While you're waiting for the water to warm-up or de-ice, now's your guiltless chance to build a twin-paddle ark that befits Noah himself --without losing valuable time when you should actually be paddling.

Photo: Pygmy Boats

Pygmy Boats, hailing from Port Townsend, Washington, took the industry by storm in 1986 with the first computer-designed precut wood kayak. Now expanded to include 17 kayak models, the Wineglass Wherry and Taiga canoe, they pride themselves on a line that caters to paddlers of all abilities and interests.

The only catch, is you have to have the patience and carpenter skills worthy of the hobby. A solo kayak should take a builder roughly 50-70 hours of construction time, depending upon the model and your skillset. And have no fear, their representatives are only a phone call away, and their manuals come with computer CAD illustrations to walk you through every step of the construction process.

Pygmy Boats has a showroom in Port Townsend, if you're interested in a test paddle, otherwise they consult with interested kit buyers over the phone to determine which craft will best suit the buyer's body size, skill and paddling interests. ($890-$1,360)

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