Several years ago the CRMC Trustees sketched out the idea of converting the 16 foot gasoline powered John Atkin skiff in our collection to solar electric propulsion. The thought was to use it for “eco tours” up and down Carmans River between Squassux Landing and the Wertheim National Wildlife Refuge dock.

It soon became clear that it would be better to have a boat designed specifically for the intended purpose and Steve Gould came up with the idea of soliciting schools of naval architecture to see if a design could be obtained as part of a ‘student project’. We were fortunate to receive a very positive response from faculty members at Webb Institute of Naval Architecture, one of the world’s premier schools for this profession located in Glenn Cove, Long Island. CRMC trustees met with Webb faculty to outline our needs and the professors in turn put the project out to members of the junior class, all of whom are required to do a design project for their senior thesis. Three students rose to the task, Hampton Dixon, Andrew Lachtman, and Lidia Mouravieff, and worked closely with the CRMC Trustees as their ‘clients’ to design and engineer a boat that specifically meets our needs.

Their complete thesis presentation is available by clicking thesis and a poster overview of the project by clicking poster.
It is our intention to turn the building of our Eco-Tour 24 into a series of classes, from lofting the lines to mold making and set-up and on to planking, interior construction, systems installation and launching. Check our upcoming class schedules to see which aspects of this exciting project you might wish to participate in.

Click here for Solar Launch Course