shop @ 781.837.3666

Roger Crawford

Crawford Boat Building

(Pausing to admire the scenery off Bass Harbor, Maine)

“Rowing doubles is a lot like other good partnerships in life.”

One of the best features of the Gunning Dory is that it can be rowed by two people. While at first you are likely think of rowing double as primarily a physical endeavor, you’ll soon discover that rowing successfully in tandem with someone offers a lot more than just that. Rowing doubles is a lot like other good partnerships in life. It requires quiet constant communication, anticipation, readjustment for breaks in rhythm, and the pursuit of a common goal. When two rowers hit their stride and the boat is gliding over the water with more speed and less effort, it’s a grand feeling. There’s nothing quite like the synchronicity of two pairs of oars nicely feathered, sliding across the water on the backstroke and urging the boat ahead on the pull stroke.

“Rowing doubles is a lot like other good partnerships in life.”

One of the best features of the Gunning Dory is that it can be rowed by two people. While at first you are likely think of rowing double as primarily a physical endeavor, you’ll soon discover that rowing successfully in tandem with someone offers a lot more than just that. Rowing doubles is a lot like other good partnerships in life. It requires quiet constant communication, anticipation, readjustment for breaks in rhythm, and the pursuit of a common goal. When two rowers hit their stride and the boat is gliding over the water with more speed and less effort, it’s a grand feeling. There’s nothing quite like the synchronicity of two pairs of oars nicely feathered, sliding across the water on the backstroke and urging the boat ahead on the pull stroke.

Rowing is an environmentally responsible, non-polluting, “leave no trace” activity. There are no exorbitant fuel costs, and the initial investment and annual maintenance costs are minimal compared to almost all other boating options.

“Treat yourself to something wonderful”

The Gunning Dory can be pulled up on the beach above the tide line and left there to happily sit on its flat bottom, and then easily re-launched. Using the hardware already fitted to the boat, it can be tied up to a dock, mooring, or running line. It is light enough for anyone of any age or gender to handle. Should you need to, the Dory will tow in a mannerly way behind another vessel at reasonable speeds.

The Gunning Dory can be pulled up on the beach above the tide line and left there to happily sit on its flat bottom

It's not complicated, and it only takes minutes to get afloat.

We’ll be glad to help you decide on, and provide additional items like oars, trailer and any related gear that might be necessary and useful. Each boat will of course be custom built, so that counsel will be offered when we discuss your boat and your personal needs.

“if it looks good, it is good”

What you have read here is some honest information about a very good traditional rowing boat. It isn’t hard to imagine the fun you could have with the Crawford Gunning Dory. This boat is fast, seaworthy, beautiful, well built and ever so simple to use. There will only be a small number of these Gunning Dories available each year, perhaps a half dozen annually at first.