Going aboard the James Clark Ross

The RRS James Clark Ross

Officers' and scientists' bar

Science lab

Whilst still glowing inside from the amazing wildlife encounters of the previous day (read about my first sighting of wild penguins in a previous post) my next first encounter was going to be of a different nature. At 9:00 in the morning we left Stanley for Mare Harbour, a military port 40 miles to the south where we would be embarking our ship - the RRS James Clark Ross (JCR for short from now on).

There are 16 people in the science party, split up into 3 teams undertaking different types of oceanographic research. I will write more about the science and what we'll do on board later in the cruise (once we've started our experiments). I was shown to my cabin "Scientist #1", which in no way reflected my status on board - I am actually the most junior member of the team. Everyone else has been to sea on this type of cruise before. My longest experience at sea has been a 3-day Irish Sea Observatory cruise on the Prince Madog out of Liverpool. This time I would be at sea for almost a month. Having a whole cabin to myself meant plenty of space to stow all my gear.

Our first day onboard was taken up with safety briefings, a quick lifeboat drill, a tour of the ship and introductions to some of the equipment. It'll take me a while to find my way round the ship, but I quickly learnt that my cabin is on the deck with the red carpet, and the food is served on the deck with the blue carpet. The meals are quite an exquisit affair on the JCR. The scientists dine with the senior officers, and for evenings meals we were reminded to wear shirt, trousers and shoes. I am told that not long ago it was shirt and tie for meal times. I am glad I knew this before I left England, as I hadn't worn anything with a collar in quite a while and certainly didn't expect to be "dressing up" whilst on the ship.

The personell is divided up not only for meal times, but also for entertainment. Right next to my cabin #1 is the Officers' & Scientists' Bar shown in one of the photos. Drinks are self-service with an honesty tick sheet. In the photo of the ship you can the JCR berthed in Mare Harbour during loading and the palette being lifted onboard is stacked with crates of Becks Beer. I feel that I have to learn a lot about life at sea!

The last photo shows the science lab where I'll be working. During the first few days we've set up computers on the desks, networked them to the ship's intranet and loaded all the software for data logging and processing. The lab has control terminals for various pieces of deck equipment and a display showing the official ship time (in GMT) and the current position. I am looking for the special occasion when we cross 60 degrees latitude, which is the official boundary of the Antarctic Treaty. But for now we haven't even moved yet. We still have a day in port which is mostly free to enjoy the scenery and explore the wild life. I'll report back with more penguins later.