Over the course of the semester and into the summer, I have been part of a crew that has been working to restore a wood-and-canvas canoe. Working on this canoe is like working a piece of history. You see, this canoe was originally built by a man named Joe Seliga. Joe built over 650 canoes in his lifetime. Many of his canoes were bought by Camp Widjiwagan, a YMCA camp based on Lake Burntside near Ely, Minnesota. This canoe, canoe #20, is just one of those canoes. All of Seliga’s canoes are numbered starting with one which in turn helps indicate how old they are. This canoe is therefore over 50 years old, and every time we work on it I am reminded of its age as one of the cracked ribs is removed or another piece of decayed wood chips off.
Still, my hands have touched 50 years of adventure. That canoe could have been on one of the voyages Camp Widji took to the Arctic Circle. Will the work we are doing allow another 50 years of adventure to take place? I can’t answer that question. But there is something about using my own two hands to help craft and preserve something that has been a vessel used to touch so many lives.
The process has been a long one with many trials and errors that have provided many learning opportunities. However, along the way great memories have been formed with the people that come and go from Nelson’s shop.
The canoe is not yet finished. However, its September due date is fast approaching, as my next graduate intensive will be heading in the direction of its home: Ely, Minnesota.
