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Navigator's Secrets: Author Revisits Ancient Pacific Ways
27 Jun
Summary
- Author Steve Thomas details apprenticeship with master navigator Mau Piailug.
- Revised book 'The Last Navigator' covers traditional Pacific navigation methods.
- Thomas will appear in Lake Placid and Keene Valley for lectures and signings.
Author Steve Thomas, widely recognized as the former host of PBS's "This Old House," is set to engage with Adirondack audiences throughout July. He will be discussing his newly revised book, "The Last Navigator." This compelling narrative chronicles Thomas's experience apprenticing under Mau Piailug, one of the last traditional navigators.
Piailug masterfully navigated vast Pacific expanses relying solely on celestial bodies, ocean swells, and wind patterns. Thomas's journey to the remote Micronesian island of Satawal provided firsthand insight into this ancient art.
Events include a lecture and Q&A on July 11 at the Cambria Hotel in Lake Placid, followed by a book signing at The Bookstore Plus later that day. On July 13, Thomas will present at the Keene Valley Library's Monday Night Lecture.
The book, originally published in 1987, has been updated with new research, historical photographs, and Thomas's reflections from decades of exploration. It highlights both a remarkable maritime adventure and the preservation of a navigational tradition predating modern technology.
