News from Mallaig Harbour: May 2026
The weather for the month has been mixed, although we are ending on a positive, with high pressure in charge and settled weather. This will help with the works on the overnight ferry berth. The concrete pouring for the deck slab is a bit behind after the heavy rain at the start of the month, so better weather is helping. For those who have been keeping an eye on them, it may look like they are going backwards at the moment, with more holes in the pier than previously, but this is the final stage in getting them ready for the deck. We had hoped the concrete pour would be done in around four weeks but this was optimistic, and weather dependent! It’s looking like the programme end date of end May is going to be a bit tight, and that works might take a bit longer than we had hoped.
A pod of dolphins was spotted around the harbour on the evening of 21st April, which always feels like a positive sign of summer being on its way. It’s maybe not quite as impressive as the walrus seen in Orkney and then in Lossiemouth this month, but I’m not sure we have a risk assessment at Mallaig Harbour for walrus ‘beaching’ on the pontoons so I am quite glad it wasn’t us!
The ice plant is also much busier over the last couple of weeks which is another positive sign, with the boats getting out to sea. Three of the four razor clam vessels have now left, but we have had a few visiting boats landing throughout the month. ArtDec have made a great job of the interior of the prawn market, and our own staff have levelled off the floor where it was a bit uneven, so it is looking great. One local ex-fisherman thought it was the best he had ever seen it!
The ferry situation remains less positive. Hopefully by the time you read this, the Coruisk will have returned. At the moment, her return date is Wednesday 29th April, although this has already been postponed several times due to disruption elsewhere in the network. While CalMac have been chartering a replacement service for passengers, and for a limited number of vehicles when a suitable vessel is available (Spanish John or Miss Marley); the service has been much reduced from what would be expected at this time of year. There is still a bit of time to make your thoughts on CalMac’s ferry services known to Transport Scotland by completing their survey before 17th May. We have shared this on our Facebook page, and you can access it following this link http://bit.ly/3Ps0rWm.
The Marina has had a slow start this month, giving Millie and Gavin a chance to get used to things, and make a couple of improvements to processes ready for the season starting in earnest. The observant among you may have noticed a new concrete plinth adjacent to the gate. This is for a fuel tank, which will allow yachts to take diesel on site, rather than taking cans through the village. Petrol will still have to be purchased from Johnston’s fuel station, as the rules around storage and distribution of petrol are more onerous.
Those of you locally may also have noticed that our flower planters have had a makeover, courtesy of Sandy, who has washed them all down and painted them, ready to be refilled.
We had a Board Meeting on 17th April, and agreed to provide support to Mallaig FC towards their annual costs; to Mallaig, Ardnamurchan and District Pipe Band towards providing drumming tuition for members; and to ‘A Write Highland Hoolie’ for outreach work within the local schools. We still have some funds available, and the next deadline is 15th May for our June meeting, and then 14th August for the September meeting. Get in touch if you would like further details.
The RNLI Lifeboat Gala Day is due to take place on Saturday 30th May, and HM Coastguard have agreed to send their Emergency Towing Vessel (ETV), ‘Levoli Black’ as part of the celebrations on the day. The vessel is 70m in length, and will be berthed in the inner harbour and open to the public on the day.
Finally, and still on RNLI news, congratulations to Kenny Harris, one of our ex-staff members at the Marina, who has successfully qualified as Station Mechanic for Mallaig, bringing our local station crew back up to full strength.
Jacqueline McDonell