Memorial Day
Being an Army Brat” and veteran, Memorial Day means a lot to me.
May 29 – Memorial Day
May 26 “Mermaid MegaFest 2018”
This memorial weekend was the date for the Mermaid Megafest in South Haven, MI. The purpose of this was to break the Guinness World Record for the largest gathering of people dressed as Mermaids. It was open to the general public and all you had to do was make or buy a costume, sign up with free registration, then suit up and show up at the gathering on the South Haven South Pier.
In addition to the Mermaids on Friday they held a Mermaid Eco Action Conference on preserving our natural freshwater resources and the festival is dedicated to promoting efforts to “Protect our Water Wonderland”! Friday’s inaugural event was a one-day educational conference at Lake Michigan College for instruction and innovation in the field of freshwater ecosystem protection. On Saturday they had the Mermaid Gathering, the Nauti Prows Flotilla and Siren’s Ball. Sunday was the Pirate Street Fair. So you had opportunities to see and join in the activities with Mermaids, Mermen, nefarious pirates and sailors
The mermaid fantasy was uniquely positioned to promote public awareness of the challenges our Great Lakes ecosystem face. Mermaid folklore integrated a blend of imagination and science that supports the preservation imperative.
The Michigan U/W divers club participated in the event by providing safety assistance on the surface and on the water by providing pier patrols, boats and kayakers on and around the pier in the event of a mermaid or spectator accidently taking a swim. To document the event, I took a pictures of the participants. Hope you enjoy them.
Todays Factoid: Dandelions
Dandelion is from the French dent-de-lion, meaning “lion’s tooth” referring to the toothy looking leaves. A rosette may produce several flowering stems at a time but only one flower per stem. As a side note these stems are hollow.
Typical flower heads are .8 to 2 inches in diameter and consist entirely of ray florets. The flower heads mature into spherical seed heads called blowballs or clocks containing many single-seeded fruits called achenes. Each achene is attached to a pappus of fine hairs.
After flowering is finished, the dandelion flower head dries out for a day or two. The dried petals and stamens drop off, the bracts reflex (curve backwards), and the parachute ball opens into a full sphere. After complete development, the individual seeds have then fully matured and will then be attached too white, fluffy “parachutes” which will be able to easily detach from the seed head, glide by wind, and disperse.
False dandelion: The leaves, which may grow up to eight inches, are lobed and covered in fine hairs, forming a low-lying rosette around a central taproot. Their solid stems are long and forked having more than on flower per stem. When the bright yellow flower heads mature these form seeds attached to windborne “parachutes”. All parts of the plant exude a milky sap when cut.
The dandelion leaves and flower heads are edible but the false dandelion (catsear) leaves are much less bitter but the leaves should be blanched to remove the hairs. The leaves of both may be eaten boiled or steamed and the root can be roasted and ground to form a coffee substitute.
May 17 – Water in the basement
First time basement flooding. Either little rain or Too much! I had a termite problems 20 years ago and a part of that solution was to inject chemicals to kill the termites in the basement floor. The chemical was injected in some 150 plus holes drilled thru the basement floor 4 to 6 inches from the walls. Now today, out of the blue, a majority of the 150 holes drilled and plugged in the basement floor decided to leak or weep over the last few days.
Now I understand that an inch of water over the entire basement floor is nothing compared to having the basement filled with several feet of water but you still have the problem of getting rid of the water and everything that was on the floor like carpets, boxes, many made of cardboard, and the now warping of the paneling.
In addition to those items you still have issues with all the winter clothing stored in the basement that are hanging up off the floor that are now getting damp from the moisture in the air. Between moving all the damaged and wet “stuff” out to the garage and trash, wet vacuuming and squeezing the floor, my back is killing me!
Mothers Day
To many flowers to pick a bouquet from today so I made my wife a picture album of fresh flowers from todays walk about. This is my “Bouquet Of Flowers” for Sharon.
May 12 – Shipwreck Hunting in the Archives
Morton House Museum
As a diver in Michigan, the winter months are a time spent researching what shipwreck sites to dive in the summer or where a missing shipwreck may be.
So for the last few months, I’ve been doing research on the missing steamship “Chicora” and its possible location. In doing this, I have reviewed the obvious sources for this information, such as books already written on the topic by a multitude of authors and a review of newspaper articles written during that period of time that covered the sinking and search for the wreck.
An information source that I had not previously thought of was taking advantage of the “Morton House Museum”.
The Morton House Museum, located in Benton Harbor, is “The Home of Benton Harbor History” and housing a tremendous amount of material on Benton Harbor from its beginning as Brunson Harbor to the present day. My specific interest was, of course, what could I find about the Morton & Graham Steamships.
The commercial shipping interest started with Henry Morton, who with Sterne Brunson and Charles Hull, were instrumental in creating a market for the farmers from the area now known as St. Joseph, on the east side of the St. Joseph River. These three men were also the driving force behind the building and operation in 1862 of the almost mile-long shipping canal through the wetland between the river and what was then the future Benton Harbor.
One of the major shipping companies operating between St. Joseph and Chicago was the local firm of Henry Graham and James Stanley Morton. This later became the Graham & Morton Transportation company in 1874 which dominated the boat traffic at St. Joseph for the better part of 80 years.
In reviewing the history of the Morton family, and the Graham & Morton Transportation Company, one cannot do so without talking about the SS Chicora.
The Chicora was built for, owned and operated by the Graham & Morton Transportation Company. The Chicora has been considered one of the most famous ships of Lake Michigan mostly due to her untimely sinking with her final resting place remaining secret for over 100 years.
The Chicora was described as a “masterpiece”, with “lines as symmetrical and beautiful as any yacht”. She was considered to be the premier ship of the Graham and Morton Line, and one of the finest vessels on Lake Michigan, the “Queen Mary” of the lake.
Built for service between St. Joseph and Chicago, the Chicora once made the 65-mile run between Benton Harbor and Chicago in 3 hours 40 minutes, at an average speed in excess of 19 miles per hour. In the winter of 1893/94, Chicora was placed on the St. Joseph– Milwaukee route, and again the following winter.
The Chicora went missing on January 21st, 1895 with all hands while hauling a cargo of flour from Milwaukee, Wisconsin and has since been considered one of the most famous missing ships on lake Michigan.
Now a bit about the Steam Ship (SS) Chicora
The SS Chicora was a wooden-hulled, screw-propelled, passenger-cargo ship, built in 1892 by the Detroit Cradock Company of Detroit, Michigan, for the Graham & Morton Transportation Company. Built at a cost of $150,000, she was launched 26 June 1892.
Approximately 200 feet in length—217 feet overall—with a beam of 35 feet 40 feet over the guards and moulded depth of 15 feet. She had a tonnage of 1,123 gross tons, or 900 tons burden. Note: Moulded depth meant its Length overall (LOA) is the extreme length from one end to the other. Moulded depth(D) is the vertical distance measured from the top of the keel to the underside of the upper deck at side.
The Chicora was licensed to carry 1,500 passengers as a summer excursion boat, with passenger accommodations which included 56 staterooms, sleeping quarters for 200, a large smoking room and “spacious” social hall. Her passenger cabins, grand staircase and gangways were all finished in mahogany, and an electric plant provided power for the ship’s 250 lights. For freight service in the winter off-season, Chicora was built “especially stout” and had six-inch outer planking and three waterproof compartments.
Chicora was powered by a 2,500 horsepower triple-expansion steam engine with cylinders of 20,33 and 54 inches) and 42 inches stroke, driving a single screw propeller, while steam was provided by two steel forced-draft Scotch boilers with a working pressure of 165 pounds. The ship had a speed of approximately 15.5 knots (17.8 mph) a fast speed for the time.
Thought for the Day
April 26:
“Any man who thinks he can be happy and prosperous by letting the government take care of him had better take a much closer look at the American Indian.”
~Henry Ford
Saftey Day – United States Parachute Association (USPA)
Last saturday I attended the “2018 USPA Safety Day” that was hosted by “Skydive Windy City Chicago” located at the Michigan City Airport, Michigan City, IN
In early spring, the skydiving season for much of the country is just crawling out of hibernation. Most skydivers don’t jump through the cold months as often as they do in the summer, and their skills are a bit rusty. That’s when Safety Day comes.
Established in 1997 Safety Day provides a worldwide forum at local drop zones to prepare jumpers for the year ahead.
Safety Day promotes safety programs and helps inform jumpers of new developments and review important information and procedures. Activities typically include hands-on review and practice of safety procedures, seminars from skydiving operation professionals and experts, equipment evaluations and more. Most day’s end with a social get together. USPA encourages all jumpers of all experience levels to attend.
https://uspa.org/Safety-Training/Safety-Day
Vintage Scuba Equipment displayed at the Sportsman’s Dinner:
I had a great time today participating in the “Sportsman’s Dinner” held yearly at the Midland Baptist Church in Watervliet, Mi.
ALL sportsmen (men or women) were invited to attend the Sportsmen’s Dinner, and you did not have to be a hunter or fisherman to enjoy this event, just come out and meet some of your local friends and neighbors.
In the display area myself and two other members of the Michigan Underwater Divers Club participated in the event by providing information on local wrecks, samples of bottom land treasures and providing a display of vintage scuba gear.
Other displays included outdoor gear including tents and stoves, fishing, wildlife mounts, archery, and taxidermy.
There were over $1,400 worth of door prizes given out that included a fully guided Lake Michigan Salmon fishing trip for 3, kayak, kids bow and arrow set, .450 Bushmaster Rifle and much more! There was a great variety of foods from tame to outdoor menus.
Featured speaker at this years event was Tracy Breen who is a full-time outdoor writer and marketing consultant in the outdoor industry. Over the past twenty years, he has been able to hunt and fish all over North America. Tracy was born with cerebral palsy and often writes and speaks about overcoming physical obstacles, chasing dreams and living life to the fullest. Tracy writes for a wide array of publications including Outdoor Life, New Pioneer, North American Whitetail, Buckmasters, Petersen’s Bow-hunting and Bow-hunting World to name a few.
Maybe we will see you their next year!
2018 Annual Sportsman’s Dinner
Waiting for Spring!
April 08: Waiting for Spring.
Now, as most Michigan divers know, the Southwest Michigan Underwater Preserve (SWMUP) encompasses the shoreline from Holland to New Buffalo near the Indiana border, and as such, it works with the Michigan Underwater Preserve Council (MUPC).
The MUPC is a private, non-profit, volunteer-driven organization, which works with the Michigan’s 13 preserves in fostering cooperative stewardship of the historical, cultural, natural and recreational resources associated with the preserves as well as support and speak as a unified voice for the preserve committees. It then shares these positions to the legislature and other relevant agencies and groups.
One of the most attractive and useful purposes I believe it does is to support and participate in placement of marker buoys on wrecks and provide input and advice on permits and preserve-related research efforts.
With that said, I had the opportunity to attend this quarters Council meeting with members of the SWMUP and WMUP in Ludington. Listening to the challenges the MUPC has working with the 13 preserves was an interesting and informative time worth the 3 hour drive each way.
Afterward, because I had been a participant and contributor, rather than just a spectator, made me think about why was I really there. What thoughts did I have at the end of the meeting? What are my expectations from both the local preserve and council?
With that said, as I understand it, the performance of a preserve is dependent upon three major things: the physical support of interested individuals, the active participation of local divers, and money.
Any organization is only as good as the depth of its membership and the enthusiasm they bring with them. But as I think about the need all organizations have for membership and member retention, it seems to boil down to one point. What is the organization giving members that makes them want to join and remain a member? In short, how do you benefit from being a member of this organization?
Now, I don’t know your reason, but here are a few reasons why some people are active members of the preserves:
• They have a passion for diving in all its various dimensions.
• They have a passion for exploring shipwrecks.
• They want to be active in the search for new shipwrecks, and document its find. (Along with this is the distinction of being known as the “finder” of the missing ship which makes you part of its history.)
• They obtain self-satisfaction from being part of the dive team who places shipwreck buoys on wrecks to make them more accessible to all divers.
• They want to be part of the groups that remove the buoys before the storms and ice of winter, and then and replace them for the spring and summer diving.
• They have a passion to understand why a ship sank, its history, its personality, and its effect on a community, state, and country.
• They want to be a spokesperson and tell the stories of Great Lakes ships.
• They want to ensure the history of the Great Lakes and its marine life is recorded.
• They are looking to the future to see how the health of the Great Lakes impacts those that are dependent upon it for their livelihood, as well as their life in that everyone has a need for quality water.
• They are individuals not physically able to support preserve activities, but are willing to provide material, funding, or administrative support to meet identified needs of a preserve.
I am sure there are more, but the key is participants and members feel that they are being useful and understand their contributions are making a difference in the preservation of the Great Lakes.
If you are a diver, Which one are you?
For more information on Michigan Preserves, visit: www.michiganpreserves.org.