There may be some of us who are fortunate enough to live in communities with neighbors who like seeing our canoes and kayaks in our front, side, or backyards. Then there are others of us who live in neighborhoods that only want to know about our watercraft as we head out or return from our prized fishing trips. So how do we folks in these restrictive communities accommodate the rules and regulations for NO boats or trailers in open view?

I’m not sure how everyone else solves this dilemma, but I am glad to share with you how I resolved this challenge. The attached picture illustrates how my trusty 16-foot Mohawk canoe rests in its custom perch in the Family garage. The bill of materials that I used is simple, and if there are choices between options, I’ve noted that in this list. Here goes:

1. One 2X4X8’, cut in half with eyebolts installed at the four ends, to act as a boat cradle.
2. One 6-foot piece of pipe insulation for 1-1/2" pipe, cut into 3’ halves, to soften the pine 2X4 for the boat’s gunwale.
3. Two Poly Rope hoists with double braided line (I replaced the white poly rope that came with the hoist with different color combinations for fore and aft lines) to hold the watercraft aloft. I installed the block and tackle hoists sold by Cabelas^® under code number SA-22-1201-508. Our garage has a finished ceiling so I used eyebolts screwed through the drywall into the floor joists to hold the upper blocks. The storage hoist sold by Campmor^® under part number 82222-B is designed for installation on either a finished or unfinished ceiling. If you have an unfinished ceiling (i.e., exposed floor joists), item number 21735 from Wyoming River Raiders (www.riverraiders.com) is designed to accommodate this arrangement.
4. Two pieces of heavy-duty double braided line to hold the 2X4X4’ cradles to the block and tackle.
5. One double and one single pulley to fairlead the lines for the two block and tackle systems.
6. In addition to the 4 eyebolts mentioned in (1) above, four more eyebolts to secure pulleys in the ceiling.
7. One 5-6" cleat from your neighborhood hardware store to secure the hoist system at any elevation.
8. One canoe or kayak to test the strength of your garage ceiling.

Now it’s time to take our canoes and kayaks out of the cradles and get their hulls wet. Good luck, folks.   - Ron