Programs Blog

Thursday, September 19, 2024

SEA campus in Woods Hole, MA & Nickerson State Park

Mostly sunny, one rainy day

Friday afternoon, we loaded vans and left for Nickerson State Park, which holds significant geological phenomena, such as kettle holes and glacial erratics. Camp was set up in the evening with the aid of our Mountain Classroom instructors, Emi and Ted. Early the next morning, we cooked breakfast, packed day-bags, and headed for Pleasant Bay where we split into small groups and chose kayaks. After a long paddle to Sipson Island, Betsy, our tour guide, explained the rehabilitation efforts to restore the once prominent native vegetation. Then, Owen, from The Center for Coastal Studies, led us around the shoreline and we discovered the large array of biodiversity in the shallow waters.

Back at the campground, we swam in a kettle hole while one of the watches made dinner for the group. At the crack of dawn, we loaded the buses once again and explored the Cape Cod National Seashore sand dunes. We then went to a whaling museum and learned about whale entanglement through the story of the Humpback whale, Spinnaker. On the way back we ate lunch in the van and visited the Truro Lighthouse Historical Society to explore its rich history. Our group packed up the campsite and returned to campus just in time for pizza dinner.

The following week, we learned about marine mammals and began brainstorming ideas for our research project in Ben’s Ocean and Society Class. In intro to Marine Science, with Jeff, our class developed our understanding on ocean currents and wind patterns. We are currently preparing to spend our weekend in Mystic Seaport sleeping on an original whaling vessel.

–Cooper, Virginia, Adam, Bretton, Freya, Christina, Reagan