Man travels 26 miles across ocean in mushroom kayak and survives whale encounter

An artist has completed a 26-mile ocean crossing in a kayak made entirely of mushrooms, capping off the bizarre voyage with an unexpected whale encounter.

Sam Shoemaker launched his hand-grown vessel from Catalina Island in early August, aiming to paddle to San Pedro, just south of Los Angeles. The journey took nearly 12 hours, with Shoemaker powering through seasickness and swells until a fin whale began trailing his boat for three miles.

Shoemaker’s boat wasn’t made from plastic or fiberglass but from mycelium, the root-like network that allows mushrooms to grow. The 107-pound kayak was cultivated over six weeks inside a mold filled with more than 500 pounds of hemp substrate, then dried for months until it hardened into a cork-like material.

Rough and uneven to the touch, the structure remained fully intact throughout the open-ocean test, proving the durability of what Shoemaker and other enthusiasts call “AquaFung.”

Mushroom kayak endures seasickness and whale encounter

Shoemaker set out before sunrise with only a compass, walkie-talkie, GoPro, and phone strapped to his life vest, hoping to avoid the worst of the forecasted swells. Three hours in, he began to feel seasick as the coastline slipped out of sight, only for a 50-foot fin whale to suddenly breach beside him. The animal lingered at his side for miles, keeping pace as he pushed through the hardest stretch of the crossing.

When he finally stumbled ashore with his mushroom kayak still intact, Shoemaker was met by friends and family. The trip marked the longest open-ocean journey in a kayak grown entirely from fungi, and for Shoemaker, it was proof that mushroom-based designs can withstand more than just calm waters.

The artist, who began his career making mushroom sculptures, is part of a small but growing community experimenting with fungi as an eco-friendly replacement for plastics. While he admits the boat is slower and heavier than a commercial model, he hopes the stunt inspires others to take the idea further. His kayak will be on display at Fulcrum Arts in Pasadena this October.