FACTS AND HISTORY OF THE GLENELG FERRY

The crossing of the Narrows between Glenelg and Kylerhea dates back into prehistory. This is the closest point to the Isle of Skye on the mainland, and was the principal crossing until the Victorian rail terminus was established at Kyle of Lochalsh. It was the favoured crossing point of the Cattle Drovers over the many centuries of their trade, and it is from here in Glenelg that the most important of these roads snake southwards through the Highland glens and passes to the sites of the Lowland Cattle Trysts.

"quite probably the last vessel of its type in the world"

It is a crossing of legend. It is here that the Fianna, the war-band of Fionn MacCumhal, were said to have leapt across when they came here on hunting expeditions (it is said that Glenelg means “The Glens of Hunting”) The most famous of these tales relates how they came here in pursuit of the errant Diarmid who had absconded to Glenelg with Fionn’s young and beautiful wife, Grainne.

The Glenelg Ferry has plied its trade here, almost without a break, since the old pre-war ferry was put back into service in the Fifties by Murdo MacKenzie and his father. Murdo ran the ferry for many years, steering it through the peak years of business in the early Seventies when two ferries were needed to cope with the volume of traffic. Murdo retired in 1990, and the ferry was taken on by another local man, Roddy MacLeod.

In recent years, the ferry business has had to weather the storms of competition from the new Skye Bridge and the subsidised Mallaig/Armadale ferry run by CalMac. The Glenelg operation has never received public subsidy, aside from a little help from the Council towards the use of the piers.

Roddy MacLeod recently announced his intention to retire from the Ferry to concentrate on his other business interests, and he has offered to sell “The Glenachulish” to the local community; partly in the hope that such a venture may secure the future of the ferry in an increasingly competitive marketplace. There is much local support for such a venture, and an awareness that community ownership may well be the way to attract the subsidies that will literally keep the ferry afloat.

The communities of Glenelg, Kylerhea on Skye, and Arnisdale on the south side of the Glenelg peninsula, where the public road comes to a dead end, depend on the Ferry as an essential lifeline service. The communities of Glenelg and Arnisdale, with a combined population of around 250, are part of the administrative area of Skye and Lochalsh, and as such require a direct link with Skye where many of our administrative and other day-to-day services are based. The community of Kylerhea on Skye equally depends on its link to the mainland.

These links are essential for our tourist trade, with many visitors to the area using the route to and from Skye. It is a spectacularly dramatic crossing through fast-flowing tides and swirling vortices of water, with a backdrop of rugged mountain scenery - populated from the shoreline upwards by seals, seabirds, otters, pine marten, red deer and soaring eagles.

It is the last turntable ferry in the Highlands and Islands - quite probably the last vessel of its type in the world - and a former vessel on the old Ballachulish crossing. It is a piece of our history and heritage in a place of natural beauty, romance and legend.

We, the people of Glenelg, Arnisdale, and Kylerhea need your help and support to secure its future. Please pledge what support you can on the links below and add your comments to our Guest Book.

FERRY FACTS
The Glenelg Ferry was built in 1969 at Ailsa Shipyard in Troon
Her name is 'The Glenachulish' and she is registered in Fraserburgh
She is 60ft in length and 25ft in the beam
She is the last ferry in the world to operate with a full deck turntable
She can carry 6 cars
She is powered by a Kelvin T6 diesel engine delivering 180hp by a single screw
As well as Glenelg she has seen service at Ballachulish, Kessock and Kylesku
The skipper is Donnie MacDonald, known as 'Donovan'
His dog is called 'Burley'

FERRY MYTHS
Burley collects the fares
You have to reverse onto the ferry
Sleeping passengers should have pound coins placed over their eyes
The Kylerhea Narrows are home to a monster
The Scottish Executive has helped the ferry
Kylerhea is named after a giant
Odysseus passed through here on his way home to Ithaca