The Gulf of Maine Expedition Institute is a sea kayak-based educational program seeking to document the Gulf of Maine through on-the-water and classroom-based experiences for learners of all ages. The Institute teaches skills in environmental monitoring and stewardship, safety, harbor use, and Leave No Trace; participates in applied research projects to help inform boating-based issues; and seeks to provide experiential programs that will help participants become better prepared to tackle and solve complex coastal issues in the 21st century.

Programs include:

• The Gulf of Maine Expedition Institute

  The Gulf of Maine Expedition Institute was launched with the 2002 Gulf of Maine Expedition, a sea kayaking journey organized to raise awareness and caring about the ecology and cultural legacy of this vast international watershed and to promote low-impact coastal recreational practices, safety, and stewardship principles. For more information, see Gulf of Maine Expedition.

  The Expedition sought to help people understand the Gulf of Maine, its ecology, oceanography, shoreline, watersheds, habitats, people, and places. It was an ecological and cultural awareness trip. The Expedition team hoped that in traveling slowly, by kayak, they could gain, and convey to others, a sense of the Gulf that could not be obtained by other means of travel-a personal, immediate sense of time and place.

  Starting in Provincetown, Massachusetts, the 1,300-mile journey followed the shores of Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Maine, New Brunswick, and Nova Scotia, ending five months later at Cape Sable Island, Nova Scotia.

  Team members met with over 3000 people either through formal programming or impromptu educational opportunities along the shore. Along the way, the Expedition team stopped in 25 communities where they presented the Gulf of Maine in an evolving slide-show, delivered safety and stewardship workshops, and learned from local residents about the issues affecting them in these changing times. The Expedition captured the imagination of people far and near through media coverage in over 60 newspapers, radio and TV stations and website.

  Maine Sea Grant was the lead sponsor of this unique and successful educational effort. The Expedition was a partnership of many organizations, agencies, and businesses including the Maine Coastal Program of the State Planning Office, the Gulf of Maine Council on the Marine Environment, Rippleffect, and the Maine Association of Sea Kayak Guides and Instructors.

  The team maintained a website for duration of the journey. Field logs, photos and much more are still available at www.gomexpedition.org.

  The 100-page Gulf of Maine Expedition Final Report 1.68 MB covers the journey extensively. Team members explain: "In this account, the Expedition team hopes to provide readers with a snapshot of the Gulf of Maine, as we observed it during the summer of 2002. This is not a comprehensive analysis of the Gulf; rather it is a representation of the diverse people and places we met during the Expedition. We hope that the stories we have captured will form a basic understanding of the important issues facing the Gulf at the beginning of the 21st century, ranging from fisheries to coastal access, from recreational use to pollution, from coastal land use to tourism. We encourage you to use these stories and data to trace the Gulf of Maine's changing land and seascape, and to help find solutions to complex problems, both locally and regionally. For those interested in the nuts and bolts of planning expeditions, in general, or the Gulf of Maine Expedition, specifically, we have included information on our safety and Leave No Trace protocols, as well an overview of our educational methods."

• Gulf of Maine Presentations
  Marine Extension Associate Natalie Springuel and members of the Gulf of Maine Expedition team are available to present their findings on the Gulf of Maine Expedition either in the form of slide shows or other presentations to learners of all ages.

• Sea Kayak Skills and Safety Workshop
  Sea kayaking can be a fun and safe sport; however, paddlers need to learn and practice skills andsafety techniques. The Institute coordinates on-the-water and classroom-based workshops on subjects such as navigation, rescues and safety, expedition planning, and Leave No Trace.

• From Store to Shore: Sea Kayak Safety and Stewardship Brochure 161 KB
  This brochure is published in partnership with multiple outfitters in Maine, the Maine Island Trail Association, the Maine Association of Sea Kayak Guides and Instructors, and the U.S. Coast Guard to promote safe and responsible paddling on Maine’s coast. The brochure is also available on request.

• Radar Reflectors and Sea Kayaks
  Do radar reflectors make kayaks more visible tovessels operating radar? The purpose of this study is to review the effectiveness of radar reflectors and comparable materials in increasing a sea kayak's visibility on a radar screen.

For more information about the Gulf of Maine Expedition Institute, contact Natalie Springuel