how did walton prepare himself for the expedition

1) He studied previous voyages

2) He worked on whalers to physically prepare himself and to get the necessary experience he'd need for the voyage.

3) He has hired a ship and a crew.

4) He failed to find a friend :-(

"This expedition has been the favourite dream of my early years. I have read with ardour the accounts of the various voyages which have been made in the prospect of arriving at the North Pacific Ocean through the seas which surround the pole."

"I have hired a vessel and am occupied in collecting my sailors; those whom I have already engaged appear to be men on whom I can depend and are certainly possessed of dauntless courage."