Here is my two cents, I don't really like full length strips, I found them to be unwieldy, and I like the look of the butt joints. I am in louisiana, it is very hard to get cedar here as well, so I went with cypress. The boat is not finished yet, but with a layer of glass on it the cypress looks really good, it is an idea if you can't find clear cedar.
As for the ratios of strips per hull v. strips on the deck I'm not sure, other than there are a lot more strips on the hull.
: Hi guys,

: Some of you may remember me from some years ago when I built a
: S&G canoe. I recently ordered plans from Redfish for a
: Golden and am gearing up to start. Getting my stations cut out
: and set up etc.

: Have a couple questions on strips. I want to build with full length
: strips but realize that I probably don't need ALL of the strips
: to be 18' long. I'm guessing that the middle strips on the
: bottom can be shorter, is that right? Any ideas on what lengths
: and how many I can get away with? It's tough to get WRC that
: long in NC and they have a fair amount of 16' boards - only a
: few 20'.

: Also, and this is the more significant question, I'm trying to
: rough out a design in my mind and don't know what percentage of
: the total strips (70-75 per Joe) are hull versus deck. My guess
: would be 40/60 deck to hull ratio?

: I've watched you all build gorgeous strippers over the years and
: I'm excited to finally join in!

: Patsy