On Saturday 25th May 1963 Waverley, under the command of Capt Hector Connell, took a group of protesters from the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament (CND) from Glasgow to Hunters Quay at the mouth of the Holy Loch where the United States Navy had set up a Fleet Ballistic Missile Refit Site for maintaining nuclear submarines in 1961.
After that on Monday 27th she moved to Fairlie to cover the first sailing to Brodick the following morning. On Wednesday 29th she tendered the Cunard liner Franconia anchored on the Clyde. On Thursday 30th May she had a charter to Campbeltown; on Saturday June 1st she was back on ferry duty running three round trips between Craigendoran and Rothesay and on Sunday 2nd June she began her summer excursion programme with a cruise from Craigendoran to the Kyles of Bute.
Kingswear Castle returned to service in 2023 after the first part of a major rebuild which is designed to set her up for the next 25 years running on the River Dart. The Paddle Steamer Kingswear Castle Trust is now fund raising for the second phase of the rebuild. You can read more about the rebuilds and how you can help if you can here.
John Megoran
This article was first published on 25th May 2021.
