By Ian Cobb

Do inanimate objects have souls?

If the answer ‘yes’ means the creators of inanimate objects have inserted their own souls into them, then meet ‘The Gilly,’ a nine-foot skiff built in 1996 by father and son team Knud-Einer and Keith Christensen.

This award-winning flyfishing skiff was meticulously and lovingly constructed from scratch, based on a 1950’s plan, over a 500-hour period from a wealth of gorgeous woods, including western red cedar, yellow cedar and oak. Much of the wood came from Vancouver Island, where Einer And Keith once lived before finding their ways to the East Kootenay via different paths.

The craft’s creators are both master woodworkers. Einer, now 92, completed his apprenticeship between 1947 and 1951 in his native Denmark. Keith, long a student of his father’s, completed his apprenticeship between 1988 and 1992.

“My father and I have always worked well together and he is my inspiration. This boat reflects the old methods,” Keith said one gusty late winter day as he spruced up The Gilly in preparation for sale, a hard decision he hopes to ease by finding a buyer “who would like to keep and preserve this boat. We spent a lot of care putting it together.”

The time and effort quickly paid off after The Gilly was completed. Encouraged by fellow woodworkers to enter the skiff in the 1996 Woodworkers Show in Cranbrook, the father and son team walked away with a Best-in-Class award and second overall in the show prizes, earning them a tidy $1,300.

That acclaim led to The Gilly being featured on the cover of Volume One of Home Waters magazine (now Fly Fusion). The literary tie flowed smoothly as the craft is named after ‘The Gilly: A flyfisher’s Guide to British Columbia by Alfred Davy.’

The still water fishing craft has been introduced to most, if not all, of the best flyfishing lakes in the East Kootenay, Keith noted.

“I’ve caught hundreds of rainbow trout in all the good little lakes around here,” he said.

Better yet, the skiff is a harkening love and bonding between a son and father.

“The best thing about this boat is a relationship between a father and a son; two journeymen carpenters building it together for flyfishing, which is our other love,” Keith said as he carefully screwed The Gilly’s nameplate back into the gunnel, which Keith noted is shaped from oak.

He happily outlines what each part of the craft is made out of; the hull from western red cedar, the frame and transoms from yellow cedar, as are the duck boards, riser and thwarts.

Compound angles and cuts, hand plaining and chiseling – labours of love all reflect still today in the crisp and shiny Gilly.

“Twenty-nine years later there is not one defect in it; no rot and it doesn’t leak,” Keith said, proudly running his hand over The Gilly’s hull, noting “it never split.”

Despite being nine feet long, with a 44-inch beam, the skiff is a pillowy 105 pounds.

The craft also “rows nice,” Keith said, though it is not the best fit for big person. “I’m 5’11” and 190 pounds and I fit in there just fine,” he said. “The skiff is a completely different feel, sound and experience.”

Parting with The Gilly is a bittersweet thing, Keith said, but he needs room in his shop as he plans to build another skiff, “but a bit bigger.”

“I have been fortunate to learn the old methods from Einer and others. She (The Gilly) reflects that.

“It is my hope a new owner will be found for The Gilly. Either to a collector or to fish; hopefully fish. But to always be maintained and shared with others,” Keith said.

Should you wish to learn more about The Gilly or enquire about purchase, call Keith Christensen at 250-426-8187.

Lead image: The Gilly co-creator Keith Christensen spruces the skiff up in his Cranbrook shop. Photos by Ian Cobb

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