Called the Margarethe, the sailboat strikes a lonely image moored in ice just off the shores of Wolfe Island near Kingston. The boat’s owner, Jeff Campbell, says it’s not stranded and it’s no accident he left it there.
He says it started with a friend’s idea.
“We should take the boat and sail it through the Northwest Passage and then take it to Vancouver. Ultimately, I’d love to be able to bring the boat there — that’s where my daughter lives.”
During the upcoming trip however, he is expecting some harsh conditions which is why Campbell is testing the strength of the boat’s concrete hull.
“You could drive on top of it and the weight of a car won’t crush the hull or anything else like that,” he said.
Island resident Peter Ganz says the boat has been a subject of speculation.
“Perhaps the owner, you know, was debilitated, and couldn’t, you know, muster the resources needed to get the boat out.”
There’s also the question of, ‘Will it survive the winter in ice?’
Kate Wodraszka came to Wolfe Island for a day trip. She likes the chances of the boat surviving the winter freeze.
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“I think it will be not broken, the ship, I don’t believe it.”
A viewpoint shared by island resident William Minnis.
“I think it’s going to swim because as I said, I was a sailor before and I’ve heard of concrete boats and I think the worst that’s going to happen is it will just pop up on top of the ice.”
There’s further speculation as to where the boat might end up when the ice breaks up in the spring.
Frontenac Islands Mayor Denis Doyle thinks it depends on whether the spring thaw is quick or over a long period.
“If the ice is still attached to the boat, it could literally pick it up along with the anchor and drift it perhaps in the channel for the ferry boat.”
Doyle thinks that is unlikely.
Campbell says he still has at least a year of planning ahead before any voyage through the Northwest Passage would take place.
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