Three ships comprisng the frigate Jason, the sloop Carcass and the store ship Experiment arrived at Port Egmont in January 1766, where the British immediately began to construct a shore establishment, including a wooden block house brought with them from England.  The settlement was extended during the winter, and with the return of better weather the Jason set out to explore the rest of the Islands.  The British sighted the French settlement at Port Louis in early December 1766, contact was made and preliminary meetings went well.