TRIPLE A

The interestingly named products tanker TRIPLE A was seen passing Dunoon as she made her way upfirth from her overnight anchorage at Brodick towards Finnart, where she would backload a cargo of refined grades for Plymouth. TRIPLE A, a vessel of 13,040 tonnes deadweight, is operated by NGM Energy, a Greek company whose ships have been seen on the Clyde in the past - some are named after seasons (SUMMER, AUTUMN) - and which were built recently in Korea. She dates from 2006 and, like her sisters, flies the ensign of the Marshall Islands.

SKS SEGURA

Norwegian-flagged and owned by SKS Tankers, the Suezmax tanker SKS SEGURA is pictured heading to Finnart with a cargo of Nigerian crude oil from Erha. She was built in 2007, in Korea, by Hyundai Heavy Industries. With a deadweight of 158,784 tonnes, she is 274 metres long.

HAGEN

Lying at anchor waiting to move to Sandbank, the German coaster HAGEN dates from 1998 and was built by Damen in Romania. She is one of a class of five sisters operated by Siegfried Bojen, each ship being of 89.8 metres with a deadweight of 4,200 tonnes.

GANGES STAR

Following TILL downriver, the German tanker GANGES STAR had been discharging fuel in Rothesay Dock, and was heading to Amsterdam to load her next cargo. Completed in April 2010 by 21st Century Shipbuilding in South Korea, GANGES STAR is owned by RIGEL Schiffahrts GmbH & Co. KG, and is registered in Malta. She is 120 metres in length, with a deadweight of 13,000 tonnes.

TILL

The Dutch coaster TILL was seen passing McInroy's Point as she started her ballast voyage from the Clyde to Rotterdam, after she had discharged a cargo of machinery from Italy at Govan Shipyard. TILL was built in 2008 at Dhaka in Bangladesh by Ananda Shipyards and Slipways, and was named STELLA MARIS until September 2010. She is 81.3 metres long, and has a deadweight of 2,780 tonnes. She is operated by Lubeca Marine.

ARKLOW RALLY

Arriving lightship from Birkenhead, Arklow Shipping's ARKLOW RALLY was seen making her way upriver to Glasgow, where the 4,500 tonne deadweight coaster would load a cargo of scrap metal at Shieldhall. This would be exported to Bayonne for 'recycling'.

MARIDA MULBERRY

As recently mentioned, Marida tankers are now common on the Clyde, and this view shows MARIDA MULBERRY heading to Finnart to load a cargo for Grays in Essex, on the River Thames. She was coming upfirth from Brodick Bay, where she had anchored overnight after arriving from Belfast.

FORTH GUARDSMAN

Also seen in the James Watt Dock, FORTH GUARDSMAN, waiting to leave to carry out a cable-laying job off the Inner Hebridean island of Jura. She had loaded the cable in Glasgow. Lying at her usual overnight berth in the dock, and seen to the left of FORTH GUARDSMAN, is the small passenger ferry ALI CAT, used to provide extra sailings morning and evening to Dunoon for CalMac.

WD MERSEY

In addition to dredging further upriver, the trailing suction hopper dredger WD MERSEY undertook some work in the James Watt Dock, as part of the preparations for the forthcoming Tall Ships events planned for July this year. This is probably the first time that such dredging, at least along the south wall of the dock, has taken place for quite a while.

ISLE OF ARRAN

CalMac's Islay ferry ISLE OF ARRAN was seen in the James Watt Dock at Greenock, as she waited to enter the Garvel Drydock for her annual survey. Berthed astern of her was Serco's SD SALMOOR, Hebridean Island Cruises' HEBRIDEAN PRINCESS and another CalMac ferry, LOCH PORTAIN, all receiving attention from the busy repair yard.

MARIDA MAPLE

Marida Tankers' MARIDA MAPLE, seen here passing Greenock, is just one of the class of nine similar ships, all operated by the American-based company. They are regular visitors to the Clyde, bringing cargoes of fuel from the Continent to Rothesay Dock, or loading similar cargoes at Finnart for export to various parts of the British Isles. Built in China in 2008-09, they are all of around 13,200 tonnes deadweight.

SD RESOURCEFUL

Rushing past Greenock on her way to the Great Harbour, Serco's new tug SD RESOURCEFUL is one of a pair delivered in 2010 to the Clyde and allocated to Faslane submarine base. Both she and her sister, SD DEPENDABLE, have spent extended periods undergoing crew familiarisation trials in the Gareloch but have now been accepted into service.

STEN FRIGG

Having delivered her cargo of fuels to the NuStar complex in Rothesay Dock, the Norwegian-owned, Gibraltar-flagged, products tanker STEN FRIGG was seen making her way downriver past Greenock. She was returning to Mongstad, where she had loaded the cargo that she had just delivered to Clydebank.

MINNA

About to head out on another patrol around the coastal waters of Scotland, Marine Scotland's Fisheries Protection Cruiser MINNA was seen in the James Watt Dock at Greenock. This dock is to be transformed over the next few months to accommodate the many sail training ships when they visit Greenock for the Tall Ships Races later this year.

ADMIRAL DAY

Dredging around the mouth of the Kelvin is being undertaken not only by WD MERSEY, seen arriving a few days previously, but also by the grab dredger ADMIRAL DAY from Fleetwood. During the summer of 2009, this little vessel had spent some considerable time dredging at Largs while the pier there was being rebuilt. This time, most of the material that she was dredging up was deposited back onto the river bed, later being lifted by WD MERSEY and brought downriver. On certain occasions, however, ADMIRAL DAY herself made the trip down river to the mouth of Loch Long to dump the spoil.

COASTAL DENIZ

Inbound from Liverpool, COASTAL DENIZ was seen heading upriver on one of her now regular visits to the Clyde, linking Greenock with Liverpool and Belfast.

GERARDA

The smart little Dutch coaster GERARDA was seen passing Cloch Light with another cargo of components for wind turbines, which she would discharge at King George V Dock in Glasgow. Her overall length of 90 metres gives an indication of the size of the turbine blades that can be seen on deck. These had been loaded in Aalborg in Denmark.

FORTH GUARDSMAN

Briggs Marine's miscellaneous workboats of all shapes and sizes are often seen on the Clyde. This vessel, FORTH GUARDSMAN, was acquired by the firm in 2003. She was built, as ARCTIC IGNIK, in Japan for Canadian owners for use in Arctic waters. With a bow ramp, since removed, she served in Canada until 2001, by which time she had been renamed RUPERT RIVER before crossing the Atlantic to join the Briggs fleet. More recently, FORTH GUARDSMAN has been employed laying submarine cables. She is 50 metres in length, and has a deadweight of 772 tonnes. Propulsion comes from twin Cummins diesel engines, driving two retractable hydraulic drive units. When photographed at 'Bravo 4' anchorage, she had just arrived from Burntisland in Fife and was waiting to head upriver to load equipment.

WD MERSEY

Seen arriving on the Clyde on a damp morning, Westminster Dredging's WD MERSEY was here to carry out some dredging at the mouth of the River Kelvin in the vicinity of the new Transport Museum, due to open later this year. While on the Clyde, WD MERSEY will also carry out other work for Clydeport. Since her visit in May last year, she has worked in a variety of UK ports, including Heysham and the Manchester Ship Canal.

CHUETSU MARU

Another woodchips carrier, seen passing Greenock with animal feed as she made her way upriver to Shieldhall to discharge. CHUETSU MARU was built in 1987 and, surprisingly for a vessel of her age, has retained the same name throughout her career. The 42,791 tonne deadweight ship has visited the Clyde before, back in August 2008. Making fast aft was the local tug ANGLEGARTH.

SD NEWTON

Occupying the same berth that had, until October, been used by two Maersk container ships laid up in the Great Harbour, SD NEWTON is currently also laid up and awaiting disposal from the fleet, having been replaced by a new ship from the Damen shipyard in Holland. SD NEWTON was built by Scott's of Greenock as an oceanographic survey and research ship, also able to lay submarine cables, and she joined the then Royal Maritime Auxiliary Service in 1976. More recently, however, she has been used as a support ship during the training of amphibious troops.

Three Ferries

Each receiving attention and their annual surveys at the Garvel repair yard, three different ferries belonging to local companies. On the left is Western Ferries' SOUND OF SCARBA, having her survey done afloat this year, while the two CalMac ferries are both waiting to enter the drydock for theirs. LOCH FYNE, in the middle, was built by Ferguson at Port Glasgow in 1992 while LOCH PORTAIN was completed in 2003 at Bromborough on the Mersey by McTay Marine, although her hull was actually built in Poland.

NAVION HISPANIA

Seen early in the day heading to Finnart was the shuttle tanker NAVION HISPANIA with a full load of North Sea crude oil from the Alvheim field. Both she and her three sisters - NAVION ANGLIA, OCEANIA and SCANDIA - are occasional visitors to the Clyde with such cargoes.

HEBRIDEAN PRINCESS

As part of her winter refit, the small luxury cruiseship HEBRIDEAN PRINCESS is seen here in the Garvel Drydock undergoing the final stages of painting before being refloated, ready for another season of cruises. To the right of this view, one of the ship's stabiliser fins can be seen suspended from the crane, about to be lowered into the dock for reinstallation into the former CalMac ferry.

AZORESBORG

With snow much in evidence on the Cowal hills in the background, Wagenborg's 2010-delivered cargo ship AZORESBORG passes Ocean Terminal on her way downriver from Shieldhall, where she had been discharging a cargo of salt from Tunisia. AZORESBORG, eleventh ship in a class of self-geared multi-purpose cargo ships built by Hudong-Zhonghua Shipbuilding at their Shanghai yard, is 143 metres long, with a deadweight of 17,323 tonnes. In addition to a variety of bulk cargoes, the Dutch-registered ship can also carry up to 959 TEU containers.

SD SALMAID

Returning to the Great Harbour, SD SALMAID had spent most of the day exercising in the Gareloch with some of the newer Serco tugs. In the distance, the paper carrier FOSS is seen lying alongside Ocean Terminal.

TERNVIK

Heading back to Mongstad, from where she'd arrrived a few days earlier, the Danish-flagged products tanker TERNVIK was seen as she passed McInroy's Point in a break between some heavy showers. The distinctive funnel of this tanker is designed to look like a tern, reflected also by the name of Tarntank, her owners. TERNVIK was built, like many tankers of her size, by Shanghai Edward, and she entered service in 2001. She is 141 metres in length and has a deadweight of 14,796 tonnes.