On completion of overhaul work CLANSMAN left the Garvel drydock in the late afternoon of Monday 1^st of March and berthed in the James Watt Dock for further work to be carried out. She was pronounced ready for service on Friday 5^th and left the Dock at 1100 to undergo trials. On their successful conclusion she made for Gourock, arriving at 1435, to load stores and crew cars. This was speedily completed and she departed at 1500 to sail north to Uig to relieve her young sister for annual overhaul. She duly arrived at the Skye port to take up the service to Tarbert and Lochmaddy with the 1530 sailing the next day.

 

During the overhaul she had been altered by the extension of her top deck further aft to the same point as the deck below. This area was then fitted with seating and opened up to passenger use. While this provided a welcome boost to her limited open deck space aft the bar was now effectively covered over.

 

Her arrival on the Outer Isles route coincided with the start of essential maintenance work being carried out on the Tarbert linkspan on Monday 8^th which necessitated the introduction of an emergency timetable on the route. After carrying vehicles normally on the 0730 inward sailing that day the Tarbert service became passenger only, vehicles being diverted either via Stornoway or over the Sound of Harris to Lochmaddy. The 0730 departure was maintained on Wednesday and Friday but the call at 1330 on Tuesday and Saturday inward bound from Lochmaddy to Uig was cancelled, the vessel sailing direct to Uig. As a result, the 1530 sailing from Uig was advanced to 1440. On Thursday she sailed as normal at 1500.

 

Bad weather interfered with these plans on Thursday 11^th when a force 9 South Easterly delayed her arrival at Uig until 1445 then kept her stormbound for the rest of the day. She resumed service with the 0940 departure from there next morning. In her absence passengers from Tarbert were diverted via Leverburgh and Berneray to catch her at Lochmaddy.

 

Repairs at Tarbert were, in fact, completed ahead of schedule and she resumed carrying vehicles to Tarbert on Saturday 13^th, the emergency 1400 being cancelled in favour of the normal 1530 departure.