Paddle to the Sea

a thoughtful web.

commentspostsbadges

Good ideas and conversation. No ads, no tracking. Login or Take a Tour!

Paddle to the Sea

Paddle to the Sea · 3

mk · 4836 days ago

video · #seafaring

I remember watching this in elementary school during library hour.

I vacation each summer on Lake Superior. This summer I began to build a small wooden sailboat on a whim.

After some time, I decided to make it a paddle-to-the-sea sailboat. I drilled a hole in the boat, and inserted a note that included my email address. I don't have great photos, but here are some:

http://i.imgur.com/Adj41.png http://i.imgur.com/R15U9.png

I waited for a good off-shore breeze, and my three-year-old nephew let the sailboat go. Unfortunately, the breeze proved too much for the boat, and after getting a few hundred yards out, it overturned.

Next year I have plans to build another, more sophisticated sailboat.

A few years ago, some Tibetan monks came to the Detroit Institute of Arts to make a sand drawing. They spent a week slowly making an image out of colored sand on the floor. The then swept it up and dumped it in the Detroit River. I think there is an element of that to paddle-to-the-sea boats.

Part 2: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dEQO87AF0S0&NR=1

Part 3: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KiRGBvd7E3o&NR=1

Looking for this video, I was happy to find that an elementary school class in Muskegon MI makes PTTS canoes.

http://www.muskegon.k12.mi.us/schools/mclaughlin/Teachers/ms...

tweet · print · htmlmarkup tips · 0

thenewgreen · 4835 days ago · link ·

This post unlocked all sorts of gems. Did you watch the "Voyage of the Mimi" when you were a kid? Not nearly as good/beautiful as "PTTS" but still a lost memory of mine. Didn't realize the kid in it was Ben Affleck? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3jlafGAWYnA

+discuss+discuss

–

mk · 4835 days ago · link ·

I never did. I guess I will now!

+discuss+discuss

thenewgreen · 4835 days ago · link ·

Thank you mk for posting this video. I watched this as a child too but I had all but forgotten it. I realize now how much of an impact it had on me. It's funny that as we age we can forget some of the most influential things. -We are left with the change they instill in us but can't recall the "changes" origin. The scene with "Paddle" in the glare from the wild fire specifically resonates.

I look forward to the day when my daughter is old enough to construct a PTTS canoe with me, it's a worthwhile life lesson.

Wonderful stuff!