One Ocean Expedition 2025-2026 

A 12-month global voyage with the Norwegian tall ship Statsraad Lehmkuhl - a floating ambassador for the UN Ocean Decade. Combining sail training, ocean science, education and diplomacy to inspire action for a sustainable ocean. 

2025 - 2026

One Ocean Expedition

Statsraad Lehmkuhl arrived in Brest, France March 27, and will stay until March 30. The ship managed to sail in the delayed departure from Ponta Delgada.

Next port is Dublin, Ireland, arriving April 6.

Over the course of a year, the expedition has visited ports across three continents. Several legs are open to the public - no sailing experience needed! Welcome on board!

Sailing route

Docked in the port of Brest

Follow our journey

Statsraad Lehmkuhl visits Brest March 27 - 30, 2026

Brest, France

Statsraad Lehmkuhl visits Ponta Delgada, the Azores, July 2-8, 2025 – and March 14-18 2026.

Ponta Delgada, the Azores

It is the middle of winter. Statsraad Lehmkuhl is crossing the Atlantic - and, as usual on the most demanding legs, cadets from the Royal Norwegian Naval Academy are on board.

Crossing the Atlantic with cadets on board

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Following the success of the One Ocean Expedition 2021–2023, Statsraad Lehmkuhl is once again setting sail on a 12-month circumnavigation to promote ocean sustainability. The voyage will include 27 ports of call across three continents, combining ocean science, education and international cooperation to raise awareness about the crucial role of the ocean for a sustainable future.

On The One Ocean Expedition, Statsraad Lehmkuhl is filled with students, researchers and voyage crew who all work together to sail the big ship and gather experience and knowledge about the ocean.

Life on board

Tromsø, Norway

Bergen, Norway - Lerwick, UK

Reykjavik, Iceland

Nice, France 

Ponta Delgada, the Azores (Portugal)

Nuuk, Greenland

St. John's, Canada

Bermuda

Los Angeles, USA

Bermuda - Panama Canal 

Vancouver, Canada

Seattle, USA

San Francisco, USA

San Diego, USA

Ensenada, Mexico

La Paz, Mexico

Herradura, Costa Rica

Cartagena, Colombia

Herradura, Costa Rica - Panama Canal

Norfolk, USA

Cádiz, Spain

Brest, France 

Dublin, Ireland

Bergen, Norway

Brest lies as far northwest in France as it is possible to go. The Brittany peninsula reaches out into the Atlantic Ocean where the Bay of Biscay meets the entrance to the English Channel.

The city is well sheltered in the bay known as the Rade de Brest, inside the narrow strait called the Goulet de Brest. The strait is only two kilometres wide, and the tidal current flowing in and out of the bay can reach speeds of 4–5 knots. Sailing ships approaching the harbour often had to wait outside at Camaret-sur-Mer if the current was against them.

Brest has long been one of France’s most important ports. Today it is one of the country’s main naval bases, together with Toulon on the Mediterranean coast.

The city was originally established as a fortress in the Middle Ages. It later grew around the naval base founded there in 1631.

During the Second World War France was occupied by Nazi Germany, establishing a submarine base and a shipyard in the city.

After the Allied landings in Normandy in June 1944, securing French ports became crucial so that equipment and supplies could be brought ashore, Brest being one of them. Allied forces reached Brest on 7 August, and on 25 August the city was attacked.

The fighting was intense, and when the German general Ramcke surrendered Brest on 19 September, large parts of the city had been destroyed.

After the war Brest was rebuilt and is today an important university city. The French Naval Academy is located here.

The city is also a centre for marine research, through the French Research Institute for Exploitation of the Sea (Ifremer) and the French Polar Institute.

Today Brest has a population of just over 140,000. In addition to jobs connected to defence, research and education, many people work in shipping and the service sector.

The proximity to the sea influences the climate. Summers are relatively cool, and the city receives about 1,230 millimetres of rainfall each year, most of it between late autumn and early spring.

Average maximum temperature in April: 13.9 °C
Average rainfall in April: 92 mm

If you're planning to sail across the Atlantic, a stop in the Azores is a smart choice. The archipelago consists of nine islands and lies 1,400 km west of Portugal - almost in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean.

Ponta Delgada is located on São Miguel and is the largest city and capital of the Azores. Just over 67,000 of the archipelago’s 236,000 inhabitants live here. Traditional industries like agriculture and fishing are still important, while tourism has grown significantly in recent years.

The Azores is one of Portugal’s two autonomous regions, along with Madeira.

Seafarers have visited the archipelago at least since the 8th or 9th century - possibly even by Scandinavian Vikings - but the islands weren’t settled until the mid-15th century. Portuguese settlers established themselves first on Santa Maria and São Miguel. 

In the 16th century, people from Flanders in Belgium also settled here, and for a time, the Azores were referred to as the Flemish Islands or the Isles of Flanders.

In 1522, Vila Franca do Campo, then the capital of São Miguel, was devastated by an earthquake. Around 5,000 people died. The capital was moved to Ponta Delgada, which was granted city status in 1546. Both Britain and Spain have attempted to take control of the Azores, but since 1642, the islands have remained under Portuguese rule.

The Azores have volcanic origins - like Iceland, they both sit on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge, where the North American and Eurasian continental plates meet. The Azores is also where the African plate comes into contact with the other two plates, a tectonic hotspot indeed.

The Azores resemble Iceland, with active volcanoes and hot springs - only much farther south, and much more lush. The most recent major eruption occurred off the coast of Faial Island, at the Capelinhos volcano in 1957. 

Mount Pico, on the island of the same name, rises 2,351 meters above sea level and is the highest point in Portugal. From sea level down to the base of Mount Pico on the ocean floor is 6,098 meters, making Pico the highest underwater mountain in the world.

The islands are lush and full of what seems like wilderness. In reality, however, little of the original nature remains. Much of the native forest was cleared by the first settlers, and non-native tree species were introduced. 

Today, large areas are used as pastureland or for plantations growing crops, vegetables, and fruits such as pineapples, bananas, passion fruit, oranges, guavas, figs, and melons.

Because of the Azores’ isolated location in the Atlantic, more than 400 species of plants and animals found here exist nowhere else - so-called endemic species.

Though the archipelago lies far south, the ocean keeps the climate pleasant. In Ponta Delgada, temperatures never rise above 30°C and never fall below freezing.

Normal maximum temperature in July: 24.3 °C
Normal rainfall in July: 25 mm

Normal maximum temperature in March: 17.9 °C
Normal rainfall in March: 97 mm

It is 20 February 2026. Statsraad Lehmkuhl is sailing southwest of the Azores. Right now, there is little wind, a bit too little for Captain Marc Seidl’s liking, but only a few days ago it was blowing hard.

– We stay clear of the strongest wind systems, where winds can reach hurricane force. But we try to catch the outer edges of them to get a good following wind, around gale force is nice, so we can sail as much as possible of the 3,500 nautical mile crossing, he explains.

It is not cold at the moment. Both the sea and the air are around 16–17°C. But the Atlantic in winter is unpredictable, and the next port, 

, is ten days away. A lot can still happen.

After Cádiz, the ship will head back out into the Atlantic, first to the Azores and then north to Brest, France, where she is scheduled to dock on 27 March.

On all these legs, cadets from the Royal Norwegian Naval Academy are on board. The timing is no coincidence. Testing themselves in the North Atlantic during winter is an important part of their education. 

You do not gain experience without experiencing things firsthand, and there are few better ways to gain self-knowledge than the cramped living and hard work on board a sailing ship.

, in mid-January and will remain on board for more than two months. Researchers and other participants sailing with the One Ocean Expedition usually stay only a few days to three or four weeks. Sailing with cadets as part of the crew is something special, Marc says.

– It’s great to have the cadets on board for such a long time and to see them develop from landlubbers into quite capable sailors.

– The cadets have their own programme to complete. This voyage is part of their bachelor’s degree, so they are busy with classes and also receive training in different military roles on board a ship.

Statsraad Lehmkuhl is currently under military command and sails with the naval ensign at the stern.

– The Naval Academy has appointed its own commanding officer responsible for the cadets, their training, and their programme ashore. But at all times, I as captain, together with the ordinary crew, have the overall responsibility for operations, safety on board, and logistics when we are in port, Marc explains.

Smart. Marc has done the math and counts this as his 29th Atlantic crossing on a sailing ship. His first was aboard his father’s vessel in 1974. 

You can read more about his childhood experiences at sea here.

It has been 25 years since the Royal Norwegian Naval Academy first sent its cadets aboard Statsraad Lehmkuhl. 

What began as an urgent solution has grown into a close and successful partnership.

– Not every class has been equally motivated. In the early years, it could sometimes be challenging to build an effective team spirit, he says.

– On one westbound voyage home from the United States, the wind suddenly picked up one evening and we urgently needed to take in the upper sails. When the civilian watch leader called down below deck for reinforcements, the reply came that they first had to finish watching an episode of The Simpsons! Thankfully, it’s not like that anymore. The cadets have become more skilled and more ambitious with every class.