OCEANOGRAPHIC MAGAZINE (OM): YOU BOTH HAVE BACKGROUNDS IN MARINE BIOLOGY, OCEAN SCIENCES AND EXTENSIVE SAILING AND EXPEDITION YACHTING EXPERIENCE. HOW DID THE IDEA FOR EYOS CAME ABOUT?

TIM SOPER: “I’ve always been interested in the ocean. Between school and university where I wanted to study marine biology and ocean science, I went on a gap year to work as a dive master and a zodiac driver on an expedition ship. It was incredible! I got to see the world and fell in love with exploring by sea. I realised that I could spend more time at sea if I was involved in running expeditions rather than being a scientist. So, myself and Rob and other colleagues had been involved in these expeditions for various different groups and we knew of many incredible places that we were fortunate enough to visit. We started seeing more and more yachts venture further afield beyond the traditional cruising grounds of the Mediterranean and Caribbean.

It became more common for yacht owners to venture further afield, often in remote places that are new and unfamiliar; so they weren’t necessarily seeing the best of the places. So, we thought it was an opportunity to use our knowledge, experience and our network of local contacts to help the yachting community have a better and safer experience when they venture further afield. Traditionally it is the yachts crew that figure out where to go, and that works well in the classic cruising grounds of the Med and Caribbean but is not the best or safest way for expedition destinations.  When you’re really venturing off the beaten track, it makes sense to have a guiding team on board so that they can stay with you for the voyage. You can go further off the beaten track, and that’s what we started doing.”

OM: HOW DO YOUR EXPEDITIONS STAND OUT?

TIM SOPER: “Virtually everyone in the team at EYOS has a deep background in the field as a crew member, as an expedition guide, or as a specialist an operator arranging marine-based expeditions. So, we all know these special places and we know how magic they can be. This experience enables us to share them with yacht owners and charter clients because there’s so much more to see in the world than the traditional cruising grounds. But, it’s not always easy to get there and we can help them have the best possible time once they’re there, smooth over the logistics, increase safety, and utilise our local contacts so that they have a local connection with the place rather than just being a visitor. In essence, we hope that this connection then turns into some kind of a positive impact on the place.”

OM: HOW CAN EXPEDITION TOURISM FOSTER CONSERVATION OBJECTIVES?

ROB MCCALLUM: “Tourism has always played a key role in conservation. Humans conserve what they value and understand. A visit to Antarctica, for example, gives people an insight into a continent managed for peace and for science… and one of the most pristine places on Earth. Everyone returns home with a deeper understanding of Antarctica and becomes a polar ambassador for Antarctic issues.”

TIM SOPER: “We’ve got this remarkable opportunity because our clients can do more than most travellers to support good causes. We encourage them to get inspired and engaged and hope that they learn to care for the place they choose to visit. We want to channel tourism into effective action – and we want to do more of that! The goal is to turn visitors into real ambassadors that care that little bit more when they get back. In the end, they are the people in the world that can make a real difference.”

OM: AS YOU MENTIONED ANTARCTICA – AN INCREASING NUMBER OF CONSERVATIONISTS VOICE CONCERN ABOUT THE INCREASING FOOTFALL OF VISITORS AND SHIPS IN ANTARCTICA. WHAT IS YOUR VIEW ABOUT THIS TREND?

ROB MCCALLUM: “I think the number of vessels has now stabilised. The number of visitors may grow as the commercial ships improve occupancy, but for context – we’re talking the equivalent of two super bowl stadiums of people spread over a 200-mile coastline during a four-month period. People visit respectfully and there are no services offered ashore. The International Association of Antarctic Tour Operators does an incredible job of ensuring its members offer safe and environmentally benign wilderness experiences. Those of us who work in Antarctica never lose sight of the immense privilege and heavy responsibility.”

TIM SOPER: “Over the size of the continent, the visitor numbers are very low. And the section of the coastline that gets visited is actually very tiny, so the visitation is hugely concentrated in a small area which means that you will quickly see if there are impacts. I think the fact that that many people have historically visited and continue to visit and there is no significant impact observed is pretty remarkable and shows that we’re doing it the right way – because everybody’s looking. The things that are primarily impacting Antarctica are climate change and other global issues. I think the more people that can go and go the right way, the more people will understand the place, will start to care for it and take that that bigger message of conservation and the impacts of climate change away from that.”

OM: HOW CAN EXPEDITION YACHTS BECOME MORE SUSTAINABLE?

ROB MCCALLUM: “In my observation, the issues around climate change pose the biggest threats to both polar regions. We do see changes in the Arctic and Antarctica, just as we do elsewhere on the planet. Collectively we need to invest in the technology that helps us reduce carbon output across the globe. Better fuels and alternative energy are the priorities for the next generations of engineers.”

OM: YOUR LINE-UP OF SHIPS HAS BEEN INVOLVED IN NUMEROUS CONSERVATION PROJECTS. WHAT HAS BEEN YOUR PROUDEST ACHIEVEMENT?

ROB MCCALLUM: “EYOS is a founding partner of Yachts for Science, an initiative that encourages yacht owners to make a direct hands-on contribution to ocean science. Our projects are as broad as the needs to the science community, and we have been involved with everything from counting manta rays, tagging great white sharks and conducting plankton surveys.”

OM: EYOS WAS THE FIRST AND THUS FAR ONLY COMPANY TO BRING COMMERCIAL GUESTS TO THE DEEPEST POINT IN THE OCEAN – IN THE MARIANA TRENCH. WHAT DID YOU ENCOUNTER DOWN IN THESE UNIMAGINABLE DEPTHS?

ROB MCCALLUM: “At full ocean depth (10,000m+) almost every dive yield something new to science. We planned, managed and led the dives to the deepest point in every ocean, and to all of the world’s 10,000m trenches. It will take years for the huge amount of science data that was collected to be published. The deep ocean is the last frontier of exploration on Earth; the number of discoveries here will be spectacular.”

OM: WHAT IS YOUR COMPANY’S BIGGEST OCEAN EXPLORATION ACHIEVEMENT TO DATE?

ROB MCCALLUM: “The Five Deeps Expedition, Victor Vescovo’s year-long helical circumnavigation of the globe to dive to the deepest point of each of the world’s five oceans. EYOS took the lead role in designing, planning and managing that expedition. We also led the planning of the subsequent four years of additional expeditions. These projects required the extensive refitting of vessels, the deployment of the first full ocean depth bathymetric sonar, the construction and operation of the world’s first classed full ocean depth submersible (Triton 36,000/2) and several full ocean depths autonomous ‘landers’. It also required creating a unique team that could trouble-shoot challenges in real time while in the isolation of the middle of the ocean; all while doing something that had never been attempted before. The spin off from that has led to huge advances in hadal science, and a wealth of geological, biological and acoustic discoveries that continues to this day. In many ways, the Five Deeps Expedition was a pathfinder project… guiding the way for the next generation of ocean explorers.”

OM: EYOS HAS BEEN PART OF NUMEROUS DIVES TO THE TITANIC AND BRITANNIC SHIPS. ALONGSIDE CALADAN OCEANIC, YOU EVEN MANAGED TO FIND THE LONG-LOST USS DESTROYER ESCORT SAMUEL B. ROBERTS. WHY WAS THIS FIND SO SIGNIFICANT?

ROB MCCALLUM: “Every shipwreck carries a story that can illuminate and highlight the events at the time of its sinking. The story of the ‘Sammy B’ is an inspiring tale of heroism against all the odds and the locating and filming of the wreck allowed the Navy Historians to verify the accounts of her battle, and to retell the story of her incredible crew. Locating and filming a shipwreck always helps to bring closure to the families of those lost at sea, even generations later. The Sammy B was discovered at 6,500m – the deepest shipwreck yet found, made possible by the Triton 36,000/2 submersible and the new extreme depth sonar.  We now can visit any shipwreck at any depth in any ocean; and there are over a million wrecks with stories to tell.”

OM: IN THE FUTURE, DO YOU THINK SUBMERSIBLES MIGHT BECOME KEY COMPONENTS OF YOUR TOURISM EXPEDITIONS? WHAT NEEDS TO HAPPEN BEFORE THIS CAN BE REALISED ON A LARGER SCALE?

ROB MCCALLUM: “Our team has a wealth of experience with submersible operations to all depths in all oceans, and we are working with clients who are developing the ‘next gen’ of full ocean depth subs. It is a very exciting frontier of exploration, and we look forward to supporting these projects as they become operational. Submersibles allow us to visit these places – often for the first time – and to explore, film, and collect scientific specimens to help us understand our ocean. 71% of our planet is covered in seawater, the average depth of which is 4,000m. It’s incredible that it’s only now that we can take these first steps below 6,000m.”

OM: WHAT IS YOUR FAVOURITE DESTINATION AND WHAT IS STILL ON YOUR BUCKET LIST?

TIM SOPER: “That’s a really tricky question to answer… I simply don’t have just one! I love the polar regions – both the Arctic and the Antarctic. Additionally, Polynesia has got to be the ultimate warm water destination on the planet. The sheer number and variety of islands, the marine life, clear water, the different types of diving… you could spend a lifetime in Polynesia and would not get bored. In terms of bucket list, I ticked off something that was on my bucket list recently which was going to the South Pole. And, there’s one island in the Southern Indian Ocean called the Kerguelen Islands. It’s truly in the middle of nowhere.”

OM: WHAT’S THE BIGGEST CHALLENGE WHEN PLANNING THESE KIND OF EXPEDITIONS?

TIM SOPER: “The biggest challenge in terms of setting up these expeditions and managing them is often the logistics of getting people to and from the yacht in these very remote places and getting permission to visit places that aren’t normally visited. We partnered with the MY Arctic P yacht on an ambitious expedition to the Ross Sea in Antarctica and that was a really challenging project. We set the world record for the furthest south by any vessel – ever. She became the first superyacht and is still to this day the only superyacht to go to that part of the world. The owner made the commitment to spend nearly a month going down to the Ross Sea and crossing some of the wildest ocean on the planet to get there. But when you get there, it’s a truly remarkable place to be. When the bow of the yacht grounds up against the ice, you physically can’t go any further. We had this beautiful glassy calm evening with no wind and midnight sun. We spotted whales around the ship and penguins on the ice, while the sea was starting to freeze. You make such a commitment but then the rewards of these magical moments are absolutely worth it.”

OM: HOW DO YOU EXPLAIN THE INCREASING INTEREST IN EXPEDITION CHARTERS AT THE MOMENT?

TIM SOPER: “I think it’s because word spreads. The pioneer yachts go to these places, they tell their stories and then others hear about it. Obviously, that is amplified with social media, but I think it’s just a growing awareness that there are these places that are actually possible to explore. And you don’t have to have the hardships that you used to because you can go on a very comfortable private yacht.”