PICKETTS LAKE—The rhythmic sound of trowel on stone echoes through the Minnesota wilderness as Ian McKiel guides his student’s hands.
“Remember, just cut it off,” he says about some smeared mortar, watching as another carefully placed stone finds its home in what will become a replica of Ernest Shackleton’s 1909 Antarctic base camp hut.
“Don’t smear like that. You’re creating a lot more work for yourself later on,” he said before showing someone how to properly take care of excess mortar.
McKiel, who has been teaching traditional masonry techniques for over a decade, represents a bridge between ancient craft and modern learning. His students at the Ely Folk School are learning to stack stones while participating in a living history project that connects them to both the legendary Antarctic explorer and the timeless art of working with stone.
“I think a lot of students are really attracted to stone, but may be a bit intimidated by masonry,” McKiel says. “My aim is that they walk away with the confidence to at least attempt some projects and feel comfortable to make mistakes and try again.”
The setting is inspiring. Located on 240 acres north of Ely, the Steger Center serves as both classroom and construction site for this unique educational endeavor. Students learn both wet and dry masonry techniques while contributing to a structure that will serve as a rustic bunkhouse for future visitors to this wilderness leadership center.
McKiel’s path to this moment began years ago through his father-in-law, who had met polar explorer Will Steger two decades earlier.
“I trained under my father-in-law doing stone masonry for probably 12, 13 years,” McKiel said. “I started coming up here with him and then just kind of slowly built my own relationship with the center and with Will.”
The draw of hands-on learning proves irresistible to students like Jill Schwartz, who collects heart-shaped rocks and wants to do something meaningful with them.
“I’m fascinated by stonemason work,” she said, her enthusiasm evident as she carefully positions another stone. Schwartz has her own connection to stone construction: structures on her family’s island property that will be 100 years old next year. They were built by her husband’s great-grandfather who “learned stone masonry on his own and brought rocks from all around the country.”
For Schwartz, the five-day intensive course represents more than skill acquisition.
“I see things with different eyes now that I’ve done it myself,” she said. “I’m learning how important corner stones are, right-angle stones, and what makes a good fit, how to place a rock so that it’s not going to slide out and hurt the integrity of the piece over time.”
The Shackleton Hut project itself represents Will Steger’s adaptation of the original Antarctic shelter. Where Shackleton’s expedition used a massive wooden stove, Steger’s version will feature a recessed wood-burning stove surrounded by stone walls and topped with a stone arch — a modification that showcases both practical design and the enduring appeal of stone construction.
“We’re building for permanence, and stone is obviously a very permanent material,” McKiel said, gesturing to walls that could stand for centuries.
The stone itself tells its own story. Sourced locally from a blasting site years ago, it has been used throughout the Steger Center property in various projects, creating a visual continuity that connects all the buildings to the landscape.
The educational approach combines the meditative aspects of traditional craft with practical skill development. Students learn to “read” stones, understanding how each piece wants to fit into the greater whole.
“You can’t make a stone do something it doesn’t want to do,” McKiel explained, demonstrating how to build up supporting stones beneath a particularly challenging placement on a dry masonry retaining wall.
This hands-on philosophy extends to both wet mortar work and dry-lay construction, where stones are fitted together without any binding agent — a technique that can last for decades when done properly. Students work on retaining walls scattered throughout the property, learning the fundamentals of foundation work and stone selection that will serve them in their own future projects.
“It’s rare to have five days to learn something and to really let it become part of something that you understand,” Schwartz said. “Reading from a book wouldn’t be the same.”
The appeal goes beyond the practical.
“A lot of people just have a desire to connect with things and use their hands and discover ways that things have been done,” McKiel said. He’s seen several students go on to make masonry their profession, including Aurora Wahlstrom, one of his early students who is co-teaching the class.
The completed hut will serve as a base for future wilderness leadership programs, much as the original served Shackleton’s expedition over a century ago. But for the students working stone by stone, the real expedition is the journey from uncertainty to confidence, from individual stones to lasting structure, from modern life to ancient craft.