Cruises of 2007
Spring 2007 found the Derek M Baylis in the San Francisco Bay teaching various school groups about the ecosystem and their daily impacts upon it. Here Captain Dave Robinson is teaching a young gentleman from an Oakland Middle School the basics about being the helmsman aboard a sailing vessel.
While in San Francisco Bay, the crew of the Derek M Baylis continued their marine debris research from the 18’ Wyliecat skiff Stacey, a custom-built tender to the Derek M Baylis. Stacey was built along the same environmentally friendly principles as the DMB. Her sleek design allows her to be pushed through the water smartly by a comparatively small 40hp 4-stroke engine. This piece of gear has been vital to the research conducted by Sealife Conservation.
Oceana is one of the most influential non-profit organizations in setting Marine policy. In summer 2007 they utilized the Derek M Baylis twice as a meeting platform. Congressman Sam Farr (right) was aboard for this meeting along with Jim Ayers the Vice President of the Pacific chapter of Oceana (middle), and Dan Cort, mayor of Pacific Grove (left). The goal of this meeting was to introduce Sam Farr’s Oceans bill to those assembled and explain Oceana’s efforts in support of his bill.
Summer 2007 marked our 4th year providing the Science Under Sail (SUS) program for the Monterey Bay Aquarium. Our program is geared towards the general public and is focused on the marine life in the bay, the inter-connectedness of these life forms, and mankind’s daily impacts upon them. The kids to the left are observing Bat Stars (Asterina miniata) that were collected in a benthic sampler during SUS, and listening to a naturalist explain the importance of these scavengers in our Oceans.
Aboard the Derek M Baylis the role of a sailing research vessel and the use of non-petroleum and alternate energy are key discussion points among SUS participants. Here some younger participants are shown hoisting sail alongside our mate, Martijn Stiphout We highlight the importance of hands-on experience during SUS, since a personal connection to the environment is often the strongest motivation for individuals to get involved and become passionate about protecting our oceans.
The Baylis set sail for the Farallon Islands west of San Francisco in October for our third annual White shark tagging program with the TOPP (Tagging Of Pacific Pelagics) team. This photo illustrates Stacey being retrieved onto the work deck of the Baylis at South East Farallon Island. This year the team placed over 30 satellite and acoustic tags on white sharks, while traveling with minimal environmental impact under sail whenever possible. This last fact, combined with the use of Stacey establishes our challenge to any other vessel that conducts research to leave a smaller footprint on our oceans.
