Great Lakes Boatbuilding was founded in January 1986 by me ,Mike Kiefer, to build traditional small craft in wood. I built my first sailboat in high school at the age of 16 with Dad's help. I kept building small boats through college and during the 12 years I spent in the home building industry as a carpenter and licensed builder. I built a series of small sailboats for my personal use until one day a fellow looked at one of my boats and asked me if I would build him one also. I did and later decided to advertise and build a few more in the winter to sell in the spring. Within months of first advertising I was swamped with work and have been building boats full time now since 1986.

My specialty is what we call traditional small craft. I have built rowboats, sailboats, powerboats, canoes and kayaks- all in wood with the best of wood and epoxy materials for a long lasting low maintenance vessel. I have built about 250 so far of all kinds. Please look over the website at the variety of small boats we have done over the years. We have built boats for maritime museums, private owners, historical groups and Hollywood. We built 7 whitehalls for Lemony Snickes A Series of Unfortunate Events and 6 for Pirates of the Carribbean 2 & 3. Our stock boats are 8,10 and 12' rowing, and sailing dinghys and 12, 14. and 16' rowing and sailing whitehall boats. We like to build custom boats also and can quote on that special design you have in mind.

As a lifelong woodcarver I can carve nameboards for boats as well as number boards and decorations such as eagles or figureheads in the round or relief. I am also a sign maker specializing in sandblasted and carved dimensional wood signs for businesses and homeowners.

Sue and I are lifelong Great Lakes sailors, history buffs and true blue boat nuts. We own about 12 boats (all in excellent condition) between the two of us and use them all at different times of the year. Sue rows her dory frequently on the local river in the summer and we daysail on Lake Michigan out of our homeport of South Haven. We canoe and kayak the beautiful Kalamazoo River in the spring and fall and cruise the Great Lakes in our 28' Maine style lobsterboat each summer. We keep our boat Spartina in the gorgeous Les Cheneaux Islands of Upper Lake Huron. We have a private place on a remote (and secret) island for our use. We can never get enough time on the boat or Great Lakes.

We are diehard boaters and can relate to others with similar interests. So give us a call to discuss your interests in wood boats. Hopefully we can travel the journey together.