A captain’s life — no two days are ever the same!
Captain Pete Reynolds oversees the ship, up to 37-person crew, all passengers, and scientific equipment on the water and in port. He is responsible for all aspects of the vessel, from the safety of the people and equipment on board to navigation and everything in between. We sat down with him to learn more about him and his life at sea. Our conversation has been lightly edited for length and clarity.
Can you tell us a little about your career pathway to become captain of a ship like Falkor (too)?
I started at 18 as a deck cadet on cargo ships, container ships, and one tanker. A year after I qualified as an officer, I fancied something different because container ship itineraries are like a worldwide bus route. You travel the world but get to the same ports on the same days in the same amount of time. I spent 12 years on scientific research ships, working for the UK government-owned research ships at the National Oceanography Centre in Southampton. By then, I had a young family. They wanted me home more often, so I went to work offshore on anchor handlers and geotechnical drilling ships. They had shorter rotations, four weeks on and four weeks off. It was a great experience, but I missed working on research vessels. In 2017, I was fortunate enough to get the captain job on the original Falkor and have loved it ever since. It’s a dream job!
What initially drew you to the maritime industry?
Oh, that’s a good question. I was looking at all the different opportunities in an ’80s careers book, and the Merchant Navy jumped out at me. I didn’t see myself doing a traditional job. I always wanted to travel. I thought, what a great way to travel and make a career! That appealed to me straight away. I lived by the coast in a small town in Wales, a tourist resort called Aberystwyth. There were only a few small fishing boats in and out of there, so I never knew about bigger ships until I joined the Merchant Navy, and I’ve enjoyed it ever since. It’s a good lifestyle.
Where haven’t you been in your 34 years at sea?
Yeah, I’ve been to all the continents. There are not many places I haven’t been yet, to be honest! The most remote places I’ve been to are probably on the Falkor, going to the mid-Pacific, to Samoa, and working near the Phoenix Islands. This year has seen a lot of firsts for me; I had never transited the Panama Canal. I ticked that one off this year — going to the Galápagos, which was a first, and going down the west coast of South America, Easter Island, and Juan Fernandez Islands. And the exciting expedition to Antarctica will be a big one for me; that’s definitely on my bucket list!
What was it that drew you back to scientific research?
Listen ▶ I wanted to do something of value, something I could be proud of. That was it in a nutshell — working with great people, doing great things, and seeing interesting parts of the world. It’s doing something for the benefit, for the understanding of the planet, and knowing how things work. I always enjoyed working with the scientists themselves because there’s something about their passion that motivates me to want to do the best because they’re so focused on what they want to learn and do. The onboard team has the opportunity to help them in any way and do the utmost that we can to make sure that their time is as successful as possible. Everyone’s completely into the mission and what we want to achieve. We’ve got something special going on here. It’s infectious. It rubs off and keeps everyone enthusiastic and motivated.
What’s your favorite part of the job?
My favorite part of the job is working with other people on board the ship and going to all these different places. No two days are the same. There’s always something different, something new. Going to explore new horizons all the time and continuing to travel the world, that’s all pretty cool!
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