On Saturday, I appeared on KLBB's Stan Turner radio program, discussing shipwrecks on Lake Superior with diver Stephen Daniels. Thhis time of the year, the Big Lake is too weatherly for small boaters including myself and now is when The Witches of November come calling. On Nov 10 just 33 years ago, Superior took down the Edmund Fitzgerald. About 50 years ago, the day before Thanksgiving, an old man survived an ice-filled day and night attempting to rescue a fellow boater. Daniels told me he planned to SCUBA dive into December. "The surface temperatures are about the same year around," he said. Read More
BREE'S BLOG: In The Wake of the Fitzgerald
Last hours of the Big Fitz
November 10, 2008
Today is the day 33 years ago that the Edmund Fitzgerald -- the Titanic of the Great Lakes -- went down on Lake Superior with a loss of all hands. Over the years, I've compiled a mass of information on this great boat's sinking and interviewed some of the men who were out on the lake and in contact with the Fitgerald.
In my book, Broken Seas: True Tales of Extraordinary Seafaring Adventures, I sum it all up by recreating the last hours of the ship and its crew in my chapter, "The Last Race of the Edmund Fitzgerald: The crew of the 'Big Fitz' battle it out to the last."In a nutshell, the Fitz hit Six Fathom Shoals off Caribou Island and became a slowly sinking vessel. She sank only 17 miles from safety, Whitefish point. Read More
In my book, Broken Seas: True Tales of Extraordinary Seafaring Adventures, I sum it all up by recreating the last hours of the ship and its crew in my chapter, "The Last Race of the Edmund Fitzgerald: The crew of the 'Big Fitz' battle it out to the last."In a nutshell, the Fitz hit Six Fathom Shoals off Caribou Island and became a slowly sinking vessel. She sank only 17 miles from safety, Whitefish point. Read More
Back to work
November 7, 2008
Lots of people are writing to congratulate me about the winning entry in the BWI contest. Someone, heh heh, suggested that since I have won the grand prize twice (2004 and again in 2008) I ought to quit and let somebody else make some money. I am thinking about that, but not too hard.
Surprise! Top writing award
November 3, 2008
The Ft. Lauderdale International Boat Show was a special treat, both for me to see all those megaboats, to take part in a boating lifestyle to which I never will be accustomed, and, especially to receive the kudos of my fellow journalist in BWI. This I could get accusomed to. During a formal presentation, I got the top boating award BWI gives to a boating writer: the West Marine Writer's Award. This was for an Ensign magazine story from a book chapter in Broken Seas. The story fascinated me since it was set on Lake Superior where I sailed Persistence so often. (See PDF to get the full magazine story)After the award, I walked the sandy beaches in the 80-degree tropical breezes. Ah, beautiful old Ft. Lauderdale. Later on, after walking the docks of the extraordinary boat show, I came across the rum barge with a steel band playing music and I discovered the Rum Runner, with a Floater! I floated off the barge. Maybe even in time with the music. Who knows? Read More
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Off to a boat show
October 29, 2008
I'm off to see the Ft. Lauderdale International Boat show over this weekend -- and it's the second time I'll be there. It is an awesome sight to fly over beautiful old Ft. Lauderdale and to see all the boats in the water, gleaming white. No wonder the show lays claim to being the world's largest boat show. There will be lots to see.
While at the show I'll be attending the Boating Writers International meeting at the Bahia Mar marina. Read More
While at the show I'll be attending the Boating Writers International meeting at the Bahia Mar marina. Read More
Boat is at rest
October 26, 2008
Persistence is now hibernating at the Minnesota State Fairgrounds in the Education building and will remain there through the long, snowy months ahead. After a number of years of letting the 20-foot epoxy-wood sloop sit outside during the ice and snow, and witnessing the destruction that moisture can do to a wooden boat, I finally decided to store the boat indoors and away from all the snow and ice. The storage is not that expensive $225 and all I do is drop off the boat on her trailer and the State Fair people get their electric mules and haul the little craft into the safety of the indoor storage. Next spring, I'll get a message when the boat is coming out of storge and I'll just drive over -- it's about 20 minutes from my home in Shoreview, MN -- and hitch it up to the hitch on my 1992 Suzuki Sidekick. Read More