We had to skip a port this afternoon. A force 9 gale made it impossible to dock. There are excellent auroral conditions, but little chance we'll see anything. Anyhow even if there's a break in the cloud, I'm not up for going out on an icy deck with the ship heaving in rough seas. In fact, all this pitching and rolling has brought on a headache, so I'm about to take a painkiller and lie down.