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Adapted from a BBC online article: Friday 6 April 2007

Gaelic BBC journalist Teàrlach Quinnell is fascinatd by an ancient boat building technique. He has recreated the practice of constructing a coracle by making one in a back garden, before putting his craftsmanship to the test on the River Ness. Here Teàrlach reveals the history and the methods of building the little light-weight boats.

[ Gaelic translation: Tha ùidh mhòr aig fear-naidheachd a' BhBC Teàrlach Quinnell ann am fear de na seòrsaichean bhàta as sine air an t-saoghal. Thog e curach anns a' ghàradh aige, 's chuir e air bhog i air Abhainn Nis. Seo e ag innse mu eachdraidh agus dòigh togail bàta aig an robh pàirt chudromach ann an eachdraidh na h-Alba. ]

Building a coracle

Bending the hazel rods and lashing them into a strong and flexible frame.

The coracle is one of the world's oldest types of boat. In Scotland, and particularly in the Highlands, they were very important. When the remains of the last Scottish coracle were found in the roof of a farm building in the 19th Century, the Elgin Museum was given little more than a flattened piece of woven willow and cowhide."

When the Scots first crossed over from Ulster and made landfall in Argyll they would have made the sea crossing in coracles.

It is quite widely known that Christianity was brought to Scotland shortly afterwards when Calum Cille crossed from Ulster to Iona in a coracle. Back then their use was quite common. Made from easily obtainable materials, cheap and sea-worthy, they were the obvious choice.

Carrying a coracle

Small, light and manoeuvrable, a coracle is ideally suited to fast-flowing rivers and is easily transported over land (though it does look like a giant turtle's shell).

In Britain, coracles are still to be found in England and Wales where they are used for net fishing in certain rivers and creeks as well as angling. There is also a thriving coracle society, which organises demonstrations of their building and use.

In Ireland, the sea-going curach is still used as a fishing craft and for recreation.

There are some coracles in Scotland, but the only known native design has largely been abandoned.

Paddling in a coracle

Always persuade a friend - in this case Robin Brown - to use it so you can see how it rides before trying it yourself.

 

         

My own coracle is a bit of a mixture of a few different designs, using a willow gunwale or rim, hazel wands for the body of the frame, all built around a seat section of a deal plank with two by two supports.

It's about five feet (1.5m) long, by three and a half wide (1m), and has a depth of about a foot (30cm).

She only draws about two to three inches (about 7cm) of water with one person on board and is deceptively stable, skimming over the water, even in the strong currents around the islands in the River Ness.

I've always felt safe in a coracle. I don't feel trapped as I have felt in a kayak. But more than that, there's something special about them.

They're our native take on the small river boat. They're fairly easy to make and to use, cheap, and look more natural to my eye on a river than a plastic kayak with all the high tech expensive equipment that goes with them.

Also, as folk today try to lessen their impact on the environment, there's something to be said for a boat that uses natural materials, can be built in your back garden, carried on your back and is fairly eco-friendly - especially one with a hide cover.

 

There is also a great feeling of satisfaction in building and using something that has been part of life in these islands for longer than history records.