This is a day I've been looking forward to since before embarking in Southampton. Rob and I had booked a helicopter flight over the volcanoes. With the doors off! Even Dawn, my housecleaner in the UK, was excited.

Arrived in Hilo at about 8:00 and had breakfast. Met Rob at 9:00 in Costa. We grabbed a cab to Hilo Airport and checked in for our flight 45 minutes early. We were each weighed, eeeek! Then fairly soon it was time for the briefing and flight. Rob was up front with the pilot and I was behind the pilot, with an American lady behind Rob.

We were strapped in and our headsets connected. Then take off and a flight over the island towards Kilauea. We passed over macadamia plantations and a small town. Just a couple of hundred yards from the town was cold lava from the last eruption a few years back. We saw lava flowing along the ground in places, but mostly it was hidden. Apparently, it travels for up to 18 miles.

You could feel the heat from some of the lava flows. Then we flew round Kilauea. We saw a lot of smoke, but no lava. After that we passed over the place where the lava is burning the trees. Once again it was hot and this time we could smell the burning wood.

A flight over waterfalls in collapsed lava tubes next, before flying out to see the ship. Another cab back to the ship and lunch on board with Linda, who was also back. Then we took a cab into Hilo. Not much there. So I forced Rob to have a local beer and then he reciprocated! A quick stroll round a nondescript little town and back on board. While we were on board having a cuppa, we saw whale splashes and water spouts. Also the occasional whale back, but no breaches.

Lost IQ by one point. During the sailaway a whale swam very close to us on the starboard side. I didn't fancy watching the comedian tonight so I went to the casino instead. I won a few pounds on a couple of machines, then moved to a third. I was trying to adjust the stake when I accidentally pressed the maximum bet button. Four quid it cost me. And I won a hundred! Our luck almost held in the Syndicate Quiz too. We started off on minus one as last night's winners and lost by two points.