Kendrick left Macau in March, 1791, along with William Douglas, formerly captain of the "Iphigenia" but now of an American ship called "Grace". They decided to attempt to open trade with Japan, which was closed to almost all foreign trade under the sakoku policy. Kendrick and Douglas approached the Kii Peninsula of Japan on May 6. Seeking shelter from an approaching typhoon Kendrick and Douglas sailed into the channel between the mainland and the island of Kii Ōshima, near the fishing villages of Kushimoto and Koza. Both villages immediately sent messages to the daimyō at Wakayama Castle. After the storm passed a few Japanese fishermen visited the ships. Kendrick offered food and drink, and a few of the fishermen went on board. None of the ships crewmembers spoke Japanese, but the Chinese crewmen were able to communicate via writing. Kendrick and Douglas learned that there was no market for sea otter furs in Japan, contrary to the rumors they had heard in Macau. The fishermen also persuaded Kendrick and Douglas not to go to Osaka, where they would have faced certain arrest.