Woodford initially used a 27-foot open whaleboat to travel between the islands, or travelled on any available trading boat or Royal Navy ship. From 1896 the Burns Philp steamship the "Titus" was making between four and seven voyages from Sydney to the Solomon Islands. Two ships owned by Gustavus John Waterhouse of Sydney operated in the Solomon Islands; the schooner "Chittoor", and SS "Kurrara", a steam ship. The schooner "Lark" owned by J. Hawkins, from Sydney, also sailed in the waters of the Solomon Islands.