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Crew Al and Dave's March
Diary
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SOC
CREW OUTINGS - March 2005 - Day 2
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OK
who’s idea was it to get up at 3.30am?!!!? The Nokia alarm interrupted
my night’s sleep after just under four hours from I went to bed and as a
result the snooze button was pressed with a degree of determination. It
was now Tuesday and in four hours, check-in would close for our next
sailing.
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Whilst
being as quiet as the proverbial mouse (so as not to wake up anyone else
in the house) I readied myself for the off. Alan was already up and about
and I caught up with him in the kitchen before we headed out to the car
once more. It was pitch black outside and there was drizzle in the air.
The lights of Rothesay were visible across the water and the lighthouse on
Toward Point flashed every few seconds. Naturally there are very few ships
out on the water at this unearthly hour – and who can blame them? |
Early o'clock in the morning
and Lord of the Isles leaves Oban
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So
at 4.00am as planned we head down to the main road and turn right to
follow the Clyde through Wemyss Bay, Greenock and Port Glasgow, as far as
the Erskine Bridge. Having paid the requisite fee (something in the region
of 60p) we cross the bridge and enter Dumbarton. |
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Our
route for the day would take us along the western shores of Loch Lomond
before cutting across to Arrochar, at the head of Loch Long and then up
the Rest and Be Thankful before dropping to sea level and hugging the edge
of Loch Fyne to Inverary. From there we would head over the hills to
Dalmally and along the last stretch to Oban, some 3 hours away.
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Lord of the Isles passing
Kerrera
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We
actually made very good time – the roads were deserted for the best part
of the run. Alan was in and out of consciousness during the journey and I
was kept company by JK and Joel on Radio 1’s Early Breakfast (to say
their playlist was repetitive is an understatement…more on that later)
As we came down the hill into Oban shortly before 7.00am, we could see
that Lord of the Isles was still sitting at the linkspan. She was due to
sail shortly for Coll and Tiree so I instinctively turned onto the
esplanade and went up to the northern entrance of the bay – remembering
only after turning that on this trip I wasn’t alone, and would Alan mind
if we stopped to get some photos before going to the ferry terminal...
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The
air was very still and as a result it sounded like the ferry berth was a
lot closer than it actually is. We could clearly hear the safety
announcements as the ship left the pier and moments later she came into
view. Unfortunately with it still not being full daylight, the first
pictures I took came out all blurred, however I did manage some close up
ones as she came right past us. The obligatory car alarm was going off on
the car deck – and it wasn’t even as though the ship was rocking in
the non-existent waves!
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Oban's new ferry terminal
building
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Isle of Mull at the refuelling
berth
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With
the Lord of the Isles well on her way towards the Sound of Mull, we returned
to the car and went round the bay to Oban ferry terminal. Nomally this is
one of the busiest ports in the Calmac network – however this morning the
traffic queues consisted of us, two other cars, two Royal Mail vans and a
few trucks waiting to go over to the island of Mull. The ferry would not be
busy! Alan went off to get some photos of the Isle of Mull as she lay at the
fuel berth, just round from the linkspan. With no real need to go to the
office for tickets, and an overwhelming desire to catch up on at least a
little bit of the sleep I lost last night, I opted to stay in the car. In
the end sleep did not happen as I made the mistake of leaving the radio
on… By this time Chris Moyles and co had started and I laughed myself
awake!
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Our
tickets and reservation were checked as the captain brought the ships back
round the pier to the berth. The whole manoeuvre took no more than a few
minutes to complete and the ramp was soon being lowered. We were soon called
forward and made our way down onto the linkspan and into the cavernous car
deck of the Isle of Mull. We’re positioned right near the bow and are
tucked neatly into a corner. The advantage of having a small car is often
apparent when travelling on these ferries, as there is rarely a problem in
terms of getting in or out of it. Unfortunately today was not an example of
this! Whilst I was able to open my door quite wide, the crew had positioned
another car very close to mine on the passenger side – and Alan being as
tall as he is, had a very tight gap to get through without hitting the car
next door…!
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An empty car deck on the Isle of
Mull
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The new terminal from the ferry
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The
laptop was taken out of the boot and we headed up the steep stairs to the
passenger decks. Having been up for almost four hours by this point I made a
beeline straight for the cafeteria and grabbed a table on the port side. The
engines revved up down below and the captain came over the public address
system to advise that the car deck was secure and that we would be sailing
in a few moments. Next came the obligatory safety announcement although I
must admit I was more concerned with when the queue in the cafeteria would
die down!
We
crossed Oban bay and swung round the Corran Ledge marker buoy before passing
the northern end of Kerrera and heading out into the Firth of Lorn. Hunger
got the better of me and I left Alan in charge of the laptop to download the
contents of his digital camera cards while I went off to get 2 sausage baps
(and very nice they were too!)
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The
first half of the crossing to Craignure was spent in the cafeteria having
breakfast before we set off around the ship. As we passed the little railway
on Mull the public address system came to life once more advising passengers
to assemble ready to disembark. For us this meant go back down to the car
deck, which had been off limits during the crossing. As we approached the
berth the bow visor was slowly raised – and an alarm added to the already
loud noise on the car deck, of the engines and bow thrusters which were
gradually putting us alongside the pier. After a few minutes the alarm
ceased and we bounced gently sideways as we came into contact with the pier.
The engines went quiet and a crew member pressed a lever, setting the
two-tone alarm off once more. Nothing happened for a couple of minutes and
then the bow ramp ahead of us began to open (and an even louder and more
intrusive alarm could be heard outside!).
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The
two lanes of cars to our left were unloaded first and we then followed them
out through the bow door and onto the island of Mull. At the top end of
Craignure pier you reach the main road on the island and are faced with a
difficult choice; do you turn left or right?! Left would have taken us the
thirty five miles to Fionnphort on the Ross of Mull, however we instead
opted to go in the Tobermory direction by turning right.
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Duart Castle as the ferry passes
by
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Having
checked the Calmac timetables (that’s winter still at this point; 22nd
March) there was just enough time to make an additional stop at a woodland
viewpoint at Fishnish on the eastern side of the island. The reason for this
was to get some more photographs – this time of the Loch Fyne which
operates the secondary link to the island from Lochaline on Morvern. Shortly
before reaching the terminal I took a right and went off up a track that my
car will not thank me for taking!! I must have missed the worst of the
potholes – but even still it was very bumpy.
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Loch Fyne arriving at Fishnish
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The
Loch Fyne came across the Sound of Mull and arrived on the island, unloading
all of 6 cars and a wagon before loading two cars and setting off back
again. As she proceeded away slowly the two of us inflicted more of the
track on the car as we went back to the main road, this time heading for
Tobermory in the north of the island. The road between Craignure and Salen
is a relatively fast section of double track, however once you reach the
village of Salen itself, you follow the coast for a mile, and so begins a
tortuous route on single-track road with often limited visibility and deep
ditches down either side of the road! This stretch of road lasts for about
seven or eight miles until you climb the hills overlooking the Sound of
Mull. At the top of the climb the road becomes double track once more for
the remainder of the journey to Tobermory, and we soon found ourselves
entering the town and heading down to the main street by the harbour. It was
so convenient that as we arrived, so did the drizzle…
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Loch Fyne spinning round as she
returns to Lochaline, as the weather worsens
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Spare Island Class unit Raasay at
the mooring in Tobermory Bay
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Loch
Linnhe could be seen at the pier, with the little Raasay sat at the mooring
in the bay. I found a convenient parking spot on the high street and we
grabbed the cameras and made for the slipway – literally at the end of the
street! As we passed the pier building and ferry office, the crew could be
seen preparing the Loch Linnhe for her day in service on the Kilchoan
crossing. The vessel was untied and moved round towards the slipway,
creating a lot of wash in the process. With the ramp down the handful of
passengers were allowed on and the cars were put onto the car deck. In all,
the ferry was only at the slipway for a matter of seconds before the ramp
was brought up and she departed into the mist and rain (which was now more
than just drizzle!)
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Loch Linnhe back in her summer
role at Tobermory
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With
the Loch Linnhe away, we returned to the car (which was temporarily blocked
in by a local) and drove round to the car park at the other end of the town.
From here I was able to take shelter behind a sailing boat which was high
and dry for just long enough to take some photos of the Island Class ferry
moored out in the bay. The wind was by this time whistling through the trees
up on the cliffs above us and the rain was becoming steadily heavier. It was
not looking good for the trip down to Fionnphort and the Sound of Iona this
afternoon!
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The Kilchoan ferry moving round to the slipway
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Loch Linnhe loading up for
Kilchoan
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As
we climbed out of Tobermory and back on to the road to Craignure it became
obvious that today was going to be one of those days when Mull would not get
to see blue sky. It would not even get to see dry weather! As we made our
way down the road to Salen another plan was hatched, although this meant not
going to our intended destination at Fionnphort.
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We
passed through Salen and five minutes later we came across the Fishnish
turning once more. This time we joined the ferry queue at the terminal
instead of going to the Forestry Commission woodland viewpoint and duly
waited for Loch Fyne to make her way over. The weather was so foul that it
was now impossible to see the other side of the Sound of Mull, let alone
make the ferry out as she left Lochaline. It was not until the last few
minutes of her crossing that we saw her. Alan tried to get some pictures
through the windscreen as we boarded, although I am not sure they would have
turned out well or not.
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Kilchoan's out there
somewhere...honest!
Boarding Loch Fyne at Fishnish
Ramp down at Lochaline
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The
Loch Fyne was certainly not busy on this sailing, carrying about 7 cars on a
car deck designed to hold anything up to 36. I went off to get some pictures
of the ships interior – only to then realise that this was a bit pointless
as she is identical to the Loch Dunvegan which we went on yesterday! (I
didn’t let on about this to Alan – although I guess he’ll laugh when
he reads this!) As we crossed the Sound of Mull at a snail’s pace the
weather lifted slightly and you could see for a couple of miles in either
direction. The crossing only lasts 15 to 20 minutes and we were soon
entering the mouth of the loch, only a few minutes away form Lochaline
slipway. The ramp was lowered and we drove off and pulled into the car park
nearby. This was obviously crew lunch time and the engines were switched
off, a traffic cone and chain placed across the ramp and the four members of
the crew left the vessel tied up at the pier while they went off in cars up
the hill.
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With
no activity of any sort or description at Lochaline, we made off up the hill
ourselves, bound for Ardgour and the Corran Ferry, one hour away on the
other side of Morvern on the edge of Loch Linnhe. Again the majority of this
route was on single track road and numerous stops had to be made.
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We
just missed the 1230 ferry across Loch Linnhe and so sat at Ardgour for 20
minutes before the vessel came back. The crossing was a five minute
non-event and following a stop for the obligatory photos, we were off once
more – bound for Oban for the second time in less than 12 hours.
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Looking down on Lochaline
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Dave out and about at the Corran
Ferry
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Bruernish leaving Oban Bay
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Colin
and Edith were on Radio 1 as we raced down the eastern side of Loch Linnhe
to Connel, which we reached in just half an hour. We were back in Oban for
2.00pm and hunger once again called the shots as Alan suggested frequenting
the Oban Fish & Chip Shop on the high street. The food was so filling
that I could only eat half of the giant portion that they gave me, as we
wandered slowly back up towards the esplanade and the car so we could
collect the cameras once more.
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Lord of the Isles turning off
Lismore
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When
we reached the light beacon by the entrance to the bay, Lord of the Isles
could be seen poking out above the flat southern extremity of Lismore. At
the same time the little Bruernish passed us on her way out to Lismore as
part of her relief duties while regular ship Eigg is down at Port Askaig.
Although Lord of the Isles looked miles away she soon came through the turn
off Eilean Musdile lighthouse. As she came towards us across the Firth of
Lorn, the Isle of Mull could be seen leaving Craignure in the far distance.
The wind was now picking up once again in order to hold my camera steady I
had to shelter behind the lighthouse out of the increasing gale.
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Lord
of the Isles swept round the north end of Kerrera and across the bay to the
pier while Isle of Mull made her way at a rather leisurely pace across the
Firth of Lorn towards us. When the Isle of Mull eventually reached Kerrera
and made her way into the bay, the smaller ferry was still occupying the
linkspan, thus forcing the Mull ship to circle around the bay for ten
minutes. (At one point it looked like she was making for the Sound of
Kerrera and Colonsay!) Eventually the Lord of the Isles vacated the berth
and made a speedy departure as she sailed for Castlebay and Lochboisdale, as
the Isle of Mull took her turn at the pier.
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Isle of Mull circling in Oban Bay
while waiting for a berth
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The Clyde-built sisters together
in Oban Bay
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The
time was now just gone 4.00pm and we made our own departure – for Dunoon
once more. We retraced our steps along Loch Awe and round to Inverary before
following our route from the previous night to Dunoon. We once again turned
up at the pier to find a vessel coming in – this time it was the Ali Cat
on her passenger-only run from Gourock carrying commuters from the railway
station. It looked like a very lively crossing from Gourock, given that she
was bouncing up and down as she approached.
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Ali Cat bouncing through the
waves off Dunoon
Jupiter arriving at Dunoon in the
evening light
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Having
sorted out the tickets, we waited for Jupiter to arrive before boarding for
the 1850 to Gourock. The trip was almost over and I had mixed feelings as we
set off from the Cowal port. In just 48 hours time I would be back at work
in the Lake District, 200 miles from where I wanted to be! But for now as we
crossed the Clyde again, my attention turned to downloading more photos from
Alan’s camera onto the laptop. This was done by the time we rounded
Kempock Point and began to swing round to Gourock’s linkspan. As we turned
I could see the Loch Alainn lying at the ‘wires’ mooring, having just
returned form the dock where she was being repaired. I didn’t waste my
battery trying to photograph this as it was now almost dark and the images
didn’t stand a chance of not being blurred beyond recognition. Alan on the
other hand fared slightly better.
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We
tied up and drove up the linkspan and away, making it back to Alan’s house
shortly after 7.30pm. Now began the task of completing this diary of our
travels…
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 All text and images by Alan Neill and Dave Wolstenholme
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Click here to see the previous day...
or here to go back to
SoC Crew or here to see more Crew
activities
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 SoC Useful Links: |
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To see a more detailed description of the islands and photos, visit
Undiscovered Scotland and click on a place. |
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To view details of the crossings we have been on see the Crossings
section, or for the vessels featured in this diary, see Ships
of the Fleet and click on a vessel name. |
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