The cruise ship, Queen Mary 2 left Greenock last night – later than planned, following a celebratory fireworks display.
She had a welcoming yacht flotilla amongst which were Clyde Challenger and Princess Anne’s Blue Doublet, with the paddle steamer Waverley in attendance for the Queen Mary and the fireworks.
She took the straightforward overnight passage to Oban, straight down the First of Clyde, passing east of the Isle of Arran, then north into the north Irish Sea passing west of the Mull of Kintyre and then passing outside Islay and Jura to arrive at Oban through the Firth of Lorn.
She is moored well outside the entrance to Oban Bay, west of Maiden Island, towards the Linn of Lorne, with passengers shorebound for coach trips disembarked at the Oban Times slipway from the ship’s tenders, above.
The Majestic Line’s small inshore cruise vessel, Glen Massan, well known in Oban Bay with her sister vessel, Glen Tarsan, has been out taking a look at her – and she is worth looking at – a marriage of the classic liner and the modern sea-going mega-caravan, as cruise ships tend to be.
It’s a dreich morning, damp and misty with poor local visibility so early shots of her left no choice but to use close up detail.
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The Queen Mary 2 has around 2,500 passengers on board. It would be interesting to know how many are seen around Oban itself.Argyll and Bute Council has been sharply reminded by the owners of the signature restaurants on the North Pier, Piazza and Ee-usk, of the realities and what ought to be their priorities.
On the one hand, the Council scrambled to remove building materials from the North Pier – because the QM2 was coming, for one day, with 2,500 passengers on board – most of whom will not leave the ship; and the vast majority of those who do will be immediately coached away to Inveraray Castle, Glencoe or on a highland tour.
On the other hand, the restaurants feed 3,000 people every week – yet there is no interest from the Council in keeping the North Pier tidy for this regular income-generating audience.
