Pram Building Class - Week 4 - February 23, 2013

This week students glued and fastened the plywood hull sides to the prams. This required a lot of precision drilling and teamwork. Next week the bottom!

Inland Seas Boat Building Program Featured in Newspaper Article

ISEA's Boat Building Program for youth was featured in today's Traverse City Record Eagle.  Read the article at http://record-eagle.com/features/x141315872/Young-boat-builders-start-from-scratch

Students and Instructors Set Up the Building Jig in the ISEA Boat Shop

Special thanks to the Collectors Foundation and Easling Construction for support of this project, which does not charge the students any fees for their participation.

The Impact of Hydraulic Fracturing - Presentation Monday at Leelanau Govt. Center

Dr. Grenetta Thomassey, Program Director at Tip of the Mitt Watershed Council will speak at the
Leelanau County Government Center Community Meeting Room Monday, October 17th, From 5:30 to 7:00 p.m.

Fruit, cheese and beverages at 5:00 p.m.

Free and open to the public

RSVP appreciated, call (231)256-9812 or email Karen at: khall@co.leelanau.mi.us

Dr. Thomassey will discuss:

 Where the millions of gallons of water used in each fracking well comes from

 What chemicals are added to the water for the fracking process

 Where the wastewater from fracking goes

Suttons Bay-Leelanau Rotary Club Partnership

The Suttons Bay-Leelanau Rotary Club and Rotary Charities of Traverse City have been supporting ISEA's Scholarship Program for Leelanau County Schools for years.  Read about it here:  http://www.rotaryannualreport.org/grant-topic/suttons-bay-rotary-club/. 

Thanks Rotarians!   --Capt. Tom

Leland Heritage Day - Sept. 17, 2011

Thanks to all ISEA Volunteers who helped with our information display and Boat Shop exhibit. 

Found on the Beach Today

Some photos taken today on the Lake Michigan beaches of Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore.  I was there with my daughter Emma while she did e-coli sampling. 

A few alewives and Cladophera near Platte River mouth

Dead sturgeon (~3.5 ft TL) near Otter Creek

Beached tour vessel Pictured Rocks south of N. Bar Lake

Looking NE from Platte River mouth

What's Blooming in the Wetland

Prairie Smoke (native to southern MI counties)

Coreopsis



Oxeye Daisy (Red Clover in background, both are exotic species)

Snapping Turtle 6-21-11

 

Storm over the wetland, June 22, 2011

There is more to see each week at the ISEA Wetland - 100 Dame Street, at the Inland Seas Education Center on the Suttons Bay waterfront. --T. Kelly

Welcome Zoe Allen-Wickler to ISEA

Zoe Allen-Wickler joined ISEA today as our Communications Intern. She will be helping us with traditional and new media, telling our many stories to the public.  Watch for her offerings in the near future. 

Big Winds on Grand Traverse Bay

 An approaching cold front brought high winds to Grand Traverse Bay yesterday.  The afternoon sail with St. Mary's of Gaylord was done with just the stays'l and reefed main.  We had a peak wind of 33 knots. 

Gaylord St. Mary Students After the Sail

When the storm finally arrived (about an hour after we docked), a big blast of wind toppled my dock box and the two porti-johns at Suttons Bay Coal Dock

Big winds continue today (June 1).  The morning trip on Inland Seas had a peak gust of 43 knots. 
- Capt. Tom

Inland Seas Annual Radio Inspection

Thanks to Lee Hepner for our Great Lakes Agreement Radio Inspection.  (we passed)

--Capt. Tom

A Snowy Day At Suttons Bay

The topmasts are up and we are ready to reave the running rigging.  However there needs to be a bit of melting first. 

Ponder the ways of April...the record high temperature is 86 degrees F, the record low is 3 degrees F.  We are 30 degrees above the record low.  So maybe this is not so bad. 

Early Spring Work on the Schooner

Allen making up a new quarter lift.

The snow covers the ground, and Suttons Bay is locked in ice, but work on the ship continued all winter.  Volunteer crew members Allen Wolfe, Bob Hagerman and Dale Whalen have been busy with refinishing brightwork and science gear, splicing new lines, and repairing the steering wheel (Dale crafted a new handle to replace one that was damaged).  Next week Capt. Remy and other volunteers will return and spring outfitting will begin in earnest.

Allen & Bob continue with splicing.

Dale stands beside the wheel with his new ash handle installed.

ISEA Boat Shop in Action

Each Saturday morning the ISEA Boat Shop is in full swing with students, parents and ISEA Volunteer Instructors building two Opti Prams and a strip planked canoe.  More photos are on ISEA's Flickr pages.

Funding for the Pram Building Class is provided by the Collectors Foundation of Traverse City.  Many Thanks!

Home Schoolers Utilize the ISEC Library and Lab



Leelanau Home Schoolers do research in the Inland Seas Education Center Library last week.

Today students collected benthic organisms and isolated several small critters (worms) to begin a permenant microscope slide collection.