Shoemaker’s kayak was no ordinary kayak. Brown-ish yellow and bumpy in texture, it had been made – or rather, grown – entirely from mushrooms. His journey, if successful, would mark the world’s longest open-water journey in a kayak built from this unique material. [Phil] Ross calls Sam’s voyage “remarkable”, and hopes it inspires other scientific institutions to take this work more seriously. “[Sam] did it before Stanford and Caltech, and it happened in his backyard. This whole field is led by designers and artists, and it’s not because they’re the best scientists, but they are aware of the future before everybody else.” https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/sep/07/mushroom-kayak-plastic-alternative
It’s 3 feet shorter than my first boat but 50% larger by volume for more buoyancy and stability. The added keel improves tracking and gives the boat enough rigidity for open water. The 20% of the volume lost to shrinkage while drying this material was accounted for in this design so my body fits much more comfortably. The boat weighed exactly the same before and after paddling for a few hours in the ocean (decomposition is not a major concern for my day-long crossing.) Videos of boat under construction and in action: https://www.samkshoemaker.com/mushroomboat2
