1972 - 1984 | Fishing Trips

NOTE: Some of this is identical to what is written on Wikipedia, as both were written by the author of this website, stardust5980 (aka celesteshipping5980). 

NOTE TWO: Huge thanks to Kenneth Kennedy and Kerry Kennedy for providing Kenneth's book 'ALL AT SEA' which provides almost all of the information on this page.

Fishing Trips

- Jack had decided to emigrate to New Zealand, with Rusty going off to another job. With that, Kenneth was crewless, but since he had foresight that such a thing would occur, he had been training up another crewman, Dick, who had suggested to Kenneth that money could be made by taking out fishing parties on weekends. Kenneth decided it was a fruitful endeavour, and set out to make extra accommodations onboard. The forecastle was fitted out with six bunks, and the after-accommodation was altered to house six, totaling twelve people in all, with the crew having to make do with the wheelhouse. Since meals had to be provided, cooking equipment, cutlery, and dishes had to be organised. There was a demand for night fishing so Kenneth put an advertisement in a fishing newspaper for two-day fishing trips aboard the ship and they soon had bookings. They would start Saturday morning, anchoring in a sheltered spot overnight before returning home on Sunday afternoons.[1]

Of course, with the prospect of taking passengers, Kenneth and Dick's roles had expanded. Kenneth was a cook, engineer, and navigator, with Dick steering, dropping the anchor, and keeping the parties interested with stories of catches the week prior. Conditions aboard were not perfect, still relying on gaslights and car battery lights for lighting on deck, and heating was achieved by coal stoves and paraffin heaters.[1]

One weekend they had office executives aboard, who were taken aback by the conditions of the ship, however, they were willing to enjoy themselves nonetheless and with the aid of a cup of tea, their rods were out. It was a sunny day, if a bit frosty, and by midday conditions were pleasant. Cod was caught, and come sunset they anchored close to Boot Hole, near the mouth of Loch Goil. By this time frost was forming out on deck, so everyone retired to the wheelhouse for a meal of steak pie and rice pudding. Beer and whisky kept the party going, along with jokes from Dick. Three or four people were still fishing when Kenneth went to check the anchor at ten, but the temperature only continued to drop so they retired to their bunks. By midnight, they were all cooped up in their bunks for some sleep. The forward accommodation was heated by a coal stove, the aft having paraffin stoves. Soon everyone had drifted off and Kenneth and Dick remained in the wheelhouse, sleeping themselves between watches.[1]

Come six o'clock, infuriated passengers came up with talk of fumes, and soon Kenneth found that a 'clever gentlemen' had turned up the wicks of the stoves during the night, producing dense smoke. Once Kenneth had turned off the stoves, he returned upstairs. Two of the men were now so hoarse they couldn't speak, so to soothe everyone's disgruntled minds they announced that bacon and eggs would be served as soon as possible. In the meantime, tea was handed out to soothe the hurting throats. Soon enough, bacon and eggs were on the stove, restoring some cheer as everyone anticipated a lovely meal.[1]

Suddenly, dense clouds of smoke billowed from the stove, and Kenneth ordered Dick to get up on the roof and poke something down the chimney to unblock it. Soot began to fall, covering everything, and forcing some men to escape out on deck. There was an iron bar stored on the roof, and Dick could be heard kicking and cursing as he tried to free it from its frozen mounting. Kenneth ordered him to hurry up, and the response he gave was 'unprintable'.[1]

Fortunately, the iron bar worked in unblocking the chimney, and soon all the smoke was gone., with breakfast for all 14 souls finally being cooked, only tasting slightly sooty. Some more fish were caught, but they decided to move to a new spot as all catches came out small. With the engine running the ship warmed up a little, and eventually the party was in full swing once more.

Some more big cod were caught, and upon arrival at the coal pier, the fishermen were in good spirits, and talked of booking another trip in Autumn, though they never heard from them again.[1]

Work continued on the ship across the next months, improving the accommodation onboard as well as the ship's machinery. Necessary repairs were also done. The ship gained a flushing toilet which was served by a ballast tank via gravity feed, and Kenneth had installed twelve portholes to provide light to the hold and forward crew quarters. The problem of lighting was also finally solved, with a two-kilowatt Lister generator being installed beside the windlass engine which gave light to the entire ship. The engine room had neon tube lights, creating a well-lit atmosphere for ease while repairs had to be made. Half of the aft hatch which serviced the hold was floored at deck level, providing space for a new deckhouse that housed a saloon forward, with space for a new galley on deck aft. The masts were finally serviced and could now raise five sails, with the right amount of crew. During the Summer Kenneth would take the ship out on family holidays, visiting the sand beds. He allowed his sons, Andrew and Steven, to help as crew, able to take the wheel or raise and lower anchor. They took off-road motorcycles to the beach at Loch Riddon when it was low tide to drive across the beach, as the sons were quite enthusiastic about it. The family's dogs would join in on the adventures, too. The ship was a well-known sight in many Scottish towns, including Rothesay.[1]

Despite being so well-known, crewmen were always a struggle to find. One who joined the ship was named Alec Allison, a known Dunoon photographer who journeyed around with his Alsatian dog. Once he started working onboard De Wadden, he remained with the ship until it was sold. During one of the first trips with Alec as crew, they sailed up to Holy Loch, near the village of Sandbank. The party was from Liverpool and wanted to catch Conger Eel. Kenneth and Alec's sleep on this voyage was disrupted when the party was trying to make a big catch, requesting Kenneth's (the captain's) assistance.[1]

CONTENT WARNING: Violence against an animal

The eel was pulled aboard but almost instantly bit a fisherman's foot. He pulled his foot out of the boot, the fish remaining attached to it. Kenneth used a fire axe to kill the fish, severing its head. In the morning he found a fisherman sewing the eel's head back on, stating it was for a photo that would be posted in the next issue of the Fishing News. Sure enough, the six-foot eel was photographed, being held by the fishermen. No mention of the efforts of Kenneth were made.[1]

References

1.  Kennedy, Kenneth M. (1985). All At Sea. Retrieved 2023-12-16.