The Duck is Heading North

Yes, it is finished and will travel with us to Maine! The last coat of varnish went on last week. There are 5 coats on the hull and 4 on the deck.
With a wet sanding using 400 grit paper between each coat.
Varnishing this large project was a real challenge to say the least. The experts say dust is the biggest concern. We cleaned the garage as best we could. Then we hung plastic to seal off part of the garage and only used that part for the varnishing. Sanding and other preps were done elsewhere.
Another challenge was to figure out the temperature and humidity; both determine the technique you use at any particular moment. Due to the size of the kayak those weather factors can and often do change before you get from bow to stern. It took this many tries before I was satisfied with the look and I was not willing to try to perfect it any more.
There are a few warts but as my new boat building friends keep reminding me "It ain't a coffee table, it's just a boat."
The last last thing I had to do was drill a hole through the bow so we could put on a grab handle. This took me back to the always helpful builders forum with many questions: What type line to use? What size? How big to drill the hole? And the most scary one, how do you drill the hole so both sides match up?
Someone recommended a forstner bit. So back to Harbor Freight for some bits. After many practice trials on scrap lumber I finally took the plunge. It came out pretty durn close. Then we settled on single braided 3/8" black line.
I have to really thank all the people via the CLC Builders Forum who answered my many cries for help during the building. I could not have done this with out their help.
Carol June, was the biggest help from the beginning of this project all the way to the finish line. In fact it was she who tied on the bow line (using an Albright Knot) which was the last piece of the puzzle.
Wishing y'all happy paddling.