Wed. May 11, 2011 - Rained Out in the Morning

This is why we cancelled our programs this morning.  Lots of rain and lightning!

GT Academy students get an on-shore lesson in the Great Lakes food web from Fred Utting.
GT Academy will sail with us on June 10. 
We will also try to reschedule TC West 6th Grade who were scheduled on Manitou this morning.

May 3rd Schoolship: Platte River Elementary (1st Day of 2011 Season)

Brrr, a cold day on the lake.  But a beautiful day, and we had a great time with the 6th graders from Platte River Elementary. 

Ready to measure the Secchi Disk depth (water transparency).  We recorded an amazing 18 meters.  Twenty years ago we were getting 6 - 8 meters.

May 5th, 2011 Schoolship with Lake Leelanau St. Mary's

St. Mary's Students Steer the Schooner

Checking out the Benthos (life on the lake bottom)

May 9, 2011 Schoolship with Platte River 6th Grade

Lots of Chara in the trawl, plus suckers, gobies, minnows, rock bass.

Mackerel scales and mare's tails make lofty ships carry low sails

Well that's the saying, but fortunately we did not have to shorten sail this week.  Just a little rain on Friday.  Technically these are Cirrus uncinus, found above 26,000 ft.  They are composed of ice crystals.  And they are beautiful.  Photo taken from the Schoolship Inland Seas, May 4, 2011. 

Inland Seas' Crew Completes CPR & AED Course

Thanks to Janice Lemak RN of the Leelanau Urgent Care for guiding our crew through the CPR and AED class.  All ISEA sailing crew have this certification. 

Inland Seas' Crew Members Practice CPR on Manikins, May 4, 2010

Saving the Great Lakes Forever” Conference kicks off May 6

People from around the entire Great Lake Basin will be gathering for the 2011 Conference “Saving the Great Lakes Forever” which kicks off on Friday, May 6, at 6:50 p.m. at the historic State Theater in downtown Traverse City.

Hosted by the Flow for Water Coalition, the Great Lakes Water Studies Institute at Northwestern Michigan College and Michigan Citizens for Water Conservation, the conference will focus on learning about the abuses and threats facing the Great Lakes. The conference will also provide solutions to stop these threats and to protect the citizens, communities, local agriculture, and businesses who depend upon the waters of the Great Lakes Basin.

Friday night's kick-off will feature a presentation by Maude Barlow, internationally recognized water advocate and former Senior Advisor to the President of the United Nations General Assembly. Ms. Barlow is the author of 16 books. Her address will offer a unique perspective on how each of us living within the Great Lakes Basin need to come together to protect the waters of the Great Lakes.

A screening of the award winning documentary “Tapped”, an unflinching look at the plastic bottled water industry, will follow Ms. Barlow's presentation and the evening will conclude with an afterglow party in the “Dome” at the Park Place Hotel for networking, live music, and refreshments.

The conference continues on Saturday, May 7, at Milliken Auditorium and Scholar Hall on the campus of Northwestern Michigan College. Registration opens at 8:00 a.m. Welcome and introductions begin at 8:45 a.m.

Wenonah Hauter, Executive Director of Food and Water Watch and one of the world's leading experts on water, energy, food and the environment, will speak at 9:00 a.m. Her address will be followed by breakout workshop sessions on a variety of water-related hot topics. The event will conclude with an expert roundtable discussion: Solutions for Saving the Waters of the Great Lakes Basin.

Tickets are $25 per person for the 2-day event or $40 for two.

Tickets can be purchased on-line at http://www.flowforwater.org./