Gulet Building, Yacht Construction in Bodrum

Today, gulets bearing remarkable similarities to those ancient craft still ply Turkey's Aegean coast. Diesel engines have replaced lateen sails and sun worshippers the ancient cargos of oil, copper and glass. But designs, materials and construction techniques have changed only slightly over the centuries. Traditional boat building can be found throughout the length of Turkey's Aegean and Mediterranean shores but the greatest number of boats and boat yards are still found in Bodrum, home to Turkey's Aegean charter fleet. Visitors cannot help but be impressed by the majesty and sheer volume of gleaming wooden yachts (gulets) that crowd every meter of harbor wall, the majority of which are Bodrum built.

Since the time of its most famous resident King Mausolous (4th Century BC) Bodrum has been an important local boat building center. King Ptolemy of Egypt had warships built here in the 3rd century BC in the area now occupied by the present day marina. There are now over thirty boatyards in the immediate Bodrum area and many more on the surrounding peninsula.

Some boat yards work in steel or fiberglass but the main building material is still the local Aegean pine. Found in three varieties: white, red and black, the latter two are preferable for their hardness and high resin content. Wood is bought from local wood merchants or from the Forest Ministry after harvesting from forests near Koycegiz, Mugla or Yatagan.

In a more relaxed time, boats were built with such forethought that the wood for important structural pieces was tailor grown for each specific boat and purpose. Using block and tackle, trees were bent and forced to grow to shape so that complex curves could be realized using only one piece of wood.

Construction starts with the laying of the keel, a solid foundation for both construction ashore and strength afloat. A welded steel trough is made and then filled with a dense crushed stone and covered with concrete, providing both a strong backbone and several tons of necessary ballast. A wooden bowsprit and stern piece are then bolted to the ends of the steel keel as are three or four main ribs. These pieces fixedly determine the length and beam of the boat. The outline of the sheer and toerail (the shape of the boat at deck level) is roughly laid out by eye and contained with a border of scrap lumber. The remaining ribs and supports are then hand made and fitted to confirm within this outline.

Once all ribbing and interior supports are finished work begins on the cabins and hull planking. This stage also sees the installation of ships fittings such as fuel and water tanks, wiring, plumbing and engine. As the planking nears completion a small ceremony takes place, celebrating the fitting of the "Baklava wood" that final piece that finishes the hull, so called because its fitting marks an important completed stage of construction. The hull is then reopened with the removal of a piece of bottom planking, a simple exit hole for the sawdust and rubbish of construction.

In addition to all woodwork, all metalwork is also done in the yard. Working with stainless steel, raw pieces are shaped to fit the required application: spar, sternrail, or fuel tank. All rigging is also built and fitted by the yard, custom designed to each specific yacht and application. Except for such mechanical parts such as engines and complicated electrics which are bought elsewhere and installed by the builder, the entire vessel is supplied and constructed by local craftsmen.

The logical progression of ribs, hull deck and cabins is accomplished in what sometimes appears to be a random process. It is not unusual to drive by a Bodrum boatyard one day to see what appears to be a conglomeration of ribbing and assorted planking, only to return a short time later and see a boat n-early ready to set sail.

Launching can sometimes be a herculean task. Many boatyards are located well away from the sea and often huge boats must be brought several kilometers for launching. Smaller boats can be placed on trucks or pulled on trailers. Bigger boats are either placed onto the back of huge tractor trailer lorries or simply dragged to the sea. A sledge is placed under the keel cradling the boat which is then towed by a tractor. Greased wooden blocks are laid on the road to support the sledge and continuously moved back to front as the boat progresses. Vaguely like a scene out of ancient Egyptian pyramid building, its not unusual to turn the corner of an area street only to find the way blocked by a huge yacht making its way to the sea, a process that can take days.

At the water's edge the boats undergo a traditional Turkish christening ceremony. In place of champagne, a sheep or cow is slaughtered in accordance with Moslem custom and the blood smeared on the bow ensuring good luck and safe voyages. The value of the animal is a good indication of the value of the boat, 20 meter gulets warranting a cow or steer, while mere dinghies only deserve a chicken.

Another, less formal but equally important custom is "tel kesti"-the wire broke, a good natured refusal to get on with the launch until the owner gives all the workers a good tip. The last job is the stepping of the mast and fitting the rigging, carried out after the boat is in the water as transporting the boat any distance with the mast in place would be impossible. A huge X shaped scaffold is secured to the deck and the giant wooden mast is hauled by a dozen men onto the boat, hoisted by block and tackle and stepped into place. After tightening the rigging, general cleanup and provisioning with food and plenty of Raki the boat is ready for her maiden voyage.

Once in the water, a properly maintained boat can last for 30 years, marine growth and Aegean woodworms being the biggest problem, attacking the hull below the waterline. Each winter most boats are taken out of the water and lined rail to rail in Bodrum's boat yards for their winter maintenance, consuming a beach's worth of grit for their sandpaper and an ocean of varnish for their gleaming pine hulls. Few things look as alien as a big boat out of the water and you can almost imagine them yearning to be back in the sea, safely snug beneath the Castle or making stately passage to one of the isolated bays that abound on Turkey's Aegean shore.