news

Due to the temporary closure of the road between Suisnish Point and Brochel Road, Isle of Raasay, there will be no ferry services from 1700 Wednesday 8^th Feb until Saturday 11^th Feb. This is the maximum time of closure. Should the road open earlier then notices will be posted in Inverarish Village and at the ferry terminals at Sconser and Raasay. There is NO alternative route. Access for pedestrians and Emergency Services will be maintained.

LOCH TARBERT and ISLE OF CUMBRAE changed places yesterday (04/02). ISLE OF CUMBRAE is now berthed next to JUPITER at Roseneath while LOCH TARBERT is sailing on the Tarbert – Portavadie / Lochranza winter service.

John MacRae, harbourmaster at Kyle of Lochalsh, who was equally well known in the world of shinty as both player and official, has died aged fifty.

Better known as Jonnie Ach due to his roots in Achmore his contribution to the sport he loved would be difficult to overestimate.

The Camanachd Association said it was still trying to come to terms with the loss. His reputation as a shinty devotee spread beyond his native area to the rest of Scotland and abroad.

Mr MacRae was harbourmaster at Kyle for fifteen years, taking up office in June 1990. He recently received praise for his handling of the BLACKFRIARS incident when the ship ran aground off Kyle last December.

His contribution to the west coast and its fishermen was legendary. He had worked at the Naval Base in Kyle before taking on the management of Kyle harbour. He always aimed to make Kyle bigger and better by attracting more trade to the harbour.

The swing bridge over the Crinan Canal at Ardrishaig will be closing on certain days to allow essential maintenance to take place.

The bridge, which is being refurbished by British Waterways between now and mid April, will be closed on the following dates from 2000 until 0600:

A short diversion will be in place for small vehicles while emergency vehicles will be allowed over the bridge should the need arise.

Our sister Club, The Clyde River Steamer Club (CRSC), has organised a “Coach and Cruise on Arran” day out on Saturday 25^th February.

Departing from Ardrossan at 0945 on board CALEDONIAN ISLES, the Club will have a coach waiting at Brodick, which will take everyone to the Kinloch Hotel, Blackwaterfoot where lunch will be served.

The coach will then proceed to Lochranza where an opportunity will be given to photograph LOCH TARBERT, which is presently operating on the Tarbert - Portavadie/Lochranza winter service.

The cost of the day excursion is £25 for adults and £18 for children under sixteen. This price includes ferry and coach travel, lunch and entry to the Museum.

HEBRIDEAN ISLES is due back at Kennacraig tomorrow morning (09/02). ISLE OF ARRAN will carry out all sailings to Islay on 9^th. She will then sail to Tobermory. EIGG was slipped at Corpach today at 1425 for overhaul.

ISLE OF ARRAN was still at Tobermory on Saturday 11^th. LOCH NEVIS sailed to Greenock and entered the James Watt Dock (JWD) for attention to her propulsion units. UILLIN OF STAFFA is relieving her on both the Small Isles service and the Mallaig – Armadale run, the latter obviously passenger only.

ISLE OF CUMBRAE was spotted heading out to sea on 12^th thought to be sailing up to Lochaline to relieve LOCH FYNE, which was thought to be heading for Mallaig. Instead she made for Oban to take over from BRUERNISH on the Lismore run. She is out of service with engine problems.

CLANSMAN is due in the Garvel Dry-dock on Tuesday 21^st for overhaul. ISLE OF ARRAN is due in Aberdeen on March 10^th for her overhaul.

The Scottish Executive has announced that Caledonian MacBrayne Chairman, Dr Harold Mills, will remain in office for another six months. A competition to identify the new Chairman was launched on January 21^st. It is proposed that the successful applicant will be in office by August 1^st.

The launching of the PHAROS, the tenth ship to bear the name, has taken place in Poland and will be delivered to her homeport of Oban later this year.

The new PHAROS will carry seven officers and eleven crew. She is equipped with thirty cabins, forward helicopter deck, thirty tonne crane, hydrographic surveying and wreck finding equipment.

The ship will operate in Scottish and Manx waters servicing over 200 automatic lighthouses, buoys and beacons, and will act as a working platform for aids to navigation project work in addition to commercial work under contract.

LOCH NEVIS arrived on the Mersey at 0730 on the morning of Thursday 16^th. By 1100 she was in the dry-dock of the former shipbuilders Cammell Laird.

Due to weather conditions on 16^th LORD OF THE ISLES was unable to land passengers at Tiree. The heavy swell caused the stern rope to snap. The next service was this morning (18/02) at 0645.

LOCH BHRUSDA unslipped from Ardmaleish on Friday 17^th. BRUERNISH is back on the Lismore run. ISLE OF CUMBRAE is on the Kilchoan run. ISLE OF LEWIS departed from Birkenhead on 17^th. CLANSMAN will arrive at Gourock on Monday 20^th 0830 and should be in the Garvel dry-dock by 0930.

RAASAY will be operating on the Mallaig – Armadale and Small Isles services from Monday 20^th. Vehicle and passenger numbers will be restricted so bookings are essential. For further information contact the Mallaig office (01687462403) or the Armadale office (01471844248).

The passenger ferry, which crosses Loch Linnhe, from Fort William to Camusnagaul is facing an uncertain future as Highland Council is looking for budget cutting measures.

The ferry costs the Council £90,000 per year. 2,500 passengers make the crossing every year although numbers have been falling. Options include continuing the service with improved marketing, a new timetable, privatisation or stopping the service altogether.

Many visitors to Fort William cross to Camusnagaul to use the tearoom in Treslaig Village Hall. Treslaig offers the best views of Ben Nevis and Aonach Mor.

The ferry is at the north end of the Oban – Fort William cycle route. Cyclists reaching Nether Lochaber cross at the Corran ferry and cycle north on the A861 and cross over to Fort William from Camusnagaul.

Caledonian MacBrayne has extended the contract to run the Ballycastle – Rathlin ferry service for another year until April 2007. The Company have run the service since 1996.

LOCH BHRUSDA is now at Rothesay completing her overhaul. LOCHRANZA has taken her place on the slipway at Ardmaleish. CLANSMAN did not enter the dry-dock after all today (20/02) as the dock-dock was still occupied. After EIGG completes her overhaul at Corpach she will proceed to Port Askaig where she will relieve the Argyll and Bute Council ferry, EILEAN DHUIRA, on the run to Feolin Ferry, Jura. Caledonian MacBrayne chartered Bruce Watt’s boat, LOCHAN for a short period prior to chartering UILLIN OF STAFFA to work out of Mallaig in place of LOCH NEVIS. BRUERNISH has received a new or reconditioned engine.

ISLE OF LEWIS arrived at Oban shortly after ISLE OF MULL departed for Craignure at 0800 on Saturday 18^th. She berthed stern in at the linkspan and tried out the gangway before departing for Ullapool.

The Friends of the West Highland Lines (FWHL) will have a stand at the Model Railway Exhibition this year. All members and visitors are welcome to come over for a chat.

FWHL was established in 1984 to raise awareness and promote the use of the railway lines between Glasgow, Oban, Fort William and Mallaig. We now publish a magazine three times a year giving details of news reports concerning, not only the railways, but also Caledonian MacBrayne and other items, which may be of interest.

In addition the Glasgow Branch holds meetings during the winter season at the Partick Burgh Hall adjacent to Partick railway station.

CLANSMAN arrived at Gourock at 0830 yesterday (20/02) and remained there until 0845. She entered James Watt Dock (JWD) at 0920 berthing port side to the quay. At 1325 she reversed out JWD and reversed back in berthing starboard side to the quay.

While carrying out this manoeuvre SOUND OF SCARBA and CRUISER came out of the dry-dock and JUNO took their place. LOCH BHRUSDA was out on trials today.

LOCH NEVIS arrived back in Mallaig yesterday afternoon (22/02) allowing RAASAY to sail back to Tobermory. ISLE OF CUMBRAE will be staying around the Oban area.

LOCH BHRUSDA left Largs today bound for Campbeltown where she will stay overnight. Tomorrow she heads north to the Sound of Harris where she will relieve LOCH PORTAIN. She will then head off for overhaul.

The February Meeting of the Club took place on Friday 24^th when the Speaker was Mr James McMillan. His talk was entitled “ Ferries, that paddler and me”.

James was born and brought up on the Island of Bute where he still lives. He works in the tourist industry with Argyll and Bute Council. James is also a Director of Waverley Excursions and worked as a purser on many of the Clyde ships during the mid to late 70’s.

The evening started with a pictorial guide around Bute. Those present saw a variety of landscape and seascape slides, some with ships in the background and some without.

Slides of ferries, which have served both Bute and the Western Isles followed. We saw many different ships including GLEN SANNOX on which James served as Purser.

The presentation concluded with a series of slides of WAVERLEY and BALMORAL sailing on the Clyde and among the Western Isles.

The next Meeting takes place on March 31^st. The Speaker is Mr Graeme Dunlop. His talk is entitled”CalMac – the early years”.

The March edition of the Scots Magazine contains an entertaining article by Club Member and bus enthusiast Lawrence Macduff entitled “Bus to the Isles” in which Lawrence, accompanied by his partner Sarah, describes their journey, with his bus, around the Western Isles last summer.

His interest in MacBraynes was first stimulated while staying, as a young boy, in Innellan in the early 60s. The MacBraynes mailship LOCH FYNE called twice a day on passage between Gourock and Ardrishaig while in Dunoon a MacBraynes touring coach could occasionally be found parked in the town.

The family moved to Glasgow in 1964. This hastened Lawrence’s interest in the West Coast and the islands. MacBraynes ran an integrated bus and shipping service throughout the West Highlands and Islands.

The Scottish Bus Group absorbed the MacBraynes bus fleet in 1970. The colourful livery of red, cream and green was wiped out at the stroke of a pen.

Thirty-five years later, however, a restored MacBraynes bus made an appearance at the annual vintage bus rally in Dunbar. This turned out to be the only preserved example in existence at the time. In 1990 a number of bus enthusiasts, including Lawrence, decided to push the preservation effort forward. They all gathered in Portree and formed the MacBrayne Circle.

Then, purely by chance, a bus-driving friend while on tour in Belfast spotted a bus he recognised. He drew his bus to a halt, apologised to his passengers and went to investigate. A few weeks later they collected their new “toy” and brought her back to Glasgow. Four years later restoration was complete and the bus has been to rallies all over Britain including the opening of the Skye Bridge in 1996.

MacBraynes ordered the bus in 1967 for their Glasgow – Campbeltown service. She was transferred to Highland Omnibuses in Inverness in 1970 and worked in various locations until sold in 1981to preservationists from whom Lawrence and his friends bought her.

The bus is a typical 1960s express coach. She is thirty-six feet long and seats forty-nine passengers. The chassis was built by AEC, a company later absorbed by British Leyland. Willowbrook, part of Duple Motor Bodies, built the bodywork and the model is known as a Reliant. There are now ten MacBrayne coaches in preservation.

The MacBrayne Circle has held gatherings and rallies in many places once served by these buses. There is still considerable local interest in the buses despite the passing of thirty years.

Lawrence and Sarah journeyed from Islay to Lewis and back via Skye and Mull over a two-week period. By the end of their journey the bus had been driven over twelve islands, travelling over 1,000 miles in fourteen days packed full of interest.

MacBraynes and their successors, Caledonian MacBrayne, have provided employment for generations of West Coasters up to the present day. There is still an enormous amount of goodwill associated with the name.

CalMac crews were always helpful, giving Lawrence plenty of opportunities for photographs for it is not every day that a bus bearing their employer’s name appears on board ship.

ISLE OF CUMBRAE berthed at Craignure on Friday 24^th. She will be used for freight sailings to Lismore and will also cover for LOCH FYNE when she goes to Craignure for painting. LOCH BHRUSDA stopped overnight at Oban before carrying on to Lochmaddy on 25^th. EIGG headed down to Port Askaig also on 25^th. LOCH PORTAIN leaves the Sound of Harris for the Clyde on Wednesday 1^st March, arriving on Friday 4^th. She should be dry-docked by Monday 6^th possibly sharing the dock with BUTE.

Due to tidal restrictions on 27^th and 28^th February and 1^st and 2^nd March the 1110 ex Berneray and 1220 ex Leverburgh have been cancelled. There will be extra sailings on 1^st and 2^nd only at 0945 ex Berneray and 1050 ex Leverburgh.

The residents of Lismore were glad to see the Caledonian MacBrayne ferry EIGG back on the Oban – Achnacroish route sooner than expected having completed her overhaul. Some felt that her replacement, BRUERNISH, did not meet their needs because she does not have an extended bridge.

There are still concerns about the ferries serving the island because they can’t carry large lorries conveying building materials to the island.

Following an agreement with Argyll and Bute Council a bank of out-of-hours ferrymen has been established giving residents of Lismore the right to expect out-of-hours ferries when required on the Port Appin route.

At present they are dependant on their availability being subject to restrictions on the hours the ferrymen are aloud to work. This, however, may mean a large rise in fares.

The islanders are happy to welcome ferryman Alan MacKellar back after a few months absence. Alan is as obliging and friendly as any islander could wish.

Caledonian MacBrayne are still waiting to find out whether they can install left luggage lockers at the Oban Ferry Terminal.

At the present time ferry passengers have to carry their luggage around with them while they wait for their onward connections.

CalMac are waiting for guidance from the appropriate authorities. Until this information is received they are not in a position to act and apologise to their passengers for the inconvenience.

The Lewis Branch of the Lord’s Observance Society has urged Caledonian MacBrayne not to start running a ferry service across the Sound of Harris on Sundays.

In a report from ten years ago The Oban Times Those Were The Days Column states that a 3,000 name petition calling for Caledonian MacBrayne to be allowed to operate the Campbeltown – Ballycastle ferry service was given to the Scottish Office.