If you have never seen one, leatherbacks are pretty much dinosaurs. They are huge and look like something that hasn’t changed in millions of years. When I first saw this 900-pound figure crawl out of a pitch black ocean, I was not entirely sure that what we were doing was safe. It stirred something deep inside of me though. Something basic, something old.

We allowed the turtle to nest, and once it started laying eggs we checked for its tags and measured the length of the shell, recording all of our findings. My patrol, covering a one-mile stretch of beach, came across five turtles that night. The other patrol recorded seven. I spent another eight days on the beach and found myself more at peace than at any other time I can remember.

There was no TV, no internet, and really nothing to pull me away from the moment I was in. I spent my days reading, gathering food and talking with some of the most amazing people I have ever met. I was up for every sunrise and sunset, and I spent my nights working with sea turtles.

I cannot express to you how hard it was to leave that place.

My experience has left an indelible mark. I came to Shell Beach thinking I would see if field work was something I would like, and left knowing there is nothing I want to do more.

I would encourage anyone who finds this story interesting to look into volunteering. It doesn’t have to be in a remote corner of the wilderness, but it should be somewhere you might not go otherwise.

I think you will be amazed at what you can do if you push yourself a little bit, and I know you will experience a sensation that is unlike anything you can read on a computer screen.

Watch Dan’s video of a leatherback heading back out to sea:

Dan Wright is a human resources manager at Conservation International.

The beach is comprised of brown sand that runs directly into the thickest jungle imaginable. The water is murky from the jungle silt deposited by the rivers just north of the beach, and there was a constant 20mph wind coming directly off the Atlantic. I set my tent up under a hand-built hut with no walls and took a tour of the camp.

There was one main hut, which served as the kitchen and gathering place. There was no power so everything was cooked over a fire pit. Rain water was used for food preparation and for drinking, and ground water was brought up in buckets from pits dug in the sand for bathing. There was a little shack built around the latrine hole and a three sided blind for when you were rinsing off or changing. That was pretty much it… my home for the remainder of the trip.

For the most part, sea turtles only come on shore to nest at night, so I knew I’d be staying up late. The leatherbacks at Shell Beach almost always come up just before high tide, which was around 2:30 in the morning. I can’t begin to describe how amazing the sky looks at night. There is no source of artificial light anywhere near the beach, and the night sky looked like a celestial chart in an astronomy book.

Armed with flashlights and a clipboard, I started my patrol, and within about 50 yards of camp came across my first leatherback sea turtle.

Check back Monday for the conclusion of this series. Dan Wright is a human resources manager at Conservation International.

After some searching, I came across a project in one of the wildest places left in the world, Guyana, South America – even better, I would be working with one of my favorite animals of all time, the leatherback sea turtle (Dermochelys coriacea). The group that runs the program is called the Guyana Marine Turtle Conservation Society, and after a few emails with the team in charge, I was off..

The project is located on Shell Beach, a barren stretch of sand, shells and sediment just east of the border between Guyana and Venezuela. This was my first volunteer experience, and I really didn’t know what to expect. The truth is, nothing could have prepared me for this trip anyway

I flew into the capital city of Georgetown and met with Romeo DeFreitas, who started the project with his father Audley some 20 years ago. From there we traveled inland to Romeo’s childhood home of Moruca for one night and ultimately on to Shell Beach. Guyana is referred to as the “land of a thousand waters”” and a quick trip inland makes it abundantly clear why. The entire country is crisscrossed with rivers, making it virtually impossible to build a road anywhere.

So how do you get around?

By boat – tiny wooden boats with huge outboard motors attached to the back, to be exact. I spent about 12 hours on one of these boats over the course of two days. We hit brilliant sunshine and pouring rain and traveled down narrow mangrove-lined canals and across open ocean to finally arrive at Shell Beach.

Upon our arrival in the afternoon of the second day, I found myself standing on a beach unlike any other I had ever seen.

Check back Thursday and Friday for parts 2 and 3 of this series. Dan Wright is a human resources manager at Conservation International.

Eleven leatherback sea turtles raced from Canada’s Atlantic coast to the beaches of the Caribbean – with Backspacer – Pearl Jam’s pick – earning the win.

Thanks for following the Great Turtle Race. You and thousands of other turtle fans made this Race one for the history books. We just have a few more awards to give out…

Which turtle won the coveted Pearl Jam Audience Favorite award?

Why none other than Pearl Jam’s favorite turtle herself – Backspacer!

Fans like you voted for this top turtle by making gifts in her honor to support conservation efforts.

Yes – Backspacer won the race and the hearts and minds of the fans. She’s sure to become a legend in her own shell!

Cali takes the Iron Turtle Award!

Backspacer may have won the marathon race, but strong performances in the diving competitions resulted in an overall triathlon victory for Cali, whose sponsors – the kids at Bullis Charter School in Los Altos, CA – knew she had it in her all along.

Academic judges from the popular online Deep Sea News blog have declared this small, but remarkable turtle the Iron Turtle Champion for the 2009 Great Turtle Race.

Cali completed 148 dives longer than one hour, and dove deeper than 800 meters five times throughout the Race.

See the winners for all challenges.

The Great Turtle Race is much more than a race and swimming challenges.

It showcases the work Conservation International is doing in the field to protect sea turtles, the oceans they call home, and people around the globe who depend on healthy oceans for survival.

The support of Race fans – like you – is critical to this important work. Make a gift to Conservation International today.

Sea turtles are a bellwether of marine health. And unfortunately, their numbers are rapidly diminishing in many parts of the world.

The health of animals like sea turtles and the unique and precious places they call home is directly linked to the survival of people. Healthy ocean, forest and river ecosystems provide the clean air, fresh water and food on which humans depend.

Your gift today will keep our scientists in the field exploring threats, taking action, and forging partnerships with local communities and their governments to protect Earth’s natural capital.

Next year we hope you’ll join us and cheer on your favorite turtle to the finish line. In the meantime, please consider making a gift to help Conservation International protect Earth and all of its beauty – for the good of people everywhere.

The Great Turtle Race may have ended, but the journey towards healthy sea turtle populations and healthy seas isn’t over yet — both still need your help.  And don’t forget to show our leatherback champs that you care by taking action!

Take the following steps and show our leatherback champs that you care. Bring a friend or two along for the ride and multiply your impact.

• Keep up with what’s happening with sea turtles around the globe at www.SeaTurtleStatus.org.
• Learn more about what conservation groups are doing to save leatherbacks in the Atlantic Ocean at www.FreeTheLeatherback.com, and in the Pacific Ocean at www.leatherback.org.
• Of course, keep checking www.conservation.org for the conservation stories, photos and the latest news and events.

MINIMIZE FISHERY IMPACTS
GET SCHOOLED

Smart seafood choices are good for everyone: sea turtles, oceans, fishermen, you, and your family. Learn about the impacts of different fishing and fish farming methods and use your purchasing power to promote responsible stewardship of marine resources.

Online? Check out www.blueocean.org/seafood for more information.

On the go? Text FishPhone™ to get instant information on a fish you’re considering. Text FISH and the name of the species you would like to learn more about to 30644 (e.g., FISH SHRIMP, or FISH MACKEREL); in under ten seconds Blue Ocean will send you a recommendation and the reason for it.

REDUCE POLLUTION
DISPENSE WITH DISPOSABLES

Pollution affects sea turtles in many ways, both directly and indirectly. Take stock of the goods that you use and learn what you can substitute for more environmentally friendly products, and what you can do without altogether.

Start by replacing the single-use plastic bags, bottles, and utensils in your life with reusable ones and join the Bring Your Own movement.

Learn more at http://www.bringyourown.org/.

Find what you need at http://www.reusablebags.com/.

KEEP OCEANS CLEAN
JOIN OR ORGANIZE A COMMUNITY CLEANUP

Even if you recycle what you can and properly dispose of what you can’t, your waste can sometimes end up in the wrong place – on the street, in they sky, and on the water. No matter how it gets there, loose waste can end up in the ocean.

Don’t let it get that far. Join the annual International Coastal Cleanup or bring your community together independently to collect trash along the shores of a local waterway, park, or street.

What an incredible Race this has been, don’t you think? I’m proud of my turtles – Billy, Seabiscuit, and Wawa Bear – because they really worked hard in practice and I think it paid off. These turtles have some serious talent when it comes to swimming, but they’ve also been doing it for a really, really long time. I’m a world-class sprint swimmer, so I really wanted to get these guys to move fast, but it wasn’t easy. I guess they are turtles after all, even if they are in a Race! And their slow and steady style was good for me to experience, too. It helped me to remember to take a look around and enjoy the scenery.

We were a little worried about Billy when his transmitter stopped sending signals – and he was doing so well – but we’re thrilled to hear that it seems that he did cross the finish line and was last heard from hanging off the coast of Trinidad, looking for mates. Too bad he couldn’t get credit for his triumphant finish in the Great Turtle Race!

And how about Seabiscuit and Wawa Bear! Amazing finishes! They really covered a lot of ocean in very little time to make it to the winner’s circle. But to be honest, I wish that they hadn’t waited until the last days to blast across the finish line. It was exhilarating, but I was a nervous wreck and lost my voice cheering them on. It’s one thing to be the one doing the swimming, but standing ‘poolside’ here has been really tough. Now I know how everyone must have been feeling during my anchor leg in the 4×100 relay! Sorry about the near heart attacks, everyone! At least it worked out well, right?

But I am really amazed by Wawa Bear. Such a huge turtle, so much experience swimming from Canada to the Caribbean and back again many times…And she just added another by finishing the Race AND nesting at her favorite beach in French Guiana! Listen to Dr. Mike James from the Canadian Sea Turtle Network describe their experiences watching Wawa Bear’s migration to her nesting beach and waiting for word that she had been spotted.

I think her story is so powerful because she is a real-life symbol of the connectivity that her kind represents; connectivity between countries, between cultures, between languages, all separated by thousands of kilometers of ocean. She represents the partnerships between passionate researchers on either side of her migration – the Canadians working with turtles in the water, Caribbean folks working with turtles on nesting beaches – that are absolutely vital to ensuring that the oceans are full of leatherbacks. Wawa Bear reminds us that what we do, wherever we live, has real impacts in other places, so we need to make responsible choices for the environment and our fellow humans.

LEARN MORE: Canadian Sea Turtle Network

It has been a blast to coach some special swimmers in the Great Turtle Race. I’m a little bummed that it’s over, but I’m excited to know that because of all of our (YOURS and mine) conservation efforts the turtles will continue ‘racing’ around the world’s oceans, even if we’re not tracking them online…

*****
Can’t get enough turtles? Check out these stories and features for more shells and science.
FEATURE: Now or Never: Eastern Pacific Leatherbacks Face Extinction
DISPATCHES: Tagging Hawksbill Turtles in Ecuador
FEATURE: TurtleFest: An Odyssey Begins
RESEARCH: Persistent Leatherback Turtle Migrations Present Opportunities for Conservation
FEATURE: Communities and Sea Turtles

And it’s all come down to this, the final day of the Great Turtle Race. The last day is certainly not the least in terms of excitement!

As of yesterday, Wawa Bear was sprinting to the finish line, swimming as hard as she could! And she made it just under the wire! In an amazing finish that was reminiscent of her coach, Jason Lezak, in his world-record comeback victory in the 2008 Olympic relay, Wawa Bear zoomed hundreds of kilometers to make it across the finish line just before the end of the Race. She joins Seabiscuit in the winners’ circle just off the coast of Suriname and French Guiana. She really showed some power and used her experience in pulling off that thrilling finish!

Now that the turtles have completed the two-week Race, we can reveal just how far each turtle traveled. These turtles have put in incredible effort on their journeys, and all have covered thousands of kilometers. Olympic medal-winning backstroker Aaron Peirsol is the official spokesperson and ‘coach’ for the turtles in this event. It’s not just Aaron’s swimming prowess that qualifies him for this role, but also his special cause called ‘Race for the Oceans’, a forum for swimmers and swimming fans to dive into ocean conservation. Read more from Aaron about this challenge >>

As mentioned previously, real turtles traveled the tracks shown in the Race. Now that the Race is over, check out what scientists have learned about each of the turtles in the Race, what happened to the turtles that didn’t finish the Race and what the turtles have been doing since the end of the Race.  CI Sea Turtle Scientist Dr. Bryan Wallace reveals some of the behind-the-scenes action in the Race. Listen to this commentary >>

In particular, Wawa Bear’s journey has required and encouraged international cooperation among turtle scientists. Listen to Dr. Mike James as he describes the excitment and the challenges of tracking Wawa Bear.

What a Race this has been. Between Mr Leatherback and I, we figure that we’ve spent decades swimming, so have seen a lot of things, but the competitors in this Race are truly inspirational. They face many obstacles, cross entire oceans, and see many changes to their environments, but they just keep on going.

On behalf of all the sponsors, partners, coaches, Race fans, and the turtles themselves, thanks for your support and participation in the Great Turtle Race. Together, we can all help leatherbacks on their journey back to healthy populations in healthy oceans.

ON THE MAP: Review all the migrations and memories on the race map.

Wawa Bear
Turtle Stats
Wawa Bear nested on the same beach she has nested on since 1993 in French Guiana in the early morning of 22 March 2009. She laid 95 billiard ball-sized eggs, weighed 560 kg, and still had her transmitter attached, so the scientists actually were able to track her right to the nesting beach all the way from Nova Scotia.
Listen to Dr. Mike James from the Canadian Sea Turtle Network describe their experiences watching Wawa Bear’s migration to her nesting beach and waiting for word that she had been spotted.

Billy
Turtle Stats
We actually got a faint hit from Billy’s transmitter about a month after it went silent, but after the Race had ended. Although the location was of limited accuracy, it appeared that Billy had crossed the finish line after all, and was hanging out off of Galera Point, Trinidad. This is typical behavior for an adult male in a breeding season (i.e. hanging out in waters off nesting beaches), and Billy’s choice of location was strategic, as Trinidad hosts one of the largest leatherback nesting colonies in the world, with thousands of females coming ashore to lay eggs each year.

Lindblad
Turtle Stats
Despite the transmitter ceasing to function while Lindblad was still out in the central Atlantic, the tag kicked on again about a month later, and Lindblad is now northwest of where she was previously, about 500 kilometers off Puerto Rico, but still not in the Caribbean. Our Costa Rican colleagues are waiting for her to come to nest if not this year, maybe next.

Nightswimmer
Turtle Stats
Despite going as far south as the other turtles, Nightswimmer turned around and is still heading northwest, but not very quickly. It appears that Nightswimmer might be in a non-reproductive year. Adult turtles that are not ready to reproduce in a given year still make long migrations to find food, but instead of going into the Caribbean like the other turtles, they often remain in deeper waters far out in the open Atlantic.

Grembo and Searcher
Turtle Stats: Grembo | Searcher
It might look like they are lost and stuck out in the eastern Atlantic, or maybe even that they’re heading to Africa to nest. However, we know from previous years that turtles will travel from Canada over to the eastern side of the Atlantic possibly to feed in the Mauritania upwelling off Africa, which supports a productive marine foodweb. These turtles are probably chowing on jellies for a while longer before they’ll make their way toward the Caribbean or the northeast coast of South America. It is also possible that they are in a non-reproductive year and will begin to head back to Canadian waters in the next few months.

Cali
Turtle Stats
It seems that Cali’s run-in with the fishing gear really did have a big impact on him. First, he began his migration much sooner than the other turtles – almost immediately after he was entangled and then released. Then, although it seemed like he was steaming toward the Caribbean, he suddenly hit the brakes and turned around. We think he did this because he didn’t have enough energy to make the full migration to breeding areas in tropical waters, so had to turn around and go back to ‘refuel.’ Although this is just our speculation about what happened, it definitely shows that even a relatively minor, non-lethal interaction with fishing gear can interrupt natural behavior of leatherbacks and affect whether they reproduce in a given year. Cali’s experience is very important for us to understand how influential fisheries bycatch can be to leatherbacks and other animals.

Backspacer
2009 Turtle Race Winner!
Turtle Stats
Shortly after crossing the finish line and doing a few more loops, Backspacer’s transmitter stopped signaling. We hope that she is spotted in the coming months by nesting beach colleagues.

Nueva Esperanza
Turtle Stats
She has kept her momentum and is still moving inside the Caribbean. She was moving close to the coast of Colombia, possibly headed toward Panama or Costa Rica. However, the last we heard from her, she was in the into the Gulf of Urabá, Colombia, close to several large nesting beaches! We hope to hear very soon from our Colombian colleagues about her nesting.

Estéban
Turtle Stats
He continues to hang around the Windward Islands, probably still trying to find females to mate with. As demonstrated by some of the turtles in the Race, many females have to cross this area to reach their nesting beaches on the mainland Caribbean, so Estéban has put himself in a great position. He has stuck pretty close to the coasts of St. Lucia and St. Vincent since crossing the finish line. This behavior is very typical of male leatherbacks.

Seabiscuit
Turtle Stats
He is still off the coast of French Guiana, likely still seeking opportunities to mate. The leatherback population that nests on the Guiana Shield (Suriname, French Guiana, Guyana) is one of the largest populations in the world, with thousands of females nesting each year. So, like Estéban (and possibly Billy), Seabiscuit has found a very good spot to spend the next month or so.

Can’t get enough turtles? Check out these stories and features for more shells and science.
FEATURE: Now or Never: Eastern Pacific Leatherbacks Face Extinction
DISPATCHES: Tagging Hawksbill Turtles in Ecuador
FEATURE: TurtleFest: An Odyssey Begins
RESEARCH: Persistent Leatherback Turtle Migrations Present Opportunities for Conservation
FEATURE: Communities and Sea Turtles

See the challenge results below the race map!

Preparing the turtles for this challenge has been pretty easy, as they are really built perfectly for long swims. Those extra-large flippers, big swimming muscles, and ability to swim for long distances while holding their breath mean that they’re well-equipped for the long migrations they make between Canada and the Caribbean.

I’ve helped them focus on their swimming technique and concentration on the goal of getting to the Caribbean. However, no matter how hard I try, I can’t seem to get them to do the backstroke, which is my signature stroke. I guess they just really like to see where they’re going…

Anyway, just like me and the rest of the Olympic swimmers who’ve served as coaches in the Race, these turtles are such natural swimmers, and they absolutely love the water. They are wonderful to watch move through the water because they have an awe-inspiring balance between sheer power and strength and gracefulness and tranquility.

I’ve been thrilled to be a part of the Great Turtle Race, because it has also given me the chance to talk about another Race that I’m a part of, The Race for the Oceans. I’m a huge ocean lover; not only do I love to swim in it, I love to surf, I love to body board, I love just being near it. But I’m also aware that in many ways and in many places, the ocean’s health is severely under threat by things that we humans are doing. That’s why while I’m training for future swimming competitions, I’m also swimming to raise awareness and money to help turn the tide on declining ocean health.

IN DEPTH: Learn more about ocean conservation.

Like the Great Turtle Race is a way for all people to become engaged and active in marine conservation to save leatherbacks and their ocean habitats, Race for the Oceans is a cause that we can all join to make a real difference for the world’s seas and the amazing biodiversity that depend on them.

I’ve been proud to be the coach for all the turtles in this Race, because in reality, all turtles and other marine creatures are all facing similar challenges in their ocean worlds, and need our help to keep swimming.

I’m really excited today because Nueva Esperanza, one of the turtles that I’m coaching, showed some amazing speed and determination to cross the finish line today! Our team is really happy for her incredible performance.

I’m also thrilled to be able to give a few words of encouragement to all of the turtles as they near the end of the Great Turtle Race, and before tomorrow’s announcement of the results of Longest Distance Traveled swimming challenge.

I know a thing or two about long distance swimming competitions, having won five Olympic medals and 45 US national titles in 400m, 800m, and 1500m freestyle events during my career. It’s a good thing that I didn’t have to swim against these turtles, though, because I think all my world records would have been broken immediately by these prolific paddlers!

ON THE MAP: See the final moments on the race map

The turtles have done a good job of pacing themselves throughout the long Race, knowing that they have to cover a great distance and can’t burn themselves out too early. Keeping up a good pace is really important to make sure you still have ‘gas in the tank’ for the final push of the race, which is where the turtles are now.

The other thing they have going for them is something that all of us swimmers have to have as well to succeed – the ability to swim hard while holding our breath. This is especially vital for long distance swimming, because you have to keep swimming hard for prolonged periods, and to do that, you need lots of oxygen to fuel those swimming muscles. But we humans, just like the turtles, have to breathe air, so you have to maximize how far you can go between breaths.

Now that they are coming to the end of the Race, it’s time for them to finish strong and put all the energy they have left into going as far as they can. This is the point in the Race when all their training, instincts, and perseverance become so important, and is when champions are made!

Read Janet Evans’ previous post: Coaching the Turtle Race >>

Be sure to check back tomorrow to see which turtle finishes above the rest in the longest distance traveled swimming challenge.