Sailing Dory: Q’ona
Dory Q'ona sails on Lake Union
Boat Type
Location
Year Built
1975
Beam
5'
LOA (Length Overall)
19'
Boat Plans
Project Sponsors
Donated by Tom Campbell and Tom George
Website Link
Oral History
Q'ona is a very strong boat and a good sailer. Her narrow bottom and hard chine (edge of the side and bottom connection) allow her to sail with minimum drag and turbulence. Her flaring sides and wide side decks give buoyancy and stability no matter how much load.
Boat Story
Built and donated by friends Tom Campbell and Tom George, Q'ona is an example of dory perfection. The two took plans from the Smithsonian Institute which were for a 22 foot boat and scaled them back to 19 feet to make the craft more manageable.
The name Q'ona comes from an ancient village in the Queen Charlotte Islands. It is a Haida name and the village was renamed Skedans.
Upon completing Q'ona, the builders set out on a month long trip in October, from Quadra Island just off the Campbell River, and travelled north through the inside passage to Alert Bay and back. The trip was filled with high winds, rapids, whirlpools, fishing, clamming and camping on the shores. They sailed when they could and spent many a day rowing when the tides were favorable.
"We had a huge scare one day in the Johnstone Straits when the wind came up to 35 mph and the tide was running against us. We couldn't get the sails down fast enough and the boat swamped. Since it was not possible to bail, we had to swim and push the boat to shore." - Tom Campbell
