CAU > Seminars and Study Tours > The Lure of the Great Lakes aboard the Clelia II

The Lure of the Great Lakes aboard the Clelia II

August 15-22, 2009

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Overview

The Great Lakes, so vast they comprise one-fifth of the world's fresh water, have been home to Native Americans for more than thirteen thousand years. When Samuel de Champlain arrived at Lake Huron's Georgian Bay in 1634, at first mistakenly believing he'd located the fabled Northwest Passage to the Orient, he found he'd discovered something even more valuable to European eyes: a fertile land abounding in fish, wood, furs, and minerals. The lakes, first used as a means of transport by the Algonquin and Iroquois, subsequently became a thriving commercial hub with the arrival of European settlers. Until fifty years ago, this waterway was the busiest in the world. Today the welcoming towns along Superior, Michigan, Huron, Erie, and Ontario lakes have changed little since the nineteenth century, and the region remains in many places a pristine wilderness, where warm summer breezes skim through the lush leaves of the woody, rocky coasts.

Faculty

Leading our tour and enriching our understanding of the places we visit will be Nick Salvatore, the Neufeld Founders Professor of Industrial and Labor Relations, professor of American studies, and a wonderful teacher.

Itinerary

We will cruise through North America's great inland sea from Duluth to Toronto aboard the luxurious Clelia II, visiting a wealth of spectacular sites important to the shaping of our national consciousness.

We'll begin at Lake Superior's Thunder Bay, a cultural center that developed from the vibrant frontier town of Old Fort William, which flourished on the booming fur trade of the late eighteenth century. We will stop at quaint Houghton, site of a copper rush from 1840 to the early twentieth century that was ten times more profitable than the California Gold Rush. We will explore what remains of Houghton's mines and settlement, enjoying both the rich history and the extraordinary natural beauty of the area. We will stroll at leisure through the Victorian streets of Mackinac Island, where bicycles and horse-drawn carriages are the only modes of transportation other than our feet.

On Lake Huron, we'll visit Manitoulin, the world's largest freshwater island, and experience a powwow at the Wikwemikong Unceded Indian Reserve, the thriving community of the only Native American tribe in Canada never to have relinquished title to its land. We will enjoy both the American and the Horseshoe Falls at Niagara and then cruise the dramatic passage from Lake Erie to Lake Ontario through the Welland Canal, dropping 324 feet over twenty-seven miles as we witness the mechanics of this engineering marvel. Our final stop will be Toronto, Canada's leading cultural and financial center.

Nick will provide formal lectures on board, open to other passengers as well as to our group, on a range of subjects, including Tocqueville's America, the pull of Niagara Falls on the American imagination, and Native Americans and the idea of American progress, as well as iron ore and Bob Dylan (highlighting the decades-long influence that the economic and political changes in this region have had on American culture). In addition, informal discussions will deepen the observations of our off-ship guides and rangers.

Program Cost and Travel Arrangements

The Clelia II, a private cruise ship, accommodates a maximum of 100 guests in fifty capacious suites, each of which has water views. The program fee is $5,595 to $8,495 (per person, double occupancy) depending on cabin, with a single supplement of $2,695. The fee includes all accommodations, meals, ground transportation, entrance fees, taxes and gratuities, management services, and the full academic program.

Map

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