Achnacroish

History

Situated on the sheltered eastern shore of the island overlooking the Lynn of Lorne, the pier and slipway at Achnacroish have served as the vital mainland conduit for the Isle of Lismore for well over a century. Before the establishment of a dedicated deep-water berth, transport to and from the island relied on small open skiffs and flit-boats connecting to passing steamers or tackling the short northern passage across to Port Appin.

That isolation changed dramatically in 1880 with the construction of a substantial stone pier at Achnacroish. Designed to accommodate deep-draught coastal vessels, the new facility allowed David MacBrayne’s steamers to make scheduled calls directly from Oban. A dedicated post office opened at the quayside the following September, anchoring the pier's position as the island’s primary commercial hub for mail, general cargo, and livestock. Throughout the first half of the twentieth century, passenger launches such as Lochnell and Loch Toscaig maintained the island link, though vehicular traffic was virtually non-existent; any rare motorcar or farm machinery bound for the island had to be hoisted aboard using traditional shipboard derricks into cargo holds.

The modern chapter in Achnacroish’s history began in the early 1970s, as Caledonian MacBrayne moved to convert secondary routes across the network to drive-on, drive-off vehicle operation. In 1974, an angled concrete vehicle slipway was laid down immediately adjacent to the original Victorian stone pier. That same year, the landing-craft ferry MV Morvern, freshly displaced from her duties on the Sound of Mull, inaugurated the first ro-ro vehicle service connecting Oban with Lismore.

The route truly found its rhythm from 1976 onward following the arrival of the newly built Island-class vessel MV Eigg. For over three decades, Eigg became an inseparable fixture of Achnacroish, dropping her bow ramp onto the concrete slipway multiple times a day alongside occasional stints by fleet sisters Coll and Bruernish. Capacity was given a welcome boost in 2013 when the larger Loch-class ferry MV Loch Striven assumed primary route responsibilities.

Today, Achnacroish remains delightfully understated and atmospheric. The grand 1880 stone pier still stands proud as a monument to the steamer era, while modern daily operations continue beside it on the concrete slip, quietly tying Lismore's single-track road network to the railway pier in Oban.

Gallery