Our
Registered Maine Guide Staff 
National Park Sea Kayak has a team of veteran Sea Kayak Guides. Our professional and experienced staff is often blessed with a high return rate from season to season.National Park Sea Kayak conducts an extensive program each kayak season with emphasis on: emergency procedures, communication, ethics, wildlife, navigation, pre-trip briefing, island use and the like. Our veteran staff with many, many years guiding experience prides itself with the opportunity to hone skills and get ready for the upcoming season. Guide gratuities are always appreciatively accepted. Here is a look at the 2010 Sea Kayak Guides: Robert L. Shaw - Born and raised in Bar Harbor, Robert is proud to be an "island native". Ask him anything about Mount Desert Island, the local environment, or his favorite subject, fishing. He is sure to provide lots of interesting tales. Robert received a BS in Recreation Management and Business Administration in 1984 from the University of Maine. When he is not kayaking or fishing, he enjoys camping, swimming, scuba diving, boating and paddling the Florida Everglades. Robert sits on the Board of Directors of the Bar Harbor Savings & Loan Association. Bob Mensink - With over 30 years of guiding experience, Bob is well known on the Allagash, St. John, and St. Croix rivers as well as here in Acadia. He holds a Master Maine Guide license and is a former Adirondack Guide. A teacher for 12 years, Bob's education includes a BS from Fairleigh Dickinson University of New York and the University of Maine with degrees in Business and Special Education. An accomplished skier, wind surfer and sailor, Bob, now semi-retired, spends the off season with his wife at their home in the northern Adirondacks. Elyse Dana - Elyse graduated from College of the Atlantic in Bar Harbor, Maine with a degree in Human Ecology. Her love for sea kayaking blossomed in 2005 during her freshman orientation trip. Elyse and fellow students paddled for five days from Stonington to Mount Dessert Island. In 2007, Elyse became a Registered Maine Guide, and is beginning her fourth season guiding trips on Mount Desert Island. Over the last several years, Elyse has paddled in exotic places ranging from the Exuma Islands in the Bahamas to Mauritius in the Indian Ocean. Originally from southern coastal Maine, Elyse is familiar and knowledgeable about the ecology that Maine has to offer. Despite her extensive travels, Elyse thinks Acadia National Park and Mount Desert Island is the most beautiful place on earth. When she isn’t guiding kayak trips, Elyse can be found doing anything that involves the ocean. She enjoys sailing, snorkeling, scuba diving, and has a newfound interest in kite surfing. Michael J. Good - Michael is a biologist/naturalist and President of Down East Nature Tours in Bar Harbor, Maine. He has over 25 years experience studying birds of North America and brings a wealth of knowledge about Neotropical migrants and the avifauna of the Eastern United States. Michael has traveled extensively in the USA, Alaska, Europe, Australia and South America. As a Registered Maine Guide, Michael has been guiding for many years. Fields of expertise include wetland ecology, ornithology and environmental education. He currently holds a BA Earlham College and a MSc from the University of Ultrecht, the Netherlands. Michael is currently building bog bridges somewhere in the northern forest of Maine. Michelle Wheeler - Michelle graduated from the University of Maine in 2005 with a degree in Sociology and a certificate in Outdoor Education. She has been a certified Maine Guide and Wilderness First Responder since 2002 working in Bar Harbor for 4 full seasons as well as leading trips and teaching kayak skills at the Maine Bound Outdoor Center (University of Maine). She has been kayaking in the Florida Everglades, the Napali coast of Kauai, the Fjordlands of New Zealand, and most recently around the Virgin Islands. When she's not sea kayaking she enjoys whitewater paddling, sailing, hiking, and playing beach volleyball or ultimate frisbee! If you are out kayaking with Michelle on a hot day, don't be surprised if she tries to do a back flip of the bow of your kayak! Theodore Cake - A Bar Harbor native, Ted has bee Sea Kayaking for the past 15 years. After receiving a Computer Electronics Degree and working behind a desk Ted realized shortly that it was not the life for him. As well as Guiding Sea Kayak Trips, Ted enjoys: surfing year 'round (yes, in Maine), mountain biking, kayak rolling, playing guitar and cooking. Ted also enjoys traveling and has visited: Dominican Republic, Bermuda, Costa Rica and lived/worked in New Zealand for a year. Ted also works part-time for a non-profit organization who provides care to adults with mental retardation in Ellsworth, Maine. In order to keep up with the constantly changing outdoor equipment field, Ted additionally works for Cadillac Mountain Sports in Bar Harbor. A true local, Ted's passion is helping others enjoy the great outdoors. Llew Sullivan - Llew is a seventh generation Mount Desert Islander who has been guiding kayak tours for five years. He graduated from the University of Maine in 2003 with Degrees in Marine Science and Anthropology; interests that fit very well with the ecological philosophy of National Park Kayak Tours. He loves to include geology, biology and Native American history in his tours. In addition to guiding, Llew has also spent time as a Park Ranger, Mussel fisherman, Residential Youth Counselor and Research Diver. Llew also enjoys SCUBA diving the local waters, sailing, rock climbing, riding motorcycles and building things. In the off-season he runds Solace Designs, a custom carpentry company. The staff of National Sea Kayak Tours includes Reservation Clerks, Shuttle Drivers, and Maine Guides, all of whom are enthusiastic and ready to inform you on other areas of interest you may have... swimming spots, whale watching, hiking & biking, food & drink... Beyond sea kayaking, we are ready to help make your vacation in Acadia a great experience. Just ask us... |
