1972 - 1984 | Recovery

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.

Recovery

- With the help of Terry, the previous owner of the ship. and his son Mike, they made an early start, soon getting the worst of the scraping done. Each section was then rubbed with a wire brush and given a coat of red lead. After about three days the accessible parts up to the waterline were completed. His family had inspected the ship, his wife being appalled at her condition, and his boys keen and eager to explore the holds.[1]

Kenneth had purchased a spare engine alongside the ship, which was onboard Terry's new ship. It weighed about four tons and Kenneth needed it onboard De Wadden so they could start the engine repairs. A spring tide was due to come up, so the decision was made to try to tow the ship off the beach with the assistance of a tugboat named Penguin which was owned by Terry's son, Mike. They would spend a lot of time digging at the two anchors at low tide, which were then pulled into the hawse pipes by way of relays of men on the windlass turning the iron handles. The ship's holds were deep in rainwater, and they spent some time siphoning it all out. By the time all was done the tide was high and Mike was alongside in the tugboat. The tide crept up towards the waterline, and fifteen minutes before full tide the ship was slowly inched from the beach. Within ten minutes it was free, marking the first stage of recovery.[1]

Ten days after they were back on board and had begun moving engine parts into the hold. The crankcase was noted as being difficult to get into the hold, weighing a ton. Terry had given Kenneth the idea to buy a large mushroom anchor to establish a permanent mooring in West Bay, Dunoon, and he thought this was a good idea, so bought a two-ton mushroom and two cable lengths of heavy chain from Faslane ship breakers.[1]

In early June 1972, once the remaining engine parts were aboard, the ship was towed from Long Loch to Dunoon and was successfully moored in West Bay. Terry and Mike departed to get back to Blairmore, wishing Kenneth good luck. Now ready to begin conversion and repair work, Jack and Rusty were instructed to paint the hull a dark maroon, with a white band above to set it off. Kenneth would inspect the engine as the boys painted, devising a plan of action to get it functioning.[1]

References

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