March 20th, 2009 alison
We were pleased to get underway on Friday afternoon.
Glasgow's Millennium Bridge opened to let us through
The bridge was opened and we started to make our way back down the Clyde. As the city disappeared behind us, we began to spot aspects of the river which we had missed on our way up.
Easter Island or Scotland?
First we passed the paddlesteamer Waverley which was berthed outside the Science Centre and then the Tall Ship Glenlee at Glasgow Harbour. After that we passed Braehead again, and the Renfrew Ferry, noticing shortly after a taste of Easter Island on the banks of the Clyde.
Almost under the Erskine Bridge
As we went under the Erskine Bridge we felt as if we were halfway home to Kip. The smirry rain, which had started briefly as we left, closed in as we passed Dumbarton which meant that when we again passed the Medway II dredger at Port Glasgow and Greenock the towns were partly hidden by mist, but by the time we reached Gourock it had stopped and there was a little wind. Unfortunately we had time constraints for our return, so the sails stayed firmly in their bags and we continued to motor back to Kip.
The dredger, "Medway II", through the rigging
Cloch lighthouse
When we reached the Cloch lighthouse we felt as if we were properly home. “No Stress” motored on ahead of us back into Kip Marina, as those of us on “Blue” prepared to come alongside. Safely berthed we agreed it had been an enjoyable few days, a successful first trip of the sailing season, and certainly beat working for a living!
Tags: Blue, Moody 54, No Stress, President 605, sailing in Scotland
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March 19th, 2009 alison
Interior of "Blue"
Interior of "No Stress"
Thursday was a day spent tied up on the SECC pontoon, while we went to a corporate event show at the SECC. Between showing people around both ”Blue” and “No Stress” to show how good a platform they are for corporate entertainment, we enjoyed the dry, although windy, weather and took advantage of the opportunity to take photos of the landmarks which surrounded us. After we had packed up for the evening we thought we should investigate the local hostelry and disembarked to the Crowne Plaza Hotel for dinner and a couple of drinks, before heading back to the yachts to prepare for Friday’s trip back down the river.
Tags: Blue, Corporate entertainment, Corporate Sailing, Moody 54, No Stress, President 605
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March 18th, 2009 alison
Cranes at Greenock
Wednesday brought the first proper outing of the season with “Blue” and “No Stress”, Charter For You’s corporate yachts, going up the Clyde to berth at the SECC pontoon. An early start, with little wind, saw us motoring north from Kip, past Cloch lighthouse and an atmospheric Gourock which was coming out of the mist. John, our skipper, radioed estuary control to inform them that we were entering the channel just as we arrived at Greenock, and we got the information that we should look out for a large dredger which was heading towards us, and which we would meet around Port Glasgow. As we motored past Greenock, and some large cranes shadowed us, we were reminded that the Clyde is still very much a working river.
The ship that made us feel small!
As we got closer to Glasgow, and the river narrowed, we started to recognise areas that we would never usually get the opportunity to see from the water, such as Braehead, and the Braehead Eye. We also started to feel like the river was quite narrow and hoped we didn’t meet anything coming the other way - a feeling which we swiftly laid to rest after passing a large ship which was being loaded with scrap metal!
Just before this we had been reminded that the Clyde was, and still is, a river known for it’s shipbuilding, as we passed the Barclay Curle and Co. Ltd building on the south side of the river. Now a scrap metal yard, Barclay, Curle and Co built ships in Glasgow from 1884 - 1968, including insect class gunboats for the Royal Navy. Just before that we had passed numerous new warships being built on the opposite bank of the river.
Barclay, Curle & Co. Ltd.
Clyde shipbuilding - the new warships
Final destination - berthed opposite the Science Centre
Shortly after that our destination loomed into view, the numerous Glasgow landmarks of the Armadillo, the Science Centre and the Glasgow Tower, as well as the more recent Squinty Bridge. These were to be our neighbours for the next two days. We had earlier arranged for the footbridge which blocked our way to be opened, and once through we safely moored outside the Crowne Plaza Hotel.
Tags: Blue, Corporate Yachting, Moody 54, No Stress, President 605
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