Wilfred Sykes

The beautiful Wilfred Sykes arrived well before sunrise on a Monday morning for winter lay up at Bay Ship in Sturgeon Bay. I was so taken by her extraordinary grace that after a few seconds of introduction I just let her elegant design and stylish lines and curves do the talking. I purposely kept the video under eight minutes to avoid distracting mid-roll advertising from popping up (something I have no control over) and ruining the experience. 75 years and still going strong, she was the first freighter built after WW II, and was, at one time, the largest on the Great Lakes. Her breakthrough design set the standard for freighters for the next 20-years. I hope you can see why the Sykes is my number one favorite freighter on the Lakes.
music: epidemicsound

[cds]

Kevin, you have such a wonderful way of describing and photographing these boats, thank you.👍...Charles

[Gracebeliever]

WOW! Just WOW! This should be nominated for Oscars. Cinematography. Narration. And, Musical Score.

[anneschmitthenner]

Wow! This is absolutely beautiful! And your words and voice! My Grandfather bought the smallest cottage in Chaska Beach, Huron, Ohio in 1937. My Grandparents had 3 kids. My Mom, the eldest. They spent all summers there and then went back to their hometown Barnesville, OH to go to school. Fast forward 1957 when I was born. I’ve spent a month each Summer until the end of high school there. Fast forward 2024. I can only go to Chaska for maybe a week in the Summer as we work full time. But all of my youth at Lake Erie, we would ALL race to the shore to watch the Great Lakes Oreboats as we called them everytime someone yelled, “Oreboat!” Sadly, the Huron harbor is…. what? No longer an Oreboat harbor. We can only see a passing Oreboat, way out into the the lake, every once in a while. Thank you for your beautiful work!!!🥰🥰🥰

[marywright]

Beautiful footage of, in my opinion, the most beautiful ship on the lakes.

[joan]

Kevin, in my humble opinion this video is of the highest quality. You should be really proud of yourself putting so much time, skill and love into producing something so excellent. Many thanks.

[richierich]

Magnificent, Kevin. You have such a great skill in photography and the telling of stories.

[WendyKops]

That was the best. Thank you for those few moments of tranquility. You are so talented, Kevin! From every angle, she’s beautiful!

[danolson]

Kevin, you gave this video the perfect balance of photographic beauty and reverent music that gave this 75 year old beauty the majesty she deserves. No need for a voice over on this one. The images say it all. Great job!

[galechicago]

You see the artistic side of these hard-working ships. It’s there. Thank you for showing us this beauty in industry.

[dcarr]

Excellant as usual Kevin. Until 2017? when I flew to Duluth to visit my sister I had no idea what a laker or salty even was. I think I'm hooked! The drone possibilities now are truly amazing.

[RobynMM]

What a superb video! Voiceover, footage, stills, music and the beautiful Wilfred Sykes. You can't ask for a better video. Thank you Kevin. I missed catching her on the cams but you caught her live for us. 💜
EDIT: Just now read your comments under your video. (Previously, just saw your name and Sykes and instantly clicked to watch) Anyway, I appreciate that you kept your video under the 8 minute limit so it wouldn't be marred by advertisements. That said, knowing how thorough you are, I'll bet you have tons more layup footage on the Sykes. Maybe another video with the additional footage, some stills and observations from you?
Personally, it pleases me that someone who produces such beautiful work loves my favorite ship as much as I do. Well done.

[bruceheath]

Sailed on her back in 1977 or 8, don't remember exactly, while a cadet at GLMA. She was a beauty then and still seems so now.

[LongShort]

Wonderful footage! You saved the best for last. I particularly like seeing the prop in motion. It’s not often that the ships sit high enough in the water to capture that, but they likely had already started dumping ballast at that point in preparation for layup.

[RonStanek]

Thanks for the look at these beauties, Kevin!

[chuckg]

What an incredibly well done video Kevin. Always amazed just how well maintained this glorious vessel appears. And what a great view of the propellor slowing spinning. Shows just how high the ship is sitting unloaded for winter layup.

Thanks for producing this one Kevin. So nice.

[packoutjunkie]

Top notch again Kevin. Love all the contrasts with the ice. Nicely done.

[musicynic]

Incredible video, great production quality all around. Music, sfx, cinematography, this is really professional. Great work.

[patdachowski]

Thank you, Kevin, for this beautiful video of one of our favorite classic lakers ❤️

[Tom_Fletch]

Great video Kevin; you captured the Sykes perfectly with the word elegant. I look forward to seeing her again soon.

[tomslick]

More amazing images from The Imagemaster! Thanks again Kevin.