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Scow 450 by Jérôme Delaunay
Jerome Delaunay wasn’t going to let a 1000 Euro budget scupper his plans to go cruising! An archaeologist by day, Jerome is used to examining artifacts and assessing how they were used and how practical
they were. He planned to cruise on the rivers Maine and Loire and the sheltered waters of Quiberon
Bay. Armed with a CAD programme, his extensive knowledge of the traditional boats of the Loire valley, epoxy and plywood, some concrete paint and his granny’s old sheets for making sails. Jerome shows
us that the only thing limiting you from getting on the water is your determination, creativity and spirit.
In his first cruiser, Jerome used household items, carabiners and cheap polyester ropes to rig his boat.
He has now gone on to be an established designer of self build boats and is listed in Duckwork’s directory of designers. Here’s how it all began:
Les mots: Jerome Delaunay Les photos: Jerome Delaunay
Loire Valley origins
In the Loire Valley, France from Roman times to the rise of the railways, bulk goods were transported by
sailing barge. A variety of boats were created for different needs, transportation of heavy lime stones and
wine, fishing, and passengers. Nowadays, these traditional Loire boats have been reconstructed as historical
attractions for tourists and day cruising.
My story starts in Angers, the old capital of the Counts of Anjou, there, a fleet of replica “chaland” and
“toue” boats recreate the old salt trading road, the “white gold”, from the great sea salt works of the Loire
estuary and Brittany on the Atlantic coast to inland France and on into central Europe. I have great respect
for traditional wooden boat, with its large canvas square sail, but I tried to imagine if it could be rebuilt as a
contemporary sailing river boat, which I could build from cheap plywood.