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Argyle
History
The history of Argyle goes right back to
the initial planning stages for the new generation of Rothesay ferries. From the
outset it was made clear that two sisters were what CalMac wanted - as had been
the case three decades previously when the Jupiter and the
Juno
were ordered.
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To an extent, the process of designing and building the new Rothesay ferries,
which commenced in 2003 following the entry into service of the unique
Coruisk,
was a fairly similar affair to that which had been seen prior to the
Streakers introduction. Rather than having the sisters built at simultaneously,
the company opted to have them built one after the other. In the 1970's it was
Jupiter
that emerged first, followed a year later by Juno in 1974. This time
round it was the Bute which arrived first in the last days of June
2005, at which time it was predictably announced that the second new ship was to
be ordered.
While Bute settled into her new routine of plying back and forth
between Wemyss Bay and Rothesay, a watchful eye was kept on the new ship to
identify areas for improvement, so that her younger sister could be modified as
required during the construction process. It was originally planned that the
second ship would be brought into service in the summer of 2006, but it was to
be September before she was even launched!
Following a relatively new policy adopted by CalMac, the name of the new ship
was revealed in a press release some months before the launch and on 3rd April
2006 a statement on the company's website announced the revival of the name
Argyle. The new Argyle was to be the seventh ship to carry the name -
and by coincidence she would be operating alongside the seventh vessel to carry
the name Bute. The name had long been associated with the Wemyss Bay -
Rothesay route and it seemed wholly appropriate that the name be brought back
into use.
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Making her way up the Clyde for the first time
Passing Dunoon on her delivery voyage |
Passing Jupiter off Gourock |
On her first public sailing from Wemyss Bay |
Argyle took shape very slowly at the Remontowa yard in Gdansk, Poland and as
her sister had done on 9th February 2005, she slid sideways into the water for the
first time on 12th September 2006. While she was finished off at the yard there
were also developments at what would become 'home-base'. A long-awaited
end-loading linkspan had finally been approved for Rothesay, and preparations
for its construction were underway through the spring of 2007. Quite predictably though,
due to unforeseen problems beneath the water at the pier, this was
still far from complete by the time Argyle entered service.
At a casual glance there is very little to
differentiate Argyle from
Bute although there are subtle
differences between the twins that give away their identities (other than
the length of her name of course!). As built, Argyle possesses a ramp
on the starboard side although it is hoped that this will not be used very
often. Once her fitting out was completed and trials had been performed, the new ship
was brought over to the UK on a delivery voyage that took her round the northern
end of Denmark and then through the English Channel. She called at Portland for
refuelling and HM Customs purposes and then entered the final stages of
the delivery route. After passing through the Irish Sea she entered her home
waters early on the morning of 29th April and made for Gourock.
Argyle underwent berthing trials to assess her
suitability at the various Upper Clyde piers which she was to use, although
these were just a formality as she was identical to her sister. Her introduction
and VIP was originally scheduled for 27th April , however at this point she was
still hundreds of miles away. She was in fact named
at a ceremony in Rothesay Bay on Friday 4th May 2007 prior to a cruise down the
east side of Bute and across to Cumbrae, returning via Largs and up to the mouth
of Loch Striven. The new ship then entered service that same evening with the 1815 service
from Wemyss Bay, passing her running mate off Toward Point. There then followed
a few days lying idle at Gourock with a computer glitch, giving Saturn one last
spell of service, before taking up her new role as the second
Rothesay ferry and replacing the 30 year old streaker.
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With Bute in Rothesay Bay |
Passing Toward Point |
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Once the new Rothesay linkspan was finally completed
and opened in mid-December,
Argyle and her sister came into their own and enabled true drive-through
service, although it s highly likely that both sisters will retain their side
ramps just in case...
 Text SoC Crew (C)
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