Pangaea Borneo Project

First Pangaea Borneo Project Expedition Event 

January 14, 2011: Official inauguration of the Pangaea Borneo Project at the Aquaria KLCC

On Friday January 14, 2011, Mike Horn and the first team of Young Explorers were invited by Aquaria KLCC in Kuala Lumpur for a press conference to officially launch the project and present it to the general public.

Blog written by Akira Biondo, Japan/Switzerland

Arriving from all the corners of the world, we eventually made it to Kuala Lumpur where a visit to the country’s largest aquarium, Aquaria, and a following press conference was awaiting us.

We were welcomed by our guide who would show us around the different sections of the aquarium and introduce us to various fish species. The entire palette ranging from local reef inhabitants over sting rays to piranhas, Aquaria had it all.

Shortly after our guided tour, we gathered in the conference hall for the press conference for which we were expecting Princess Tengku Zatasha Idris along with major national media representatives.

It is incredibly important for us to spread Pangaea’s message in Malaysia and throughout Asia as we launch the Pangaea Borneo Project, for we want the local youth to be involved in it and share the same passion we have for our oceans. We want the young generation to understand the importance of preserving the (marine) biodiversity of the region and exchange and share our knowledge in order to achieve good in the waters of Borneo.

Thrilled to act as ambassadors of this long-term, sustainable project, we are very grateful to be supported by Princess Zatasha and the Malaysian government.

Pangaea Borneo Project - 20110114 - KLCC Aquaria Visit

Pangaea Borneo Project - 20110114 - KLCC Aquaria Press Conference

Day 1 - January 15, 2011: Shopping for Pangaea in Kota Kinabalu

On Saturday, in preparation for the sailing and exploration of Sabah's coastline for the next few weeks, the YEPs strolled through the local market of Kota Kinabalu to stock up on fresh vegetables and fruits, fish and meat, and other necessities. YEPs teamed up in small groups to purchase the local goods under the guidance of our chef Yew Seong Seng. The crew, the team and the YEPs were all busy cleaning and preparing Pangaea to leave Kota Kinabalu the next day to sail northeast.

Pangaea Borneo Project - 20110115 - Day 01: Kota Kinabalu

Day 2 - January 16, 2011:Day 2 Getting ready to leave

Blog writen by Leonard Chua, Singapore

We awoke from our first night on Pangaea, at 8am, feeling rested, and excited about what was to come. Mike had yet to arrive (after taking a different albeit earlier flight than us), and his activities are still a mystery to everyone! No one minded though, because we were used to it, and in a way, we understood and appreciated his style. Mike is a man of freedom, not one to be tied down by fixed and rigid plans and schedules, for he valued flexibility, adaptability and ever-readiness. As such, we too learnt to maintain a perpetual state of preparedness, ready for whatever change in plans, however sudden, that may come.

Our first activity of the day was to go with our in-house chef, Yew Seng, to the market to get sufficient food to feed the 20 of us for the upcoming 10 day sailing journey. This was no simple feat, and required all hands on… the shopping bags! Andreas, our underwater transport specialist, showed his care for the environment by taking the initiative to arm us all with reusable bags, before we took our 20 min walk to the market. It was great to be surrounded by like-minded people, sharing such consideration for the environment. Not having had breakfast stocked on the boat, we were hungry, but definitely, our hunger to learn surpassed our physical needs.

Along the way, we had our first look at the marina’s waters: clear, pristine, and absolutely brimming with vibrant life! Simply walking by, we saw schools of tiger barbs, colorful corals, huge nasty fist-sized sea urchins, and even box jellyfishes! Let me remind you that we saw all these without even setting foot in the water, let alone diving under! Borneo was truly living up to its reputation as the diving hub of the world! This appetizer whetted our taste buds for all that was to come in the days ahead.

The walk brought us past a monsoon drain and exposed us to the culture of the Malaysians: the strong bare backs of men glistened in the morning sun, as they cast fishing nets that swooped down on the water, reeling in the lifesource of their families.

Speaking of the sun, it was absolutely scorching for us. Despite being shielded by sunhats, we were still melting from the heat. If we continue to heat up our world, I cannot possibly imagine what our future generations would have to endure.

The market was quite a culture shock for most of us, for they were rare in most of our countries, and we normally relied on supermarkets instead. Michael Scholl, project leader, insightfully remarked that paradoxically, in western countries, it was the rich, not the poor, that shopped in such wet markets for it was more expensive than supermarkets.

The raw meat was too fresh for some of us to tolerate. I admit that if I had to personally handle my food in this original form, I really wouldn’t eat much. As such, while we split up to scour the market for our desired food, Yew Seng was given the unsavoury task of dealing with the raw meat.

Given the time span we were preparing for, and the size of our group, our needs are understandably fairly substantial. We pleased the stall vendors tremendously, when we bought a whole 5kg of onions, 15kg each of chicken and fish. In total, we filled up our three full-sized refrigerators. So Mums and Dads out there, not to worry for your children have enough to eat!

In the afternoon, we began real sailor work – deck scrubbing. Donned in our dirty-clothes, we pumped sea water onto the deck, got down and dirty on our knees, and scrubbed like our lives depended on it. It was not easy work, for the dirt and our deck shared a strong affinity for each other. To make things worse, after our first round, the deck dried and we saw the “fruits” of our labour. Our scrubbing was not as thorough as we would had liked… It was supposed to be all brown, but turned out patchy brown with lots of grey. We realized we had to be very systematic and organized so we know which places had been covered, since it all looked the same when wet. Thus, we began our second round.

Another two hours later, our work was finally done. The deck was still wet and we still don’t know exactly how we did, but we prayed as hard as we could for the best. Alas, it was still far from perfect – more brown than before, but ~30% grey. To prevent having to do a third round, Stefan suggested that we kept the deck perpetually wet, so no one would be the wiser! I had a simpler plan, we had deliberately left patches of grey as a form of artistic expression, representing the diversity of our boat and its crew…

Well, in any case, we all did a good day’s hard labour, and if we were to be paid for our work, I reckon we be pretty rich now. Meanwhile, we keep our fingers crossed that Mike and the crew would be too busy setting sail the next day to notice anything – unscrubbed …

Blog by Zofia Drapella, Poland

Back in the Boat! I think I am the only one, who has previously sailed on Pangaea. It feels so good to be here again, sleep in the same bunk… Oh, 7.00 a.m. time to wake up, it is going to be a big day! We need some energetic breakfast, and Grenola with milk, followed by a fresh fruit is an ideal way to start the day. We are now all familiar with the rules on board of Pangaea. Tristan showed us the engine room and explained the checklist telling us what we should pay attention to during our watches. Achier, the Malaysian lady responsible for the Turtle Sanctuary on Lankayan island visited us today and we had a chance to present her the project as well as ask some questions about the region and her program.

With help of dive instructors: Christian and Andree, we set up the diving gear and made buddy teams. Buddy check? Done. One, two, three – hold your mask and regulator, watch out for jellyfishes, one big step and jump into the water. Here we are. Everything works perfect. Wait for your buddy and you can begin the descending. Slowly go down, equalize and you have a chance to see the Pangaea from the less known side. There is it, the propeller and keels! Now it is time to practice few diving skills (mask removal, regulator recovery, hovering). Although the visibility was rather low due to the muddy bottom composition, we had a great time and are all looking forward to the next diving. What we should focus on now is how to hover properly, obtain neutral buoyancy and beware of where are our fins, so that we don’t touch anything on the reef. Finally, we are here to help, not to destroy the coral, so we have to be careful about it!

On board there is a Malaysian cook who is keen on sharing his knowledge with those, who are interested in cooking. It is a great chance for us to understand the Malaysian culture, by trying the local cuisine. Let me tell you, that before every single meal, there is a bunch of people loitering around the galley, brought there by an amazing smell of local spicies, garlic, chili… ahh, Long list!

We need to go to bed soon, since early in the morning (5 o’clock), right after refueling we’re about to leave the anchor place, set up the sails and sail Pangaea to the north. Let the work begin! We’re full of energy and optimism and want to do our best during those 10 days on boat.

Pangaea Borneo Project - 20110116 - Day 02

Pangaea Borneo Project - 20110117 - Day 03

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Pangaea Borneo Project - 20110117 - Day 03: Photo competition

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Day 4 - January 18, 2011

Blog written by Stefan Oosthuizen

With a start I wake up, the boats moving!!! I overslept is my first thought, but as I start moving around on the boat I see that only some of the young explorers are awake. Mike had decided to up anchor and leave Kudat (at the northern tip of Borneo) before the sun broke the horizon, our heading Billean Island.

Everyone is refreshed and ready for the day after last night’s excellent meal in Kudat and Matthew supplying some good entertainment.

We sail till late morning dropping anchor close to the island were in  late 2009 the last group of Malaysian YEP’s  did their beach cleanup. We don our swimsuits and second skins and take to the water. Andre and Christian put the seabobs in the water; we make a 4 man train behind each of them and head for the island. What a great feeling to be standing were 8 other young explorers were standing just over a year ago!

We spend the next 2 hours clearing the island of all rubbish, it’s quite worrying to see how many plastic bottles and pieces of Styrofoam were found washed up on the beach.

Most of us see our first live sea snake and we are lucky enough to find 3 on the island. They are one of the most venomous snakes on the planet but luckily they have small back fangs and are not very aggressive.

Using the seabobs and a local Malaysian fishing vessel we get all the rubbish back to Pangaea. Ready to be later recycled.

We leave the island behind and reset our sails for Billean Island which we reach just after dark. Mike decides a night dive is in order 5 of us jump with great excitement into our gear and with some worried faces we get into the water.  Apart from a few small fish, silt and Leonard’s antics we didn’t see very much but it was an awesome experience and we can’t wait for tomorrow…

Pangaea Borneo Project - 20110118 - Day 04: Lingisan Island Cleanup

Pangaea Borneo Project - 20110118 - Day 04: SIMCA Billean Island

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Day 5 - January 19, 2011

Blog writen by Matthew Graesslin

Having anchored at Billian Island the previous evening, each of the ‘Watch Groups’ was on duty early this morning. The watch system is pretty much what it sounds like: 4 groups of Young Explorers take shifts monitoring the Pangaea and make sure that we don’t hit shallow ground or other ships. The ‘Anchor Watch’ is a bit different and a lot less exciting; we just had to make sure that the boat stays anchored.

After waking up and having breakfast, we all sat down in the conference room. Equipped with notebooks, pieces of papers and a writing board, we brainstormed, discussed and wrote down all of our ideas for the long-term project and the Pangaea Centre in Borneo. The whole discussion took us about 3 hours, but we were all so into the discussion, and the ideas came so easily that we barely noticed.

An hour or so of sailing later, we arrived at Lankayan, an island that is protected by SIMCA (Sugud Islands Marine Conservation Area) and with that is largely protected from illegal fishing activities, not to mention the YEPs from the Malaysia-Expedition were here as well.

After anchoring in a coral-free area, we quickly got ready for our first dive in between actual corals!

Underwater, everything got a bit chaotic; everyone was excited about all the marine life around us, the fish, the artificial corals… It was really something new.

Everyone practiced all the commands and techniques again, to prevent damaging the corals that we’ll be working around in the upcoming dives, which worked out for the better or the worse. At the end of our dive – our longest one till now – we all got back on the boat, and were free to do what we wanted – most of us were still in the water, riding the Seabobs, jumping from the back of the boat or just making videos and photos.

Another hour passed, and we got back into our rashguards, diving masks and flippers, making for the shallower reef that we could reach without all of our diving gear.

The highlight was definitely when the sharks came; swarming around us as we used an empty plastic bottle to attract them (the sound of a plastic bottle being scrunched up is similar to that of a wounded fish), they always kept a safe distance.

After dinner we left the boat one more time, to visit SIMCA’s center on Lankayan. At the center we got some more information on all the problems that humans cause to the marine life in Borneo, ranging from shark finning to destructive fishing. Lankayan is also a home to a turtle hatchery.

Well, with everyone back on the boat we quickly went to sleep; we were all pretty beat, and we have to get out early tomorrow morning to search for turtle eggs, so let’s just hope the anticipation doesn’t take our sleep!

Pangaea Borneo Project - 20110119 - Day 05: Lingisan Island Cleanup

Pangaea Borneo Project - 20110119 - Day 05: Snorkelling

Day 6 - January 20, 2011

Blog written by Akira and Zofia

The smell of dead, premature turtles marked our day as we helped out at the sea turtle hatchery on Lankayan Island. Eagerly did we dig up the nests, in search for eggs that had not yet hatched and counted the total of eggs and shells found.

Unfortunately, there were also some eggs that had rotten in the process of maturing, halfway devoured by worms. Of particular interest is the peculiar smell of the slime that for some reason was repeatedly attracted by people’s (especially Lauren’s) face.

Nevertheless, it was touching to experience this morning and we all learned to appreciate life in an altered way.

After snorkeling back to Pangaea, surrounded by sharks and a family of clown fish (Nemo), we were briefed on how to conduct reef checks and shortly after we disappeared into the deep, underwater world of Jawfish Lair.

The breathtaking marine biodiversity and the incredibly large amount of fish and corals made the identification process more challenging than expected. However, diving with identification charts and documentation slates made us even more attentive to the beauty that was surrounding us.

Later, a delicious lunch of an Asian vermicelli dish cooked by our chef, Yewsing replenished our energy before we headed back to Lankayan for yet another beach clean-up. Although Lankayan is an eco-resort that is cared for, we found ourselves filling (too) many bags with debris washed ashore.

We strongly believe that we have made a difference by taking all of today’s actions and hope to be able to inspire more youth around the world to be the change we want to see.

Pangaea Borneo Project - 20110120 - Day 06: SIMCA & Turtles

Pangaea Borneo Project - 20110120 - Day 06: Dive

Day 7 - January 21, 2011:  YEP version of Tick Tock

Blog written by Leonard and Saraya

Wake up in the morning feeling slightly dizzy, got my snorkel I’m out the hatch gonna hit this reefy

Before I leave for the reef to perform a reef check cause when I go below the surface I ain’t turning back

I’m kicking water thru my toes toes tryin not to pose pose, buoys bobbin up and down down

Sink down I’m repp’n my favourite city Swimming with all my fishies, tryna get right my buoyaannncyy

“Please stop, don’t just talk cos you’ll blow the corals up, please stop I will fight till the corals are all right

Flip flop to the top but the fishing wont stop no oh oh ooohh” x2 = Chorus

Aint got no air in my tank but got plenty to see, aint got no food in my stomach but I really don’t care

Now the sharks are lining up coz they have got good manners they ain’t really scary but they’re actually nice

I’m talkin ‘bout them finning til they’re dead dead Nothing gets through their head head Gonna chase them if they get too close close If I have to I’m gonna even ram their boats boats And the YEP-pies shut them down down YEP-pies shut them down down YEP-pies shut them DOWN

Repeat Chorus

Bridge: You chop them up you let them drown You break my heart yeah you hurt me

Put your hands up We got you now Release those sharks yeah we got you

You chop them up you let them drown You break my heart yeah you hurt me

We got your lines Put your nets down Put your nets down Put your nets dooowwwnnn

Now the finning don’t stop till the YEPS walk in

Chorus


The YEPfied version of this song represents our mission for the Borneo ACT project, through it we hoped to spread the Pangaea message.

We started the day with a workshop on mapping procedures. We then put our knowledge to the test when we mapped Bilean Island which is located on the North-East side of Sabah in the Sulu Sea. This required GPS coordinates and systematic pacing, with which we made a topographical map of our very own paradise.

The afternoon was then spent doing a shallow water reef check to understand more about the state of the coral and marine life on the Island of Billean.

This was another meaningful and productive day, bringing us ever closer to achieving our objectives.

Pangaea Borneo Project - 20110121 - Day 07: SIMCA Billean Island

Pangaea Borneo Project - 20110121 - Day 07: Billean Island Mapping

Pangaea Borneo Project - 20110121 - Day 07: Billean Island ReefCheck

Day 8 - January 22, 2011:  Another 9 bags of rubbish

Blog written by Lauren Morrell

Perched atop a tall tower structure on Bllean Island of the Sulu Sea, watching the sun set; I reflect on this beautiful and profound day. With a slow start, catching up on lots of missed sleep, the Young Explorers began by snorkeling around the shallow reefs surrounding the island to assess the state of our ecosystem. To our dismay, wide bands of reef destroyed by anchors or dynamite fishing or trolling made highways of between the reefs. This ocean desert is no adequate habitat for fish, sharks or turtles. There is work to be done, but we are optimistic about the diversity and abundance of the corals that we do have; with a little bit of tender, loving care from humans this ecosystem can be restored to its original, beautiful state.

In the afternoon, we did a beach clean up around the island. Most of what we found was Styrofoam, which cannot biodegrade and is instead ingested by turtles and fish that think it is food. We also found hundreds of plastic bottles, a trolling net, and most unfortunately several cyanide tubes indicating cyanide fishing. Cyanide is not deadly to the fish directly, it merely stuns them so that they can be captured more easily, but it is destructive to the ecosystem and reduces the mortality of the fish.

With 9 full bags of garbage, we returned to the jetty for an amusing game of volleyball with the Malaysians. A picturesque end to a wonderful day!

Pangaea Borneo Project - 20110122 - Day 08: Billean Island Coral Survey 1

Pangaea Borneo Project - 20110122 - Day 08: Billean Island Coral Survey 2

Pangaea Borneo Project - 20110122 - Day 08: Billean Island Coral Survey 3

Pangaea Borneo Project - 20110122 - Day 08: Billean Island Cleanup

Pangaea Borneo Project - 20110122 - Day 08: Billean Island Volleyball

Pangaea Borneo Project - 20110122 - Day 08: Pangaea Sunset

Day 9 - January 23, 2011:  Mapping of Billean Island

Blog written by Becci and Stefan

Thinking back the past 9 days we have had the time of our lives…

We are walking along our beach no boats, no noise, no television, no pollution. The sun is shining, life is great and the friends that I have made will be remembered for the rest of my life. Shampoo parties every night then sleeping on the deck, what an awesome time!!! “Becci, Becci!!!! Wake up! It started raining! You’re totally wet!” As I wake up I see all the Young Explorers busy running inside.

As soon as the sun rose we went back to our island to finish monitoring. Unfortunately during the night due to the prevailing wind another 5 bags of rubbish washed up on the island.

While finishing up mapping the coastline, jetties and infrastructure a sudden rainstorm has the Yeps seeking shelter, some of us even had interesting conversations with the current inhabitance.

Without having a rest we came back on Pangaea to hoist the sails and set our course to Lankayan. While learning to sail we interviewed Mike about his amazing experiences, his passions and his ability to motivate people. We also used the time to assess the data and to paint the first map of Billean Island and decide which steps have to be taken to make this project to a successful and sustainable.

After dropping the anchor we quickly jumped into our diving gear and went while the sun was setting. As we arrived in 23meters depth in the total darkness our torch beams elluminated a huge shipwreck in front of us. It was for all of us our deepest, first wreck night dive ever! What an unforgettable, awesome experience!

Non of us wanted to go to bed cause that would mean that another day would be over but we were all happy about what we have reached today and fell asleep with a smile on our faces, exept of Leonard, who slept again with eyes open.

Day 10 - January 24, 2011

Blog written by Lauren Morrell

We sailed off from Lankayan early this morning in the pure spirit of adventure. The itinerary was unknown to all of us until we happened across a beautiful, isolated spit of sand and palm trees near a larger but equally serene New Zealand-esque island. Curiosity overcame us and we anchored off for an exploratory dive. What goes on under the surface of this beautiful place?

It was an excellent decision; I found this to be one of our best dives. Descending to 26 meters and climbing the steep drop-off slope toward the island, we found (aside from the huge blotches of destruction) an abundance of beautiful, colorful corals and a healthy population of reef fish such as butterflies, squirrelfish, parrotfish, clownfish and Moorish idol. Striking starfish and anemone speckled the reef.

But while we were diving we heard a sudden BANG! in the water. Christian Miller’s “First, I was thinking that someone’s tank exploded, or that Pangaea exploded. It sounded like the anchor or something… The second time we heard it, it was very clear to me that it was dynamite fishing. I couldn’t see half of my group, and what if they dropped the bombs right atop of us? I have never heard dynamite fishing before but it really made me realize how fish would feel… the loud noise gave me a little time freeze; a vertigo. It was scary!”

On these abundant reefs we could see the many, massive blotches of destroyed and decaying corals; mostly caused by dynamite fishing. In the dynamite fishing method, fishermen throw bombs into the water which blow up the reef and kill the fish. When the fish float up to the surface, they are collected and taken back to the market. In shallow reefs, this is the least sustainable fishing method possible because the habitat is destroyed and cannot be fished again for many years. Fishermen continue to practice this method because it is effective and inexpensive.

Finally, we sailed in to the city of Sandakan in Borneo, where we will spend the remainder of our expedition meeting with schoolchildren and working with the Sandakan community to express our project.

Pangaea Borneo Project - 20110124 - Day 10: On the way to Sandakan

Day 11 - January 25, 2011

Blog written by Saraya

We began our last day on Pangaea with a relaxed breakfast and then took a bus trip to Sepilok (the seats were made quite small to fit the local Malay people, not giving us a very much room). After 1 hour of travelling we arrived at the Rainforest Discovery Centre, which is a reserved park containing many species of flora and fauna; birds, ants, leeches, snakes flowers, butterflies, trees, fruit plants and much more after our scenic and educational walk we caught a bus to the Sepilok Orangutan Rehabilitation Centre, where we caught the afternoon feeding show of the Orangutans and other species of large monkeys.

Throughout our journey on the way there and back, we passed many palm oil plantations, and also sighted some deforestation this was quite an eye opener for the us as we are here to represent Pangaea and ourselves as Young Ambassadors for the environment and help create a sustainable future for our Planet, in seeing this first hand a enormous wave of motivation and determination washed over us- that we need to ACT now and make a difference in the World before it is too late and by saying ‘we’ I don’t just mean us the YEP’s who are here in Borneo but to all the Young People at home reading this blog or following this project we need your help, step by step to create a long road for a sustainable future for us and the following generations.

On our way back to the boat we picked up a few more supplies, then took a quick trip to the Sandakan Yacht Club where we enjoyed our first warm, inside shower in past 10 days.

A quote that has been used amongst the Young Explorers and the Team Members throughout the entire project is ‘’just DO IT!’’. The Pangaea meanings for this is to; step outside your comfort zone, be courageous and get your message across to the rest of the World.

Pangaea Borneo Project - 20110125 - Day 11: Sepilok Orangutan Sanctuary

Pangaea Borneo Project - 20110125 - Day 11: Rain Forest Discovery

What did our Young Explorers have to say about their new PADI diving experience:

Becoming certified as a PADI Open Water Diver has enabled me to participate in the environmental activities of the Pangaea Borneo ACT Project. Not only has it given me the key to the magnificence of the underwater-world, but also a key to preserve the natural beauty of our oceans.

Akira Biondo (19), Japan

My first dive in Borneo was an amazing experience that I would not swap for the world. The Padi Diving Course enabled me to experience the beauty of the underwater world in this beautiful part of the world. I love to be under the water as much as possible; swimming with fish, sharks and stingrays.

Stefan Oosthuizen (21), South Africa

Water is my element, now I am certain about it. The PADI course enabled me to explore what we know so little about yet! The incredible biodiversity and astonishing beauty of the underwater world made me curious about the environmental issues that might be a danger to it. I am more aware now and will do my best to protect the marine life.

Zofia Drapella (19), Poland

Diving with PADI has really widened my horizons! Its a completely novel experience, being in a whole new world and interacting with the marine life! I’ve had the time of my life underwater, and this would not have been possible without PADI’s generous support!

Leonard Chua (17), Singapore

The PADI Open Water Diver course has opened the door to a new world for me, and enabled me to help with the ACT project in the first place. The experiences I’ve had underwater were incomparable to anything else I’ve ever seen, and fueled my desire to protect marine life and continue diving.

Matthew Graesslin (15), Switzerland

Learning and Diving with PADI has given me a wonderful opportunity to explore the underwater world and see many new marine species of animal life. I love diving and have enjoyed every dive I have done.

Saraya D’Ath (15), Australia

I am a diver since age 11; no underwater experience has been better than my PADI Advanced Certification dives in the pristine waters of Borneo, Malaysia. This is an experience I will never forget.

Lauren Morrell (16), USA

Diving and the underwater world has been my passion at least since i am born. Sharing this amazing experience with other people from all parts of the world is truly the best job in the world. With Mike Horn and our young explorers we can really work on solutions to protect our marine environment for future generations. The best training is an essential start. I am proud to be a PADI instructor and i believe that you are more likely to protect what you can see and feel. Let’s go diving!

Christian Miller (33), Australia - PADI Dive Instructor