The Lake Placid Institute, in partnership with Arts Center Lake Placid, presents the John C. Bogle Adirondack Roundtables
At Cambria Hotel Lake Placid
2127 Saranac Ave
Breakfast provided at 8:30 am. Roundtable begins at 9 am.
The Last Navigator, A Young Man, an Ancient Mariner, the Secrets of the Sea
Join This Old House host Steve Thomas for a richly illustrated lecture featuring original photographs and film footage that takes us into a world of ocean navigation largely unknown to the West; a world in which the traditional navigator’s only directional tools are the stars, the ocean swells and the flight paths of birds.
“In 1983 and 1984 I spent eleven months on Satawal Island and in the Western Carolines as an apprentice to Mau Piailug, then one of the last paliuw, captains fully initiated in the Talk of Navigation, the closely guarded, ancient practices around reading the cosmos and the seas.”
“I chronicled my experiences and the navigational techniques in the book The Last Navigator, first published in 1987, and a documentary film of the same title for PBS in 1988. Now some forty years on I have updated the stories with a new generation of Satawalese islanders and researchers in the revised and fully illustrated edition of The Last Navigator.”
The 40-minute lecture will be followed by a Q&A and book signing. Books will be available for purchase.
From Harvard Travellers Club: “Thank you so much for your talk on The Last Navigator! It held something for everyone: navigation for the (many) sailors attending, philosophy and – in essence – the waning cultural anthropology of Satawal … To note, this was the largest audience we’ve had in almost a year, so know that your stories (and humour) were much appreciated!”
From The Explorers Club: “Outstanding — a rare blend of true adventure and cultural preservation. He brought the audience into the world of Mau Piailug and traditional Pacific wayfinding with warmth, humor, and real respect for the knowledge behind it. Even for people who don’t sail, the story is gripping: mentorship, humility, and a vanishing body of expertise kept alive through one remarkable navigator. The room was fully engaged throughout, and the talk left people wanting to read the book and learn more.”
Steve Thomas
Emmy-winning TV Host, Author, Builder and Adventurer
Steve Thomas is familiar to television viewers as the two-time Emmy award-winning host of This Old House, Renovation Nation, and Save Our History. But he is also an experienced home builder and sailor. Beginning in 1977, he sailed a 43-foot wooden sloop from England to San Francisco via the Panama Canal, Galapagos, Marquesas, and Hawaii. In the early 1980s, he journeyed to the remote Micronesian island of Satawal to learn the ancient technique of star path navigation, an experience that resulted in this book as well as a documentary for the PBS series Adventure.
stevethomashome.com @stevethomasbuilders @stevethomashome
