Carl Barks was always fascinated by the sea. Maybe it was because he was raised on a farm a long way from large bodies of water, or maybe he had the same urge as we all have - to just sit at the ocean side and dream of all the exciting places that lie beyond the mysterious horizon. Anyway, many times Barks declared his love for the vast oceans. One of his favourite motifs in the comics were unruly, salty waves. In fact, most of the adventure stories sprung from a desire to draw a specific locale - a forest, a cave, a sea, or whatever. Then Barks evolved a story around the theme.

From the very first duck story (FC0009 Pirate Gold) Barks took great care in drawing boats correctly. He dove into the Disney Studio's library in order to make Black Pete's boat Black Mariah as authentic looking as possible, and later on he frequently consulted his National Geographic magazines when he - among others - had to draw Spanish galleons. The one seen in U$07 'The Seven Cities of Cibola' is actually a rendering of the British explorer Sir Francis Drake's ship Golden Hind.

Most of the boats Barks drew in his panels served simply as transportation devices with no other purpose than getting the ducks to and fro exotic adventures. They are not mentioned here. The ones included - and they are examples only - are those that played a more significant role in the stories.

THE WORK BOATS
WDCS097 Donald and the nephews try to earn a living by diving for pearls from their boat.	WDCS104 Donald has a salvage boat from which they fish scrap up from the sea bottom.			WDCS247 The Madcap Mariner Donald is captain on Scrooge's fishing schooner in a race to win a prize.

THE MERCHANT BOATS
FC0495 Two centuries ago a frigate with its cargo of horse-radish is lost at sea, and now Scrooge has to find it.	U$23 The Strange Ship-Wrecks Scrooge's gold-laden ships are mysteriously wrecked. Donald and the nephews are looking into the matter...			U$27 His Handy Andy Scrooge participates with his special boat in a yacht race - not as a competitor but as a valuable helping hand.

THE RACE BOATS
U$11 The Great Steamboat Race Scrooge participates in a steamboat race on the Mississippi River in which two river captains are fighting over a prize - a Southern mansion.	WDCS255 Boat Buster Whose gasoline is the most powerful - Scrooge's or John D. Rockerduck's? The fuels are tested in motor boats with Donald as Scrooge's driver.			U$GTD Scrooge and captain Beagle own wheel paddle wheelers on the Mississippi River and a contest between them shall decide who gets a certain job.

THE SPECIAL BOATS
U$21 The Money Well Scrooge attempts to transport his money out of the reach of the Beagle Boys by using a fleet of barges.	U$35 The Golden Nugget Boat Scrooge and Gladstone are competing at a prospectors' contest. Scrooge is able to make a boat out of pure gold...			U$70 The Doom Diamond Scrooge and the Beagle Boys are viciously battling each other in their specially constructed boats.

THE U-BOATS
FC0108 The Terror of the River A madman has invented a submarine which he masks as a sea serpent in order to scare people.	WDCS172 Scrooge forces Donald and the nephews on a trip in his submarine to find a sunken treasure. On Christmas Eve!			U$31 Gyro is hired to catch some thieves in the river, but Little Helper saves the day in his miniature submarine!

THE OMINOUS BOATS
FC0009 Pirate Gold Donald and the nephews sail out to find a hidden treasure. But they are onboard Black Pete's ship...	WDCS283 Capt. Blight's Mystery Ship Donald and the nephews are shanghaied and forced to serve as crew members on a dubious ship.			U$25 The Flying Dutchman Scrooge goes hunting for a mysterious gold-laden ship which is sailing without a crew...

THE TREASURE MAP BOATS
FC0256 Luck of the North A fake treasure map brings Donald and Gladstone to Alaska where they find an old Viking ship.	FC0408 The Golden Helmet Donald finds an old treasure map hidden onboard an ancient Viking ship. Soon he is off...			U$26 The Prize of Pizarro Scrooge finds an old letter - which is really a treasure map - onboard an ancient Spanish galleon.

BONUS
Barks spent the last fourth of his life painting. In this medium, too, his fascination with the sea and its boats often shines through. Here are some examples of Barks' maritime motifs from his duck world.
01/1971	39/1972			73/1974