Have you ever dreamt of taking part in an oceanographic expedition? Yes? Then you are most welcome to The Kairos Company. Join The Kairos Diving expedition liveaboard in the Northern part of the Mozambique channel in the Indian Ocean, for active diving holidays in a heavenly setting.

The Kairos Company has teamed with the Shark Research Institute on an expedition to film and study Whale sharks in the north of the Mozambique Channel. Jean Marc BOUR of the Kairos will make a TV film illustrating methods used by Suzy Quashnichka, SRI-UK Director, in collecting scientific data on the biggest and the friendliest fish of the seas, the Whale shark.

The Kairos Company organises five expeditions a year, each spanning a two month period, with a real mission, a goal you’ll help achieve as part of a team comprising the Expedition Leaders, the technicians, and the crew, all united in the same spirit of adventure. Each expedition is divided into seven-day periods, enabling you to bring your own stone to the final result. You will be given the opportunity to act as a scientist, an explorer, a discoverer, and will never forget it. Since its foundation in 1991, the Shark Research Institute (SRI) is probably one of the most famous and efficient non-profit scientific research organisation focused on research and conservation of sharks of the world.

SRI works with the scientific community, individuals and organisations concerned about the health of our marine ecosystem, and marine resource users: subsistence fishermen, sport divers, and the dive tourism industry. SRI works to correct misperceptions about sharks and stop the slaughter of 100 million sharks annually.

The Vessel:

The Kairos is a fully–equipped oceanographic ship with state-of-the-art equipment including satellite telephone, email access and motorized hand glider.

A wide range of interior equipments contribute to the guest’s well being:

an outside dining-room, teak furnished, well shaded, to benefit from the beautiful views and refreshing sea breeze from breakfast to sunset. The underwater digital photo and video workshop is available for all the guests free as far as it is used in the framework of the expedition.    

Whale sharks with the SRI

Dates:

The Leader: Jean Marc BOUR

A naval frogman until 1985, Jean-Marcthen gave in to his passions: sea, photography and video. These quickly turned into a full time job and Jean-Marc made documentary after documentary, running throughout the world, filming Great Whites in South Africa during three weeks as well as whales in areas ranging from Antarctica to Tahiti, Madagascar, the Galapagos Islands and, of course, in the Mediterranean Sea.

Documentaries, however, are only a part of his video achievements. The skills and professionalism of Jean-Marc when it comes to shooting underwater sequences have also been very much appreciated in the cinema industry, for example in action movies such as Taxi 3 or The Transporter.

As a director of photography, he has worked with Luc Besson on A Ton Image, and contributed to a large number of documentaries and TV fictions. (Jean-Marc had previously worked with Besson as security chief for the dives in The Big Blue.)

Jean-Marc also dubs characters, lending his skills to top rated actors below the surface, as did recently in Frédéric Schoendoerffer’s Secret Agents. You think you don’t know him yet, but you might in fact have seen him more than once on the silver screen.

Always a perfectionist, Jean-Marc is very keen on tracking the newest techniques, the most up-to-date equipments so that he can further push the limits of each project he works on.

The Trip:

The stays follow a seven-day pattern including seven nights and days aboard.

Day 1 / Wednesday : Airflight to Dar Es Salam.

Day 2 / Thursday : Guests arrive in Dar es Salaam (Tanzania) on Sunday. Transfer and boarding on the M/V Kairos in the early afternoon.

Guests are welcomed by The Kairos Company at Dar es Salaam Airport, and then directly transferred by car to the ship - or to the tenders if the ship is moored outside the harbor. The Kairos will leave her mooring in the evening. The first 24 hours will be dedicated to explanations, demonstrations, and in-water testing of the specific equipments, as well as setting up groups for courses and certificates.

Day 3 to day 8 / Friday to Wednesday : Current research and expedition, involving visual tracking, behavioral and DNA studies of sharks with the help of the scientific support.

Several workshops will be set up on Whale sharks, underwater filming, shooting and editing, according to each guest’s skills and experience. Each dive is carefully prepared with all guests, covering detailed objectives and concise logistics and timing.

Divers will be briefed every evening, a process that involves the review of the day’s rushes and the planning of the following day’s shooting. About two dives a day are scheduled, plus some night dives as well.

The Expedition Leader will define the planning on a weekly basis. The shots will be edited on board, enabling each guest to bring a DVD back home, covering the segment of the expedition he took part in, as a souvenir. Return to Dar Es Salam in the night of day 8.

Day 9 / Thursday : In the morning, breakfast is served before the transfer to the Airport for the return flight home.

The Diving Spots:

The diving spots are selected according to criteria determined by the Expedition Leader for the video shoots. Many of them are unexplored, or even hardly known, due to their remote location or difficulty of access.

Visibility usually is about 30 meters, allowing to fully admire the wonderful walls and shallows surrounding the islands and coral reefs. The coastal waters of Tanzania and Kenya are very deep and famous for their large diversity of marine fauna. The marine flora is of an amazing diversity too, with a large range of fine corals and sponges. We may experience strong currents during the dives.