Honolulu Harbor | 21.30° N, 157.87° W | May 24. 2024
Standing on the bow of E/V Nautilus, I chat with Isabella Monaco and Gabriela Espino. As we gaze out over Honolulu Harbor, I breathe in the salt air and savor the familiarity of this view. I’ve joined a dozen expeditions with the Ocean Exploration Trust in the past few years, and today marks my tenth port call in Hawai’i. It feels wonderful to be back here, especially for the first expedition of the season.
For Isabella and Gabriela, boarding this ship and preparing to go out to sea is still a relatively new experience. They are both seafloor mappers returning to Nautilus for their second season, after sailing as interns last year. We watch the sun begin to set over the port and talk about our career paths.
Isabella tells us about graduating from college last year, and the immediate pressure she felt to find direction and meaningful work. Interning on Nautilus gave her the opportunity to find out whether or not she enjoyed working at sea. She’s excited to return as a contractor this season, but still harboring doubts about what the future might hold.
“Moving from an internship to a contracting role is really fulfilling and affirming, but there is still a big question mark moving forward,” she says. “Full-time contract work is another level of unknown.”
I assure Isabella that I felt a similar degree of uncertainty and doubt in the early days of my career. The transition from college student to working professional can be a tough one.
“School puts you on such a linear path,” I say, “but the real world – figuring out what you want to do and where you fit in – is anything but linear.”
I don’t know it yet, but the ideas we are discussing right now will weave through many conversations over the next ten days.
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Later in the evening, I meet with Lynette Davis, my Co-Expedition Leader and our Lead Navigator, to discuss logistics and details for our journey across the North Pacific. We are sailing from Honolulu, Hawai’i to Sidney, British Columbia, and along the way we will utilize the deep-water mapping capabilities of E/V Nautilus.
While the main objective of this expedition is seafloor mapping, we will also host a group of college students, as part of the STEMSEAS program. Eight young people (ranging in age from 18 to 22) will sail with us on their first-ever expedition at sea.
I was 30 when I boarded a research vessel for the first time. Going to sea was not on my radar at all when I was 18-years-old. I admire these students and their adventurous spirits.
And I really hope they have a positive experience.
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During our second day at sea, I sit in the lounge, chatting with Anna Sagatov, a new video engineer aboard Nautilus, and Swazi Gurnell, a STEMSEAS participant. We’re talking about underwater photography and ocean video work – a career path that Swazi hopes to pursue.
Anna and I share our stories of how and when we got certified to scuba dive, and how we started getting into professional underwater photography and video work. While Anna and I have similar skillsets, our backgrounds and work experience are quite different. She comes from the world of film crews and TV shows, while most of my work has revolved around science communication and media production for research institutions.
“There are so many different ways to get into this line of work,” I tell Swazi.
I assure him that he is already ahead of the game simply by discovering this path and passion at such a young age.
“I didn’t get certified to scuba dive until I was 27-years-old,” I say. “I didn’t go on my first ocean expedition until I was 30. You have plenty of time.”
Get after it: Swazi Gurnell is only 18 and already well on his way to becoming a successful professional photographer.
On our fourth evening at sea, Lynette gives a presentation about the mapping capabilities of Nautilus and the importance of gathering bathymetric data. She also shares a bit of her personal story – she went to college in Wisconsin (where she’s originally from) and earned a bachelor’s degree in art. Because she grew up near the Great Lakes and her father was in the Navy, Lynette was always curious about living and working at sea. After college, she worked as a deckhand on various tall ships. But her curiosity drove her to try several other vocations as well – she worked for a jeweler, a monument restoration company, and a veterinary clinic.
In 2022, she earned a master’s in computer science and is currently finishing up a second master’s degree in ocean engineering with a concentration in ocean mapping. In the past six years, Lynette has joined nine expeditions and three shakedown cruises aboard Nautilus.
After her presentation, Lynette and I stand together at the sink in the mess. As we rinse out our coffee mugs, I tell her how much I appreciate her willingness to share some of her personal story with our STEMSEAS students.
“I think it’s good for them to see how meandering a career path can be,” I say. “So many young people feel pressured to ‘figure it all out’ as soon as they graduate from college.”
Lynette laughs. “I’m almost 40 and I’m still figuring it out. But I’m having a good time.”
Boss lady behavior: Lynette Davis radios the Data Lab before an XBT launch on the aft deck.
The next morning, I walk out to the social deck and sit down next to Emily Jones, a communications contractor for the Ocean Exploration Trust. Emily just started working for OET six months ago, but it feels like she has been with the organization forever. I have been so impressed with her attention to detail, institutional knowledge, and boundless enthusiasm.
Like Isabella and many others on board, Emily feels as though she is at a crossroads in her life.
“Everything is uncertain right now,” she tells me. “This job is ending. I’m moving to a new city, and I don’t have a new job lined up yet.”
She yearns to do meaningful work but after earning a master’s degree in environmental education, she wants to be compensated adequately. She wonders aloud about working on a tall ship like Lynette did, even though the pay is insufficient.
I look directly at Emily and say, “Do not sell yourself short. You have so much to offer and there are so many opportunities out there.”
Anna jumps into the conversation. “It seems like you have to choose between doing meaningful work and doing work that is lucrative, but that’s not true.”
The three of us continue to discuss the daunting task of figuring out the right “next step” when you’re standing at one of life’s intersections.
“It’s okay to not know exactly what the right step is,” I say. “Just keep going. And keep an open mind – your ‘dream job’ might be something you can’t even imagine right now.”
Keep going: After working all night, Isabella Monaco prepares for an early morning XBT launch.
Work hard and have fun: Emily and I smile at the sunset during a particularly beautiful evening.
On our last day at sea, I chat with Isabella again. We discuss the highs and lows of being a full-time contractor: financial volatility and erratic scheduling, as well as meaningful work and immense freedom. I tell her that striking out on my own is the most terrifying thing I have ever done – but it has also been the most empowering experience of my life.
Isabella nods eagerly in agreement. “Working around professionals who do this gives me confidence,” she says. “I think I could do it.”
Hearing Isabella say that fills my heart. I think she can do it too.
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As we sail into Sidney, I reflect on my own career. Right after college, I never could have imagined I would end up here – not just working on research vessels in the ocean but engaging in soulful conversations where I find myself encouraging others (and reminding myself) to take risks and to embrace the unknown.
Unpredictable though it may be, I’ll keep following this wild path. And I’ll keep empowering my shipmates to do the same.
Nothing quite like this: Even after two dozen expeditions (including 13 aboard Nautilus) the exhilaration of going to sea has not faded.
Note: This blog was originally published on the Nautilus Live website. To learn more about opportunities aboard E/V Nautilus, click here. To learn more about the STEMSEAS Program, click here.