Tag: adventure

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Cyprus catamaran ferry turns over and sinks losing up to 26 in wind speeds far below those felt daily by CalMac boats with no loss of life ever while UK-based Townsend Thoresen have lost nearly 200

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Help Talking-up Scotland keep going Crowdfunder at: https://www.crowdfunder.co.uk/p/help-talking-up-scotland-keep-going Or by direct bank transfer to: JOHN WATSON ROBERTSON Sort Code – 08-91-04 Account – 12266421 Yesterday’s tragedy in Cyprus caused me to wonder if any CalMac ferry had ever sunk with the loss of life? When you look at the far worse weather conditions around the West Coast of Scotland, surely there have been incidents? You can see below that many CalMac vessels sail in far stormier conditions than you would find in the Eastern Med. Yesterday, off Kyrenia, winds were gusting at up to 22kph, high for the area, but way below what CalMac mono-hulls can manage. Have … Continue reading Cyprus catamaran ferry turns over and sinks losing up to 26 in wind speeds far below those felt daily by CalMac boats with no loss of life ever while UK-based Townsend Thoresen have lost nearly 200

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Further evidence that Scotland does not need cheap catamaran ferries – ‘a mono-hull’s seakeeping and residual stability characteristics would have given passengers a markedly better chance’

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Help Talking-up Scotland keep going Crowdfunder at: https://www.crowdfunder.co.uk/p/help-talking-up-scotland-keep-going Or by direct bank transfer to: JOHN WATSON ROBERTSON Sort Code – 08-91-04 Account – 12266421 Widely broadcast this morning and from BBC Europe yesterday, the above and: At least eight people have died and 18 others are still missing after a passenger boat [a twin-hulled catamaran] capsized off northern Cyprus, the head of the Turkish administration there has said. Ünal Üstel, prime minister of the self-proclaimed Turkish republic on Cyprus, said the ferry had been carrying 259 passengers and eight crew members when it began taking on water after departing the coastal town of Kyrenia on Sunday. and: Üstel … Continue reading Further evidence that Scotland does not need cheap catamaran ferries – ‘a mono-hull’s seakeeping and residual stability characteristics would have given passengers a markedly better chance’

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Another nail in the coffin of the Herald’s cheap catamaran plan for Scotland

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From Fox News yesterday: Tourists hopping between Greece’s islands on high-speed ferries are reporting rough rides and brutal bouts of seasickness along the way. Across social media, travelers this summer have been opening up about stories of rocky crossings, ill passengers and crews handing out sickness bags. Given all the reports, the ferry has been dubbed the “vomit comet,” according to The Wall Street Journal. High-speed ferries are a popular choice for travelers looking to move quickly between Greece’s islands, said Mina Agnos, founder and president of luxury travel company Travelive. “We see most clients looking for the quickest point from A to B,” she … Continue reading Another nail in the coffin of the Herald’s cheap catamaran plan for Scotland

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For the West Coast of Scotland’s island routes, mono hull ferries are still generally better suited due to their stability in rough seas, higher capacity for passengers and freight

johnrobertson834

I fully support Liberation Scotland‘s UN mission to have Scotland recognised as a colony. Who ever thought it wasn’t? However, their other agenda to abuse the SNP and everything it has achieved in government, is risible and divisive. Here’s the latest – bloody catamarans again! By no measure, based on evidence globally, is Scotland’s ferry system failing. It’s the best in the World. https://talkingupscotlandtwo.com/2025/03/06/tory-mp-with-worst-local-ferry-service-in-the-uk-feeds-labour-opportunity-to-lie-about-best-ferry-service-in-the-uk/ https://talkingupscotlandtwo.com/2025/12/23/calmac-youngest-ferries-best-funding-and-most-staff/ Simlarly, catamarans are not the answer. Here’s the answer: Throughout much of 2024, the Herald worked with opposition politicians in a campaign aimed at undermining CalMac and, by association, the SNP’s competence in government. We, at TuS found several … Continue reading For the West Coast of Scotland’s island routes, mono hull ferries are still generally better suited due to their stability in rough seas, higher capacity for passengers and freight

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Largs to Millport ferry, four times every hour, with capacity for 6 million passengers and three quarters of a million cars only used one eighth and one third of that capacity in 2024 – who pays for such generosity?

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Every year, thousands of drivers, often in SUV’s, try to get on to a tiny island which thousands of others walk and cycle round, their potentially lovely day spoiled by those same drivers. There’s a well-run bus service from the ferry slip to the town with hundreds of bicycles for hire and lots of wee cafes to relax in. I’ve been there more times than I can remember and never felt the need to take a car. These days, I’d struggle to get round the island on feet or wheels but there’s no way I’d be bullying my way round … Continue reading Largs to Millport ferry, four times every hour, with capacity for 6 million passengers and three quarters of a million cars only used one eighth and one third of that capacity in 2024 – who pays for such generosity?

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South Uist Business Impact Group appears to be inventing problems that, in reality, are not there

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By stewartb Media coverage of ‘ferries’ news has left a lot to be desired. This is true of local press coverage as well as national. In the run up to the Holyrood election there was local press coverage in the Western Isles that seems to exemplify the problem. From Hebrides News online (April 3, 2026): ‘Island economy struggles ‘turning into a nightmare’ due to CalMac ferry crisis’. Firstly readers are told this: ‘South Uist Business Impact Group (SUBIG) have raised concerns over reduced animal welfare as a result of CalMac’s cuts to ferry services’ and ‘The ferry action group said: “CalMac’s cuts mean … Continue reading South Uist Business Impact Group appears to be inventing problems that, in reality, are not there

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The Great Scottish Ferry Inconvenience Media War

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Lesley Riddoch in her early April 2026 podcast said on the ferries crisis (literally) I’ve got to say personally, I’m sick of hearing people on the mainland ‘attack islanders’ for simply expecting that they can be connected. Just to remind you we all live on an island, and it would be a bit like saying Scotland’s a bit too expensive to include in UK national systems so let’s just charge them more. We wouldnae, would we?’ Who are those ‘people’ attacking islanders then? Turns out it’s me! ‘I’m probably gonna lose some friends on this because I am absolutely sick … Continue reading The Great Scottish Ferry Inconvenience Media War

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Cornwall ferry users ‘losing their minds cut off from civilisation’

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The Torpoint Ferry is a car and pedestrian chain ferry connecting the A374 which crosses the Hamoaze, a stretch of water at the mouth of the River Tamar, between Devonport in Plymouth and Torpoint in Cornwall. The service was established in 1791 and chain ferry operations were introduced by James Meadows Rendel in 1832. The route is currently served by three ferries, built by Ferguson Shipbuilders Ltd at Port Glasgow and named after three rivers in the area: Tamar II, Lynher II and Plym II. Each ferry carries 73 cars and operates using its own set of slipways and parallel chains, with a vehicle weight limit of 18 tonnes (20 tons). The ferries, along with the nearby Tamar Bridge, are operated by the Tamar Bridge and Torpoint Ferry Joint Committee, … Continue reading Cornwall ferry users ‘losing their minds cut off from civilisation’

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How can South Uist have no ‘mainland’ ferry service when the Skye Bridge offers an alternative that takes the same time?

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Keeping the Ferry Frenzy kettle boiling right up to the election, BBC Scotland today has the above and: The owner of a South Uist tourism business has said they are dealing with a wave of cancellations thanks to on-going disruption on the ferry network. The island remains without a direct mainland ferry after CalMac said the route’s usual vessel – the MV Lord of the Isles – is required to operate services elsewhere. It comes after weeks of ferry disruption across the network, with almost a third of CalMac’s fleet out of action at the start of April. The company says … Continue reading How can South Uist have no ‘mainland’ ferry service when the Skye Bridge offers an alternative that takes the same time?

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Washington State’s ferry fiasco is so bad politician wants to return to the 1930s for a solution

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Please Support Talking-up Scotland at:https://www.crowdfunder.co.uk/p/support-talking-up-scotlandClick on the above.Or direct bank transfer at Sort Code 08-91-04 Account – 12266421 Name – JOHN ROBERTSON Washington State and the cluster of islands around Seattle, with a GDP double that in Scotland, has been served by Washington State Ferries in a manner that would shock ferry users in Scotland. From KIRO Seattle, four days ago: With the Washington State Ferry system continuing to struggle to stay at full capacity and no new boats expected until 2030, at the earliest, is it time to bring back the Mosquito Fleet? One lawmaker is pushing the idea, … Continue reading Washington State’s ferry fiasco is so bad politician wants to return to the 1930s for a solution