Sailing Down the Clyde by Christina McLeod
When I was a child I often went on day trips down the Clyde Coast or to Loch Lomond with my grandparents. Every time before we went on one of our trips my brother John would ask “can I come?” and the answer was always “when you’re bigger.”
The day finally dawned when John was deemed old enough to go and my grandparents decided to take us to Dunoon on the Firth of Clude. Normally they would have taken the train to Gourock and the ferry to Dunoon but this time as a special treat we were sailing all the way from Glasgow. In great excitement we took the tramcar to the Broomielaw and boarded The Queen Mary; one of the Clyde Steamers. Aunt Jenny my mother’s sister was there too on the pretext that two children aged 11 and 6 might be too much for my grandparents, now in their seventies, to handle. In truth, she just loved the sail down the River Clyde. She had no children of her own and was very fond of us, so we were happy to have Aunt Jenny along for this special trip.
There was great excitement on board as the steamer left the Broomielaw and slowly made her journey down the river. The river was a hive of industry as the men who worked in the shipyards and the docks were all back at work after their annual holiday – the Glasgow Fair. My father who worked for Clyde Navigation trust was also back at work on the river and he said he would be looking for us when the steamer reached Renfrew.
As we sailed past the yards at Govan there was lots of jostling for a place at the rails as many of the passengers had relatives and friends who worked on the docks or in the yards. Lots of men on the dockside were waving and some of the would be comedians were shouting “Haw Maw” (a well known Glasgow saying) as they waved. In fact my father said as this was a daily ritual, the steamer was known as “the Haw Maw Boat.”
On board there were excited cries of “There’s Daddy” or “there’s oor Jimmy” or “there’s yer Uncle Donald.” John and I didn’t join in all the excitement at Govan, although we waved back to the men. We were waiting for Renfrew.
As we approached Renfrew it was much quieter and we were scanning the banks of the river for our Dad. Then we saw him. He was standing on his own at the end of a jetty waving and smiling. His workmates were standing on the river bank waving and shouting “here he is.” We felt so proud and really special because our Dad and all the other men there were waving specially at us.
After leaving the peace of Renfrew we were soon in the bustle and noise of John Brown’s Shipyard at Clydebank and Beardmore’s at Dalmuir. Once again getting waves from the men in the yards. The next landmark was Dumbarton Rock and then it was on to Greenock, Gourock and finally across the Firth to Dunoon. We hadn’t taken much time to explore the steamer as there had been so much to see on the shore but Grandpa would take us on a tour of the steamer on the way home.
It took some time to get off the steamer as passengers had to walk down a narrow gangplank to get on to the pier. We waited impatiently for our turn but eventually we were on the pier – at last we were in Dunoon. After leaving the pier we made our way to the Gardens opposite and up the steep path to Highland Mary’s Statue (a famous landmark in Dunoon). From this vantage point you could see the steamer making her way to Rothesay.
As usual on these outings Granny had a big bag with teaflasks, cups, sandwiches, biscuits and a bottle of clear lemonade. We had out picnic in the Gardens before heading along the promenade towards the West Bay, stopping at the ice cream kiosk on the way – a cone for me and John and a nougat wafer for Granny, Grandpa and Aunt Jenny.
West Bay was the popular end of Dunoon for children as it had a paddling pool, swings, chutes and roundabouts and best of all a pebble beach. We had a great time there splashing around in the pool, playing on the swings and roundabouts, skimming stones into the water and gathering shells to take home. All too soon it was time to make our way back to the pier to catch the steamer back to Glasgow.
Grandpa always like to be early for everything so we had plenty of time to play on the gangplanks lying on the pier before the steamer arrived from Rothesay. The steamer already seemed full when it arrived but everyone on the pier managed to get on and as we were near the front of the queue Granny and Aunt Jenny managed to find seats.
Shortly after the steamer left Dunoon, Granny and Aunt Jenny left Grandpa and us to guard their seats while they went off for a cup of tea. They brought drinks back for us then Grandpa took me and John to see the engines. A sail on a Clyde Steamer wasn’t complete without going to see the engines. Maybe the fact that the bar was next to the engines had something to do with it. The yards were quiet on the way back as work had finished for the day. No men waving and no Dad waiting for us at Renfrew. We stood at the rails with Grandpa who pointed out the cargo ships waiting to be unloaded. He told us where they had come from and we made guesses as to what type of cargo they carried.
We finally arrived back at the Broomielaw tired but happy and there hadn’t been a cloud in the sky all day. To my mind it had been a glorious and unforgettable day.
Sixty years and more have gone by since that day and it is over fifty years since my father died, but in my mind’s eye I can still see that quiet gentle man standing smiling and waving to us as we sailed past on The Queen Mary on that lovely summer’s day. That in fact was the highlight of my day.
I have many happy childhood memories but that day when I sailed from Glasgow to Dunoon on The Queen Mary with my father waving to us from the jetty at Renfrew remains one of my fondest childhood memories.
