An adventurer bidding to set a new record by living solo for 60 days on Rockall has finished testing his survival pod, after coaxing a crucial winch into life. Nick Hancock, 38, a chartered surveyor from near Edinburgh, is leaving for the wind-battered islet which sits in the Atlantic some 230 miles west of Scotland, in two weeks time.
He hopes to live on Rockall for two months in a homemade, modified plastic water tank, now fitted with weather and water-proofed entry hatch and window, beating both the solo record of 40 days for occupying Rockall and the record for any human occupation of 42 days, set by three Greenpeace activists in 1997.
First Hancock had to ensure that a small compact diesel-powered winch which he found in Canada, was able to lift the 150 kilo survival pod up a sheer cliff.
Put through its paces during some suitably realistic weather – spitting rain and a chilly breeze – at the Edinburgh international climbing arena based in a large disused quarry, the winch did so, after repeated efforts to kick it into life.
The machine is highly specialised, he said. "It took a long time to find it. It's from Canada and it's designed for hauling moose out of forests."
When Hancock arrives on Rockall in early June, he will need to leap unaided onto the 25m rock, and then manhandle and winch all his supplies up from a supply vessel some 15 to 20m up onto the ledge where he'll live, mostly in a horizontal position, for the following 60 days.
After it snagged on the rocks during a previous test at the old quarry three months ago, Hancock modified the pod by adding two wheels for extra mobility and a heavy plywood base to make its belly smoother.
His temporary home, nicknamed the Rockpod by Hancock, and measuring 1.9 metres long inside, 1.2 metres wide and just 76cm high, has been lined with layers of insulation. "It's warm and it will be cosy. Spartan is what it is. It's just a glorified tent," he said.
