Crew rows historic replica York boat from Hope to Fort Langley
'If we don’t quite make it, I guess we’re going to be in somebody’s field,' says rower
For about a century, the Hudson's Bay Company's York boat was the dominant fur trade era cargo hauling vessel in British North America.
This weekend, it's making a comeback along the Fraser River.
A crew of eight will row a replica York boat — though with fewer tonnes of furs and pelts aboard — 100 kilometres from Hope to Fort Langley to mark Canada 150 and the region's Brigade Days.
"Weighs about a tonne, moves pretty slowly and takes quite a bit of work to move it through the water," said Paul Sleightholme, a member of the Bedford Rowing Society, whose members helped build the boat four years ago.
Bigger than a canoe
York boats were named after the ultimate destination of Hudson's Bay Company cargo — the York factory in England and used during the second half of the 19th century.
According to the Canadian Encyclopedia, they were phased out by the 1920s.
The replica York boat isn't as large as some of the originals, which could often haul up to six tonnes of cargo, much more than a canoe.
The wooden York boats were most commonly used in the area then known as Rupert's Land, which encompassed large swaths of land from Quebec to Alberta.
"It moves pretty good. It's flat bottomed, so it doesn't draw much, probably about a foot of water," Sleightholme told Gloria Mackarenko, guest host of CBC's The Early Edition.
York boats were massive and heavy compared to canoes used by First Nations and early fur traders.
While they were often used regularly in some of B.C.'s slower rivers, smaller boats were developed specifically to be used along the Columbia and other rough B.C. rivers where steep drops and waterfalls necessitated portaging.
The crew at the Bedford Rowing Society had never built a boat before, but a few of them have engineering or construction backgrounds.
Sleightholme said it took about 200 hours to complete the work using donated lumber. The rowing action for the crew is different than in a modern rowing scull; the seats do not slide.
Sleightholme said the crew hasn't trained together beyond its regular twice-weekly practices.
The crew set off Friday morning from Hope. They are expected to arrive in Fort Langley early Monday afternoon.
"If we don't quite make it, I guess we're going to be in somebody's field," said Sleighthorne.
The public is invited to come welcome the landing of the York boat and its brigade of would be fur traders with free admission to the park on B.C. Day Monday.