Captain Cook's voyages
Captain Cook had been instructed to sail to Tahiti in 1769, to observe the transit of Venus across the sun's face. When that was done, further sealed orders were to be opened, which would instruct him to cruise in the South Pacific Ocean, to try to find the legendary Great Southern Continent. He proved that such a place did not exist, but that New Zealand was probably the land from which the Great Southern Continent legend had arisen. But before beginning the voyage, he had to find a suitable vessel for the purpose.

Endeavour a collier
Cook had had experience on the "Whitby" class colliers early in his sailing career, and knew the excellent capability of these ships for stormy seas, such as those around Cape Horn. He therefore chose a collier for this expedition, and it was converted into a naval vessel. As well as the normal outside planking, for the carrying of coal the ship was also planked inside, making it in effect double-skinned.

Cramped quarters for the crew
The lower deck was built upon the horizontal timbers which supported the top of the inside planks, and this unfortunately limited the headroom available for those who had to live there to about 1.3 metres. Ventilation was also a problem on the lower deck, as the only "windows" were at the stern near the waterline, and had to be kept shut while at sea. However, water in the bilges, moving between the inner and outer skins as the ship rolled, did create a small amount of air movement in the lower deck cabins.

Conditions forward on the lower deck were also cramped, though with a little more headroom - the cook and the bosun had minimal room to work, while the carpenter and the sailmaker had only the tiniest spaces, where there wouldn't have been room to swing a shiprat, let alone the proverbial cat.

Toilets
On deck, on each side of the bow are two holes overhanging the water - the so-called "seats of ease", forerunner of flush toilets!

Raising the anchor
Nearby, the capstan for raising the anchor was something I hadn't seen before - like a huge rolling pin set across the ship, with holes for slotting in the turning bars, and with wooden pawls to prevent backwards rotation. The anchor ropes were round, probably 60 mm in diameter, and were of plaited rather than twisted rope, to prevent them twisting when under load.

Working the rigging
For working the rigging there was another capstan of conventional design near the stern, but because of the limited deck space, the raised glassed roof of the officers' mess had to be replaced with a flush grating before the sailors could walk around this capstan. For steering, there was, surprisingly, a long tiller, aft on the upper deck. At sea, this would be connected by ropes across the deck through pulley blocks to a drum behind the ship's steering wheel. Two men were required to work this. Aloft, there were the conventional ratlines on both sides of each mast to gain access to the rigging. To climb these, at the double, in gale-force weather, must have been a terrifying experience, because at the top the sailors would have to climb outwards to reach the overhanging platform.

A faithful copy of the original
This ship is as faithful a copy as possible of the original Endeavour, "with materials chosen for the greatest longevity, but without compromising the original method of construction or the spirit of the ship. Modern tools would be used when required".

However, it has modern machinery and equipment installed in the hold below the public spaces - there are auxiliary propulsion engines, and electric generators for powering the modern facilities such as navigation equipment, cooking and lighting; there are also up-to-date toilets, showers etc. Some members of the permanent crew choose to sleep in the "original" officers' cabins above; the voyage crew sleep in hammocks slung under the mess-deck ceiling. The hammocks are required to be packed away when not in use. The ship is worked by the usual system of bells - eight bells signalling the end of each 4-hour shift.

As a wood-turner, I was intrigued to see that the sailors ate out of turned wooden bowls (the officers provided their own china plates!)

As we left the ship, I realised that I had forgotten to bring my camera with me!