It’s good to be back on The Braveheart – I’ve spotted some familiar faces and reclaimed my cabin from last time. So this is our home away from home until out scheduled return to shore a little under two weeks from now on Friday, 6 December.
Stepping on to the ship at the start of the expedition is a really exciting time – suddenly it’s all real but it is also when all the possibilities stretch out before you. Everything is possible, nothing has been ruled out yet. We might find a new species. We might find a species that hasn’t been seen in the waters around the Kermadec Islands before. We might learn something totally new about a species that we thought we understood completely. Having been to the Kermadec Islands before, I know we will find a spectacular marine environment. It’s an environment that makes me so grateful we have areas that are protected and it shows how valuable that protection is when you witness the diversity and the abundance of the marine life. It also makes me hopeful we can expand this marine reserve.
Tom and Steve on deck as The Braveheart leaves Tauranga bound for the Kermadecs
With videographer Steve Hathaway here to capture some of what we see underwater you’ll be able to form your own opinion on the value of protecting these waters and the abundant marine life that call these waters home.
We’re off to Raoul so we’ve got a good couple of days’ travel time before we anchor. For now here’s a shot (above) we snapped this afternoon as we passed Mount Maunganui. Weather report: sunny, stiff breeze but calm seas. A good start to the voyage. Possibilities: unlimited.
