Updates:
1st Voyage
Voyage 1 – This boat is from the Summit-Questa Montessori School in Davie, FL. She was released 200 miles north of the Bahamas by the Maine Maritime Academy and was blown ashore along with the four other boats she was launched with.
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Voyage 1: May 12-24, 2012
The first voyage made by SS Upper started in 2012. It was launched from the T/S State of Maine on May 12. The voyage ended on May 24 when the boat landed in South Carolina. For two years after that, we did not know what happened… until Dick Baldwin received an email on July 28, 2014 saying:
“I bought this boat at goodwill and looked you up, I didn’t know what it was until the goodwill guy who put it in my car said “a guy brought it in who found it in the water, so he brought out here”, I guess the man couldn’t ready what it said on the little boat. Let me know if you want it returned, set back pout to see or what ever you want me to do with it. -Debbie”
Coincidentally, Holly Blair, an educator near Debbie, had just met Dick at the National Marine Educators Association conference the week before. Pictured to the right are Holly’s daughters and dog with the miniboat.
2nd Voyage
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Voyage 2: June 11-12, 2017
On June 11, 2017, Capt. Jay Stewart redeployed her off South Carolina, but she came right back to land the following morning on June 12.
Fortunately, it was a soft landing on a highly populated Edisto Beach. Capt Jay reported in an email later the same day “Well Social Media is a wide net. After arriving to a beach full of people and no upper, I started search Social media and it didn’t take long to see a post by the Edisto Beach Police Chief. I called their dispatch office and he drove over to the access I was parked at with my wife. He had contacted the original launch school and they were confused and surprised by finding of her. He was amazed at how many hits it got as soon as he posted it and there is going to be some fan fare on the beach about it. I have her back in Charleston now and will send her out on a cargo vessel this week. ”
You can read a story in the local press at http://www.atlasobscura.com/articles/a-miniature-sailboat-has-washed-up-after-4-years-at-sea.
3rd Voyage
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Voyage 3: June 16-18, 2017
Upper was relaunched for a 3rd voyage by the Charleston Shippers’ M/V Freedom on June 16, 2017, but was picked up at sea on June 18.
We noticed the GPS reporting from a few blocks inland in Morehead City, North Carolina. After a long Father’s Day of email exchanges, texts, phone calls, tweets, and Facebook postings, thanks to the quick response of Jacqui Degan who heads up the Marine Tech program at Cape Fear Community College, we found the fishermen, Bill Farrior, who had taken the SS Upper out of the water and back to his home. Jacqui’s email reads “I just returned from Morehead City, with info on your miniboat. After walking the beach for a few blocks and speaking to a couple of locals, I decided to knock on a couple of doors, and at the second house I hit the jackpot! The GPS ping was pretty accurate! The miniboat was sitting in the back of a truck in the driveway of the house on the corner.
Thanks to Ben Faulkner and crew of the Job Site for the above photos.
It was then brought inland for the purpose of sharing it with a local camp (Camp Albemarle) and the Boys and Girls Club. A photo of Bill’s wife Wendy and Jacqui’s two boys can be seen here to the right.
4th Voyage
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Voyage 4: July 14, 2017+
The 4th voyage of Upper is sponsored by the school that originally sponsored the boat, the Summit-Questa Montessori School.
The crew of the Job Site relaunched the Upper on July 14, 2017.
The GPS went silent on November 3 on its way to what we thought would be an Ireland or UK landing. While we don’t know the details of what happened, perhaps she’ll wash ashore someday and still be recovered…
Update June 2025:
Educational Passages met the crew of the Job Site during the 2025 Big Rock Tournament! Big thanks to Bill and Wendy Farrior, and Ben Faulkner for all their continued support.
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The most interesting aspect of this boat is that it sat in a Goodwill store in Charleston SC for about three years between its 1st and 2nd voyage, refurbished and released multiple times before it finally headed across the ocean.
