Greenock was the assemble point for the Tall Ships this year and from there would head for Lerwick in the Shetland Islands for the start of the race to Norway. The Tall Ships last visited Greenock 10 years ago and we arrived from South Africa two weeks after the event. Everyone was raving about how wonderful it had been and what we had missed. This time we were determined to see the whole thing and made certain that we were back from our cruise to Norway on time.
All the ships were to be assembled at James Watt dock in Greenock by Sat 7 July and there would be lots of attractions other than the ships like displays, funfair and musical entertainment while the vessels were tied up. Before that we drove down the Clyde coast the day before and watched some of them sailing up the river. It was a bit disappointing as they made their way using diesel power and none of them were under sail.
On the Saturday, all the ships had arrived and were tied up at the docks. We walked down from the house to the quay and although it was mid-morning, already it was busy with long queues to get aboard some of the ships that were open for visitors. We didn’t bother waiting but just wandered about enjoying the sights of these magnificent vessels. Some of the big ones had the crew up aloft tying up the sails. We had our normal lunch with us in a day pack; sandwiches and a flask of coffee. We weren’t going to part with our money to the expensive stalls that had set up selling fast foods.
(What confused me about the whole event was how it helped the economy of the town. I had read in the local newspaper that a councillor for the district stated that the attraction would bring in huge numbers of people and they would spend a few million pounds. This may be the case but the people gaining from this bonanza weren’t the local businesses. All the stall holders were from out of town and are what the Americans term as ‘carpetbaggers’. Later I walked through the town and it was deserted, none of the local shops were gaining probably the opposite with most of the regular customers viewing the ships. We spoke to my brother David about it later and he told us that the last time the ships were tied up at Customhouse Quay and the Waterfront which are close to the town centre and this did help the local businesses. This time that area is closed for the construction of the new Arts Guild Theatre and could not be held there.)
We didn’t bother visiting the event on the Sunday but went for a walk there on Monday. It was much quieter than at the weekend, but they had more security at the gates examining bags for alcohol and aerosols which I assume could be used as an explosive. On a board listing prohibited articles, vivuzelas and flags were banned for some reason. There weren’t any queues to board the ‘open’ ships, so we went on board one of them, the Mir a Russian ship, and it was very interesting especially the glimpse we got of the bridge. This wasn’t basic as in days of Nelson, but highly computerised with radar and GPS systems as well as a sophisticated communication network.
In the evening we went to an open air concert on the quay. It was very crowded but we made our way down to near the front. The group performing was Deacon Blue, a Scottish group from the 80’s. They were supposed to start at 9:00 but it was 15 minutes late when they appeared. But not right away, they had to have a couple of idiots, who were trying to be funny (but failed miserably), to introduce them. As it turned out the group were rubbish as well, just a noise with a thumping bass that seemed to vibrate the insides of my stomach. We listened for about half an hour before deciding that was enough and heading home. After the concert there was to be a firework display which we hoped to see from home but because of the bend in the river it was completely out of sight.
On Tuesday we were out early to see the ships depart and sail down the river, on their way to the Shetlands for the start of the race. At the James Watt dock they were preparing to go and the crews were aloft unfurling their sails. We made our way down the Waterfront to the esplanade and on the way there was a display by the Red Arrows aerobatic team to give the ships a magnificent send off. Unfortunately about a month later one of the pilots taking part was killed when his plane crashed at another of their displays.
We made our way further down the river to the esplanade and the Battery Park to get a ringside view as the fleet made their down river. Others that had a close up were those on the Waverley paddle steamer that accompanied the ships on their departure. One surprise was a cruise ship that left its berth at Princes Pier just as the first of the sailing vessels appeared. It was well down the river ahead of the fleet and the tourists on board must have been very disappointed to have missed the pageant.
There were huge crowds all the way down the coast who were rewarded with a wonderful sight, with most of the vessels in full sail. It had been a great weekend and as last time the weather was exceptional, unusual for Greenock which is famous for its rain.
