One Island, One Ocean: Ocean Watch and the Epic Journey Around the Americas

Ernest Shackleton meets Patrick O’Brian meets An Inconvenient Truth in an amazing sea voyage.

On May 31, 2009, a committed team of sailors, scientists, teachers and conservationists joined forces on a voyage that was vast in scope and ambition but launched under the simplest of ideas: The continents of North and South America are a single island, surrounded by a shared ocean, and with a common set of challenges, communities, issues, and solutions. To put it in the simplest terms, we creatures of the land are utterly dependent on the sea around us, and we’d better take care of it, or it won’t take care of us. This book tells the story of that amazing adventure, and sounds a call to action for everyone who loves this planet.

In a journey that took 13 months, the Ocean Watch circumnavigated the Americas, documenting the beauty that exists, the peoples who rely on our oceans, and the changes that are happening all too fast. This book can be read any number of ways:

. . . as an exciting seafaring adventure, with storms on the high seas, polar bears, and daring escapes from icy danger.

. . . as a beautifully photographed appreciation of the beauty of the Americas—our wildlife, our coastal cities, and our proud, tenacious natives.

. . . as a global warning, documenting the dangers of climate change and the ways our world is changing forever.

The ship made landfall in 53 places around the continents and did presentations and outreach in each. In many of these places, there are potential special sales opportunities (museums, yacht clubs, educational centers). Places visited include:

Seattle (starting point)

British Columbia

Alaska

The Yukon Territories

The Northwest Territories

Nunavet

Newfoundland

Massachusetts

Rhode Island

New York

South Carolina

Florida

Puerto Rico

St. Lucia

French Guiana

Brazil

Uruguay

Argentina

The Falklands

Chile

Ecuador

Costa Rica

Mexico

California

Oregon

. . . and, back to Seattle

David Rockefeller, Jr., Sponsor

David Rockefeller, Jr. (Boston, MA), director and former chairman of Rockefeller & Co., Inc., is a noted philanthropist, Rockefeller is vice chair of the National Park Foundation and former national vice chair of the Alaska Conservation Foundation. He served as a member of the Pew Oceans Commission, which issued a comprehensive report on the health of U.S. marine waters in June 2003. David’s commitment to ensuring that our government and communities embrace and implement the recommendations of the Pew Commission – and his passion for sailing and the sea – fueled the formation of his organization, Sailors for the Sea, which was crucial to the planning and execution of this journey.

Mark Schrader, Captain and Project Director

Mark Schrader (Seattle, WA), a two-time single-handed circumnavigator of the world, has worked for years with marine conservation organizations, including assisting the noted Center for Environmental Education and other organizations quantify and document the scope of the oceanic pollution. The ocean became important to this Nebraska native late in his teenage years, with moves to California and Washington, and his sailing interests have taken him twice around Cape Horn, through the South Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans as well as North Atlantic and Alaskan waters. He has lived in Washington State for over 35 years and is an avid marine conservationist and wildlife advocate. He speaks regularly and eloquently at conservation and wilderness events, reaching many thousands of people each year.

Herb McCormick, Author

Herb McCormick (Newport, RI) is a native of Rhode Island and a graduate of Williams College. He is the former editor of Cruising World magazine and has also been the sailing correspondent and sports writer for the New York Times. A veteran ocean racer, he has competed in the Newport to Bermuda, Pacific Cup, Transpac, Sydney to Hobart and cruised and raced from Alaska to Antarctica. He is the co-author of Out There, a book about the first solo global circumnavigation race. He live-blogged the Around the Americas journey.

David Thoreson, Photographer

David Thoreson (Arnolds Park, IA), adventure photographer, served as the cameraman and photographer aboard Ocean Watch. His exploits have also included shooting for the U.S. National Park Service, bicycling 10,000 miles solo, and sailing 65,000 miles around the planet, including both polar regions. He completed the historic Northwest Passage by sail during the summers of 2007 and 2009 becoming the first American sailor in history to transit the fabled passage in both directions. David premiered his new documentary in 2008, Arctic Journey in a Changing World, on PBS. He is speaking nationally on issues of exploration and climate change including the first 2008 World Science Festival in NYC. David's work has been featured at the Smithsonian Institute, numerous publications, books, and award-winning Public Television documentaries. He is currently touring nationally with a new exhibit and speaking presentations.