Kim De Wolff

Tag: expedition

  • Sea Dragon Reunion

    —

    by

    kimdewolff
    in

                                I spent a happy past weekend helping out with Algalita special events at the Ocean Institute in Dana Point. In addition to extra big display tables and a lecture and book signing by Charlie, the Sea Dragon and crew were docked…

  • Leeks in the Lab

    —

    by

    kimdewolff
    in

    As I type up my field notes, I am constantly reminded of the challenges of conducting scientific research on a sailboat designed for racing. Take the following conversation, in which I attempt to procure ingredients for a giant pot of lentil soup: “Hey Hank, are there any more leeks?” “I think there’s still some in…

  • Sea Dragon Index

    —

    by

    kimdewolff
    in

    While I’m not ‘that kind’ of social scientist, here are some silly statistics I compiled aboard the Sea Dragon using top secret methods: Number of crew aboard the Sea Dragon for Algalita’s North Pacific Expedition: 13 Number of countries represented: 7 Nautical miles sailed between July 7 and July 27, 2011: 2995 Miles actually sailed…

  • Wrapping Up

    —

    by

    kimdewolff
    in

    Tonight we were treated to a beautiful sunset over calm seas, setting off a frenzy of last minute photo taking. If all goes as planned this will be our last night with land out of sight, as current conditions should bring us to Victoria Monday evening, and Vancouver late Wednesday afternoon. We’ve seen signs of…

  • A ‘Patchy Patch’

    —

    by

    kimdewolff
    in

    The Great Pacific Garbage Patch is, well, patchy. We’ve spent the last few days skirting its fringes, while still well within the area the Algalita Marine Research Foundation previously collected dense plastic samples. Just last week, the gorilla trawl was one of the densest Marcus has seen from the smaller trawls used on the crane-less…

  • Life Re-Canted

    —

    by

    kimdewolff
    in

    Unless the wind is directly behind the boat, sailing pushes us on edge, resulting in a tilted world above and below decks. Heading straight north for the first 9 days meant a pretty steep but constant angle, one we’d mostly adjusted to – comfy seats established along with a sense of what and who was…

  • Meet the Crew

    —

    by

    kimdewolff
    in

    Now that I’ve had a chance to get to know the people on board, thought you might like to meet them too: From the left: Clive, Dale, Me, Karen, Rob, Hank, Carolynn, Marcus, Tim, Brandon, Ming, Judy (Jin is behind the camera) Taken after the epic swim, this photo was quite the comical production involving…

  • Diving Off the Deep End

    —

    by

    kimdewolff
    in

    Finally the day we’ve all been waiting for – calm seas and little wind at the edges of the main east accumulation zone in the North Pacific Gyre. The high-pressure system is no longer a myth. Everyone was up and buzzing at lunch, making plans for what might be our only chance to film from…

  • The View From Here

    —

    by

    kimdewolff
    in

    Looks like this. All the way around, 12 miles to the horizon. We are pretty much alone out here. An albatross or other bird sighting is an event that brings those awake up on deck. Yesterday morning we crossed the path of a giant container ship, fully loaded and headed east for Hong Kong. I…

  • Update

    —

    by

    kimdewolff
    in

    Rough seas the first few days tossed the boat and tested our bellies. We’ve been chasing a high-pressure system straight North from Hawaii, looking for calmer waters, but it’s smaller than normal and keeps moving. Bouncing around again today, I feel like I’m trying to type on a galloping horse. I miss entered an email…