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LSK is an early stage start-up

It started in August 2016 as a decision to make good on an idea that has been nagging me for years.  The core concept is mahogany laminate sea kayaks custom tailored to the type of Pacific Northwest coastal paddling my friends and I like to do.  The main thing is sturdier boats:  hence "Little Ship".

That morphed into realizing that the biggest need among my paddling brethren was affordable/convenient shelter.  So, I'm leveraging my fledgling wood/fiberglass/epoxy shop to make mini camping trailers too.

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LSK trucker hats now available!

These cool hats are on sale for $12.  Please contact me for color availability.

About Little Ship Kayaks

Mini camping trailers and proper-built sea kayaks are just tools.  However, as vessels that carry you safely, they are symbolic...and have the potential to be beautiful on that level.  My mission above all else is to make vessels that are so quintessential in their functionality that they invoke the ancient relationship between human and vessel.  The Inuit skin boat, the Micronesian proa, the Spanish caravel, the space ship.  At a technical level, all of these craft share an aesthetic economy born of necessity, and all of them are hand made.  I make little ships because I feel the real journey for modern paddlers is remembering who you are.

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About Me

Backstory.  My great-grandfather was a Danish immigrant who circumnavigated the world several times as a deck hand in the days of sail.  My favorite bathtub toy was a submarine, diver figure, and brown plastic treasure chest.  In sixth grade, I competed in the Rose Festival milk carton boat race.  My teenage bedroom door had a brass plaque that read "Captain".  As an adult, I have been obsessive about hull-design.  I have owned or spent serious time in at least 20 different sea kayaks...always critiquing, analyzing, and questioning the patient folks at places like Alder Creek and Portland Kayak.  

Community.  I learned how to eskimo roll from Mike at Portland Kayak.  I became super involved with Oregon Ocean Paddling Society (OOPS).  I paddled with many of the wonderful people of Lower Columbia Canoe Club (LCCC) and some in the Oregon Kayak and Canoe Club (OKCC).  Over the years, I've enjoyed paddling with poets, loggers, trial attorneys, a dairy princess, and general miscreants.  People like Paul Steinberg (TorsoRotation.com), Fred, Stuart, Patti, and Danger Bill, respectively.

Journey.  I've paddled the west coasts of Vancouver Island, Washington, and Oregon in their entirety...some of it with Bob Weinman as part of the BeachWalk Project.  I've dabbled in white water kayaking, whitewater canoeing, ocean kayak touring, ocean rock gardening, night paddling, sea caving, kayak sailing, and a couple other floaty ventures.  I probably have the most fun though just playing around with long boats in the surf zone.