AOPA Pilot Magazine - March 2016 - 83

OLD SIGNAGE and other interesting artifacts from the camps'

history are collected and on display in Sikorsky's work cabin (left).
Eight guest cottages line the lakeshore (below).

woods here. They may see moose swimming in the streams and
rivers. Bear sightings also are possible.
We are entertained by a couple who have brought their granddaughters to the camps for a week. They tell a tale of coming up here
years ago, and a young bear swimming out to their seaplane and
grabbing onto the strut-as if begging to be taken back to civilization with them. The bear had been one of several raised in captivity
after its mother was killed, and the woman must have reminded the
bear of the human who raised him. Wagging the wings, the pilot
knocked the bear off the strut and dropped him into the lake. The
granddaughters find this tale more fascinating than the absent TV.
There are kayaks and fishing boats. A guide will take you on the
lake or into the woods: Chad Rozelle and Josh Collins are guides
who live at the camps and know the area intimately. Rozelle has
worked with the Sikorskys for more than 20 years. Both help stock
the cabins with essentials, such as ice from the ice house. You need
to bring your own beverages, but the ice is native-it's chopped from
the lake in March or April and stored in sawdust in the ice house. It
will stay cold all summer and there will be ice left over.
HELICOPTERS AND HISTORY. During most of the seven-month season at Bradford Camps, Sikorsky is camp leader, hunting guide,
repairman, and escort. But this weekend, usually in July, he sets
aside his chores and takes on a role that isn't particularly comfortable for him-that of lecturer, entertainer, and historian. He sips a
little vodka from his coffee mug for liquid courage.
He needn't worry about his audience. They want to know everything he can tell them about his famous grandfather, the legendary
company-and, by the way, why is the grandson of the founder of
a multibillion-dollar industry squirreled away in a fishing camp?
The later bit of information is a doozy: Igor Sikorsky III has
never flown in a helicopter. In fact, he did not learn to fly fixed-wing

TRAVEL TIP

Packing list
Bradford Camps is located in the backwoods of Maine. Most
of Maine isn't known for high fashion and especially not here.
L.L.Bean is most likely your store of choice for this trip.
* Rain gear and boots. If it rains while you're here, it's going to get
muddy. Very muddy.
* Flashlight. Matches are provided to light the propane lamps in the
cabins, but that "lovely glow" from the lamps isn't enough to read by
or-yes, I'm saying it-apply makeup under.
* A good book. Very quickly you'll be so relaxed all you'll want to do
is settle in to the rocking chair on your cabin's front porch and read.
There are a lot of interesting books in the lodge for your use.
* Clock. If you care about the time, you'll need a battery-operated clock.
However, Karen Sikorsky will ring the bell for breakfast, so that's a good
wake-up call. Use of the camp's satellite phone is $1 per minute.
* Warm clothes. The evenings are cool. There are ample blankets on
the beds, but you'll want something warm to sleep in.
* BYOB. The camps do not have a liquor license but you are welcome
to bring anything you'd like to drink-from sodas to beer and wine and
the stronger stuff. Your ice chest will be filled daily on your porch. Igor
Sikorsky's favorite soda is the Maine staple-Moxie. Regular guests like
to mix it with rum for the "Munsungan cocktail." -JSW

aircraft until he was nearly 30. And he learned to fly only because
he and Karen needed a way to get to their beloved camps more
easily than the overland trek. She wasn't thrilled at first but, as he
told her, "You're not going to tell Igor Sikorsky he can't learn to fly."
That's as much bravado as you're going to get from Sikorsky. He
clearly inherited his grandfather's knack for invention as well as his
simplicity-this is why the younger Sikorsky isn't a billionaire on
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Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of AOPA Pilot Magazine - March 2016