Typical Boats

Boats are not only used for fishing and travel but in this case a pig is being taken to market.

Dominican boats are still made along the coast, but have lost much of the technological features used in making Taíno canoas and cayucos. The method of making a canoa from a hollowed-out royal palm as a feeding and watering trough for cows is still found in some areas. This technology is becoming increasingly rare due to the limitations put on the cutting of larger trees, on the number of craftsmen who still know how to make a canoa.

Frames are now made of laminated marine plywood and the planking of white pine strips less than two inches wide, all glued together with epoxy resin. The boats are now light but extremely strong and water resistant.

Building a boat involved going into the forest or bush and searching for a tree which was the right length, thickness and shape. Pine was usually chosen for the keel, mast, planking, deck beams and overall construction. The pine would then be placed in the ocean to be cured before being used. When a vessel was completed there would be a day of celebration, for a new sailing vessel meant great benefits to a family. Communication and trade from one village to the next became easier, as well as procurring goods. The additional income that a boat could bring was also an added benefit.