Rockall expedition: the final checks have been done

Nick Hancock assesses the weather conditions and plans his journey westwards as he prepares for his Rockall landing

I'm sitting here now at Lickisto Blackhouse on the Isle of Harris, having carried out some minor final checks of kit and filled my water jerry cans for the off tomorrow.

Today, like the past few days, has been one of contrasts: the weather has been calm and clear, with a still sea and no breeze, perfect conditions for landing on Rockall, but personally the days have been hectic, rushing around the island to do some last minute filming and interviews, and speaking to various people in the team about the challenges and issues ahead.

This evening I met with Angus Campbell of Atlantic Marine Services and his in-house forecaster, to go over the buoy data, weather and swell forecasts for the next few days. It looks like we'll have a brief window of near perfect landing conditions on Friday morning. The price we pay for that is one hell of a journey out to Rockall in big waves and high winds. Feeling that it's a price worth paying, and with a lack of other suitable windows in the next few days, we've decided to go for it!

So, tomorrow first thing we'll be loading the Orca 3 and heading west as soon as we're able. I've been feeling somewhat lost for the last couple of days, sitting and waiting to hear if we're going, with no control over that or the demands of previous media commitments I'd made; but now I'm able to wrestle some control back, even if it's just doing what I need to do with my gear, and preparing for tomorrow.

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Source: http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2013/may/29/rockall-nick-hancock-landing-forecast

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