PORTLAND, Maine — Local kayak guide Joe Guglielmetti is attempting to do something that’s never been done before: Paddle from Boston to Portland in fewer than 24 hours. It’s a distance of more than 90 miles.
The public can follow Guglielmetti’s progress via an online GPS-tracking website. He left Deer Island in Boston Harbor just before 9 p.m. Sunday night. From there, he made his way to Gloucester, passing through the Annisquam River around 2 a.m.
The adventurous kayaker, who guides for Portland Paddle, then crossed the New Hampshire border into Maine at 6:12 a.m. By noon, he’d reached Nubble Light in York.
Now, Guglielmetti plans on hugging the coast before rounding Cape Elizabeth’s rocky headland and into Portland Harbor sometime before 9 p.m.
“It’s been a few months in the planning,” said Zack Anchors, owner of Portland Paddle. “At least since last winter.”
In order to complete the trip within his self-imposed time limit, Guglielmetti will need to maintain an average speed of just around 4 knots per hours — or a little over 4.6 mph — throughout the entire length of the trip, according to the Portland Paddles website.
It’s a tall task, given wind and waves on the ocean. Still, Anchors wasn’t surprised when he heard about Guglielmetti’s plan.
“Knowing Joe, it made sense,” Anchors said. “It’s just another epic feat for him to take on.”
Guglielmetti, who leads group paddles for the company in Casco Bay and other Maine locations, has already set several Maine kayaking records.
According to Portland Paddle, Guglielmetti once traversed the entire Maine coast in four days and also kayaked from Portland to Augusta in just 13 hours. Guglielmetti has paddled across the entire Bay of Fundy — and back — in 14 hours, as well, and also circumnavigated Mount Desert Island in a single day.
Now, Guglielmetti has his sights set on establishing the Boston-to-Portland record.
“To his knowledge, no one has ever paddled from Boston to Portland, alone in their boat and entirely under human power, in such little time,” the website states. “When asked about his training practices Joe said it involved a lot of time in his kayak, a lot of time on a rowing erg, and a lot of time envisioning the staircase scene from [the movie] Rocky.”
