twenty eighth November 2024
Launched as Candy Promise A 746 in 1965, this Noble’s-built stalwart, Tern LH 53, has clocked up virtually 60 years’ service
The 33ft Tern, which at the moment is predicated at Port Seton, was in-built 1965 by Jimmy Noble as Candy Promise A 746 for Robbie Cormack and Ian Balgowan of Stonehaven, at a price of £6,000. On the time she was distinctive, stated Ian, as she had a wheelhouse amidships with a winch behind. In accordance with the Noble construct lists, she was constructed for ‘Mr Cormack’ – however she was initially registered to Ian.
“It was right down to Robbie Cormack, actually,” Ian defined. “I used to be born on a farm, and we left the farm after I was eight years outdated to to migrate to Australia. However we weren’t in a position to go on the final minute, as my mom had had TB.
“So we stayed in Stonehaven, and after faculty I labored ashore, after which acquired a job trawling out of Aberdeen. Robbie ran the ironmonger’s in Stonehaven. He took me underneath his wing, so to talk, and took me on as crew on his 25ft yawl.
“We spent hours discussing the professionals and cons of a brand new boat, and finally he commissioned the brand new boat to a design we’d each lastly agreed on. He ordered and paid for the boat, however when he went to register it in Aberdeen, he put my title on the registration doc. I keep in mind asking him why. ‘It simply appeared proper,’ was his reply.”
Candy Promise simply seen within the Noble’s shed as Incentive PD 349 is being manhandled previous to her 1965 launch.
So Ian and Robbie labored the boat collectively. She was constructed for the inshore seine-net, however by 1970, Robbie had retired and Ian Shearer began working with Ian Balgowan. In 1971, when the fishing was poor, they briefly went to the mussel traces.
They determined they’d be higher off with a much bigger vessel, so Candy Promise was bought to Methil in 1972, the place she was re-registered as KY 26. The 2 Ians purchased a 1943-built vessel by Tyrrell’s of Arklow, slightly below the 50ft mark to fish contained in the three-mile restrict, which they renamed Geallachd Milis (‘candy promise’ in Gaelic) A 206.
Amongst the fleet at Looe with scallop gear aboard.
In 1975, Candy Promise was bought to England. Though particulars are considerably shaky, it seems she went to Torpoint, Plymouth, protecting the identical title however re-registered as PH 30. There she was owned by two brothers who labored within the dockyard and didn’t have a lot time to fish her.
From there she was bought by Gordon Cairns, who had simply bought his North Star and was meaning to go as much as Oban to purchase a 50ft to 60ft vessel, however was immediately interested in this smaller vessel when he noticed her at Torpoint.
At Lantic Bay, having a day without work!
Gordon now lives in Australia, however I managed to meet up with him on-line. He advised me: “She regarded pretty. My ideas have been to make use of her for trawling. She had a Ford engine, which was a bit low on energy however OK to start with. The winch was a transformed geared seine-net winch, and I had a brand new aft gantry fitted.
“Then quickly after I had a Morris trawl winch fitted, because the transformed winch was belt-driven and precipitated a number of issues. Then I had a Gardner 6LXB put in, and shortly after that I had a brand new wheelhouse constructed, as the unique was so small there was no room for the electronics.”
Gordon advised me he imagined she had been constructed for the boatbuilder’s son, as ‘she was constructed like a brick shithouse, larch on oak’. The frames have been so shut collectively, he stated, that again aft on the return you possibly can not see the planks. However we all know she wasn’t constructed for Jimmy Noble’s son, so Robbie should have been clear about what he needed. Ian Balgowan nonetheless has the unique specs signed by Jimmy Noble.
Gordon continued: “She was powerful as they arrive, so I rigged her for scallops with three dredges both sides and labored primarily in Falmouth Bay, away from the Looe fleet, shut inshore. Finest catch was simply over 800 dozen for a visit.
“Then at one stage we have been foolish sufficient to affix with the remainder of the Looe fleet to sprint as much as Fishguard to affix within the bonanza fishing there. Due to the mega tides, that turned out to be a really harmful episode for such small vessels, so we quickly returned to Cornwall.
“After that it was pair- trawling, so I attempted to pair up with Bonzo (Lewis Butters) who owned the Forbes-built Prosperity FY 189, however with no luck – so I bought the Ros Alither FY 518, therefore had my very own pair group, so spent a pair years working pairing.”
Alongside at Looe, exhibiting the deck gear.
On one event he was coming dwelling from a visit on Candy Promise in a gale. “We have been in a following sea after we have been hit by an enormous wave. The vessel broached and despatched me completely underwater on the starboard aspect. I used to be pondering: ‘That is it’ – however being as she was such a fantastically constructed vessel, she got here again upright, and on she went underneath autopilot.”
Gordon then bought Candy Promise to Paul ‘Brumble’ Fowl and changed her with Maxine’s Satisfaction FY 38 – which he says turned out to be no enchancment. Sooner or later underneath Paul, Candy Promise underwent a refit and her wheelhouse was once more changed, this time with one ahead.
On the similar time she was re-registered as FY 144. There’s a hearsay that she was renamed Sarah of Looe at some stage, however I don’t suppose that is appropriate – there seems to be no report of such a vessel.
Paul additionally reduce the strict away to type the ‘sq. spherical’ stern. I heard the story that this was achieved to get an under-10m licence – however Paul had discovered some gribble within the cease water and surrounding stern submit that was inflicting increasingly more leakage. As well as, the unique gantry that had been beforehand tailored was inflicting the entire of the again finish of the boat to loosen up. The ensuing work put her underneath 10m.
About 2000, Candy Promise moved again north once more, when Archie Ritchie of Kirkcaldy purchased her, basing her in Pittenweem. He stored the FY registration however renamed her Tern. She was skippered, I imagine, by Brian Hughes. They tried the clams, considerably unsuccessfully, in addition to trawling for prawns. Archie Ritchie went on to have the metal Quantas KY 996 constructed.
Now at Pittenweem and renamed Tern FY 144, with a brand new (third) wheelhouse.
From there Tern went to Andrew Mack of Cockenzie, who purchased her round Christmas 2001. He used her for trawling for prawns, re-registered as LH 53, till he bought her to George Reid of Port Seton in 2018 on his retirement.
George ‘Dod’ Reid continues to fish the prawns along with her, and says she’s nonetheless in a very good state. “No, none,” he replied, after I requested him if he’d needed to do a lot work to her. “Nonetheless acquired the Volvo engine that was put in after she left Looe.”
I’d first talked with Ian Balgowan when writing about Harvester A 865, which he and Ian Shearer purchased in 1995. Ian had talked about Tern as being over 50 years outdated, and I’d taken observe.
Tern after her transfer to Port Seton.
Ian stated he’d met George by likelihood a number of years earlier.
“I requested him if there was nonetheless a two-bob bit fastened to the strict. Sure, he stated, there was. We’d put it there as a result of we’d taken her away from Fraserburgh on a Friday, and it was unfortunate to take action. So this was to counter the unhealthy luck. Being born on farm, I wasn’t attuned with seamen’s taboos, and we broke all of them.
Tern as she is at the moment.
“Discuss coincidences, too,” he added. “I volunteer within the Stonehaven Museum, and the opposite day I used to be chatting to a fellow from Port Seton and talked about the Tern. He had a photograph of her on his cellphone which had been taken on 16 September [2023].
“I all of a sudden realised that was the day in 1965 that Robbie and I had left Fraserburgh with the model new boat to carry her dwelling. 16 September, precisely 58 years to the day! It value him £6,000 for the boat again then, and I believe she bought for 10 instances that now.”
This story was taken from the January 2024 problem of Fishing Information. For extra like this, subscribe to Fishing Information right here or purchase the most recent single problem for simply £3.50 right here.
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