First Leg...

Hello all! After all the waiting - time alternately stretching and shrinking, the moment to leave has finally come! After a mammoth drive down from Scotland my Mum and Dad took me to the rundown port of Immingham to join the RRS Ernest Shackleton and to have a look around. Satisfied that it was a decent sort of place to spend 5 weeks bobbing halfway round the globe, they left on Saturday 28th October, and i got settled into my cabin for the journey. Until i get to Montevideo in Uruguay in about 3 weeks, i'll have this place all to myself - not too shabby i think!

So mixed feelings as i sail away for the best part of 3 years. I'll miss family and friends, the landscape, the music, the pubs, the real ale, the warmth, and a whole pallette of naturally occuring colours. But i don't doubt that each of these will not just retain but will increase in their importance to me during my winter of minimal discontent...

On the ship, i will not merely be lounging around ringing service bells and growing in size. No, there is work to be done, albeit only for half an hour in every six! Here's me on the bridge with the staples of a meteorological observer's diet - barometers and thermometers, and a good pair of glasses for sky-gazing. Me and the other observers Dave and Tamsin (whose fine blogs are available from a link at the top right of this page) will be doing these observations to warm us up for the job lying in wait in Antarctica. That's all for now! Cheers, Rob