Young Blake Expedition to the Kermadecs

tony
March 4, 2018
New Zealand / news

HMNZS Canterbury heading past the skyline of Auckland

Last weekend we were up in Auckland to see Edin off on her adventure to the Kermadecs. Having handed in her MSc thesis for marking she has a few adventures lined up and is currently travelling as one of the 23 crew on the Young Blake Expedition to the Kermadecs. They are taking a group of 20 students and are travelling on the NZ Navy multi-role vessel HMNZS Canterbury which in itself will be a great adventure. One of the purposes of the expedition is to expose the students to a unique natural environment to foster their enthusiasm while encouraging them to become leaders for the future with a first hand appreciation for the environmental issues we face. Part of this is expose them to scientists working in the field. The crew comprises a number of scientists and Edin with Chris Gaskin are the 2 ornithologists on the expedition. They will be doing seabird surveys and she will be photographing to help with identification. One her biggest challenges in this will be the height at which they have to work. The best options for good photos are low to the water and the Canterbury is a large ship and high out of the water. Even the flight deck is way higher than is ideal for bird photography work. Hopefully some good photo opportunities will be available from the landing craft and RHIBs once they reach the islands. She has an extensive field kit in the hope of getting some samples for haematology and genetic studies but getting the required permits is proving challenging.

We dropped Edin off at Devonport Naval base on Sunday and then met up again for an official function at the Naval Museum in the afternoon. We spent a lovely afternoon reading in the shade while waiting but I had to take the chance to photograph some terns with their chicks despite the harsh sun.

The expeditioners were all presented with their expedition jackets by Sir Peter Blake’s widow, Pippa, Lady Blake, and wished well by a kaumatua of the tangata whenua of the Kermadecs. Rear Admiral John Martin gave a a moving speech quoting “that great maritime writer, Margaret Mahy” with an excerpt from her book, “The Man Whose Mother was a Pirate”;

“The little man could only stare. He hadn’t dreamed of the BIGNESS of the sea. He hadn’t dreamed of the blueness of it. He hadn’t thought it would roll like kettledrums, and swish itself on to the beach. He opened his mouth and the drift and the dream of it, the weave and the wave of it, the fume and foam of it never left him again. At his feet the sea stroked the sand with soft little paws. Farther out, the great, graceful breakers moved like kings into court, trailing the peacock-patterned sea behind them.”

It spoke so well to Edin and I with memories of our previous adventures that when I looked toward her, her eyes were down to try and contain the same swell of emotion I felt at the words. The longing to feel a ship moving beneath you, surrounded by nothing but sea and the birds in their realm, is sometimes almost unbearable. It is a feeling that never leaves you once experienced and the longing to be there again is strong.

Rear Admiral John Martin addressing the expeditioners. — Rear Admiral John Martin addressing the expeditioners, watched by Expedition leader, Professor Mark Orams and cameraman Brendon O’Hagan.

Watching the Canterbury depart Devonport the next morning and head out of the Waitemata on a beautiful sunny day with a fair following wind was exciting. I cannot wait to see Edin’s photos and hear her stories from the Young Blake Expedition to the Kermadecs 2018.