We are continuing our regular series of stories getting to know Maine Guides and this month we’ll meet Jonathan Gardner, a shipwright at Portsmouth Naval Shipyard, Recreation and Fishing Guide, Outdoor Educator, and Parent. Jonathan joined MWGO in 2020 and has recently become the chair of our Education Committee. You can look forward to Jonathan’s efforts as he works to increase MWGO’s presence in the Guide community by providing a variety of educational opportunities for guides, new, aspiring, and experienced, in the coming year.
Name and Business: Jonathan Gardner, Willow & Sunset Guide Service
Licenses and Certifications: Registered Maine Recreational and Fishing Guide, First Aid, Project WILD K-12 Educator, Town of Waterboro Commissioner for the Saco River Corridor Commission, MWGO Education Chair, Fall Protection Competent Person (3M), Maine Licensed Foster Parent
How did you find your way to the guiding industry? I grew up in Old Orchard Beach and, even while living near the ocean, I spent most of my time in the woods and ponds of the golf course that abutted my backyard. My parents divorced when I was very young, and I had weekends with my dad- many of which were spent paddling a yellow Old Town Tripper on Sebago Lake. I was fortunate enough to have outdoorsmen on both sides of my family, so I was constantly learning and honing my skills. My father’s friend, “Uncle” Joel, was a Master Maine Guide and he took me under his wing. If I wasn’t with them, I was hunting or fishing with my grandfather.
After high school, I continued my education at The Landing School, a wooden boat building and design school in Arundel. Upon graduation, I soon found myself living on Great Cranberry Island, but one winter on an island with 40 people at age 19 was a bit too isolating for me and I decided it was time to move back to Southern Maine.
I bounced around a few boatyards until the spring of 2000, when I was hired as a Shipwright Apprentice at the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard. At that time, it just so happened that the family of a co-worker ran a paddling club on the Kennebec and, after my first trip, I was hooked! I was active in the club for about 5 years and always yearned to be a guide, but life and bills always seemed to get in the way of attending the week-long club guide training.
I spent the next 10 years settled in a career that passed the time, but didn’t fill my cup and I needed something more. It wasn’t until I became a father, and was around children again, that I realized how unattached kids had become from the outdoors. It was then that I made up my mind to become a guide upon retirement in order to teach these lost outdoor skills. However, in 2019 my wife encouraged me to get my Guide License earlier and start guiding part-time until I could retire from the shipyard. I attained my recreational license in February of 2020, and held my first yoga hike in October with the assistance of a yoga instructing friend. In March of 2022 I added the Fishing Guide title to my credentials and look forward to hosting families for ice fishing this winter. I have to give credit to Michael Douglas and the Maine Primitive Skills School for helping hone some of my weak spots.
How do you utilize your Guide License now? Much of my business comes from homeschool groups looking for enrichment programs. We focus on basic foundational skills- fire building, natural navigation, plant and tree ID, awareness,how to find water, etc. We also run traditional canoe/kayak trips in Southern Maine. In the summer, we try to host a free community group paddle once a month – each time exploring a new lake or river in Southern Maine. We also try to squeeze in a few yoga hikes throughout the year. For winter 2023, we will be offering family ice fishing trips.
Any observations to share about being a Guide or about the guiding industry? Maine Guides do what we do for the love of guiding and the great outdoors. There aren’t many of us that make a year-round living by guiding alone.
What keeps you busy when you are not guiding? I have worked at the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard for 22 years, and hope to for another 14 or so. You can also find me woodworking and/or working on boats in my shop. In the summer, there’s a good chance you will find me at my Father-in-Law’s camp in Raymond.