Glasgow And Ships Of The Clyde

Clyde steam puffer lighter SPARTAN arrives at Irvine to load a cargo of coal for Loch Riddon

Clyde puffer SPARTAN was the "First Foot" of the New Year to arrive at Irvine Harbour'

Loch Riddon is a small sea-loch in the Kyles of Bute near Tighnabruaich, Argyll, Scotland.

   It is a very remote and peaceful area, sparsley populated – and in 1950 even more lonely.  Surrounded by high hills there is only one steep, narrow, winding and dangerous road providing access for the few inhabitants and in the dark and deep depths of winter the people could be cut off from supplies by snow and ice.

   Thus in winter the people needed coal as fuel to heat their homes and cook their meals and the only way to obtain the coal was by being brought to them by a Clyde puffer vessel.   The people would form a club/group and collect money and then purchase an amount of coal – say about 100 tons or so – and then hire a puffer lighter from a puffer owner – and the puffer would load the coal – as at Irvine in this case – and bring the coal to Loch Riddon and unload it into lorries, horse-drawn carts etc.

   And that is why the puffer SPARTAN was at Irvine to load a cargo of coal for Loch Riddon, and here is an image of Loch Riddon.