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Sailors dry off in Lochranza

Lochranza received a visit from some true sea-voyagers last week, as a 14-strong crew from the Causeway Coast Maritime Heritage Group (CCMHG), berthed at the new Lochranza pontoon on Wednesday night. The sea-farers had travelled from Portrush, County Antrim, using only oar-power and two square sails on the 40ft ‘Colmcille Currach.’ But some rough weather meant they called upon the hospitality of Lochranza, staying overnight in the village hall to dry off some of their soggy clothes. Shared heritage On Thursday morning the crew walked around Lochranza, while a few logistics were being sorted.

Written by Nick Underdown
Thursday, 17 July 2008

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Lochranza received a visit from some true sea-voyagers last week, as a 14-strong crew from the Causeway Coast Maritime Heritage Group (CCMHG), berthed at the new Lochranza pontoon on Wednesday night.

The sea-farers had travelled from Portrush, County Antrim, using only oar-power and two square sails on the 40ft ‘Colmcille Currach.’ But some rough weather meant they called upon the hospitality of Lochranza, staying overnight in the village hall to dry off some of their soggy clothes.

Shared heritage

On Thursday morning the crew walked around Lochranza, while a few logistics were being sorted. Crew member Kate explained that the boat is about exploring the shared heritage of the sea. Scottish and Irish maritime heritage has a lot in common, with many later boat designs stemming from the same early boat-building craft. The Colmcille Currach was built in 1997, 1,400 years after the death of Saint Columba. It is a traditional ‘Kerry Navog’ type of yawl or Drontheim. The lattice framework is made from larch (although it would typically have been made from birch) and Kate reckons that it has travelled over 3,000 miles at sea and carried over 600 crew members to ports as far as France, Spain and Portugal.

‘It’s a great participative boat. You don’t need a lot of experience to be on board,’ she said, adding that the Colmcille has been used a lot to build community relations. ‘We’ve had a lot of people from different political persuasions.’ The crew that berthed in Lochranza was no exception. One lad was a piper who played in Orange marches. Three others were an American family who had moved to Donegal many years ago to rediscover their Celtic roots.

Rebuilding links with the sea

The white-haired skipper David Thompson, who is also a respected naturalist with the National Trust, said the CCMHG was not just about bridging sectarian divides — it also helped to develop a wider shared heritage of the sea. ‘A very small proportion of people know how to get out on the sea,’ he explained, 'and we’ve had some fantastic local support. ’ He paid tribute to the Lochranza village committee and the wider community for their help in some ‘un-summery’ weather.

Penny McWaters said the village committee was pleased to help. As she put it, ‘We feel this is exactly what the hall is for – to serve the wider community.’ The Colmcille eventually headed out to sea in the late morning to continue its journey up the West coast to Tarbert and beyond to Ardrishaig, Gigha and eventually Iona. The boat could not sail in a head-on wind, so all crew had hands on oars as they rowed into a grey Kilbrannan Sound, leaving the new pontoon — but hopefully not for the last time.

For more information about the group, visit: www.ccmhg.org

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