February 7,2006 Dear Three Mile Friends, It`s been an unusually

February 7,2006
Dear Three Mile Friends,
It's been an unusually warm winter on Lake Winnipesaukee.
As of late January, the ice hasn't
formed completely. The early February Meredith Ice Fishing Derby has been postponed.
But
the lack of human activity has made for a peaceful winter out on the lake. On the island, there's a
thin layer of snow broken only by the occasional animal track.
A few years ago, a moose took up residence on Three Mile during. the off-season.
The
unregistered hoofed visitor managed to stay out of sight for a couple of weeks after croo and
volunteers arrived in the spring to open up camp.
One morning, the young croo member
assigned to clean up the store was quite startled to see the moose staring at her through the
screen window.
She and the moose will probably not soon forget the experience.
Three Mile staff and volunteers are already hard at work planning for the 2006 season.
Manager David Grace and Assistant Manager Joy Bloomfield are interviewing candidates for
summer positions.
Frank Woods is lining up his fall weekend managers.
Kathy Parsonnet
and Diana Merritt are overhauling the Three Mile website (www.3mile.org) to welcome new
campers and showcase pictures from prior seasons.
Matt Cartmell is arranging for the offseason repair of our fleet of canoes. Neil Burns is coordinating the repair and re-surfacing of the
tennis court.
There are a couple of other large projects I'd like to share with you.
Electricitv
You mayor may not be aware that a brand new electrical distribution system was installed on
Three Mile Island last spring.
It was the culmination of a multi-year effort to improve the safety
and reliability of our electrical service.
An indication of the project's success and thoughtful
design was the fact that many visitors did not observe any visible changes.
Fortunately, a major
portion of this expensive project was offset by a generous bequest from the estate of R. Bradley
Gilman.
Long time camper and former croo member Jack Trickey volunteered countless hours and
enormous energy (weak pun intended) to lead the project.
This spring, Jack will oversee the
replacement of the submarine power cable from nearby Pine Island. At the Closing Weekend in
early October, we presented Jack with a commemorative plaque with a short section of the
original submarine cable power cable attached.
In the near future, we'd like to explore alternative power generation (e.g., solar panels) to reduce
our reliance upon mainland utility power.
New Baqqaqe Boat
At the end of last summer, our 25 year old baggage boat, the Bluebird II, was retired.
The new
boat, dubbed the "Sea Dog II", is an industrial strength, aluminum plated boat with high gunnels.
It's also equipped with a tuna door to facilitate the occasional rescue.
Page 1 of3
ParkinQ
Parking.
Not a very exciting topic.
But one that is critical to our island camp's long-term
viability.
In recent years, development pressures around the lake have placed a premium upon
shoreline access, docking facilities and multi-day parking.
Our continued use of the public
parking lot and docks at Shep Brown's may become problematic in the near future.
But a
potential long-term parking solution may be in the wings.
Through a fortuitous series of events,
we may soon be the recipient of a small parcel of donated land near the Y-Landing marina.
A
small grass low-impact parking lot could be placed on to the parcel sufficient to handle our peak
seasonal load of staff and camper vehicles. Discussions with the Y-Landing marina for long-term
dock access are encouraging.
Summer Manager David Grace is applying his considerable
charm and negotiation skills with all the parties involved.
It's not likely that the lot would be
ready in time for this summer, but 2007 is a strong possibility.
Island Educator:In 2005, the role of the staff naturalist was expanded and renamed 'Island Educator'.
We were
very fortunate to have Committee member and former croo member, Kai Bicknell, as our first
island educator.
Kai facilitated several on-island programs, assisted camper-initiated group
activities and also led traditional nature walks.
Volunteer!
Three Mile Island Camp has always been the beneficiary of a large pool of skilled and not so
skilled (like me!) enthusiastic volunteers.
Under the leadership of Frank Woods and Stroker
Rogovin, we had very successful Opening and Closing weekends in 2005.
Two cabins were reroofed, boats were repaired and rigged, and our Main House received lots of skilled TLC and
preventative maintenance.
At the A.M.C.'s annual meeting last year, Stroker received the
prestigious Joe Dodge award for exemplary volunteer leadership.
The Opening weekend
you'd like to help out.
this spring is June 9-11.
Contact Frank at frank.woods@valle:LD.~t
YOQa Retreats
Carol Faulkner will be offering her popular yoga retreats again this summer.
A YOQa Intensive Retreat at TMI August 28 - September 1
This retreafwill include the 8 limbs of yoga ;:fs outlined in the Yoga Sutras ofPatangaii.
There will be 2 yoga classes a day which will include asana (poses), pranayama
(breathing exercises), meditation, and the study of yoga philosophy. All meals included.
Limited to 15 $550
Meditation Retreat at TMI: September 4 - September 8
This retreat will include one yoga class and 2 meditation classes per day. Each
participant will receive a massage. All meals and one cooking class is included. Limited
to 15 $550
Contact Carol 617-493-5246
or carolfaulkner@cOrT].Q8st.nill to register.
Page 2 of3
if
Speed Limit Leqislation
An effort to establish boating speed limits on inland waters of New Hampshire has made
surprising progress. hi early February, House Bill 162 passed the NH House of Representatives.
According to the Manchester Union Leader, the bill "would enact a boat speed limit on all state
waters beginning in 2007. The measure would restrict all boats to 45 mph during the day and 25
mph at night and would be enforced by the state's marine patrol."
The bill is supported by most of the marinas on Lake Winnipesaukee, several local homeowners
associations, the Appalachian Mountain Club, and the state's major newspapers such as the
Manchester Union Leader and the Concord Monitor. The unstated objective of many of the bill's
supporters is to discourage high horsepower offshore boats (aka "cigarette boats") from inland
waters.
Although the legislation easily passed the New Hampshire House, it faces a tougher battle in the
New Hampshire Senate.
If you're a New Hampshire resident, please consider contacting your
state senator to encourage him or her to support the bill.
Summer and Fall Reservations:
In a few weeks, registrar Sally Hopkins Wilson will be sending out her annual registration letter.
Be sure to return the forms on April 1 to increase your chances of getting your first choice of
week(s).
Note, however, there are often openings available on short notice for June, early
July, and late September.
Reservation forms and last minute availability will be posted on
www.3mile.org.
See you on the dock!
~~/
Rick Tjader
TMI Committee Chair
15 Eton Road
Barrington, RI 02806
email: ricktiader@3mile.orq
Page 3 of3