While at Cape Verde Kendrick unpacked and reorganized the hold of the "Columbia", hoping to improve its handling under sail. The hold of "Columbia" contained most of the expedition's provisions for the next two years, as well as a large assortment of trade goods hoped to be useful for acquiring sea otter pelts on the Pacific Northwest coast. These trade goods included such things as tin mirrors, beads, calico, mouth harps, hunting knives, files, and bar metal that could be worked into chisels or other tools. Despite the reorganization of the hold, "Columbia" continued to handle poorly.