New Jersey Governer's School on the Environment I

The New Jersey Governer's School on the Environment arrived squeaky clean and ready for an adventure on Sedge. Students first caught a glimpse of snails piled with sea stars, scavenging for a meal below the dock.The group chose to have lunch on the marsh, so we kayaked out past the perigrine falcon nest and watched as four of the birds flew around the tower and perched next to their igloo. Returning from the marsh we took a short vacation to the Bahamas where we collected the last of the season's mussels, a few clams, and an abundance of sea stars. The water was warm, the sun was shining, and it was amazing to think we were still in New Jersery. Tuseday started bright and early with eight of the twelve students getting up to witness a beautiful sunrise and test their luck fishing off the dock. After breakfast Sedge intern Taylor Sehein demonstrated her water sampling techniques and equipment as the students looked on with interest. The group then paddled out to the dike for lunch and a trip to the beach, but the storm clouds soon rolled in and we got stuck paddling back to Sedge in a downpour! After everyone dried off and got into warm clothes, the students began journaling, an exersize which culminated in each student writing about their experience in their own five foot "world" somewhere on the island. The students came up with wonderful and imaginative reflections which they shared later on that evening, and eveyrone left the island with a special experience to carry with them for the rest of their lives.