what groundwork was done by the voyager before taking off?
He built a makeshift deck of wood and canvas, sealing his work with oil paints, lamp wick, and seal blood.
Voyage of the James Caird
Now in the primitive camp on Elephant Island, McNish was again asked if he could make the "James Caird" more seaworthy. Using improvised tools and materials, McNish built a makeshift deck of wood and canvas, sealing his work with oil paints, lamp wick, and seal blood. The craft was strengthened by having the mast of the "Dudley Docker" lashed inside, along the length of her keel. She was then fitted as a ketch, with her own mainmast and a mizzenmast made by cutting down the mainmast from the "Stancomb-Wills", rigged to carry lug sails and a jib. The weight of the boat was increased by the addition of approximately 1 long ton (1 tonne) of ballast, to lessen the risk of capsizing in the high seas that Shackleton knew they would encounter.

our small boat sailed along the rocky coast UNANSWERABLE when did james caird go on a voyage? 1914 what was the reason of this trip? To obtain rescue for the main body of the stranded Imperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition. on what did he take this journey? In a 22.5' lifeboat. who accompanied him? His 27 companions. what was the above mentioned expedition about? The voyage of the "James Caird" was a journey of from Elephant Island in the South Shetland Islands through the Southern Ocean to South Georgia, undertaken by Sir Ernest Shackleton and five companions to obtain rescue for the main body of the stranded Imperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition of 1914–1917. what was the expense incurred on the imperial expedition? Total value of £17,200 - Of  which he bought £14,000 (current value £), a 300-ton barquentine called "Polaris" and £3,200 (current value £), he acquired Douglas Mawson's expedition ship. who is this person who owned the expedition ship? Sir Ernest Shackleton from the above mentioned islands, where is the latter located? They lie about north of the Antarctic Peninsula, and between to south-west from the nearest point of the South Orkney Islands. what kind of vegetation does it see? These areas support tundra vegetation consisting of mosses, lichens and algae.
wiki:14038530
Voyage of the James Caird [SEP] Preparations
The South Georgia boat party could expect to meet hurricane-force winds and waves—the notorious Cape Horn Rollers—measuring from trough to crest as much as . Shackleton therefore selected the heaviest and strongest of the three boats, the long "James Caird". It had been built as a whaleboat in London to Worsley's orders, designed on the "double-ended" principle pioneered by Norwegian shipbuilder Colin Archer. Knowing that a heavily-laden open sea voyage was now unavoidable, Shackleton had already asked the expedition's carpenter, Harry McNish to modify the boats during the weeks the expedition spent at Patience Camp. Using material taken from "Endurance's" fourth boat, a small motor launch which had been broken up with this purpose in mind before the ship's final loss, McNish had raised the sides of the "James Caird" and the "Dudley Docker" by 8–10 inches (20–25 cm).