Louisiana is a mysteriously beautiful and enchanting place — a simmering, spicy gumbo of amazing people, food and music. Folks there, especially the Cajuns, are unquestionably the most fun people you'd ever want to hang out with — friendly, down-to-earth and easy going — yet fiercely passionate about celebrating life for all it's worth, each and every day.

 

It was from a gentleman with this same spirit of "joie de vivre" whom I acquired these plans decades ago — an old Cajun pirogue builder living deep in the swamps of the Atchafalaya basin. He'd been building pirogues all his life and had cleverly adapted the plans offered here from a much older traditional cypress-planked style to make building pirogues easier by using more readily available plywood. Above all, his main objective was to retain the true shape, lines and hull flare of the original design to preserve the traditional craft's best attributes and unique performance. According to many... he successfully accomplished his goal.

 

After I purchased his plans he graciously granted me permission to do with them whatever I please, expressing his heartfelt hope I would help keep the craft's tradition alive somehow. Acknowledging and thanking him, I quickly set off and busied myself with building my very first pirogue.

 

A few years (and several pirogues) later, for fun, after freshening up his drawings a bit (the originals quite rough, as you could imagine), I ran a very small ad in an outdoors magazine and began to offer the plans to readers. Of course, this was long before the Internet even existed. With no website and only a tiny classified ad, it was difficult getting the word out, to say the least. Much later, my son, having grown up at the computer keyboard, suggested we build a website. "Ha!" I told him, "I know how to build a pirogue... but NOT a website... how do you do that?" Thankfully, my tech-savvy whiz kid quickly went to work and cranked one out. Long story short — the Cajun Secret website was born. Once up and running, it didn't take long to realize there were lots of folks out there interested in building their own pirogue. Looking back now, years later, it's satisfying to think how many we've helped realize their goal.

 

Though other sites eventually appeared and began offering plans, most online experts and old-timers readily testify Cajun Secret's plans are the most authentic. So... thank you, old Cajun master pirogue builder, wherever you are. Job well done!

 

Regrettably, far too many years have now passed for me to recall the old builder's name. I'd written it on a scrap of paper somewhere... but, oh well. Nonetheless, what I'll never forget was his deep concern about the dying art of building this beautiful little boat — his desire to preserve its colorful history and perpetuate the important role it's played in Cajun culture.

 

It makes me extremely happy to know, in a very small way, we've played a part in the pirogue's preservation. The old man would be proud that his legacy lives on.