In the winter we recruit our crew. In March we watched the snow melt, rebuild, and dissipate again. Mark put finishing touches on the inside of Amicus II. In April the snow and rain continued as well as the icy winds. We watched the ice charts and Mark stole to the boat to paint or caulk every time the sun peaked through, no matter the temperatures or the wind. We launched five days before Sea Change began; crew arrived during yet another northeast gale. Once again, I thought, "Are we crazy?"
Now, sitting in Washburn Wisconsin after two full days of motor/sailing here and teaching 150 middle schoolers about plastics, invasive species, and other climate-related threats to Lake Superior, I'm reminded that we are not crazy. We just needed to thicken our skin a little bit.
This year's crew has not only proved themselves almost instantly able to live aboard a boat and herd middle schoolers, but they are a musically talented bunch. We have two fiddlers, and a piccolo and a guitar to accompany them. 3-part harmony is not out of the realm for us. The crew has created a song you will want to hear someday about the Sea Lamprey outsmarting the Niagara Falls to enter our lake system (do you know how this happened?)--one of the stories that Mark uses to rivet the attention of students on our way to climate solutions.
After this post, we will send updates mostly via Instagram (#Amicusadventuresailing) or Facebook (Amicussailing). Our blog may also get some use. Next stop is the Keweenaw Peninsula about May 9, followed by Isle Royale around May 13. We will re-emerge on the north shore of Minnesota around May 22.