We have been delayed 24 hours or so while we wait for the cruiseship Akademik Ioffee to arrive. This is the ship, actually a chartered Russian ice strengthened research ship, we are due to meet at Deception Island on the 2nd but curiously they have more passengers than they are allowed to carry so we have stepped into the breach and will be taking German Thomas Mueller with us as we head south. Thomas is one of the scientists we would have been working with anyway so it will be a good opportunity to get to know him ahead of the others. We are just hoping he can sail and cook, tells good jokes and doesn't eat or drink too much!

An extra day has not been wasted and Pelagic now has six smart new mooring lines and we have learned how to determine how long they should be and a great way to whip the ends to keep them from fraying courtesy of The Rigging Handbook by Brion (yes, BriOn) Toss. The Rigging Hand book is a sort of bible of rigging carried by most boats and usually well thumbed. If you want to know how to tie a zeppelin bend, fit a Norseman terminal or the difference between wedging, winching and worming then Mr Toss is your man. Another book that finds it's way onto most yachts is The Boat Owners Electrical and Mechanical Manual by Nigel Calder. Now in it's third edition (as far as I know) it's packed with all manner of technical advice on everything from tillers to toilets. These books are so prevelant that when discussing 'technical' matters one yachtie will often say to another 'Have you looked to see what Nigel has to say?' or 'I think there's a clever way to do that in Brion!' Any road, thanks to Brion on this occasion we have very neatly whipped mooring lines of correct length and have learned a new trick in the process.

Pelagic's stores lockers and vegetable racks are full to bursting point and the forepeak bilge is stuffed with beef and cheese and chorizo sausages. Yum! We use the forepeak and particularly the bilge to store all our fresh stuff because it is not insulated and as we head south soon attains the temperature of the surrounding sea, somewhere around 1 degree centigrade. Perfect for the long term storage of perishable goods and a good place to hide and have a sneaky slice of spicy sausage when no-one's looking.

Strapped to the radar arch at the back of the boat is a whole sheep's carcass, spread eagled and lashed down like something macabre from a movie of dubious provenance. Dolly should stay fresh in the salt air and low temperatures we expect to experience over the next month and we will hack lumps off as required for the oven or pot. Some years ago I sailed to South Georgia on the other boat in the Pelagic fleet, Pelagic Australis. We had a sheep strapped to each side if the gantry on that occasion, some three to four feet above the deck and a good eight feet above the water. To our alarm we awoke one mooning to find one or our sheep missing with its lashings fluttering happily in the breeze. The only possible explanation was a particularly acrobatic seal had leapt up and made off with it. The pirate!

All that remains to do is to is to collect Thomas on the dock and pay a visit to customs and immigration to beg leave to leave and we shall be on our way. Hey ho hey ho it's off to sea we go......