As most of you know, we are quite used to seeing orcas, but this is the first time we get to see them summer time. Also quite special to find them outside my hometown of Stavanger! On Saturday last week we ventured offshore in the calm weather to look for basking shark and pilot whales. When I saw seagulls on the horizon, I had hopes for something big pushing prey to the surface. And sure enough, there was something big […]
Sir David Attenborough inspired me to study marine biology, and set me on a path for life. He was my childhood hero, whose nature documentaries opened up wonderful unknown worlds. As such it´s a great pleasure to be a small part of the documentary “Whale Wisdom” narrated by childhood hero. This story dates back to 2017, when I was joined by the Wild Logic team to film orcas in Arctic Norway. The team was led by four-time Emmy, and BAFTA […]
A 2 minutes video from the 2016/17 orca expedition, put together by CNN Greatt Big Story. Great edit and outreach, with over 4 million views in social media to date. Enjoy!
Between Stavanger and our winter base of operation, the Troms region well north of the arctic circle, lay an 850 nautical miles (1600 km) journey. Although this would be the fourth time Barba was to head north covering the spectacular Norwegian coastline, it´s always filled with some excitement. Extensive night time navigation, a new crew and unpredictable weather are some of the main challenges. Motoring along the Atlantic road, south of Kristiansund. A team of four Northerners and a Spaniard […]
October 5th: On a beautiful autumn day Barba steamed out of her homeport in Stavanger. With Barba’s terrestrial headquarters (captain’s flat) rented out, she headed North, her destination deep within the Arctic Circle. She has no plans to return anytime soon; a third consecutive winter documenting orcas awaits. As opposed to previous seasons where the camera has been our primary tool of telling their story, the mission for this season is to take the long-awaited step with firm contributions to […]
It´s been a relaxed summer in the homeport of Stavanger, with only shorter excursions to the pleasant and welcoming fjords and tranquil archipelago facing the North Atlantic. Following 4 months in the Arctic, of what was one of the most demanding undertakings to date, it has been a well-deserved rest. Jaap van Rijckevorsel on watch during an earlier winter migration. He has spent the late summer trying to reach the North-Pole. We look forward to seeing him again this […]
Above: A screen grab from a video shot by Matthew Ferraro, with myself hanging out with three adolescent orca bulls. The star of the show, Barba, is resting in port waiting for warmer weather with essential upgrades and maintenance in progress. Her humble servants have lately been working with the storytelling side of things. The hope is that we can take the step up from short stories to making our first proper documentary. It´s a monumental task, and it requires somewhat […]
Following a long adventurous winter up North, Barba has returned to port in southern Norway. In the coming months, we will work on publishing the material, with making a documentary as our ultimate goal. This video contains material from on week when we had photographer and filmmaker David Gonzalez onboard, who manage to capture the action and beauty in a spectacular way. The fortunate free diver is the Barba captain, and the stand up paddle boarder and kite surfer is Kari Schibevaag.
Having made it to Bodø, we had covered most of the distance between the port of Stavanger down south, and the whales up north. Heidi flew back home to Finland to continue her studies, and we received reinforcements from further east. Svetlana Romantsova came flying in from Moscow, and Barba was to be her first time out sailing. She is a professional photographer, and knows Kari from the kite surfing circus. Featured image – A grey seal cub at the Mosken […]
Barba at anchor on the south side of Lovund. By Lars Korvald. Barba continues her relentless push towards the north. The days are becoming shorter, and it´s getting colder, as expected. Normally we could have added some sentences on how we battle with the wind and elements. To date, October has still been dead calm, with virtually no wind, and exceptionally good weather. Selfie by Kari, in Brønnøysund. The northern lights are leading the way! Since Brønnøysund, the skyline has […]