Discussion
craig1912 said:
SS Shieldhall met up with Waverley last Saturday. Shieldhall is 70 years old and largest working steamship in Europe. Waverley is last seafaring paddle steamer. A great day.
Not sure I fancy a cruise on a banana boat! Apparently they used to be free when they were in service.Edited by craig1912 on Tuesday 16th September 10:51
As for the Waverley - she went round the top and down the east coast to get from the Clyde to the south coast because of the weather forecast in the Irish Sea. I tracked her on Marine Traffic and she was running for around 24 hours at a time. Must have been quite a voyage.
craig1912 said:
It s a bit different to when it was working- nice saloon, seating etc. and access to engine room and bridge, 100% run by volunteers. Waverley was always a passenger ship and yes she came the long way south due to weather.
That's actually exactly how Shieldhall was run when she was in service on the Clyde - apart from the volunteer bit.In WW1 the Glasgow Corporation began using its sludge carriers to give seagoing day trips to convalescing soldiers, because the Clyde paddle steamers (like the Waverley) that usually did it were all either laid up or in naval service (paddle steamers were popular for use as coastal minesweepers). But the 'Clyde Banana Boats' were still plying their trade, because Glasgow's sewage still had to be disposed of.
In peacetime the practice continued. The Corporation let its various social services - residential homes, orphanages, hospitals etc. - use the ships for free, and by WW2 it was available to the general public. Because the ships sailed regardless of the passenger count and were not profit-making in any case, the fares for those who paid were subsidised and were much lower than on the likes of the Waverley. They were popular with pensioners and working class families with a lot of kids.
By the time the Shieldhall was built in the 1950s it was already an established practice on the Clyde sludge boats that passengers could visit the engine room, boiler room and bridge when the ship was at sea. She was specifically designed with this in mind, with her builders specially sourcing blueprints from a neighbouring yard for old-fashioned open-crankcase engines with Stephenson valve gear to give the passengers something to see.
As built she had a 'promenade deck' behind the bridge with benches and th tea room/saloon under the bridge, just as she still has today. The trips would be timed so the ship reached the dumping grounds of Bute at lunch or tea time. The passengers would have their refreshment while the 'cargo" was being dropped, safely out of sight and smell.
The other tradition of the Clyde sludge boats - also continued by Shieldhall's volunteers today - is that they were famously immaculate inside and out. Partly out of civic pride as part of the public service by the municipal corporation, partly because they were quite over-crewed and had relatively easy working schedules so plenty of time for washing, painting and polishing and partly to counter the inevitable impression would-be passengers would have if they were considering a day trip on a boat who's main role was dumping jobbies in the sea.
craig1912 said:
SS Shieldhall met up with Waverley last Saturday. Shieldhall is 70 years old and largest working steamship in Europe. Waverley is last seafaring paddle steamer. A great day.
Great pics. A pedant writes on behalf of the French Navy that they have the largest working steamship in europe though. 
craig1912 said:
/\ you are obviously in the know!! I work on her and now sailing season has ended the hard work of ongoing maintenance starts! She s going to need a lot of money spending on her in next two years with the aim of keeping her going for another 20 odd years
Ah, well apologies for teaching you to suck eggs - hopefully it was interesting to someone.As a Hampshire native trips on the Shieldhall were a regular feature of my summers as a kid. My Dad did the engine room experience week and I did it about a decade later, but by then I'd moved away for university. I did turn up for a couple of working parties and made it to one sea trip, but had to let it go.
This was a good 20 years ago or so - back when she was still painted in the proper 'banana boat' livery with the grey hull and the buff funnel.
We had a great day out on the Shieldhall watching the J Class yachts racing in the Solent back in 2012, I think at one stage the skipper had her at full steam ahead and the old girl just couldn't keep up with the J's, such a lovely ship though and it's good to hear that people love her enough to keep her going.
We've also been on the Waverly but that was way back in the mid eighties on a day trip out of Newhaven, as I recall we got through a lot of gin and tonic that day, we've just missed it's trip from Eastbourne so must keep an eye on when it's back on the South Coast as another trip would be fun.
We've also been on the Waverly but that was way back in the mid eighties on a day trip out of Newhaven, as I recall we got through a lot of gin and tonic that day, we've just missed it's trip from Eastbourne so must keep an eye on when it's back on the South Coast as another trip would be fun.
2xChevrons said:
Ah, well apologies for teaching you to suck eggs - hopefully it was interesting to someone.
As a Hampshire native trips on the Shieldhall were a regular feature of my summers as a kid. My Dad did the engine room experience week and I did it about a decade later, but by then I'd moved away for university. I did turn up for a couple of working parties and made it to one sea trip, but had to let it go.
This was a good 20 years ago or so - back when she was still painted in the proper 'banana boat' livery with the grey hull and the buff funnel.
No apologies needed.As a Hampshire native trips on the Shieldhall were a regular feature of my summers as a kid. My Dad did the engine room experience week and I did it about a decade later, but by then I'd moved away for university. I did turn up for a couple of working parties and made it to one sea trip, but had to let it go.
This was a good 20 years ago or so - back when she was still painted in the proper 'banana boat' livery with the grey hull and the buff funnel.
We still do the Steam Experiences which sell out every year. The grey hull showed the rust so was changed to blue/black as we can only paint once a year (in dry dock).
If you are in North Devon, go and visit the Freshspring at Bideford Quay.
The last of a small class of coastal water tankers.
Gradually being restored by a group of enthusiasts.
Open on Sundays.
https://www.ssfreshspring.co.uk/
The last of a small class of coastal water tankers.
Gradually being restored by a group of enthusiasts.
Open on Sundays.
https://www.ssfreshspring.co.uk/
A guy I worked with a sea years ago had previously worked on the Waverly and had experience on the Cornish steam railways. He was issued one of only a handful of reciprocating steam CoCs by the MCA in the last hundred years or so. Apparently the oral exam was a formality as none of the MCA examiners had any practical reciprocating steam experience at the time.
I've been on it a couple of times, a great experience and well worth it if anyone has the chance. Especially manoeuvring in confined waters as the paddles are linked but with some clever winching and line work it can still turn in it's own length.
@craig1912 - are the current engineers ticketed?
I've been on it a couple of times, a great experience and well worth it if anyone has the chance. Especially manoeuvring in confined waters as the paddles are linked but with some clever winching and line work it can still turn in it's own length.
@craig1912 - are the current engineers ticketed?
hidetheelephants said:
No such thing exists now, there are only steam and motor qualifications; no idea if in the distant past the board of trade ever issued such a thing.
Which is exactly why I'm asking. My oppo who worked on the Waverly 20+ years ago was issued an anachronism of a ticket as a special case, largely down to his experience on expanding railway engines.Gassing Station | Boats, Planes & Trains | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff