What woods do you use to make your paddles and boathooks?

We use the highest quality hardwoods such as cherry, black walnut and ash.  We source wood both locally and nationally to meet our customers’ expectations for quality and performance.

**When available we also offer paddles and boathooks made from locally sourced “sinker” cypress. Access to reputable sinker cypress suppliers is getting harder and harder to find, therefore items made from sinker wood is very limited at this time.

Is there a difference between wood grown in the North vs. wood grown in the South?

Simply put, yes, sometimes there is a difference. Some wood species such as cypress are only found in the southern part of the country. While in the case of some hardwoods, such as ash, the cooler climates and shorter growing season up north means slower growth, tighter growth rings, and relatively harder lumber when compared to southern grown ash. Regardless of where the trees grow our goal is always to obtain the best quality lumber to make the highest quality product possible for our customers.

What is sinker cypress?

The term "sinker cypress" typically refers to old-growth cypress logs that sunk during the harvesting process.   During the mid to late 19th and early 20th centuries the demand for southern cypress peaked.  This was largely due to the quality of cypress as building material.   Bald cypress, a particular variety of cypress common to region, was (and still is) found in the swamps and waterways throughout many of the southern states.  Loggers floated the newly cut logs out of the swamps for later transportation to processing centers.  During this process some of the logs became water-logged and sank to the bottom of the rivers and swamps.  These once lost "sinker" logs are now being recovered and used for a variety of building and artistry projects.        

How do you ship your products?

We do our best to minimize shipping costs for our customers. Most of our products are shipped via UPS Ground. Shipping costs will be calculated AFTER the initial purchase and BILLED SEPERATELY via electronic invoice. All shipping costs will be communicated to the customer prior to sending any items. **PLEASE NOTE: Items in excess of 96 inches incur an additional charge from UPS. This includes the length of the item and packaging combined. If the costs associated with shipping our products exceed customer expectations, we will refund the purchase price in full. Whenever possible we will arrange for local pickup or delivery. Shipping costs for all apparel are charged at the time of purchase.