Kaep is a traditional type of double-ended

Proa Proas are various types of multi-hull outrigger sailboats of the Austronesian peoples. The terms were used for native Austronesian ships in European records during the Colonial era indiscriminately, and thus can confusingly refer to the do ...

sailboat A sailboat or sailing boat is a boat propelled partly or entirely by sails and is smaller than a sailing ship. Distinctions in what constitutes a sailing boat and ship vary by region and maritime culture. Types Although sailboat terminology ...

native to

Palau Palau,, officially the Republic of Palau and historically ''Belau'', ''Palaos'' or ''Pelew'', is an island country and microstate in the western Pacific. The nation has approximately 340 islands and connects the western chain of the Caro ...

. Some of the essential design elements have also been adopted as a modern smaller multihull prototype variant.

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The

Pacific Ocean The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean (or, depending on definition, to Antarctica) in the south, and is bounded by the continen ...

and particularly

Micronesia Micronesia (, ) is a subregion of Oceania, consisting of about 2,000 small islands in the western Pacific Ocean. It has a close shared cultural history with three other island regions: the Philippines to the west, Polynesia to the east, and ...

gave birth to many different forms of simple sailing craft. Sail plan and hull form differ. Sail plans may include lateen, also known as crab-claw or half-crab-claw, Latin, or triangular. Hull formats include catamarans, doubles, proa, and singles. Presence of a beam spanning a double hull is optional. Likewise, hull end forms and shapes vary greatly. Masts for these type of sailboats can be made with one or two poles. The vessels may be made by hollowing out tree trunks, or may be assembled from planking. Other design considerations include the intended use of the vessel, for fishing, sea voyages or war, and whether they are to be used in sheltered lagoons or in the open sea. Additionally, there is an important and fundamental dividing line between two design types. Some vessels "shunt", that is they change course direction by using the opposite pole of a two pole mast then sailing in the opposite direction (the "

Pushmi-pullyu This is a list of characters from the ''Doctor Dolittle'' series of children's books by Hugh Lofting and movies based on them. Most of the characters were introduced in the first book, the 1920 novel ''The Story of Doctor Dolittle''. Humans Docto ...

" of the sailing world). Others use a tacking rig, a design that is similar to sloop rigged boats found worldwide.

History

Developed in Palau and used for centuries, the kaep was built from tree logs. A keel carved to a knife's edge was combined with a deep bow, giving it the ability to function in severe adverse weather, wind and waves. Sailors would crowd aft, lifting the bow out of the water, and increasing hull speed. It was used to fish, race and trade. It is a very fast craft. The kaep lacks a

rudder A rudder is a primary control surface used to steer a ship, boat, submarine, hovercraft, aircraft, or other vehicle that moves through a fluid medium (generally aircraft, air or watercraft, water). On an aircraft the rudder is used primarily to ...

. Instead it has a "crab claw" sail, and is further controlled by the skillful use of fore and aft trim moving the boat's balance point, that is the center of resistance relative to the center of effort to control her heading. This is essentially like a

wind surfer Windsurfing is a wind propelled water sport that is a combination of sailing and surfing. It is also referred to as "sailboarding" and "boardsailing", and emerged in the late 1960s from the aerospace and surf culture of California. Windsurfing g ...

. See

Sail twist Sail twist is a phenomenon in sailing where the head of the sail is at a different angle of incidence from the foot of the sail in order to change the lift distribution with height. Twist is measured by comparing the angle of a straight line betwe ...

. A traditional kaep is double-ended with a reversible or pivoted (swiveling) mast, so that it can be sailed in either direction. A traditional kaep has an average hull in length, in width, and maximum height of . The kaep has been the subject of

commemorative postage stamps A commemorative stamp is a postage stamp, often issued on a significant date such as an anniversary, to honor or commemorate a place, event, person, or object. The ''subject'' of the commemorative stamp is usually spelled out in print, unlike defi ...

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History

See also

References

Notes

Citations

External links