2 July 2008

We could all get into our cabins and unpack our stuff. However, two of us have to go to meet the ship further along the coast at Portland because our cabins won't become available until others have finished their work on board (more of that later).

We get a full safety briefing, show our travel documents to the ship's pursor. After lunch I meet up with Russell Wynn, who is the co-ordinator for Seawatch-SW, which aims to collate records from shore-based seawatchers around the UK

After this, Eleanor Howlett and I drive around to Portland to check into our hotel rooms. She is a student from Liverpool University, attached to the Proudman Oceanographic Laboratory there. The hotel (The Heights) is perched on the edge of Portland and overlooking Weymouth, Portland Harbour and Chesil Beach. The view is stunning and we were treated to a fantastic sunset.

Meanwhile, the James Cook has set sail from Southampton to begin calibration of the acoustic equipment used to detect fish and other matter underneath the ship.