The Mission

I had come to know the holder of the permanent grant on thirteen of the Saint Brandon islands. He mentioned, in one of those conversations, that his small yacht was about to make the passage north to Saint Brandon. I cannot remember exactly what I said in response — something about how I had wanted to see the islands of the Mascarenes. He looked at me and said, well, why don’t you go?

It was as offhand as that. But the offer was, on reflection, a considered one. He knew the things I do, that I write, that I photograph, and that I had enough years on small boats and also a qualified skipper, to be useful rather than a passenger. The islands have a stewardship obligation to be observed, and the existing maps and surveys were ageing. Cyclones had moved things since the last counts. The offer was as much a commission as a gift, and I said yes.

What the journey became is something I am still, in reflective moments, writing. I came home with field notes, with photographs, with hours of footage, and with a list of islands I did not reach. I came home, also, with the understanding that a place like Saint Brandon does not give itself fully to anyone in nineteen days, and that the proper response for me is to keep returning to it in writing, in thought, in time. This collection is the first of those returnings.

Editorial & Commissioned Work

If you would like to be in touch — for editorial commissions, place writing, long-form journalism, or design and brand work — write to me at river@welovethesea.co

I am available to be sent to places. I take a small number of commissions a year, for editors, publications, and brands who want a particular kind of attention paid to a particular place. Travel writing in the conventional sense is not what I do. My work is written from inside a place rather than across the surface of it, paired with original research and field notes from the ground.