Officially launched in Norway in 2018, Future of Fjords is an electric catamaran constructed from carbon fibre composite able to welcome 400 passengers. It’s been a year now that the electric ferry has been sailing between the spectacular Norway’s UNESCO heritage sites setting new standards for environmentally responsible passenger transport.

Described as the first vessel of its kind to offer completely emission free transport, the vessel sails along the World Heritage listed fjord on the 90-minute trip from Flåm to Gudvangen, through Western Norwegian landscape. »Future of The Fjords does just that, minimising its impact on the environment while maximising the experience of passengers who can now glide silently over the water and come closer to nature than ever before,« says Rolf A. Sandvik, CEO of shipowner The Fjords. »We’re entering into a zero-emission future.«

Born two hours from the fjords, the cruise ship captain of the newly launched ferry Future of the Fjords had completely changed life working here. »I used to work on a chemical tanker,a 200-meter long and 35-meters wide vessel. Not very environmental friendly! (laughs) Deep see trade, all over the world. We used 45 metric tons fuel a day. So that represents a big difference in my life today,« he says. »I remember a lot of guys told the company when they started that the Future of Fjords won’t work out. But it worked from day 1. Technically, we have almost no problem with this vessel. It’s not so complicated because we use electrical engines. They have built electrical engines for hundreds of years. The new thing here is to have a battery as the power source. The boat receives power from a battery pack of 1800 kWh, representing about 40 times the capacity of a typical electric car. I’ve been on this vessel for a few months and am surprised how well it works,«  he says. »The manufacture will take care of the change of battery and will recycle the battery, in 9 years from now. I suppose when we are going to change our battery, they’ll be half the size and twice the battery of today’s. You can compare it to mobile phone development. 15 years ago, we had this huge battery, now you cannot even see the mobile phone battery.«

Powered by two electric engines of 585 horsepower each. The installation makes it possible for the vessel to reach 16 knots (almost 30 kph) during operation for a range of 55 km, before the boat must be recharged. Thanks to a unique floating charging solution called the PowerDock, the environmentally responsible vessel ushers in a new breed of clean, green and spectacular passenger transport. »Here we have a solution that any form of electric transport can simply plug into without exerting strain on the grid. The dock also stores consumables, fuel for sister vessels, and allows black water to be offloaded for treatment on land. This makes Future of The Fjords the only passenger vessel not to discharge sewage directly into the fjords.«

As the world’s first all-electric carbon fiber vessel, Future of Fjords make waves right across the globe since the all-electric passenger vessel Future of The Fjords has won the Ship of the Year 2018 award at SMM. Rolf A. Sandvik, CEO of shipowner The Fjords defines the vessel as »the greenest passenger vessel in Norway [and] helping us preserve the integrity of our beautiful fjords«. 

The innovative 42-meters long vessel is part of Norway’s program to create the first zero-emissions zone on water. The parliament has accepted a resolution which would see emissions banned in the world heritage fjords “as soon as technically possible and no later than 2026”. 

Photos Inside boat: Elisa Routa (35mm)

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March 6th, 2014. 72 degrees south, speed 5 knots, -28 or less degrees celsius with wind chill.

By Nico Edwards.

It is dark and stormy, with snow blowing straight at us and we are driving blindly into pack ice. The waves seem to be growing dramatically every minute. The guy at the bow is shouting instructions and warnings back to another guy at the halfway mark, who runs across the icy deck towards the helm to tell us to go “hard to starboard!” Just as we begin turning, we see a piece of ice the size of a school bus passing along our port side, grinding along the hull as it goes. Lots of warning….and to top that off, we have to motor ahead at 3+ knots if we even remotely hope to be able to control the direction of the boat. Infinity weighs 160 tons, so even going slow it takes forever to stop. Slamming into an iceberg is like slamming into solid stone, at any speed something has to give, and it’s not likely to be the stone. The quantity of ice in the surrounding water is increasing rapidly, along with the size. Andy, our Scottish watch leader, keeps adding speed, as we lose the ability to hold course. All the while massive chunks slide past on either side. In this sobering atmosphere, Andy starts talking about “real adventure” and how hard it is to find these days.

Having lived on the high seas for the last 20 odd years, I can’t think of anyone I would rather have leading this madness then Capt. Clem. Though as he gets to the helm, even he seems a bit unnerved by the situation. “Why didn’t anyone get me fucking sooner! …I can’t hear you clearly! None of this American nuzzle buzzle. There’s a solid wall of pack ice dead ahead! Can’t you see that! That’s not water, that’s ice!” The full force of the storm has yet to arrive and we’re still 30 miles off from our intended anchorage.

As I make my way on deck the next day, I find the situation has deteriorated further. Our Canadian Electrician, David Bowie (real name) is at the bow screaming back to the helm “hard to port!” Just as a real hull cruncher passes with not much more than two feet to spare. All around us is thick pancake ice and off in the distance is a sheer wall of pack ice that we seem to be heading directly for. We soon discover that the anchorage area is socked in with ice and we have no place that is protected to anchor. It is at this point that the full force of the storm arrives. Not the 20 knot peripheral system we were hoping for at this latitude, but an 80+ knot force 12 hurricane of ice with wind gusts exceeding 160 kpm. We have no choice but to ride it out on the open ocean, but we have to quickly get away from the large fields of ice.  

It is so cold that ocean spray turns to shards of ice before it hits the deck. The waves have grown to mountains of water exceeding 18 meters tall from trough to crest. An interesting site few of us have ever seen, they are breaking on themselves in the open ocean, as if they were being pushed up by a reef or the shore. Going on watch is a sobering experience. It’s less of an active navigating experience and more of what one crew member termed “riding space mountain for three hours”.

It’s so cold, that our diesel has begun to freeze in the tanks, and from the white smoke the engine is emitting, we suspect our fuel is contaminated with seawater. We are not sure how the water made its way into our tanks, but our engine is cutting in and out and were losing fuel injectors we have no replacements for. 

To make matters worse, the waves crashing onto the bow are so strong they have bent back the steel anchor plate, allowing water into the forward anchor locker. Infinity has taken on so much water, her bow is riding noticeable lower in the water, and she’s digging ever deeper into the waves.

The engine throttled up full, we are lurching in horrible, skyward-thrusting, gut-wrenching circles. Due to the power of the wind though, we seem to be going backwards. We have to harness ourselves in and bear-hug something solid, or we’ll be ripped off the helm. If we go overboard, we’ll be dead before the person next to us realizes we are gone. 

Every couple of hours, we are forced to shut off the engine so we can clean out the rapidly clogging fuel filter. It is during one of these cleanings, the boat drifting at the mercy of the wind and waves, giant mountains of white capped waves cresting and breaking on and around us, that we spot a large iceberg, directly in the path the waves are taking us.  Fuel filter quickly back in place, and we are trying to restart the engine, before we get dashed against the ice. The starter turns and turns, but the engine refuses to catch. For what feels like forever, it just turns, straining the battery. It is in this moment, that we feel the most alive. This is what we are truly after. As we hang on for our lives, in the middle of the most dramatic storm we have ever seen, with front row seats to one of the greatest natural spectacles on earth, we have collectively reached a state of transcendent ecstasy. We’re in a giant universe of forces that are out of our control and we’re feeling very small. 

The engine catches and we apply the throttle, holding our breaths as the boat slowly increases the distance between us and the berg. We will ride space mountain for two days.

Follow their adventures online.

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This process of collecting has increased my awareness of how much of a problem the entire world has with plastic pollution. It has encouraged me and my husband to try to make changes and better decisions in our daily lives to consume less, and especially use less single-use plastics.

An eccentric and colorful postcard saying « Greetings from Los Angeles » sold in a overloaded souvenir shop of the Santa Monica pier. For most of us, this is the very first picture that comes to mind when we think of California. Surprisingly, Rebecca Kudela Grettenberger is not so familiar with bodybuilders wearing this bad fake orange tan look. No. Becca grew up in a small, country, mountain town called Catheys Valley, just outside of Yosemite National Park in central California, surrounded by vast valleys where she developed a strong passion for nature. « At your feet lies the great Central Valley glowing golden in the sunshine, extending north and south farther than the eye can reach, one smooth, flowery, lake-like bed of fertile soil » described naturalist and author John Muir who became an early advocate for the preservation of wilderness in the United State. 

Rebecca is definitely a creative spirit. Today living in Biarritz, France, our Panthalassa Society member works as a digital designer for Billabong Women, one of the biggest surfwear brands. At the end of the day, she uses her creativity to raise awareness of plastic pollution. « Small changes can have a huge impact, » she said. We sat down with Rebecca to learn more about the environment that inspired her passion for the ocean and her decision to participate actively in an environmental movement in order to save our ocean’s biggest threat.

Hi Becca, can you talk a bit about your background

I grew with lots of animals (my parents have a ranch) and spent a ton of time outdoors, hiking in Yosemite with my dad, swimming in the Merced River with my friends, riding horses with my Mom, exploring the ranch with my sister. We grew up without a television which I think encouraged us to be really creative at a young age, and spending so much time outside increased my appreciation for nature, even though I didn’t realize it at the time. 

How was it like to live in Southern California?

When I was 18 and headed off to college, I pursued my dream and moved to the beach. I lived in San Diego for five years while attending San Diego State University, studying art and graphic design. I met Brent, now my husband, in an art class and he was the one who helped me buy my first surfboard and taught me how to surf. We spent a lot of time at the beach together during these years, surfing in Pacific Beach, eating California Burritos at the beach while watching the sunset, driving down to Baja for the day for a morning surf and lobster lunch. San Diego very quickly became my favorite place! Then when I got my dream job working for Roxy in Huntington Beach as a graphic designer, I moved up to Orange County. The office was pretty close to the beach so we would spend a lot of our lunch breaks surfing, SUPing, laying out by the beach, running at the beach. Pretty much any time I wasn’t in the office I was at the beach. 

This is where your passion for surfing and the beach lifestyle come from? 

Even though we didn’t live right by the beach growing up, our parents would take us to the beach during the summer. We would go camping in Santa Cruz and spent a lot of time in Monterey and Carmel, so I have a lot of great beach memories. My interest in surfing and surfing culture started when I began to get magazines (Moxie Girl, Surfing Girl) and catalogs (Delias) in junior high and I would see those 90’s Roxy ads that are still so iconic today. I would stare at those pictures of those fit, tan, happy girls at the beach in Hawaii and dream about making that life my reality someday. I collected hang tags, starting at the age of 12, from all the Roxy clothes I ever bought – and I still have them! They were my initial inspiration that I think eventually led to manifesting my dream job at Roxy.

You live in Biarritz today. What do you like most about France and Biarritz?

Where to begin! I love France for so many reasons – I think most of all for the slower pace that people live life here, and take time to enjoy, but also the food, the bread, the wine, the history, the architecture, the language, all of it! And we especially love Biarritz for the beach and surf culture that manages to make France feel more like ‘home’ for us Californians. The Basque Coast is one of the most beautiful places in the world and we get to call it home! We also love to travel and it was my dream to travel Europe before moving here, so getting to have a home base in Biarritz and easily get around Europe is a dream come true!

Everyday, you go out, run and collect trash on the beach. Your platform and project entitled « Sea and Gather » tends to turn plastic pollution into well organized visuals in order to raise awareness of plastic pollution. Tell us more about your passion for beachcombing.

I’ve always been a treasure-hunter – when we were little our parents would take us out on the ranch and we would explore around old rock house foundations from the gold rush days in the 1800’s, and we would find old objects – metal tools, glass bottles, bits and pieces from the past. I think that sparked my interest in hunting for old objects in nature, and beach combing is just another form of that! I love finding old treasures (and especially older treasures over here in Europe) washed up on the beach – those bits and pieces of sea glass are little bits of history that tell a story from the past. Unfortunately I find more trash and plastic than I do treasures, but it’s those special days when I find those treasures, pieces of pottery, porcelain dolls, old chunky glass bottles with typography, metal coins, toys… – all worth the hunt!

You’ve been collecting beach trash in France, Spain, Italy, the UK, Malta, Greece, and even more recently in New York! What would be your message to our readers and community of ocean lovers? 

I think that this process of collecting has definitely increased my awareness of how much of a problem the entire world has with plastic pollution. It has encouraged me and my husband to try to make changes and better decisions in our daily lives to consume less, and especially use less single-use plastics. It’s not easy to change your daily habits, but if we all work together to make small changes, it can have a huge impact! Instead of buying a plastic water bottles, bring your own and refill it. Same with coffee cups. Bring your own reusable shopping bags to the grocery store, use stainless steel straws instead of plastic ones, use paper Q-tips / cotton buds instead of plastic ones, try to buy vintage before buying new. The less single-use plastic we use as a population, the less will end up on the beach and in our oceans!

Discover more about Sea and Gather on Instagram.

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Visual storytelly Brendan George Ko is the kind of guy you like at first sight. He entirely embodies this quote from Beat Generation author Jack Kerouac’s The Dharma Bums: “One man practicing kindness in the wilderness is worth all the temples this world pulls.” His biography tells the story of a man who had several lives. »I lived amongst the yuccas and coyotes of New Mexico. I have surfed with the craziest sons of bitches I have ever met during my time in Texas. I grew up on the outskirts of Toronto, ON, and lived half my life moving throughout America, with endless road trips, and faces of so many, dear human beings.« 

Rocked by a Hawaiian myth, guided by an eclipse, we chose to publish the words of photographer Brendan George Ko, the photographer also designated with affection and respect as »a wild animal« by the Captain of this crew. Led by experiences, fascinated by people, land, peace and nature, Brendan George Ko’s body of work entitled »Ohana Wa’a« declares his love to the vast and endless sea, and the people sailing it.

This is not about sailing, nor is it about a romance of the sea. It is about people coming together to share in a vision and for this vision to grow stronger with each generation. In the 1970s, during the cultural renaissance in Hawai’i, a small group of individuals all shared the same dream: they envisioned a voyaging canoe, the wa’a, the same one that would have brought the first people to islands of Hawai’i.

Over the course of a few years and with the help of a generous community that dream became a reality with the creation of the Hōkūle’a. Soon after her completion she sailed to each of the main Hawaiian islands to see how she would be received by the greater community. Wherever she visited crowds would gather, some would stop and watch her for hours in a humble silence. The image of her anchored close to the shore returned onlookers to an ancient time.

The waves were building higher and higher as we drove down the Pali coast. Empty cars lined the side of the highway as their owners caught some of the best surf in months. Victory and I were part of a last minute crew that was being put together to move the Mo’okiha out of the harbor in search of safer waters. When we arrived at the harbor we were short of the people we needed to crew the wa’a.

To spite the number, we motored out of the harbor against the wind and as soon as we passed the protective jetty the sea conditions suddenly changed. The sky darkened and wind started howling. We were surrounded by white caps. The Captain told us of a Hawaiian superstition about being out at sea during the eclipse. With these conditions and that myth we wanted to moored in safe waters as quick as possible and get back to land safely. A squall hit and the Captain and Jack went diving into the rolling waves covered in thick rainfall to reach our arriving escort.

Moments before the eclipse an elliptical opening surrounding the sun break through the dense cloud cover. The wind calmed for a moment and chicken skin spread throughout my body. I remember the deep blue cast on the entire world, the cool air breeze, the rocking of the wa’a accompanied by a symphony of creaks and splashes. We were all stressed and tired but that moment reached deep within us to tell us something. Hours later and just before sunset we were towed back into the harbor.

The conditions settled and we commandeered a slip from one of the whale hunting boats. The crew swam back to shore leaving the Captain behind. “You’re a wild animal”, the Captain told me. I dove into the harbor and swam with a smile on my face. I loved this crew, its Captain, and our wa’a. I felt like we can conquer anything as long as we kept strong together.

Discover Brendan George Ko’s work on his website.

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Quiet. « Qui-et ». Say it slowly in a low voice and you’ll get the general feeling of what it’s like to enter the fjords of Western Norway. During Oceana’s first North Sea expedition, the Panthalassa Society took a couple of days to discover one of Unesco fjord’s heritage and treasures of nature. French photographer Sarah Arnould was part of the crew and came back with stunning shots of this unique journey and frozen retreat out north.

Divers, scientists, boat crew, oceanographers, ambassadors, and engineers keep busy aboard Neptune, the icelandic vessel sailing the dark waters of the North Sea. Despite the cold and tumultuous sea, they’re here for one same goal: Collect precious data on species and habitats and make a positive change during this unprecedented at-sea study. « Leaving to Norway, and being able to capture passionate and committed scientists sailing the seas and oceans to fight against overfishing, has been a very enriching experience » says photographer Arnould. « I’d never been in the open sea before. For days, we had to withstand heavy rains and tumultuous currents. Working in these conditions was not an easy task but the beauty of the landscape, and the environment all around, helped us forget those small details. To witness the greatness of such a magnificent sea, makes you feel small and spiritually impressed.»

On their way to the region of the fjords, the crew stopped by a small village stuck between giants of land. Waterfalls cascading down mountainsides, spectacular glaciers and breath-taking viewpoints. Western Norway is home of « Jostedal Glacier », the largest glacier on mainland Europe, covering an area of 487 square kilometers. In that region, the red barns run alongside the peaceful river, boats are parked like cars in a garage, and green is in vogue. « We met a fisherman in the freshness of a Norwegian fjord. He carried us aboard his boat to make us discover the fjord that shelters the village where he lives. Far from big fishing boats sailing the North Sea, this fjord was of a spectacular beauty and teemed with life. I felt that was a place that allowed humans and animals to live in total harmony. » The crew ended up fishing herrings, sharing some blinis and a good coffee in the cabin of his wooden boat. « Under the rain showers of the Norwegian summer, we had that feeling that time stopped, » explains the French photographer. « This experience taught me a lot on my photography skills and concerning my personal commitment as well. This is the kind of adventure that helps us realize the seriousness of the situation. Being able to see these people’s commitment towards the environment gave me new hope, but it doesn’t depend only on them. »

Discover more of Sarah Arnould’s work on her website.

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In June 2016, photographer Anze Østerman took a trip to Northern Finland, situated at the northernmost part of the Earth. The Slovenia-based artist met Robin, an englishman who chose to make the Arctic his home. His series of pictures entitled »North to Nowhere« not only documents breathtaking scenery but reveals the powerful story of a man who chose to live in harmony with nature. That’s the story of serenity and peace over crowd and connection. We wanted to learn more about the photographer and his experience in this isolated part of the globe.

Within its borders, Slovenia contains Alpine mountains, thick forests and an Adriatic coastline. Anze Østerman goes back to the origins of his deep love for open spaces and tells us how it was like to grow up in one of the world’s newest country. « I had a wonderful childhood. I was born in a newborn country. It was war at the time I was born, but luckily, the war lasted only ten days, and after that, a new era was on the horizon for our people. Slovenia is a small and beautiful Alpine country with high mountains, vast forests and amazing coastline. My weekends as a child were spent either at my grandmothers’ farm or in the mountains with my parents, » he says. « I have been raised up doing so many activities like diving, mountaineering and watching movies. All these things affected who I am today at the age of 26. I’m lucky to have grown up in the 90s, when things were more real and honest. If you wanted to know how it feels to grab a fish with your hands, you had to go to the creek. Nowadays people google that. » 

Fly fishing in rivers, skateboarding on frozen lakes, wild spaces in Norway, the slovenian photographer’s inspirations are definitely rooted in nature. « I think that we all have a relationship with the environment that surrounds us. Some people are not even aware of that. But we all call some places home. I like to document human’s interactions with nature. Their activities here and there, how they survive, in which way the environment affects them. To me, the most important is to understand and respect them, both people and the environment. The most important is to grow with this respect. Every time I learn something from people and from the environment, I somehow evolve. It can be ‘how to build a Nordlands’ house’ or learn ‘why sun is always up in June in the Arctic Norway’. Nature is my favorite environment to document because I find more honesty and balance in it. »

Anze belongs to these artists thinking that the most important thing is to step out of your comfort zone. « I like to capture a moment that you feel with all of your senses. So that the observer can smell the salt in the air and feel the breeze on his skin. For example when an orca surfaces one meter from your boat! I like to capture moments with my camera just the way I captured them with my own eyes, » Østerman says. « Sometimes I fail. Sometimes I succeed. Learning about the others and understanding what’s around me, that’s what I love about photography. With beauty comes a lot of harshness. I’m more attracted by the harshness than the beauty. But they often go hand in hand. Nature offers that. »

In June 2016, Østerman left to Northern Finland, where the sun never sets. « It’s called a midnight sun and it was wonderful. For the first couple of days, I had the feeling that I landed on another planet. » During a month, the photographer stayed with Robin and his family in a remote place with no internet connection, far from our modern society’s habits. « People like to think it is all about the escapism, but during my travels, I meet people who have a peculiar lifestyle. Some reasons brought them there. It may be because of fishing, because of love for open spaces, or just to live self-sufficiently. When you experience people’s lifestyle, you are finally able to understand them. You can feel that the love of the environment reflects back on you. Eventually, there is no pollution, nobody controls you. You live in the middle of nowhere, surrounded by honesty. All the people I meet in places like these are extremely friendly and full of stories. » People like Robin. « Robin is not an ordinary man. He is an Englishman with an African heart and a love for the Arctic. He is a very spiritual guy and strong in his mind. Growing up, he gained a deep respect for the invisible world. Since he is a little kid, he’s been searching for a constant inspiration in books. One of his favorite book is called ‘The lost world of Kalahari’ that he already read more than 50 times. At the age of 26 years-old, he rowed from Shetland to Nordkapp in an open 18-foot rowboat. During those years, he somehow lost himself. The scenery and the natural forces from his expedition helped him back. This expedition made him a man, not just physically, but also mentally and spiritually. That boat brought him back to Norway, the place where he settled and finally found love. »

As for his future projects, Anze Østerman will keep on working on stories about people and communities living self sufficiently in remote places. «I’ll also start working on a new project which is connected to my love for the universe and space observation. I also plan to focus on the Arctic world, Alaskan North and West, especially the Aleutian Islands, Siberia and some ex-soviet countries. These are the places that attract me, because the North had always a special place in my heart. »

We chose to share Anze Østerman’s entire logbook here below:

Arctic circle, Finnøy, June 2016.

Arctic. I look around; wilderness in the middle of the fjord. Nobody; you can almost hear your heart beating. Eagles are flying above the sea surface, elks are crossing the stream, the music of the sea and in the middle of all that, a man found home. A place to raise kids, a place where he feels wonderful and satisfied with everything he has. What did bring him there? After some time living with him I realised that THE question was: What did you make who you are?

His name is Robin. An englishman with an African heart and a love for the Arctic. Expedition leader on the Northern seas, writer, wild man, friend to a polar bear named Lucky and a family man.

When he was 26 years old, he rowed from Shetland to Nordkapp in an open 18-foot rowboat. 12 weeks, alone on the wild sea. During the years after he left Africa, until the day he left the Shetland Islands in a small rowboat, he lost himself. The scenery and natural forces helped him back. They helped him become a man, not just physically, but mentally and spiritually.

When he was in school, he had his first encounter with snow. Inspired by British author and adventurer Laurens van Der Post’s stories rooted in Africa, Robin headed up north. He spent 25 years in Svalbard where he owned a dog sledging company. A place where he met his wife. Later, they found this place, together, to create a family. Eventually, this was what he wanted: Family life in the Arctic. 

Through his personal stories he showed me that we all have to find our ‘boat’, we all have to row to the place where our dreams are home. 

Discover more about Anze Østerman’s work on his website.

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Born and raised in Slovakia, photographer Natalia Horinkova, 31, left her home when she was 18 to fullfil her strong desire to discover the world. Growing up as a rhythmic gymnast, Horinkova used to travel across Europe for competitions since a very young age. Fascinated by people and their behaviour, Horinkova has been travelling to learn from the land she visits, and from the food she tries for the first time. »But most importantly from the people I meet alongside my journey,« she says. »What I like the most is being able to tell a story. People and relationships have always played a big part in my life.«

Capturing kids surfing on a wooden plank in Ghana and wild giraffes in Kenya, diving into the translucent waters of Madagascar, travelling across the rural areas of Tanzania, documenting Ugand, India, Indonesia, Australia, and Sri Lanka, travel and lifestyle photographer Horinkova has been covering some of the wildest places on earth, staying never too far from the sea. »If you can’t find me by the sea, I’m walking towards it«, she writes. 

In last November, she was sailing around the islands of North Madagascar on a 1960 Dutch ship. »I consider myself a very lucky girl,« she says. »I thought you must go on an adventure to find out where you belong. But I found out that home is wherever your heart lies, and sometimes ​it is in more than just one place.« Currently living in Sydney, Australia, the artist dreams of settling down »somehwere by the sea, far from the busy cities.« Used to swim and fish with local fishermen, dive under turquoise waters, catch an octupus and cook seafood, we chose to share with you a glimpse of Natalia Horinkova’s sweet daily life all over the world.

Discover more of Natalia Horinkova on her website.

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»The Continu_um« consists of a vast range of imagery. That’s how Alex Catt and Lola Thomas describe their photographic project. In last August, the British photographers left the UK in a van for an adventurous journey along the coastline down to Morocco. « My rough plan before we left was to stick to the coast all the way down to southern Spain, then take the ferry to Morocco and see what happens there. » We caught up with the British couple, currently in Andalusia, to discuss big tides, the absence of people, the noise of the sea, the constant flux of water, how to cook an octupus in a van, and their intimate relationship with the ocean.

When did you have the idea of leaving the UK for a trip to Morocco?

Lola Thomas – I graduated from university in 2015 and wasn’t really sure what I was going to do with life. I’ve always known I wanted to do a long trip at some point in my life so when Alex and I started thinking about going away in the van seemed like the perfect answer! We both saved up for a year then left the UK on the 8th August, 2016.

Alex Catt – I’d been wanting to make a longer trip in the van for a couple of years, prior to this I’d only done shorter trips of a few weeks at a time due to work commitments, it was an easy decision to make when Lola said she would come too!

Do you follow a plan?

LT– Not really, we had a general idea of where we wanted to go before we went away – central France, then back to the coast of France then following the coast down from there but we have mainly just been seeing what we come across as we travel. We are lucky as neither of us have a deadline for when we need to be back so it is just until money runs out and we can be so flexible with what we do.

AC– Since getting to the coast at Moliets Plage in France, we’ve pretty much followed it all the way to where we are now, which is in Andalusia, Spain.  My rough plan before we left was to stick to the coast all the way down to southern Spain, then take the ferry to Morocco and see what happens there. I surf so being near the coast is good for me! 

Where does the name « Continu-um » come from?

AC– It comes from an exhibition myself and a friend (Sam A Harris) had in London a few years ago. When Lola and I decided we wanted to create a platform to share our photographs we had a little brainstorm and the name came back to me, a continum is a continuous sequence, so the name fits quite well while we travel. 

You’re currently travelling in a van. What does your daily life look like?

AC– I bought the van a couple of winters ago and slowly built the interior between short trips, deciding what needed to be where after spending a good amount of time in it. It’s a great home for us, everything is within reach and has it’s own place which really helps when living in a small space. I surf whenever I can, make photographs and try to eat quite well. We are both fond of food and really make an effort to eat local produce and sample regional dishes when we can. 

LT– Living in such a small space is fabulous. We have everything we need and you learn to live really simply and spend most of your day outside. My life mainly consists of taking photos, reading, walking, eating good food and trying to learn to surf. 

You’ve been travelling across France and Spain, and you’re currently in Portugal. Do you have any good story to tell us about your last weeks on the road?

AC– My fondest and most bizarre memory from the trip so far would have to be in Galicia, Northern Spain. We had been sleeping a stones throw from the sea with a beautiful rocky reef stretching out infront of us – there was a full moon and big tides. At low tide we ventured out onto the exposed rocks to find some mussels for dinner, a couple of old men were trying to catch octopus with these long wooden sticks, a metal hook at the end. A little time into our hunt Lola spotted an Octopus in a rock pool, so I went to tell one of the old Spanish guys he could come catch it. He did catch it, but not only that, he gave it to us! I was pretty shocked when he handed it to me (it literally stuck to my arm), he then prepared it for us (which involved throwing it against a rock multiple times to tenderise it) and then in Spanish told me how to cook it. I never thought I would be cooking an octopus in the van, it was great!

LT– Yeah, that was a really special memory for me too. It’s so great to be able to eat such fresh food that has absolutely zero air miles. 

You have a very interesting way to document your travel. Either graphic, abstract, or even very natural, you kind of mix different universes within your photographic work. How would you explain your artistic approach?

LT- I suppose we are both interested in similar subjects but still look at everything in a very different way. Neither of us were that interested in photographing our trip in a conventional way and wanted it to show more than just a new lifestyle. We wanted the project to consist of a vast range of imagery so each month the series seems different but still remains a continuous project. 

AC- A lot of the time we find ourselves in places that are quiet, we are lucky to be travelling South in the winter, it’s out of season for the regions we pass through which means we get to explore these beautiful places mostly alone and the weather (for us) is better than at home. I think this emptiness shows in the images we have made so far, the absence of people can alter your perception of scale within a photograph, creating unique scenes. 

Shapes, shadows, birds, plants, waves, drops, trees. Most of your pictures are nature-related. Do you feel your eyes are caught by details that you would have probably missed at home? 

LT- Definitely. You have much more time to look and think about everything. You have time to just go on a walk and dedicate it to just taking photographs. I always wanted to be taking more photographs at home but there always seemed to be something else. Also it helps that everything looks more interesting when you’re away from home and you are constantly seeing new things and places.

AC- In the past a lot of my photographic projects have been created around a journey of sorts, following a river, the result of driving across Europe or long walks at home. I think this time spent moving, however slowly, brings you to an interesting mindset. Of course you are easily drawn to epic landscapes which are different to those you have grown up around, but you see deeper, the time you have in places is generally longer and with less to think about; the small details become more visible and you spend more time with them.  

You chose to share with us a monthly collection of photographs. Can we call it a documentary?

AC– Of course, it’s a documentary in a loose sense. It was important for us to have a platform that we could attempt to curate, the website itself gives a better impression of this. We obviously make a lot of photographs between us each month, but we try to upload them (on the website) in a way in which they flow together, like seeing images on the wall of an exhibition, or in book form. The connection between images and the ideas that these links can create, is something that interests us both. It’s a place to try out ideas, and present photographs in a new way for us both.

You said « the ocean has very much been an ever present element of our journey, never straying from it for too long. » Tell us more about the connection you have with the ocean?

AC– The ocean has many qualities, it’s a moving picture that’s rarely ever similar, let alone the same. You’re reminded of it’s power and energy each time you surf, and the sound is also something special. Since starting to surf it’s something I’ve never spent to long away from, and on this trip only a few days have been spent away from the sea.

Falling asleep to the sound of the sea is an incredible experience. The nights we’ve spent further inland leave us with a sense of something missing. The sound of the sea has so many identities, in the daytime looking out at the waves breaking, each one unique and different; the constant flux of water moving is a daydream. Come the evening the sound is amplified, when you are sleeping in such a small space like a van, outside in the elements, you almost become hyper sensitive to noise, small waves lapping the shore can sound huge, the fox running past can become a human. It’s a strange thing to get used to but the noise of the sea is something that brings a calming influence on my days. 

You’ve been following the coast from the cold waters of the UK to the warmer Atlantic Ocean of Portugal. You may have a global view of what the relationship between people and the sea/ocean looks like depending on the country (or region) they live in. Have you noticed anything interesting to mention?

LT– Spain and Portugal both have such interesting relationships with the Atlantic Ocean. You have all the influence of the surf culture which is great but then you also have the old fishing communities which are still so strong. We have eaten some of the best seafood of our lives in Galicia (northern Spain) and Portugal. 

AC– It’s interesting to see how people depend on the ocean in different areas, we have learnt a lot about seafood regionally, by seeing people out collecting things and speaking with them. From mussels to octopus, and the elusive gooseneck barnacles, it’s great to learn and taste what the coastline offers as we move along it. In Galicia, northwest Spain, we passed the ‘Costa da Morte’ or ‘Coast of Death’ this region was one of our favourites from the trip, it’s an area of outstanding beauty but it’s rocky coastline is one which is a frequent danger for fishermen, with many shipwrecks in this area giving it it’s name. Areas like this make you remember the power of the sea, stone crosses are seen along the coastline here to show where people died at sea. 

From a surfing perspective it was really great to visit the Ericeira area of Portugal, which is the only World Surfing Reserve in Europe, a 4km stretch of coastline with 7 breaks. It’s refreshing to see the importance of this area rewarded with being made a World Surf Reserve, protecting the immediate area from construction and other risks. Portugal seemed a country that really values surf tourism and strives to make it a great destination to travel.

What will you do when you are in Morocco?

AC– I think we will head down the coast fast to catch the end of the surf season, then perhaps make our way back up slowly, heading inland to the mountains at some point – but who knows! The best thing about travelling this way is no decision is the wrong one, just a temporary diversion to where you end up. 

What are your projects for the coming weeks?

AC– I’ve just published a small zine with ‘Tide Press’, entitled ‘Lost, in circles we wander‘, it is the culmination of photographs from the last few years. This has left me a little open project wise, I spent so long working towards that! For now, i will focus on Continu-um with Lola, when we are back we would like to make a small publication of the photographs. This should keep us busy for the foreseeable future!

 Follow Lola Thomas and Alex Catt’s adventures on their instagram account and website.

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Modern-day adventurer Tom McClean has held records for solo rowing and yachting voyages across the Atlantic. On May 17, 1969, knowing almost nothing about ocean navigation, he set off from Newfoundland to Ireland in his small fishing dory, thus becoming the first person to row solo across the North Atlantic, a voyage of 71 days. Storms, freezing temperatures, huge waves, and often tracked by sharks, he faced discomfort and isolation for more than 2,000 miles. In 1982, while a soldier in the SAS, he set the record for the smallest boat to ever cross the Atlantic. 20 years ago, McClean started to build a 20-metre steel boat in the shape of a whale named »Moby«. With the 65-ton sperm whale designed by McClean himself and covered with steel panels, the former SAS trooper plans to sail 3,000 miles to America.

After various solo Atlantic crossings, and a successful inaugural trip around the British coast with »Moby« in the late 90’s, the 73-year-old British adventurer made a home in the West Highlands of Scotland, where he runs an outdoor adventure centre accessible only by boat, or a gruelling seven-mile hike.  A few months ago, writer Joe Banks and photographer Luke Montgomery went to meet the explorer on the remote shore of Loch Nevis. »The first one is the real adventure because you’re doing the unknown. Adventure to me is the unknown. Just pushing yourself into the unknown,« he told them. We sat down with Luke to talk about his meeting with explorer Tom McClean, and his environmental campaign aiming to use clean energy. »By the end, we felt quite attached to him and fascinated by his unique stoic attitude towards life and how that had enabled him to achieve so many great things.«

Luke, tell us more about your background.

I trained as a painter, then restlessly moved into sculpture/installation before settling on analogue photography and film as a means to express myself. Recently I have been doing some journalistic projects with my writer friend Joe Banks, where our aim is to approach journalism in a fuller, slower way than normal.

When and where did you first meet Tom McClean?

My girlfriend at the time knew his son and arranged for us to meet him. I wasn’t really prepared for the fact that his dad was this epic character. I spent most of the weekend enraptured by his stories, and made a note to myself that the world really needs to know more about Tom McClean!

For those who’ve never been there, how would you describe the environment of the Highlands?

I have travelled to quite a few places, and the Highlands have a unique atmosphere and a hold over me unlike anywhere else on earth. On one hand, the beauty is comparable to more renowned spots like Norway or New Zealand, but there is also a harsh, raw element to the wilderness that once you get a taste for becomes addictive. On a practical level this comes in the form of ever-changing weather and midgy attacks, which mean you always need to be prepared. On another level there is a deep, timeless silence, and moody meditative quality that is really special. I often feel like I’m on a forgotten prehistoric seabed up there. It can be quite barren yet there is so much detail in everything. Every bog hole or dense clutch of heather contains a new world of colours and textures.  I would go so far to say that the Highlands is one of my favourite places on earth.

You have been lucky to shoot McClean’s latest project called »Moby«. Could you describe for us your encounter with the 73-year-old man and his 65-ton boat – the size and shape of a sperm whale?

Joe (the writer) and I stayed with Tom at his adventure centre for 4 days. We first met him at the Mallaig Harbour, and were ushered onto the boat with military efficiency and the tone was set. There were plenty of long periods of chatting in between various chores like fixing the roof, or chopping wood and cooking simple food. Tom is all about simplicity. He does not need much, in fact on a day to day level I feel like the less he has the happier he is. In his words, »I just need me grub and me kip……« and this is in startling contrast to a looming steel whale parked up on the shore outside his cottage. But I get the feeling Tom doesn’t ‘need’ the whale, for him it is a passionate piece of fun and adventure. What really keeps Tom happy is his family and the simple pleasures. He sleeps like a rock every night. I think that says everything.  

It was nice to spend so much time with Tom in such isolation, and on his terms. By the end we felt quite attached to him, and fascinated by his unique stoic attitude towards life, and how that had enabled him to achieve so many great things.

Your series of pictures has a strong spiritual dimension and a timeless aspect. Like in your series of pictures »Ethiopia,« or »Jaunts,« you chose to depict the reality in black and white pictures. Why such a choice?

When I first painted I used a very vibrant palate, but as time went on I started to mute my palate, and my sculpture always dealt with plays of light. I guess black and white photography felt like it was the natural progression from this. 

Black and white photography is all about light and form, so I was drawn to the challenge of a pared down aesthetic. In some ways it is more difficult to create an absorbing  photo because you don’t have the aesthetic of colours to fall back on, but then also something just feels less cluttered for me. There is a simplicity.

I don’t think I deliberately try to be ‘spiritual’ in my photography but taking photographs for me is a deeply spiritual experience. There is nothing I like more than walking this earth for days with my camera in hand, trying to be as silent as possible, waiting for the world to show me its beauty either in its smallest details or grandest expressions. I also enjoy the analogue process of black and white photography. It might be romanticising the medium but I kind of feel like I am fossilising light through an actual chemical reaction onto the negative, and as I carry around my used films I feel like I have a physical imprint of my journeys in my pocket. In an age where most things live on the ‘cloud’ or everything is photographed a million times, this feels like a good way to keep my sanity. If you decide to be a photographer you are kind of consigning yourself to join that visual overload, so there is a responsibility to put images out into the world that you have a personal relationship with or are at least taken with sincerity.

McClean describes himself as an orphan-boy who turned into an adventurer. With »Moby« the steel whale, he dreams of crossing the Atlantic once again. Water seems to be a key component in his life. How would you describe his intimate relationship to the ocean?

I don’t think Tom was particularly enamoured with the ocean or water more than any other elements. In fact he had barely done any rowing before he set off on his first Atlantic crossing.  But he saw the ocean as the perfect landscape; one where you are at the mercy of the elements on such an extreme scale that you can truly challenge yourself, and that is what he is all about.  He talks about his journey across the Atlantic on the Giltspur (the smallest boat ever) with a certain glee in his eyes that he had to slowly eat his supplies down before he could even fit inside the boat – and even then it was the size of a coffin. The closer he feels to the elements the more satisfied he is.  Crossing the Atlantic on »Moby« is the perfect performance to pay tribute to all his adventures and re-connect with the landscape that defines him.

McClean recently replaced diesel engines with electric motors to create a vehicle for a zero-carbon environmental campaign. Do you know more about this campaign?

This is his plan. He is very keen for »Moby« to become an environmentally friendly form of transport, and this is the message he wants to send to the world. But to do this requires a big financial investment which I don’t believe he has received despite so much admiration and attention from the global media and the public. We are still hoping that a corporate sponsor who wants to be associated with a positive environmental message will get involved. 

Whales have a powerful hold on the human imagination. It seems that »Moby« gathers a mythic dimension that resonates with so much of his own life, doesn’t it?

Absolutely, Joe drew those lines together superbly in his writing. After all Tom has achieved in his life it feels so poetic that he is spending his last chapters attempting to ride across the arena of his adventures in a giant whale. Joe references Carl Jung’s ‘the myth of the night sea journey’ where an individual is swallowed up by some creature and then spat out, undergoing a temporary death, a descent into darkness, followed by rebirth or renewal. Even though Tom would never talk of himself in such hyperbole you can’t help but feel that his relationship with the whale is the perfect echo for the life of an orphan turned hardened adventurer. 

Have you heard from Tom recently?

I emailed with him a couple of months ago to ask about the weather and midgy situation as I was heading up that way to climb some mountains. Unfortunately I didn’t get to see him but I’d like to think its not long until I visit again, it’s a truly special place. He said a lot of people have been in contact with him about various documentaries but he is still waiting on a big sponsor to come through. 

What are your next projects Luke?

I have a couple of stories on the boil with Joe about a hermit and a driftwood craftsman. I also just spent a month walking around the UK developing my »Jaunts« series. I have my eye on a very ambitious long walk in Central Asia at some point next year. If it were possible I would spend my life just wandering the earth with my camera at hand, and in some ways the rest of life just feels like waiting until I can go and do that. 

Discover more of Luke Montgomery’s work on his website.

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In recent years, Antarctica has shown signs of rapid atmospheric and ocean warming.

Scientists have discovered that thousands of blue lakes of melt water have formed on the surface of Antarctica’s glaciers. 

Scientists from the British Antarctic Survey predict that a massive chunk of glacier ice belonging to the Larsen barrier, situated on the West coast of the Antarctic Peninsula, the northernmost part of the mainland of Antarctica, could collapse. In recent years, it has shown signs of rapid atmospheric and ocean warming. This large piece of ice measures around 50,000 km² (20,000 square miles), and is about to fall down. 

On the ice sheets of East Antarctica, thousands of strange blue lakes are appearing, a phenomenon that scares scientists specialized in climate change. »[East Antarctic is] the part of the continent where people have for quite a long time assumed that it’s relatively stable,« said glaciologist Stewart Jamieson from Durham University to The Washington Post. These large portions of melted ice show that the places said to be « safe » are not sheltered from danger anymore. If the ice sheets keep on melting, we could witness rising sea levels, causing the sinking of islands in the Pacific ocean. Kiribati and Palaos are directly threatened and could be swallowed by rising sea levels.

Between 2000 and 2013, nearly 8,000 of these supraglacial lakes have formed on the surface of the ice sheets in East Antarctica, and on the slender glaciers that stretch out into the ocean. Although these lakes disappear through refreezing, rain vertically through the floating ice, or overflow into rivers on the surface that drain into the ice below, they could have serious consequences for the stability of the entire ice shelf. They could weaken the structure of the ice sheets and ice shelves, making it more likely to fracture and break apart. « That injection of cold fresh water into salty water can then create tornado-like underwater flow patterns at the submerged glacier front that cause further ice loss.« 

Such lakes has led to melting of glaciers in Greenland between 2011 and 2014, where 1 trillion metric tons of ice have melted. East Antarctica’s ice had not been affected by global warning so far, scientists thought. The appearance of such lakes thus threatens the stability of the largest ice mass on Earth and is directly linked to the historic levels of rising temperatures. With July 2016 being confirmed as the world’s hottest month, and if global climate warning continues in the future, we can expect the size and number of these supraglacial lakes to increase. 

Svalbard #33, 60” x 90”, Soft Pastel on Paper, 2014
Courtesy of the artist Zaria Forman

Over the years, many artists have been spreading messages and trying to bring awareness about environmentalism and climate change to a wider audience. NYC-based artist and TED speaker Zaria Forman has been putting this issue on the spotlight through her art. In 2012, she led an Arctic expedition up the northwest coast of Greenland, documenting the spectacular views, and using her pastel drawings as a tool for climate change activism. She’s recently been part of our Panthalassa official launch and exhibition in Guéthary (France) to discuss the urgency of climate change in a hopeful and significant way. Through her large scale pastel drawings, Zaria documents Earth’s shifting landscape and the effects of progressive climate change.

Read our interview with Zaria Forman 

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