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Displaying items by tag: Ferries relocated

On the Firth of Clyde a Caledonian MacBrayne (CalMac) ferry which has been plagued by technical problems for almost six months, has been seen at a berth in Ayr harbour.

The port of Ayr, operated by Associated British Ports is located south of Troon and also Ardrossan from where the ferry route connects Brodick, Isle of Arran.

The 1985 built ferry MV Hebridean Isles, one of oldest in the fleet, made for an unusual sight at Ayr as CalMac was forced to change the usual berthing arrangements for its ageing Arran ferries due to the bad weather.

Hebridean Isles was seen arriving into Ayr on the morning of Tuesday, 1 August in a passage from Troon which Afloat adds took around 40 minutes to complete and the ferry remains in Ayr this morning, 3 August.

The 494 passenger ferry, one of two serving Islay-Kennacraig, Isle of Mull (see above Afloat photo) was deployed to the Arran run but has  been unable to operate since February because of 'manoeuvrability issues'. This has forced CalMac to charter the 430 passenger and vehicle catamaran, MV Alfred, from private operator Pentland Ferries serving South Ronaldsay, one of the Orkney Islands.

The 3,040 gross tonnage Hebridean Isles has been berthed in Troon (see Arran 'freight' run) in efforts to continue to try and fix technical problems.

Due to the "lack of space" however, Hebridean Isles was forced to head for Ayr, as the bad weather was forecast on the Clyde which also restricted the use of berthing facilities at Ardrossan harbour.

A spokesperson for CalMac said: "Due to adverse weather forecast on Wednesday, August 2, MV Caledonian Isles will berth overnight on the Irish berth in Ardrossan tonight (Tuesday, August 1)".

"As a result, MV Alfred will relocate to Troon for overnight berthing tonight. Due to lack of space at Troon, and to accommodate the relocation of MV Alfred, MV Hebridean Isles has been requested to temporarily move to Ayr."

More from theAyr Advertiser on the Clyde route and the redeployment of the Isle of Arran, the second routine ferry on the Ardrossan-Brodick route.

Published in Ferry

Coastal Notes Coastal Notes covers a broad spectrum of stories, events and developments in which some can be quirky and local in nature, while other stories are of national importance and are on-going, but whatever they are about, they need to be told.

Stories can be diverse and they can be influential, albeit some are more subtle than others in nature, while other events can be immediately felt. No more so felt, is firstly to those living along the coastal rim and rural isolated communities. Here the impact poses is increased to those directly linked with the sea, where daily lives are made from earning an income ashore and within coastal waters.

The topics in Coastal Notes can also be about the rare finding of sea-life creatures, a historic shipwreck lost to the passage of time and which has yet many a secret to tell. A trawler's net caught hauling more than fish but cannon balls dating to the Napoleonic era.

Also focusing the attention of Coastal Notes, are the maritime museums which are of national importance to maintaining access and knowledge of historical exhibits for future generations.

Equally to keep an eye on the present day, with activities of existing and planned projects in the pipeline from the wind and wave renewables sector and those of the energy exploration industry.

In addition Coastal Notes has many more angles to cover, be it the weekend boat leisure user taking a sedate cruise off a long straight beach on the coast beach and making a friend with a feathered companion along the way.

In complete contrast is to those who harvest the sea, using small boats based in harbours where infrastructure and safety poses an issue, before they set off to ply their trade at the foot of our highest sea cliffs along the rugged wild western seaboard.

It's all there, as Coastal Notes tells the stories that are arguably as varied to the environment from which they came from and indeed which shape people's interaction with the surrounding environment that is the natural world and our relationship with the sea.