With the underwater archaeological group CISMAS we have been working on a reproduction of a possible coracle from number 2 grave Barnes Farm, Dalgety, Fife.
Efforts to preserve the last coracle shed in England and celebrate the history of coracle making in the Ironbridge Gorge are set to benefit from National Lottery support. Thanks to money raised by National Lottery players, the project is set to benefit from an initial grant* of £76,000 from the Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF) to help the Ironbridge Coracle Trust progress their plans to apply for a full grant at a later date.
We have been invited to take part in this year's Great Dorset Steam Fair near Salisbury, as part of their rural crafts offering. The dates are 23-27 August.
Anyone interested in taking part on behalf of The Coracle Society should contact Kerrie Kempster - email kerrie.kempster@gdsf.co.uk
We have been invited to take part in this year's Festival of Archaeology in Salisbury. The dates are 21-22 July.
Anyone interested in taking part on behalf of The Coracle Society should contact Katy at Salisbury Museum - email archfest@salisburymuseum.org.uk or phone 01722 820540
Engineering firm Arrowcraft, who have long made fibreglass Ironbridge coracles, now have Teifi versions available to purchase. For more information please visit their website
ALL aboard! The guys from Frome Men’s shed made an appearance at the Cheese Show earlier this month – showcasing their handmade, oar powered floatation device – the almighty coracle. It was made for a race which took place in July – after the Welsh Men’s Sheds Association threw down the gauntlet late last year.
Maiden voyage for coracle (and owner!) on a recently refurbished section of North Walsham and Dilham canal. Norfolk's only sailing canal but ideal for a coracle.
The new BBC series "Britain Afloat" is now available to view. The episode "The Coracle" will be broadcast on BBC Two/BBC Two HD on Saturday, 7th October at 8pm (exc Scotland - see local listings for details) or is available now via the BBC iPlayer
A full report on this year's Ironbridge coracle regatta will follow in due course but in the meantime, take a look at the album of photos put together by The Guardian newspaper - available via this link
The Society were invited to the 25th anniversary of England's Medieval Festival, at Herstmonceux Castle in Sussex over the August bank holiday weekend. Members Dave Purvis and Euan Raffel made the trek from 't North to showcase to the visitors, exhibitors and organisers the art of coraclemaking and give people the opportunity to try their had at paddling a coracle on the Castle's moat.
The Society, along with our friends from the Teifi Coracle Netsmen Association and The Ironbridge Coracle Trust had a fantastic time at BBC Countryfile Live in August. The weather didn't start too promising - the show was halted for an hour whilst a thunderstorm passed on the Saturday. But the sun soon broke through and we had lots of interest from members of the public.
The latest series of Bargain Hunt started with an episode in Carmarthen, where presenter Charlie Ross met up with the Carmarthen Coracle Netsmen's Association to learn about coracle fishing and have a go. The episode was broadcast on BBC One on Monday 11th September.