Thor with surprise Christmas table.

Washington Island, Wisconsin -

Tomorrow, December 30, will mark one month since my bilateral (double) knee replacement surgery.

I have to be honest in saying it hasn't been easy.  On the other hand, as time advances, and my mobility improves, and the discomfort lessens, I've come to think it was the right decision to do both knees at once, if for no other reason than I might never have the courage to do the second one a year or two down the road.   At this point, my daily stamina, mobility, and my ability to concentrate has increased to the point where I can at least think about doing a blog.

This Christmas we had the ultimate of surprises.   Our youngest son, Thor, brought with him sections of a table he created in his spare time, fulfilling Mary Jo's wish to have a table large enough to seat all of our family at one time (11).   Thor has been working on this on and off for at least several years, and we were led to believe it still wasn't quite ready.  However, a few minutes past midnight of Christmas day, when I couldn't sleep, I wandered in to the living room to find Thor assembling the various pieces of his table.   I was too excited, and impressed by his workmanship, to go back to bed without waking Mary Jo first.   We have no lack of pride in saying Thor has designed (all in his head) and executed a woodworking masterpiece, and already it's seen service for meals, card games and other family activities.

Grandsons Magnus and Aidan play cards.

The quality of construction is of the same high standard Van Dam Woodcraft is known for in its boats.  If you go to their website you will also find a large corporate table custom built by Van Dam (and on which Thor also had a major part).    But our table we think is quite unique, and therefore it deserves mention and description here.

Ends slide back simultaneously, smoothly,
revealing the center section beneath.

The basic dimensions were to be approximately 4 feet x 10 feet.   Thor created a mid-section using German hardware and a butterfly-like section that opens from underneath the table as the top halves are pulled aside.  The mechanism works like butter, smooth and with just the right clearances.   Aside from the key mid-section hardware and slide, however, the rest of the metal pieces were fabricated by Thor or friend Jess Brown, Van Dam's metal craftsman.

The four-foot mid-section features two inlays of reconstituted, colored  stone set in circles of curly maple, the image of a green tree frog.  (Based on a second place photo that I entered in the Peninsula Pulse photo contest several years ago.)   The main wood used on the table top is a veneer of island butternut, timber that was cut, sawn and stored over 30 years ago in our barn on Main Road.    The original plank was slightly over 10-ft, with several splits and a tremendous amount of worm holes.  The splits and worm holes were filled first with epoxy before Thor sliced it into 3/8 veneer, then fastened it to a stable backing of 1" foam insulation sandwiched between 1/4" marine plywood, a light but firm backing.   The edging is sipa, a wood closely related to mahogany.   The table top was finished with at least four clear coats of an automotive finish, impervious to moisture and nearly all liquids (although subject to hot temperatures) for a very smooth, shiny and durable top.   The skill of Van Dam's Trevor, who traded his time with Thor and who does nearly all finishing of Van Dam's watercraft products, is greatly appreciated.  It is an outstanding, smooth gloss finish.  The legs and underside has a satin finish.  The end product does resemble, in both size and quality, a corporate boardroom table.

The table underside also reveals a high
degree of finish craftsmanship.

With my recovery still ongoing, and my inability to get out to visit, we've enjoyed more than ever the visits to our home of grandsons, our children and their families, and occasional guests.  This table will enable many enjoyable hours with friends and family in the future.

Two other notes:   Have you seen the Van Dam name on the recent Craftsman tool ads on television?   The shop was closed for one day (rented out) when Craftsman's marketing people created the ad.  Ben Van Dam, company vice president, is featured in the ad, along with a very quick shot of Jess Brown, metal craftsman.   (Practically all of the Van Dam product line is of finely crafted wood, with only an occasional carbon fiber or other material called out by the owner.)

One of two mid-section tree frog
inlay designs, cut from colored sheets of
reconstituted minerals.  The frog's eyes
glow in the dark.

Second, a new project is now underway, an unusual Chesapeake Sandbagger sailboat to be built along traditional sandbagger lines using the Van Dam cold molded method for light, strong construction.

Sandbagers were working sail craft used to dredge oysters originally in the 1800s, that evolved into gentlemen's racers.  They are beamy but of shallow draft, with a huge, unreal amount of canvass.  To counter act the forces of wind on heeling, 50 lb. sand bags were slung out on hiking boards by the fishermen as they raced one another back to port, hence the name.  

Eventually, as racing became a popular pastime, human ballast replaced, or was added to, the sand bags.   In one photo I've seen, five crew each on two planks can be seen hiking out, well overboard, to keep the vessel at proper heel.

An incredible and highly unusual craft, this latest Van Dam project will be built for an east coast owner with delivery by early summer.  Thor has been given the opportunity to head up this project.   You may find progress photos soon posted along with many other Van Dam projects, past and present, at VanDamWoodcraft.com

A short history of the sandbagger can be found on the Mystic Seaport website: http://www.mysticseaport.org/locations/vessels/annie/

-  Dick Purinton

INITIAL PLUM ISLAND OPENING REPORT

Thor Purinton and friends visited Plum Island Saturday, August 16,
on the first of two special days when the public was welcomed
to visit and hike trails.  Shown near the forward range light, L to R:
Dr. John Buckley and his wife, Susan, of Tuscaloosa, Alabama;
Jamie Kornacker, Charlevoix; and Jess Brown, a Van Dam Woodcraft
craftsman who works with Thor in the Boyne City,
Michigan, boat shop.  (photo by Thor)

Plum Island, Death's Door, Wisconsin -

When they returned from their trip on the "family yacht" Moby Dick from Plum Island last Saturday, August 16, I asked youngest son, Thor, how it went.  "Terrific!  We had a great time."

This comes from Thor, who's been on Plum Island numerous times in years past, hiking, hunting, and swimming along a southern beach.  But that was during BLM ownership, after the Coast Guard moved their search and rescue operations to Washington Island, and prior to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) taking over and closing down the island to visitors.   In recent years, unless you had specific permission, such as research or as a work party member under Friends of Plum and Pilot Islands (FOPPI), partner with USFWS, you were not welcome to set foot on the Plum Island shores.

This is about to change, although in a carefully controlled way, starting with two special visitation Saturdays, August 16 and August 23.   One hitch for potential visitors, at least on day one, was that you needed your own watercraft for transportation.

Returning to the old Coast Guard station, near
boathouse and pier.  All structures, except the boathouse which has
already had a once-over,
await major repairs and restoration. 

Plum Island's first official guests for day one included Thor and friends who visited from Alabama and the Boyne City/Charlevoix area.  Dr. John Buckley and Susan are frequent travelers to the Van Dam workshop where they built a beautiful boat several years back, Susan C, and they're now partway along on their second project, Victoria Z.  Through the process of designing and building and observing, sometimes hands-on with suggested changes in details, they've become very close to the Van Dam craftsmen in what seems to be both an extraordinary and respectful relationship.  This past weekend the Buckleys traveled a long way to join Thor, Jess and Jamie on Washington Island, visiting Plum and Rock Islands also during their stay.

Thor's group was greeted near the boathouse by FOPPI president and volunteer, Tim Sweet, and two USFWS personnel who gave them a basic introduction that included a trail map and a sheet of guidelines, as follows:

  *  Refuge open during daylight hours only
  *  Foot travel only on the island
  *  Access for wildlife observation/photography hiking are limited to the established hiking trails
  *  Boats are required to moor at boathouse; dock space available on first-dome-first-served basis
  *  Kayaks / canoes must use designated launch / landing areas
  *  Dogs are welcome but must be leashed
  *  fishing from the dock and beach not allowed
  *  NOT PERMITTED on the refuge:  collection of plants, berries, seeds, mushrooms, rocks, fossils, lantern, or other artifacts; fireworks; camping; campfires; geocaches

Those restrictions aside, several fine options are available in hiking trails, the longest one being the Island View Trail (3 miles) that loops the island, more or less paralleling the beach.

From my own past experiences there, both in hunting and searching out trees with Roy and Charlotte Lukes, crossing the interior on any route other than a maintained trail would not be advisable anyway, under any circumstances, due to wind fallen trees, nettle plants that are six feet tall, and a parsnip plant that can deliver a nasty chemical burn.  From the maintained trails you will have ample opportunity to see Plum Island's varied shoreline and habitat, amazing for such a small island.   In addition, there are the several, interesting former government lighthouse and life saving structures found there.

It is for this second reason many will want to visit Plum Island and absorb the rich and fascinating maritime history of the Death's Door area, with Plum Island at the center of that activity.   The opportunity to view the range light structures up close, along with the old, original Death's Door 1849 lighthouse remains, is reason enough to visit Plum Island.  This old foundation was recently examined by archeologists, and their future reports will help to fill in blanks regarding this early Plum Island navigational aid.

Tomorrow, Saturday, August 23, will be day #2 for public visitation, coinciding with the Death's Door BBQ competition taking place on Washington Island's airport grounds.

-  Dick Purinton

ACROSS THE LAKE and OVER THE TOP

Worker on Badger fantail assists 
truck's driver by manipulating
rear unit with remote to 
guide turbine tower section.

Manitowoc to Ludington, Boyne City, Petosky and  home...

This past weekend, Island dentist Tom Wilson and I took what is becoming our annual weekend jaunt to Michigan.  We decided rather than touring the Upper Peninsula, this might be a good time to ride the mighty SS Badger across the lake.

Having written about the Badger in this blog column earlier this spring, and knowing her days could be numbered regarding its coal-fired steam engine propulsion, this would be one of those "do it now before it's too late" experiences.

We were not disappointed, in part because of the company we met along the way, and also the treatment while on board that allowed us to see normally off-limits areas of the vessel, courtesy of Captain Jeffery Curtis.

A new direction to engineer the Badger's management of coal ash by-product while underway came as a complete surprise to me when I asked Captain Curtis about the Badger's future.

With its current two-year EPA permit to continue operations using traditional coal-fired boilers, the practice of sluicing coal ash by-product overboard as the ship is underway must be remedied.  Dumping anything "foreign" into lake waters goes against most parameters (although major cities are exempted from dumping millions of gallons of sewage annually).  Ash dumping has been a major contention of Badger detractors, even though the coal ash analysis results have proven them to be largely inert and quite harmless to the environment.  Nevertheless, ship management practices, in order to continue operations into the future, will require a new and different solution acceptable to EPA discharge mandates within that 2-year time frame.  Like others, I had assumed the Badger's new direction might be toward the use of natural gas, rather than coal.  Natural gas, I had believed, would allow the continued use the existing steam plant machinery with small modifications.

Mixed traffic on the Badger's main vehicle deck ranged
from Harley Davidsons to 100-ft.+ tractor trailer unite.

This revelation came, however, when we were told by the Badger's captain that onboard containment of the coal ash was the route currently being explored.  This would mean storage of perhaps several tons of ash from a day's running time, until the vessel moored in the evening and the ash could be off-loaded to waiting trucks or tankers.  The ashes are hot when discharged from the fire box and need to be cooled, stored, and then removed by pumps or an enclosed conveyor from the ship.

We began to see the sense in doing it this way because a minimum of re-engineering would need to be done to the power plant itself.  Coast Guard approvals for such a solution are another matter, but those approvals might more easily be obtained than pursuit of new and more flammable natural gas fuel.  Natural gas has great benefits as a clean and relatively cheap fuel, but regulatory approval still seems a distance in the future.  (See attached footnote regarding natural gas future aboard U. S. domestic shipping.)

Away we go

We were excited to board the Badger, along with Ed Graf of Washington Island whom we coincidentally met in the ticket office lobby after we drove up to the Manitowoc queue.   Besides autos and motorcycles, tower sections for wind turbines that were mounted on long, extended semi trailers waited to be backed on.   These units had an extra set of independently operated steering axles to support and guide the over-sized turbine loads.

Capt. Jeffery Curtis and Ed Graf,
 with Tom Wilson, in engine room.

Of course, that is the beauty of using the Badger service as a short-cut across the lake.  Those turbine tower pieces were manufactured just a few blocks up the street, at the old Mirro Aluminum plant, and they're so big they are nearly impossible to maneuver through or around Chicago.  The Badger, however, loads them effortlessly.  We read where approximately 300 towers are being shipped to a lower Michigan wind farm via the Badger.  It makes a great deal of sense to keep such a ship operating when there is such a variety of vehicles and customer demand for midwest cross-lake shipping.  Loading those trucks took a few extra minutes, but when unloading at Ludington, drivers pulled their rigs off the vessel with ease along with other traffic.

Our ferry trip went smoothly and quickly, and half-way across, rain clouds were replaced by sunshine.   We then drove north to Boyne City to my youngest son Thor's home where we spent two evenings.  Saturday morning we attended the Bay Harbor auto and boat show.  I'm not an expert in such events, but the cars and boats displayed were magnificent, high-end examples of manufacturing and restoration.

Thor inspects Morgan trunk detail at Bay Harbor auto show.

One main reason for attending, other than the anticipated pleasure it would bring to our eyes, was the trunk Thor built through the Van Dam Woodcraft boat shop, then fitted into the rear lid by an area custom auto shop.  After Thor finished the woodworking part of this trunk, Louis Vuitton fabric was added for contrast.  We didn't stay long enough to observe the awarding of prizes, but it appeared the judges were going to have a difficult time choosing a top model when each and every entry was so beautifully maintained, restored and polished to the extreme.

Slot in center of trunk has red LED connected to brakes.

That was the essence of our weekend getaway.  Our return took us over the Mackinac bridge into the U. P.   Despite the sometimes gloomy weather pattern that had hung like a blanket at times over upper Lake Michigan, we're now energized for what the rest of our summer may bring.

Notes on Natural Gas as a commercial vessel fuel:

Almost every maritime magazine today has an article or a news item related to impending vessel conversions to natural gas as a propulsion fuel.

For years, as we understand it, Liquid Natural Gas (LNG) carriers have used the boil-off natural gas from their storage tanks to help fuel their engines as they cross the oceans.  European vessels seem to be somewhat ahead of U. S. domestic vessels in the application of natural gas as ship fuel, but one definite advantage that may help U. S. shippers over time is the increasing supply and distribution of relatively cheap, clean natural gas that is now coming on line.

The Pacific Maritime magazine recently ran a column by Louis Lemos ( June 2013):  Using LNG as Fuel.  Lemos wrote about both the positives and the limitations of LNG.  Lemos, now retired, has extensive credentials, including the British Merchant Navy and the U. S. Merchant Marine as a Chief Engineer, U. S. Navy certified Ship Superintendent, and as a Commissioned Inspector of Boilers and Pressure Vessels.

The tanks that hold the liquid gas, Lemos states, must be heavily insulated to maintain a constant temperature of minus 165 Celsius.  This is to "not only preserve the ultra-low temperature of the LNG tanks, but also to protect the ship structures from the effects of cryogenic temperatures of the LNG."  He then estimates that required ship storage space for such tanks could be as much as 250 percent greater than that required for tanks of corresponding diesel fuel capacity.

Such shipboard tanks are designed and regulated as pressure vessels, with construction rules similar to those of steam boilers and compressed air storage tanks.   Codes are being rewritten today to address such storage and safe shipboard practice by Class Societies, quasi-government bodies that help administer and regulate vessel standards, with guidelines often based on international agreements.  The Class Societies have been expending time and resources for research and technical solutions, and for cost effective methods to improve the safety and efficiency of LNG-powered main propulsion machinery, according to Lemos.

This article contains much more information on LNG applications aboard vessels, and it shows that the possibilities are within reach, but that we're not yet there.  The lack of a ready LNG solution today, along with perhaps staggering refit costs, may have convinced the Badger's management to look to a more expeditious and realistic solution.  -  Dick Purinton