On 26 March the John Pirie seemed to be making progress, as it finally cleared the English Channel and struck out for the Atlantic Ocean. But just west of the Bay of Biscay the weather worsened dramatically into what one of our informants described as a ‘perfect Hurricane’. All but overwhelmed by ‘a most tremendious Sea’, the little ship was literally submerged on more than one occasion. Even the captain gave it up for lost. We include here two descriptions of the same event, the first written by our anonymous diarist, the second in the words of Captain George Martin, from a letter sent one week later to George Fife Angas. They provide graphic descriptions of the horror of the experience.
Storm Rising at Sea, 1804. Oil painting, Washington Allston
The Lady Mary Pelham was also caught in the storm. It left Liverpool on 30 March, but returned to port on 1 April after it was almost overwhelmed by the heavy seas.
Ship progress week 6.
This work is licenced under a Creative Commons 
Thanks Kristy, I hit the correct button and found the details – quite amazing – and I now have a “barque” to follow.
All the best,
Errol
Hi Errol,
I am glad you are enjoying the journey! If you follow the below link you will find information on the Cygnet. Alternatively click on ‘ships’ at the top of the page and you will find that the Cygnet is third on the list.
http://boundforsouthaustralia.com.au/journey-content/cygnet.html
Regards, Kristy – History SA
If you should ever receive this it will be a miracle – my computer skills are so bad. The journey so far has been amazing. I think of my ancestors who arrived on the barque “Eliza” in May 1840 with 5 children. You have described many of the boats in the fleet, but I have not seen details of the “Cygnet”, nor have I been able to find these elsewhere. Could you please provide these details? Your enterprise and ability in presenting this journey are truly amazing and very much appreciated, and I thank you sincerely. Errol.