PLACE: THE GLENELG FERRY
The Glenelg Ferry operates during the summer months from Glenelg on the mainland to Kylerhea on Skye and is a vital link in the area’s tourist economy. Built at Troon in 1969 for service at Ballachulish, the Glenachulish is the last manually operated turntable ferry in the world.

Cars are driven on to the deck which is then manually rotated 180 degrees by the crew, allowing the cars to drive straight off at the other end. This ingenious design ensures that the ferry can be loaded at any state of the tide and that drivers never have to reverse.

Operating from 9:00am till 5:45pm, Easter until October, the Glenachulish carries six cars at a cost of £7 each. In 2003, 14,039 cars made the crossing and provided work for three local men!

There has been a car ferry here since 1935 but, for centuries before, cattle in their thousands have been swum across the straits here on their way to the great cattle markets in the south. Poor beasts! The tide race here is amongst the fiercest in Britain and the ferry is compelled to take an exaggerated arc, powering crablike against the current to reach the other side.

Ferries such as this were once an essential part of Highland life but new roads and bridges have seen them off. The Glenelg ferry is the last and we must not lose it.

If you are in Wester Ross this summer, do yourself a favour. Experience what must rate as one of the most thrilling boat trips in the country, amongst what must be some of the most magnificent scenery in the world. Take the Glenelg Ferry!

News 10 Jul 2004: Glenelg Ferry For Sale
News 25 Mar 2005: Glenelg Ferry Sails into the Open Market
News 24 Apr 2008: A welcome jaunt over the sea to Skye

Photo: www.skyeferry.co.uk