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29th March 2005

The Easter holidays on Stena Line's Larne - Fleetwood service ended when Stena Pioneer returned to service after her maintenance lay up with her 1000 sailing to Fleetwood on 29/3/05.  The Stena Pioneer had been laid up on Curran Quay from 26/3/05 and covering for her absence between the 26/3/05 and 29/3/05 was Stena Seafarer.  Stena Seafarer covered the Stena Pioneer's usual 1000 ex Larne and 2200 ex Fleetwood cycle starting with the 1000 ex Larne (departed early at 0730) on 26/3/05 and finished with the 2200 ex Fleetwood on 28/3/05. 

Stena Seafarer's own 1600 ex Larne and 0300 ex Fleetwood sailings had been cancelled over Easter with the last sailing being the 0300 ex Fleetwood on 25/3/05.  Stena Seafarer moved back onto her own slot on 29/3/05 with her first sailing being the 1600 ex Larne after arriving that morning at 0600 on her final sailing covering for Stena Pioneer.  Stena Leader continued to sail as usual at 1000 ex Fleetwood and 2200 ex Larne with no break to her schedule.

Moving on to P&O services and Larne - Troon freight vessel European Mariner remains in dry dock at A&P Birkenhead undergoing refit with all her sailings cancelled until her return.  Cairnryan services remained unchanged over Easter and sailed to schedule as did the fast ferry Express.  To date Express has missed 1 round trip due to technical problems since entering service on 18/3/05, that sailing being the 1300 ex Larne to Cairnryan and return on 22/3/05.

26th March 2005

Larne - Troon ferry European Mariner sailed to dry dock at A&P Birkenhead, leaving Larne at 1915 on 25/3/05. 

The Troon freight vessel arrived at the dry dock on the Mersey on the morning tide of 26/3/05 and will be undergoing overhaul for approximately 14 days before returning to service. 

European Mariner's final sailing prior to Easter was the 0230 ex Troon on the 25/3/05 and while she is undergoing refit the Larne - Troon freight ferry service will be suspended.  Sailings on the Larne - Troon route by the fast ferry Express continue to run as normal.

23rd March 2005

Coastal cargo vessel Ranafjord arrived at Larne's Olderfleet Quay with a cargo of dolomite chips at 0930 on 23/3/05.  Sarah McLoughlin did the honours, taking the pilot out to the vessel prior to her entering the fairway.  The vessel previously visited Larne on 27/2/03.

Vessel's stats from equasis.org:

IMO number: 7431662
Call Sign: 9H4221
Gross tonnage: 1656
Type of ship: General Cargo Ship
Year of build: 1975
Flag: Malta
Registered owner: NORDWEST SHIPPING, NORWAY
Ship manager: RANA SHIP MANAGEMENT, NORWAY
 

Solent Fisher Oil Delivery

21st March 2005

Coastal tanker Solent Fisher arrived with a delivery of diesel oil on 20/3/05 for Ballylumford power station.  She arrived shortly after 1900 and berthed at the A station jetty assisted by Sarah McLoughlin.  After discharging her cargo the vessel sailed at 0800 on the 21/3/05.

Solent Fisher's Stats from equasis.org:

IMO number: 9118173
Call Sign: C6TW6
Gross tonnage: 3368
Type of ship: Oil Products Tanker
Year of build: 1997
Flag: Bahamas
Registered owner: FISHER TANKSHIPS, London UNITED KINGDOM
Ship manager: FISHER SHIPPING SERVICES, Barrow-in-Furness UNITED KINGDOM
 

18th March 2005

P&O fast ferry Express made her maiden commercial voyage from Larne with her 0715 service from Larne to Troon on 18/3/05 which left on time.  This voyage had been delayed from 16/3/05 due to final preparations for service being delayed after a late arrival from dry dock.  The vessel had earlier completed berthing trials at Cairnryan on 14/3/05 and Troon on 15/3/05.

13th March 2005

New North Channel fast ferry Express made her Larne debut on the 13/3/05.

A special feature page with the details of her first arrival is available here

Strange Turns

11th March 2005

This week saw a number of unusual movements at the Port of Larne. 

First, on the 8/3/05 was the Irish Lights Vessel Granuaile 3 which was briefly in the port between approx. 1400 - 1500hrs.  She was exchanging buoys at the Irish Lights' Ferris Point Buoy yard and departed the port southward bound.

On the 9/3/05 there was another visit by the tanker Galway Fisher at Ballylumford (photos of her visit on 6/3/05 below).  She arrived at 0900 departing again the same day at 1900. 

On the evening of the 103/05 the tug Kingston and her tow, Intrepid B, arrived at the port seeking shelter from bad weather.  The tug-tow combination moored at Olderfleet Quay until 1830 on the 13/3/05 when they departed to continue their journey to MacDuff, near Fraserburgh, Scotland.  Kingston was towing Intrepid B there for repairs after Intrepid B was holed and sank at her mooring in Fishguard harbour.

A number of features concerning the sinking of Intrepid B in Fishguard are available on Mike O'Brien's Fishguard website at http://www.abergwaun.com/index09.htm

Intrepid B at work: http://www.abergwaun.com/video/wmv/intrepid_b/index.htm
Pictures of Intrepid B sunk and being raised:
http://www.abergwaun.com/places/fishguard/intrepid_sinking/index.htm
Some details of tug Kingston available here: http://www.tugphotos.co.uk/pages/sunxxiv.htm

Intrepid B details:
IMO number: 9149469      Gross tonnage: 192
Type of ship: Tug              Year of build: 1997
Flag: United Kingdom
Registered owner and manager: D LITTLE ENGINEERING, Milford Haven UK

Kingston details:
IMO number: 5344437       Gross tonnage: 113
Type of ship: Tug              Year of build: 1962
Flag: United Kingdom
Registered owner and manager: EVELEGH J.A. Dorking UK

(ships data from www.equasis.org)

6th March 2005

P&O Irish Sea's new Larne based fast craft Express is currently undergoing dry docking at A&P's Birkenhead ship repair yard.  The vessel has been dry docking since the 23/2/05 and will undock soon to be delivered to Larne to complete the remainder of her overhaul afloat at her Chaine Quay berth.  The ship is scheduled to open the fast craft service with the 0715 sailing to Troon on the 16/3/05.

Galway Fisher Brings the Oil

6th March 2005

Providing interesting Sunday evening viewing was oil products tanker Galway Fisher, which arrived at Ballylumford Power Station on 6/3/05.  The tanker arrived at 1730 hours assisted by local tug Sarah McLoughlin and berthed at the 'A' station jetty.  She departed again on 7/3/05.

IMO number: 9118161 Name of ship: GALWAY FISHER
Call Sign: MWBK9
Gross tonnage: 3368
Type of ship: Oil Products Tanker
Year of build: 1997
Flag: United Kingdom
Registered owner: FISHER TANKSHIPS, London UK
Ship manager: FISHER SHIPPING SERVICES, Barrow-in-Furness, UK

1st March 2005

Stena Line's freight vessel Stena Seafarer returned to service after her annual dry docking at A&P Birkenhead with the 1600 sailing from Larne to Fleetwood on the 1/3/05.  She arrived direct from Birkenhead at 1100hrs resplendent in a fresh coat of paint.  Other work included installation of a new sprinkler system and the addition of a sat. dome on the roof of the accommodation. 

The return of Stena Seafarer to service brings the Larne - Fleetwood back to much needed full capacity. 

24th February 2005

Freight volumes using P&O Irish Sea's services from the port of Larne reached record levels in 2004.  Both the Larne - Cairnryan route and the Larne - Troon route recorded healthy increases over the figures from 2003.

European Highlander and European Causeway sailing up to 7 times daily for freight on the Larne - Cairnryan crossing carried almost 230,000 freight units during 2004, 7% up on 2003.  The heavy traffic in December 2004 sent weekly freight volumes up to 5,800 units and on one pre Christmas sailing European Highlander transported a record load of 117 freight vehicles on a single sailing.

Larne - Troon also returned excellent freight carryings for the company.  Normally sailing 6 times per week to Troon European Mariner carried 21% more freight in 2004 compared with 2003, bringing carryings for the year to just over 28,000 freight units.

Working together on the Larne - Cairnryan route European Highlander and European Causeway have helped boost 2004 freight traffic 7% over 2003. 
Left photo: European Highlander outward with 1630 to Cairnryan on 17/2/05.  Photo: Larne Ferry Web (click to enlarge).  Right photo: European Causeway 0730 ex Cairnryan inward to Larne on 27/12/05.  Photo: Allan Doyle (click to enlarge).

P&O CELEBRATE MOST SUCCESSFUL YEAR EVER

P&O Irish Sea has entered 2005 with a wind in their sails following a tremendous performance by the freight division in 2004.

The year ended with the ferry company celebrating their most successful year ever, carrying almost 230,000 units on their Larne-Cairnryan route, an increase of 7% on 2003.

Volumes reached an all-time high in December due to the increased activity in the retail trade. All the major high street retailers chose P&O Irish Sea sending weekly volumes to a record 5,800 units.

While a number of factors can be cited, P&O Irish Sea is keen to point out that the quality and reliability of the vessels combined with a superb shore-based team is at the forefront of the success.

Mr Graham McCullough, General Manager, Scottish Routes, explains, "Hauliers want to be confident that their goods are going to reach their destination on time and as such reliability is a key issue within this industry. While we cannot control the weather, we do provide ships which respond positively to all weather conditions. We also carefully monitor every aspect of our service including the booking process, loading and discharge of the ships, turnaround times, frequent and timely sailings to ensure that the standards already set are maintained. We have a superb shore-based team and ships' crews who are fully committed to ensuring that the overall service is fast and efficient."

P&O Irish Sea has invested heavily in the Larne-Cairnryan route in recent years with the purchase of two purpose-built ships, European Causeway which entered service in 2000, and her sister ship, European Highlander, at a cost of £72m. Mr McCullough adds: "The arrival of our two new ships on our Larne-Cairnryan service has proven very successful and we are certainly seeing the return on our investment. We have recorded an increase of 34% in volume carried on this route since 2000. Hauliers know and appreciate the efficiency and reliability of this route and are making it their number one choice."

In addition to the Larne-Cairnryan service, P&O Irish Sea's other freight services also recorded excellent performances. The Larne-Troon service operated by European Mariner saw an increase of 21% in the volume carried while the twice-daily service from Dublin to Liverpool ended the year with a 10% increase on 2004. Mr Charlie Greene, General Manager, Southern Service, reiterated the sentiments of Graham McCullough: "The Dublin-Liverpool route is serviced by two excellent sister ships, mv Norbank and mv Norbay, which have developed a superb reputation for quality and reliability. This combined with a first-class shore-based team give hauliers confidence in our service which is evident in our performance this year."

2005 has also started extremely well and P&O Irish Sea is aiming to match if not exceed the 2004 performance.

Express Dry Dock

23rd February 2004

The P&O fast ferry Cherbourg Express moved from her lay up location in A&P Birkenhead's wet basin to dry dock on the morning of the 23/2/05.  She will be delivered to Larne in time to open her 2005 summer season running from Larne to Troon and Cairnryan commencing on the 16/3/05.

With the demise of Seacat on the Belfast - Troon crossing the P&O fast ferry will provide the only Troon - Northern Ireland link this season.

North Channel Visitor

22nd February 2005

Irish Ferries' Rosslare - France vessel Normandy paid a rare visit to the shipping lanes off Larne on 22/2/05.  The vessel has been at Harland and Wolff shipyard in Belfast over recent weeks undergoing an extensive refit, which included a full repaint and thorough overhaul on all 4 of her main engines.  Now going through final checks before returning to Rosslare to take up service Normandy ventured out into the North Channel for several hours to carry out engine trials and compass adjustments.

This year Normandy has a new crew under the command of a new senior master with Larne connections.  Taking charge on Normandy for the 2005 summer season is Captain Chris Dodds, who up until autumn 2004 was master of P&O's Larne - Cairnryan ferry European Highlander.  Captain Dodds is probably best known in the Larne Ferry Web history books as being one of the delivery masters for European Highlander during her 26 day voyage from her builders in Japan in June 2002. Sharing the honour with Captain Jim McMullan, Captain Dodds carried out initial sea trials with the Larne - Cairnryan ferry and brought her home as far as Singapore before handing over to Captain McMullan.

LFW wishes Normandy and her crew all the best for the forthcoming season.

17th February 2005

Coastal cargo vessel Stina paid a visit to Larne on the 17/2/05.  She passed into the port at 0430 and berthed on Olderfleet Quay.  She departed again after discharge was complete at 1645.

16th February 2004

The current scene at A&P Birkenhead sees 3 vessels with Larne connections in residence.  Located in the wet basin is last year's Larne based P&O fast ferry Superstar Express, at this time awaiting a new operator to take her on for the forthcoming summer season after P&O decided not to continue her charter for this year.  Sitting nose to nose with Superstar Express is the Cherbourg Express, which will be renamed Express and will take the place of Superstar Express for the 2005 summer season fast ferry sailings from Larne, commencing on the 16/3/05.

In dry dock number 7 is Stena Line's Larne - Fleetwood vessel Stena Seafarer.  She is undergoing her annual refit at the Birkenhead yard and is expected to return to service next week.

14th February 2005

High winds on the evening of Saturday 12th - Sunday 13th February caused some disruption to services on the Larne - Fleetwood route.  Stena Pioneer was reported to have found difficulty in maintaining position alongside her berth at Fleetwood whilst loading for the 2200 departure to Larne on the evening of the 12/2/05.  She made it to Larne with that trip at 2200 on the 13/2/05 making her way through strong north westerly gales the whole way.  She remained in port all night and recommenced sailings with her scheduled 1000 departure from Larne on the 14/2/05.

Meanwhile, Stena Leader had to spend some hours treading water outside Fleetwood on arrival at the port on the morning of the 13/2/05 awaiting the wind to moderate before making her way along the River Wyre to the berth.  She operated a 2200 service ex Fleetwood on 13/2/05 that arrived in Larne the following morning.  She remained in port all day and picked up her usual sailing pattern with the 2200 ex Larne on the 14/2/05.

Third vessel on the route, the Stena Seafarer, remains in dry dock at A&P Birkenhead on annual overhaul.

ABP and Stena Sign Long Term Deal for Fleetwood

7th February 2005

Associated British Ports (ABP) owners of Fleetwood port have signed a new long term contract with ferry operator Stena Line that ensures Stena's continued use of the ro-ro facilities at the Lancashire port by their ferries on the Larne - Fleetwood route.

The contract will see an investment of £650,000 by ABP to update the ramp which has been in use since the service was inaugurated in 1975. 

Full story below:

MAJOR CUSTOMER SIGNS NEW DEAL AT ABP FLEETWOOD

Associated British Ports (ABP) has signed an extended agreement with the Swedish ferry service company, Stena Line Ltd ('Stena'), for Stena to continue its roll-on/roll-off (ro-ro) service between ABP's Port of Fleetwood and Larne in Northern Ireland.

Stena runs three services a day from Fleetwood - an operation it purchased from P&O European Ferries (Irish Sea) Ltd in April 2004. The route itself was originally established in 1975 and has since demonstrated year-on-year traffic growth. In 2004, vessels on the route carried in excess of 150,000 freight units and trade cars.  As part of the agreement, ABP will invest £650,000 in ramp improvement works.

Nick Ridehalgh, ABP Port Manager, North-West Ports, said:

"Fleetwood is a strategically important gateway for North-West England/Ireland corridor and the service to Larne has grown considerably since it was established.  It is a vital catalyst for the local and regional economies, and we very much look forward to continuing our working relationship with Stena."

Alan Gordon, Route Director Stena Line Ltd, said:

"We are delighted to sign this agreement with ABP. Fleetwood is perfectly situated to handle our ro-ro service between North-West England and Northern Ireland, and ABP offers us an excellent service."

6th February 2005

After completing her 0300 sailing ex Fleetwood on 5/2/05, Stena Seafarer departed Larne at 1700 for annual overhaul at Merseyside ship repair facility A&P Birkenhead .  She is expected to be refitting for around 16 days during which time her usual sailings at 1600 ex Larne and 0300 ex Fleetwood will be cancelled.  All traffic on the service will be carried by Stena Pioneer and Stena Leader both of which continue to sail as normal.

1st February 2005

The second coaster of 2005 arrived at Larne in the early hours of the 31/1/05 when the coastal cargo vessel Willow berthed on Olderfleet Quay.  She departed again in the evening of the 1/2/05.

Willow's stats from www.equasis.org:

IMO number: 8207410
Call Sign: C6TR3
Gross tonnage: 1560
Type of ship: General Cargo Ship
Year of build: 1983
Flag: Bahamas

Missed Trip for Pioneer

1st February 2005

Stena Pioneer missed her 1000hrs sailing from Larne on the 31/1/05 after being withdrawn from service because of a technical problem.  She made it to Larne with her inbound sailing from Fleetwood at 0945 with Stena Seafarer around an hour behind her.  Stena Pioneer discharged her cargo and left her berth at 1145 for anchor to allow Stena Seafarer into port. 

The repairs were completed while the Stena Pioneer was at anchor and she returned to Curran Quay once the European Mariner sailed at 1900.  She picked up her usual schedule with the 1000 service from Larne on the 1/2/05.
 

31st January 2005

The annual remembrance service to mark the loss of the Larne - Stranraer car ferry Princess Victoria (IV) in the great storm of January 1953 was held as usual on Monday 31/1/05 at the Princess Victoria memorial.  Wreaths were laid at the memorial during the short service led by local clergy.

Meanwhile, the former Donaghadee lifeboat RNLB Sir Samuel Kelly, which rescued 33 of the 44 survivors from the Princess Victoria disaster looks to have an uncertain future.  Retired from the RNLI in 1979 the Sir Samuel Kelly eventually found her way to the Sir Samuel Kelly Preservation society.  With an enthusiastic start the society cleaned up the lifeboat but funds for on going maintenance have dried up such that at her exposed location propped up on blocks in a Donaghadee sea front car park the Sir Samuel Kelly is in danger of succumbing to the ravages of the elements and to vandalism.

Pictured left is former Donaghadee lifeboat RNLB Sir Samuel Kelly at Donaghadee in August 2004.  Her continued preservation into 2005 and beyond seems to be in doubt.  Keep in touch with the efforts to preserve this lifeboat and the proud history that she represents here. 
Photo: Larne Ferry Web (click to enlarge)

Cairnryan Switch Round

30th January 2005

The two Cairnryan conventional ferries European Causeway and European Highlander having been operating on the opposite roster to normal due to bad weather delays were put right on Sunday 30/1/05.  Extra sailings departing Larne at 1030 and 1330 were operated instead of the single voyage at 1200 and now both vessels are operating to their usual timetables.

Dr. John back from the Doctors

29th January 2005

Larne's Trent class lifeboat Dr. John McSparran arrived back from repairs allowing relief lifeboat Henry Heys Duckworth to stand down after providing valuable relief cover for around 5 months at Larne lifeboat station.

Dr John McSparran had been retired from service around the end of August 2004 with a damaged crankshaft.  She was first noted back at Larne again on the 29/1/05.

25th January 2005

After over a week sailing on the opposite roster to normal Larne - Fleetwood ferries Stena Leader and Stena Pioneer switched over to their usual cycles on Monday 25/1/05.  Each vessel omitted their 1000hrs sailings on Monday 25/1/05 and instead picked up their usual 2200 departures that same evening.  Stena Pioneer now is working the 1000 ex Larne with Stena Leader taking the 2200 ex Larne as scheduled.

20th January 2005

Stena Leader made an emergency return to Larne shortly after departing for Fleetwood at 1030 to put ashore a passenger who had taken ill onboard.  Ambulance crews were waiting to take the passenger to hospital when the vessel arrived back in Larne at around 1115.  After the sick passenger's vehicle was disembarked Stena Leader got back on her way again to Fleetwood around 1200, allowing the inbound Stena Seafarer to berth after her own 0300 service from Fleetwood.

Late last year another medical emergency caused the Stena Leader to return to port to put an ill passenger ashore after departure from Fleetwood - her reputation as a maritime ambulance grows.....

20th January 2005

Wind seems to be a recurring theme to recent Larne Ferry Web news reports and again in recent days there have been more delays due to high winds.  Strong north westerly winds at Cairnryan caused long delays to the schedules of European Causeway and European Highlander over the past few days.  On the 18/1/05 European Highlander had to ride out the storm for several hours as the weather at Cairnryan became too bad to attempt berthing there.  However, by the 20/1/05 both vessels had managed to regain some sort of schedule.

Meanwhile, Larne - Fleetwood vessels had a bit of a change during the week 10th - 16th of January.  With heavy weather on the 11/1/05 causing delays to sailings both the Stena Pioneer and Stena Leader started to slip behind schedule.  Third ship on the route, Stena Seafarer had to be taken off service from the 12/1/05 with a technical problem and was laid up on Curran Quay for repairs.  She sailed again after her problem was rectified just after 1600 on the 16/1/05.  Stena Leader and Stena Pioneer worked on in the meantime without cancelling a sailing but by the 16/1/05 had ended up on the opposite sailing schedule to normal.  Stena Pioneer is currently working the 2200 cycle ex Larne while Stena Leader is on the 1000 sailing from Larne.

European Mariner also suffered some delays due to the weather but with her usual lay over period in Larne she was able to pick up time between sailings.

18th January 2005

Coaster Lundenes departed Larne at 1940hrs after discharging dolomite chips at Olderfleet Quay.  She departed bound for Norway with Sarah McLoughlin assisting the ship on her way and retrieving the local pilot once the vessel had cleared the channel.  This is the first coaster call at Larne so far this year.

12th January 2005

The European Highlander arrived at A&P Birkenhead for repairs to her grounding damage at 0900 on 10/1/05.  With repairs completed the vessel left again bound for Larne at 0945 on the 11/1/05. 

She returned to Larne in the early hours of 12/1/05 and berthed on Curran Quay before taking up service again with the 1630 sailing to Cairnryan.

Pictures by Ian Collard of European Highlander's arrival on the Mersey on 10/1/05 are on Irish Sea Shipping here.  Departure photos are here.

12th January 2005

The increasing winds brought Larne services to a stand still for part of the 11th of January.  After their early morning arrivals from Troon and Fleetwood both European Mariner and Stena Seafarer wisely remained in port rather than venture out in the storm force winds.  European Mariner later shifted to the shorter berth at Chaine Quay to free up the longer berth at Curran Quay for use by another vessel.  This was eventually filled by European Highlander on her arrival back from dry dock.

European Causeway joined both Stena Seafarer and European Mariner at 1430 after arriving in from Cairnryan.  The Larne - Cairnryan vessel tied up on MacKean Quay to wait for the winds to moderate.  She sailed again early on the 12/1/05. 

10th January 2005

After being freed from the beach at Cairnryan European Highlander made a run to Larne on the evening of 9/1/05 arriving at 1900.  She loaded spare parts required for repairs and proceeded to dry dock at A&P Birkenhead at 2030.

European Causeway continued with a shuttle service on the Cairnryan route and was joined by European Mariner on 10/1/05, which did a cargo run to Cairnryan departing Larne at 0945 with a return arrival in Larne at 1630.  She then carried out her usual Troon sailing departing at 1900.

9th January 2005

The beached Larne - Cairnryan ferry European Highlander was refloated around 1100 on 9/1/05 after a 30 minute operation to drag the grounded vessel back into deeper water was successful.  At high tide, Greenock based Svitzer Marine tugs Point Gilbert and Flying Phantom hauled the ferry off the shingle beach at Cairnryan and assisted the vessel the short distance to her berth to allow her passengers and cargo to disembark.

43 passengers and 57 crew had been marooned on board the European Highlander for around 30 hours after the vessel was blown ashore by 100 knot winds.  The ship ran aground only 100 metres from her destination while attempting to berth at Cairnryan around 0645 at the conclusion of her 0415 sailing from Larne on 8/1/05.

Meanwhile, fleet mate European Causeway is continuing to sail although was off service for a spell on 9/1/05 while European Highlander was unloaded at the conventional ferry berth at Cairnryan.

9th January 2005

Stena Pioneer and Stena Leader both completed their weather delayed sailings to Larne on the 9/1/05.  Stena Pioneer was first to arrive early on the 9th, she discharged and loaded for Fleetwood sailing again at around 1000 back on her usual schedule.  Stena Leader then arrived and discharged her load.  Stena Seafarer went to anchor during the time the other ferries were in port. 

Around 1000hrs there was the unusual sight of all 3 Fleetwood boats together off the Larne coast as Stena Pioneer sailed to Fleetwood, Stena Leader was arriving at Larne and Stena Seafarer was at anchor.

8th January 2005

At 0645 Larne - Cairnryan ferry European Highlander ran aground while attempting to berth at Cairnryan.  Arriving at the Scottish port at the conclusion of her 0415 sailing from Larne the vessel was caught by hurricane-force winds described by a Coastguard Officer as gusting at over 100 knots.

The wind blew the vessel ashore on a shingle beach just south of the conventional ferry berth at Cairnryan.  The 43 passengers and 57 crew aboard the vessel suffered no injuries in the incident and were in no immediate danger as the vessel remained upright on an even keel.  The passengers - all car or lorry drivers and their passengers - were due to remain onboard while two tugs from the Clyde were being called in to help refloat the vessel on the 9th of January.

After the grounding sailings on the Cairnryan route were cancelled immediately.  European Causeway, which had crossed to Larne with her 0415 sailing ex Cairnryan was later loaded and sailed at 12 noon on 8/1/04 once it was clear European Highlander wasn't sitting blocking the berth at Cairnryan.  She sailed a shuttle service to clear freight as Stena's sailings on the Belfast - Stranraer route had been cancelled for a while on 8/1/05 due to adverse weather.

Stena's sailings between Larne and Fleetwood were also severely disrupted due to bad weather throughout the past week.  Stena Seafarer missed a round trip on the 4/1/05 after a combination of unfavourable tides at Fleetwood and some heavy weather in the vicinity of the Isle of Man caused a six hour delay to her schedules.  Later on in the week Stena Seafarer had to wait at Larne overnight after arrival on 7/1/05 as Stena Leader and straight after her departure Stena Pioneer required use of Fleetwood's linkspan to unload after delays.  With so many sailings disrupted Stena Seafarer was filled with trailers to free up space in the port on the morning of the 8/1/05.  Stena Leader spent some time sheltering near the Isle of Man on 8/1/05 and was joined by Stena Pioneer later on in the evening.  Despite all the bad weather the ships battled on and it was hoped the wind would moderate to allow Stena Leader and Stena Pioneer to complete their journeys to Larne on 9/1/05.
 

Third vessel at Fleetwood, Stena Seafarer (right at Larne on 14/11/04), managed to reach Larne and weathered out the storm at her berth.

Photos: Larne Ferry Web (click to enlarge)

3rd January 2005

Cairnryan Service:

European Highlander carried out the final sailing of 2004 from Larne with the 2000 service to Cairnryan.  On arrival at Cairnryan she commenced lay up until her first sailing of 2005 which was the 1500 ex Cairnryan on 1/1/05.

The final inbound sailing of 2004 was carried out by European Causeway with the 2000hrs sailing from Cairnryan.  The European Causeway was then laid up in Larne over the New Year break until her 1500 sailing from Larne on 1/1/05.

The Cairnryan service operated a special timetable on 1/1/05 with departures from either side at 1500 and 2000.  On Sunday 2/1/05 sailings at 1030 and 1330 were operated instead of the normal Sunday schedule with a sailing at 1200 from Larne.

Troon Service:

European Mariner had no sailings to Troon between Christmas and New Year and remained laid up.  Having been laid up on Chaine Quay over Christmas to allow the Norbank access to Curran Quay for her underwater hull survey, the European Mariner shifted to her usual berth at Curran Quay on 30/12/04 and was laid up there over the New Year.  Her first sailing of 2005 was the 1900 sailing to Troon on 4/1/05.

Fleetwood Service:

The Fleetwood service ran a reduced timetable between Christmas and the New Year using the Stena Leader and Stena Pioneer on a single departure per day, sailing at 2200 from either port.  This was broken on the 30th December when the vessels operated their usual 1000 sailings in addition to the 2200 departures.  The extra sailing help clear a cargo backlog and also ensured the Stena Pioneer and Stena Leader were positioned correctly to take up their usual rosters once the New Year holidays were over.

The final inbound sailing of 2004 was the 2200 ex Fleetwood on the 30/12/04 operated by Stena Leader which commenced New Year lay up on Continental Quay once she had discharged her load on arrival at Larne on the morning of the 31/12/04.  Stena Pioneer operated the final outbound Fleetwood sailing of the year leaving Larne at 2200 on the 30/12/04 and was laid up in Fleetwood over New Year.  The Stena Leader operated the first Fleetwood sailing of 2005 from Larne on 2/1/05 departing at 2200 while Stena Pioneer operated the first inbound sailing of 2005 with the 2200 departure from Fleetwood also on 2/1/05.  The New Year of 2005 commences the first full calendar year that the Fleetwood route will be under Stena control.

Stena Seafarer remained laid up in Belfast over the New Year period, she returned to Larne at 1100 on the 3/1/05 and recommenced her sailings with the 1600 to Fleetwood that same afternoon bringing the service up to the full 3 ship timetable.

The Larne based vessel's movements over New Year are summarised below: