Sea Kayaking

Sea Kayaks are an intimate and accessible means of traveling the coast, creating opportunities for both independent skill development and teamwork.  Students will have the opportunity to paddle both single and double kayaks, learning the techniques necessary to handle each craft.  

Students will learn to:

• Maneuver and propel a sea kayak using paddles and foot rudders
• Navigate and plan routes using charts, compass, and other navigation materials
• Learn to understand the impact of weather, tides and currents on both navigation and travel
• Camp in rugged wilderness maritime environments
• Leave No Trace ethics
• Being part of an expeditionary team including: campsite management and upkeep, kayak and gear management on shore, food preparation and cooking for the whole team, cleanup/ maintenance/ repair of gear.

Rock Climbing

The granite that made the Maine Coast famous as a source of building material a century ago now provides the setting for some outstanding rock climbing or rappelling from the sea cliffs. Students learn to use climbing equipment, tie knots, climb and belay each other, while Instructors provide overall supervision of the site. Climbing hones and develops balance, coordination, flexibility and grace on the rock and presents many individual challenges for students, while the team must work together to set systems up, communicate clearly and support each other throughout the climb. Rock Climbing is offered as part of the curriculum on our 15-day Sea Kayaking course only.

Solo

The Solo experience provides an important break from the rigors of the expedition and gives students the opportunity to reflect on their Outward Bound experience. With sufficient food and equipment, students will set up camp at sites of their own, using the wilderness skills learned during the first half or two-thirds of the course. The time students spend on Solo depends on the length of the course. On one-week courses, Solo is four to12 hours long; on two-week courses Solo will likely be an overnight. 

Often located along beautiful shorelines or on an island, campsites are chosen to offer as much solitude as possible (yet be within emergency whistle-signaling distance of other group members). Most students spend their Solo time journaling, drawing, or just thinking and resting as they process lessons of the course to focus on their goals for the future. Instructors check on each participant at least daily and are within whistle-distance at all times.

Course Area

The coast of Maine, with its intricate and indented shoreline, is a unique segment of the North Atlantic seaboard. It is known among ocean travelers for its picturesque beauty, iconic lighthouses, abundant bays and harbors, rocky islands and quiet coves. We sea kayak in an area that covers roughly 200 miles of the Maine coast - with countless rivers, bays and islands to explore.

The rocky, spruce-covered islands are the summits of a prehistoric mountain range; many generations of inhabitants have made their livelihoods here. Evidence left behind on the islands reveals the historic presence of indigenous Abenaki camps, pre-colonial fishing communities, post-colonial timber and farming operations and early 20th century granite quarries. Cold, nutrient-rich waters flow from the Canadian Maritimes and make the Gulf of Maine home to a wide range of sea birds, seals, porpoises and whales. These regions are the ancestral lands of the Wabanaki Confederacy, which includes Abenaki/Abénaquis, W∂last∂kwiyik (Maliseet), Penobscot, and Passamaquoddy nations.