Fretwater Boatworks is featured in this month’s Arizona Highways in a beautiful story by Larry Cheek, with wonderful photographs by Dawn Kish. Grab a copy while it’s still on the stands.

With the Tandoris finished we wasted no time in launching into the next pair of boats. A few years ago I collaborated with Mike DeHoff at Eddyline Welding in Moab to come up with a 13’6 dory design we ended up calling the Chub. Mike made two variations on it and they are pretty amazing. For this effort VK and Tess each wanted one, and we started over from scratch to reinvent the design, hybridizing the Tandori with our big Babe design of Diamond Desert. It’s different enough that it needed a new hull name. VK called it Double Chubble. It stuck.

Here we are drawing her up on Day One. You can see everyone totally gets what is happening.

Even though it’s less than 14 feet, we went wide–about 54″ floor at midship. Roy decided we should try and save materials and only scarf in extra wood in the middle. It seemed pretty sketchy but it worked. Not sure it saved us much but hey–we’re always exploring new terrain.

As with the Tandori, we had our friend Wesley bleep out computer coordinates for the side panel. It came out perfect.

And away we go. Day three, two hulls.

Bottoms up!

It sounded a lot like a beehive for a while. A really loud beehive.

Outside we’re steaming up the gunwales with our cool new pressure cooker powered steamer. So instead of temperatures in the 190’s we’re getting up around 240.

Clamp storm! Glueing up the gunwales.

Prepping the bottom for glass.

But the glass was delayed due to the goofy supply chain crisis. Later. Right side up and time to frame.

Test driving. You can’t beat this place for fun.

Storyboard spiling–Cricket’s favorite thing. Creating the wacky front deck in one fell swoop.

And Cricket testing the below deck accomodations.

Yoni trying to do what Cricket does.

Glade getting a burn on.

The view through the filthy stairwell window.

Roy and Deanna donated some Yellowtail that Deanna caught in Mexico. It made the best fish tacos ever.

The critical moment–defining the sheer. We always leave a bit extra up top for last minute adjustments, and always do it by eyeball and consensus.

Nail it!

A pause for another house concert. This is Morning Embers shredding it.

Hannah making patterns for the bronze washers we will cast.

Pounding sand while the foundry roars outdoors.

The dragon’s booty after a long day of pounding sand, casting, cutting, and polishing.

Our filthy crew that evening.

It takes 48 cans of beer to properly assemble twelve hatch lids.

Lids on, decks primed, and painting.

VK working his magic.

Faith making the bowcaps as smooth as a baby’s bottom. Maybe smoother. And certainly less stinky.

Cricket carving minicel seats.

Day 15: With Chinook nearly done in the background, VK is catching up with Duwamps.

Chinook is heading for Montana with Tess.

They made it!

Back in the shop VK is finishing up the paint job on Duwamps, while Rock Lobster drops back in for a couple neglected details.

Morning sun dagger on Duwamps.