The Phyllis Cormack is a 25-meter[4] (82-foot) herring and halibut seine fishing boat,[5][6] displacing 99 tons and crewed by up to 12 people.

[d] The vessel was chartered in September 1971 by the Don't Make a Wave Committee to travel to Amchitka to protest against the planned nuclear tests there, and the passengers included Bob Hunter, Ben Metcalfe, John Cormack, Jim Bohlen, Patrick Moore and Terry A Simmons.

"[11] The boat's crew was Canadian, and included Bob Hunter, Ben Metcalfe, John Cormack, Jim Bohlen, Patrick Moore, and Terry A Simmons.

[e][12] The boat's departure and arrival point was Vancouver, British Columbia, though an unauthorised stop was made in Akutan, Alaska, resulting on a U.S. Coast Guard boarding and a charge of a U.S. customs violation.

Greenpeace named the season's campaign "Project Ahab"; it ran about 50 miles offshore California, from Eureka in the north to past San Francisco in the south.