95 arrivals for the period
Whitefish totalled 25,520 boxes from twenty Scottish trawlers, one Anglo long-liner and three freezer netters. A number of Scottish trawlers continue to fish at Rockall with reasonable returns whilst the remainder are working on the deep-water edge for monkfish and blue ling. The Anglo fleet has started to fish a bit further south for hake and the freezer netters continue to work deep-water offshore grounds for monkfish. Surprised and disappointed to read that with no meaningful consultation, central government intends extending EU fleet access to UK waters for a further 12 years despite all the pre-Brexit promises.
Shellfish activity was busy with thirty-four landings from visiting prawn trawlers combining with our local effort. As a rule, May tends to be a pretty barren month for prawns; 2025 has been the exception to that rule – perhaps it’s the sunshine.
Non-fishing was hectic. Twenty-one aquaculture vessels called in for fuel, crew and equipment, seven scheduled cruise ship visits (all of whom enjoyed glorious weather), sailing vessels Thalassa and Spirit of Falmouth came in for passengers and fuel, SEPA survey vessel Sir John Murray called to collect their workboat, brand new superyacht Nome visited for no apparent reason, MCA tug Ievoli Grey called for crew and finally – the magnificent paddle steamer Waverley came in for fun. Waverley returned to the village on 22nd May, the 50th anniversary of her preservation. In all, 890 passengers climbed off and on the 78-year old world’s last seagoing paddle steamer after she arrived from Portree via Gairloch. The highlight of this year’s visit was a cruise in blazing sunshine from Rhue Light to Lochside with 420 on board. Waverley departed Ullapool for Gairloch and then Kyle with the customary blasts on the ship’s whistle combining with the sound of Duncan Ali Beag’s pipes. Many thanks to the Waverley team for continuing to venture north, to all those who helped with the visit and to all of you for purchasing tickets making the visit viable. Here’s hoping for a 2026 return.
May has been a very busy month for marine traffic. In addition, the harbour hosted the West of Scotland Port Security meeting, Green Machine movie night, Feis Rois, the inaugural Custom and Classic motorcycle show, the Skiff Regatta and dance, Real to Reel, the People’s Choir & Orchestra and the monthly online Qigong class hosted by former Ullapool French teacher Marie-Pierre. Many thanks to all who have brought these events to Ullapool and to everyone who attended and hopefully enjoyed a good time.