The children poked jellyfish, dug for clams, and studied horseshoe crabs, all while learning about the importance of clean water, as Richard Wheeler completed another leg of his 281-mile kayak trip though Buzzards Bay.

The four-week trip, which began May 19 on the Westport River, has the 81-year-old Onset resident paddling the Buzzards Bay shoreline both to educate area students about clean water and to celebrate the 25^th anniversary of the nonprofit Buzzards Bay Coalition, which works to protect and restore the bay.

The students are meeting Wheeler at various points along the way and passing along a gift for their “bay neighbors,” which Wheeler delivers at his next destination.

On June 6, members of Wareham's Boys & Girls Club welcomed Wheeler at Onset Beach.

Before Wheeler arrived, the children explored the beach with Buzzards Bay Coalition Senior Educator Margo Connolly.

Unsure about Wheeler's choice of transportation – some of the children had never seen a kayak – they kept their eyes peeled.

“Is a kayak a boat?” one of the children asked Connolly.

Yes, a kayak is a boat, she explained, and noted that everyone should look for a yellow-colored boat.

Another child spotted a yellow boat, but it was not Wheeler. That boat was powered by an engine, rather than a paddle.

“A kayak doesn't have a motor on it,” Connolly gently pointed out.

The children spent some time picking up shells, dipping their feet in the cold water, discovering marine life – such as the gooey jellyfish that had washed ashore – and carving “welcome” messages in the sand for Wheeler.

Under the guidance of experienced shellfisherman and Boys & Girls Club member Zack Oldfield, the children also dug about dozen quahogs and explored the clams', well... spitting capabilities.

After three hours of paddling from the Weweantic River, where he left the previous day after meeting with children from Carver, Wheeler arrived at Onset Beach – not far from his home. (Wheeler is completing his trip in short legs at a time. He gets to sleep and home, rather than camp out, and can postpone trips if the weather is bad, as he had to do this week.)

One of the first questions for the avid kayaker was a good one: Why do you kayak?

“Kayaking is the greatest way to see things,” Wheeler told the children.

The boat is quiet because it doesn't have a motor, so it doesn't disrupt wildlife.

“I don't have a stinky engine,” Wheeler noted, describing kayaking as a “tip-toe through the water.”

And, unlike rowboats, which have rowers facing the opposite direction when rowing, “you can always see where you're going,” Wheeler said.

The children were satisfied with that answer.

But what made him take this trip from one tip of Buzzards Bay to another?

Wheeler briefly explained his four-month, 1,500 mile kayak trip from Newfoundland to Buzzards Bay – completed when he was 60 years old – to raise awareness about the plight of the great auk, a bird humans drove to an untimely extinction. That trip resulted in the production of a documentary that is often shown to students to educate them about humans' affect on wildlife.

“The success of that trip made me think that there are other awareness things that I can do,” the environmentalist said, adding that he especially has enjoyed the opportunity to meet students who live at the top of rivers “to show it isn't just people who live in houses like here, on the shore, who have to worry about clean water.” The actions of people everywhere contribute to water pollution.

Wheeler also talked about what we saw on his way to Onset, including osprey in Little Harbor and lots of eel grass.

“The ospreys all seem to have families,” Wheeler told the children.

He said he was encouraged by the amount of eel grass he saw growing.

“When you have that, you're going to have lots of other things,” he explained, noting that the grass serves as a habitat and a hiding place for many animals.

The children received their gift from their bay neighbor in Carver – a “Carver” T-shirt and some Ocean Spray fruit snacks, as Carver is the home of Ocean Spray.

The Boys & Girls Club members then gave Wheeler the gift they made for his next stop – beaded “Save Buzzards Bay” bracelets and necklaces for students from Bournedale Elementary, who Wheeler will meet on the Red Brook River.

Enthusiastic about their newfound skill, the children continued clamming while listening to Wheeler's account of his adventure.

“I love this busyness and connection with what's here!” Wheeler said with a smile.

He commended Wareham Boys & Girls Club Director Barbara Sullivan for getting the children “out in their environment.”

“They'll remember this all their lives,” Wheeler said as a student dropped a big quahog into a bucket before hurrying back to the digging area.

Want to track Richard Wheeler on his journey? Visit www.savebuzzardsbay.org/wheelerpaddle to view a map of the route and read a blog, which will be updated after every leg of the trip.