A Kurylko Alaska at Death's Door

[sp_clark]

And yet, in his papers, there is at least one remark about how he did not like the idea of the workers on his estate having a 30-minute lunch break.

https://washingtonisland.com/chester...n-rock-island/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chester_Thordarson

https://doorcountypulse.com/faces-of-the-past/

https://peoplepill.com/people/chester-thordarson

Different age his.

You could get away with all kinds of things that are frowned upon now.

Pretty widespread too, his friend T. A. Edison wasn't a saint.

[sandtown]

As is the fresh water, meaning you can carry a backpacking filter instead of gallons and gallons of drinking water. Tom

Good on ya, but you durst not try that trick on Lake Erie !!

But come on down here for a sail sometime - serious offer.

I hope your Polish sojourn is going well.

Love those pics . . .

And say, hmmmm, the Vets For Peace navy Golden Rule could use a person of your caliber . . .

[WI-Tom]

Good on ya, but you durst not try that trick on Lake Erie !!

But come on down here for a sail sometime - serious offer.

I hope your Polish sojourn is going well.

Love those pics . . .

And say, hmmmm, the Vets For Peace navy Golden Rule could use a person of your caliber . . .

Thanks--I appreciate the invitation. Seems like my ambitions always point me farther north, not south, when I have long chunks of time.

The Golden Rule has been on my radar for a while now, but I haven't ever looked into it too seriously yet. I think my outlook probably fits nicely with a group like Veterans for Peace.

Tom

[sp_clark]

Seems like my ambitions always point me farther north, not south, when I have long chunks of time.

Lotta wattah waiting for yah' up that way Tom -

NORTH!.png

(if, when) you get back this side of the big'un between us.

[Bruce Bateau]

Great story, Tom!

This very well described and depicted boathouse sends my mind down familiar thoughts on the uneven distribution of wealth. Specifically, I think about how much I'd like it if wealth were unequally distributed to me so that I could own such a place for myself. I'm a simple man: just a little something like that nestled into my own private island is all I'd need to be happy.
That's mostly kidding. More generally I find that my actual ideals - which I suspect might overlap with some of yours - are more challenged by the follies and baubles I respect than they are by the even-more-expensive follies and bobbles I disdain. It's easy to judge a $100 M purchase of some penthouse I'd never want for myself. It's harder for me to say that a temple like that boathouse should never have been built even if it was intended for the private use of some scrooge. That place must have cost a few multiples of what a teacher will earn in their entire lifetime. Ask me in the abstract, and I'd say the money could have been much better used on people. And yet a part of me is glad to live in a world where craft is applied to build places and art like that. Places that could never be built with one person's "fair share" of the world's worth.
In practice it's not really much of a challenge - we are a long, long way from the problems equality would create! It still gives me pause sometimes. I'm glad that this particular folly is now a park.

Thanks for showing us a part of the world I didn't know anything about and for doing so in great style.

James

James,

thanks for the comment. It echoes a lot of my own thinking. One of the main reasons I love Rock Island is that narrative arc, from millionaire's private playground to public state park. What remains of the estate are cool old stone buildings and towers, and now everyone gets to enjoy them.

I don't know exactly what to make of Thordarson. An Icelandic immigrant, he never went beyond a grade school education formally, and started out very poor (I think as a young boy with his family, he walked from Chicago to Minnesota). A genuine rags-to-riches story, pretty much. And he (or his estate) donated his private library to (I think) the University of Wisconsin--mostly very rare books on botany--he was a serious amateur scientist, and experimented with using electricity to grow crops. And yet, in his papers, there is at least one remark about how he did not like the idea of the workers on his estate having a 30-minute lunch break.

But I am glad the boathouse exists. And also think there could have been better ways to use the money it cost.

Tom

Tom, this is a good story, well told. I agree with Alex that your shot in the stone boathouse is definitely one of the great sail & oar shots of all time. Nicely done.

James' thoughts above send me on a long idea train about living in a reasonable world versus the one we live in. In terms of boats, I really appreciate how much water is a part of the life of Dutch people. This scene from a town near Amsterdam comes to mind:

These I'm sure aren't cheap houses, but they aren't mansions either. Many people have a boat; access to water is easy everywhere and is treated as a normal activity. I love the traditional boat being worked on in the yard to the left.

Thinking about redistributing things to the lowest income people of the world is laudable and likely unrealistic. In our society I'm always heartened by sharing places such as liveries (ex: Seattle's Center for Wooden Boats), community tool libraries, and libraries in general... I remember a Dutch lady telling me how in the Netherlands they do what's best for most of the people, unlike the US where the rights of the individual seem to trump the broader good...

Anyhow, I won't ruin the escape of sailing to a nice island with further philosophical rants. Here's an inspiring scene from a community rowing club on the Thames from that same trip.


Happy boating people.

[sandtown]

The Golden Rule has been on my radar for a while now, but I haven't ever looked into it too seriously yet.

Well, truthfully, now it is mostly motoring the Intercoastal (she's now doing the Great Loop, and heading back from Cuba), and public speaking, .. .

but it is still very rewarding.

As I sign my letters . . . PAX & Fair Winds

[WI-Tom]

Well, Small Craft Advisor's new online platform just posted my article about this Death's Door trip in case anyone's interested in a more text-heavy version. No new information, but lots more writing!

Cheers,

Tom

[AJZimm]

Well, Small Craft Advisor's new online platform just posted my article about this Death's Door trip in case anyone's interested in a more text-heavy version. No new information, but lots more writing!

Cheers,

Tom

Saw it read it. Great article!
Thanks.

[WI-Tom]

Saw it read it. Great article!
Thanks.

Thanks, Alex--I appreciate the comment. It was interesting to try to write such a long piece about a long sailing day in super-light winds where not much really happened. One of the persistent realities of this kind of travelling, though, so we probably need some pieces like that written.

Tom

[AJBTC]

Thanks, Alex--I appreciate the comment. It was interesting to try to write such a long piece about a long sailing day in super-light winds where not much really happened. One of the persistent realities of this kind of travelling, though, so we probably need some pieces like that written.

Tom

Well, you're a great writer so you can make the mundane interesting.

And your articles, to me, serve the purpose of reminding us that there is adventure waiting for us all around us. Even in the midwest. Even when the winds are light. You inspire us to get out there and try it, and that even small adventures are worth having. Thanks!

[dalekidd]

Great report! Thanks for sharing. Looking forward to putting my new CIY 16 to work. BTW: 2 of the links above are the same. I'd hate to miss the third report.

[WI-Tom]

Well, you're a great writer so you can make the mundane interesting.

And your articles, to me, serve the purpose of reminding us that there is adventure waiting for us all around us. Even in the midwest. Even when the winds are light. You inspire us to get out there and try it, and that even small adventures are worth having. Thanks!

Thanks for the nice comment--that's exactly the spirit that I hope comes through with these threads. My only "expertise" to offer is, maybe, what kinds of interesting boat journeys and explorations are possible to non-experts.

Tom

[WI-Tom]

Great report! Thanks for sharing. Looking forward to putting my new CIY 16 to work. BTW: 2 of the links above are the same. I'd hate to miss the third report.

Dale,

the CIY is a great boat! I've watched your build thread with lots of interest, and am looking forward to what kind of adventures you might share with us. I had the good fortune of reviewing the prototype for Small Boats, which involved the generous loan of the first-ever CIY for a 10-mile sail across the tip of Lake Superior. Stronger sailing abilities, a little less pleasant to row, with a mizzen that will be very very handy to have.

And thanks for the note about the links. I found the one that was missing and fixed that post. It was THIS TRIP to Wisconsin's Willow Flowage, I think, that I meant to put in there.

Cheers,

Tom

[dalekidd]

Dale,

the CIY is a great boat! I've watched your build thread with lots of interest, and am looking forward to what kind of adventures you might share with us. I had the good fortune of reviewing the prototype for Small Boats, which involved the generous loan of the first-ever CIY for a 10-mile sail across the tip of Lake Superior. Stronger sailing abilities, a little less pleasant to row, with a mizzen that will be very very handy to have.

And thanks for the note about the links. I found the one that was missing and fixed that post. It was THIS TRIP to Wisconsin's Willow Flowage, I think, that I meant to put in there.

Cheers,

Tom

Glad you followed along and thanks for the updated link. I did read your article in SBM. I even talked to Jim about his boat, particularly his shortened mast. I doubt I'll take the trips you've taken, but hopefully I'll have some things to share as time moves along.