Owned by Neil Brunton and family, Oor Millie is a recent addition to Dunbar's commercial fleet. She was built in 1958 by Watts of Banff, now Macduff Shipyard but the same family.

An old traditional wooden boat with a 127hp Gardner engine, her dimensions are length 33 foot x 10 foot beam x 5 foot draft, 7.6 ton registered (but gross weight would easily be greater than 10 ton).

Originally named Lustre (Latin for 'light'), she was in Shetland for years with the Lerwick registration LK315, then she went to the Isle of Rassay. Neil purchased her in December 2018 from Donald Mckenzie of Rassay. She is now registered in Leith (LH315) and called Oor Millie after the Bruntons' granddaughter Millie

She was a trawler when bought but Neil is now converting her for potting (creels). Neil and crew are 'getting there', hoping to have her ready for this winter.

Good luck and happy landings!

Photos courtesy Neil Brunton.

 

 

  Every 2 years the Harbour Trust carries out a condition-survey of all the harbour walls using engineering consultant Arch Henderson. Following a detailed inspection by engineers, a defects schedule is drawn up together with plans, elevations and photos of every section of wall. From this information priority repairs are identified:

 Red - immediate   Yellow - as soon as possible  Green - continue to observe

This information is used to justify grant applications. Repairs to the walls are not cheap, over the last 7 years we have had 10 grants (mainly from Marine Scotland Fisheries Grants) amounting to a total of over £400,000. Grants from Historic Environment Scotland and Viridor have allowed us to carry out many individual repairs. Most of work was done by AG Thomsons who has a real commitment to the harbour. The 2019 report is due within the next few weeks. 

Information courtesy Robin Hamilton

Click READ MORE for a typical wall-crack, although the INVISIBLE cracks and voids are often more urgent: 'jings, crivens an' help ma boab!'

photo by Kenny Maule

 

Have you ever watched the breakers crashing over the bar at the harbour entrance, especially when the tide is low?

Despite keeping a close eye on swell forecasts the Rowing Club could return to harbour after two hours to find the waves are quite dangerous. In preparation, the rowers and the RNLI agreed to do a practice exercise of ferrying in two skiff-crews from their anchored skiffs. The ILB was used to transfer the rowers into the harbour and then return to tow in the two skiffs.

This is part of continuing training exercises, conducted by the RNLI for the benefit of all sea-users.

Click READ MORE for next photo.

photos by Kenny Maule

As part of our Keep Our Harbour Tidy Project the Dunbar Harbour Trust has installed some new bins to help you keep our harbours tidy and healthy.

Dog-end bins:

•  beside Tasty Toasty
•  on upper, outside landing at McArthur's Store, Cromwell Harbour

Dog-waste bins: 

•  beside the Fishermen's Monument, Cromwell Harbour
•  just below Dr. Badger's Bench, Victoria Harbour

We appreciate your help to maintain a clean and tidy harbour, not just because it looks good, but it also makes it a safe and healthy environment for all harbour users. Follow this link if you would like to view our short video that advises about the dangers of dog mess and litter and how you can help.           

Keep Our Harbour, filmed by Fraser Stewart https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KRe-k8EXNjE&t=414s

Many thanks from Yvonne Wemyss and Quentin Dimmer!

photos by Kenny Maule

 

The end of Boyne Pier at Cove Harbour has weakened and is now collapsing (as all sea walls do without expensive work). This would mean the end of commercial fishing from this bonny, wee harbour with its sandy beach 'fur the weans n' bairns'.

All our readers are aware of this problem as Dunbar's wave-bashed sea walls are under continual maintenance when funds allow.

Repairs at Cove are expected to cost £250,000, to grout the voids, rebuild the footing and 'haud it thegither, ken'. Just £50 buys a bag of grout, £20 buys an hour of a skilled craftsman's time. 

Answer: CRAB = Campaign for Repairs At Boyne

Please donate at http://www.coveharbour.co.uk/donations         https://www.facebook.com/PierPressure2018/ 

Click READ MORE for next photo.

photos by Ben Tindall of Cove

 

The Northern Lighthouse Board periodically inspects navigation aids around our coasts. Recently the NLV POLE STAR anchored in Belhaven Bay for four hours (!) at the Poo Buoy. 

Info at https://www.nlb.org.uk/  and

https://www.marinetraffic.com/en/ais/details/ships/shipid:186861/mmsi:235000500/imo:9211987/vessel:POLE_STAR

Photo by Kenny Maule

Dunbar Harbour stocks red diesel for the fishing fleet, yachts and visiting boats. The red has a lesser duty rate for commercial users (mainly farmers and fishers) and thus is cheaper than white diesel. There is now a current HMRC consultation stage regarding when/whether the European regs. should be introduced.

The UK has so far avoided introducing this change for private users but in future it will particularly affect 'private pleasure craft users who will be required to use unmarked white diesel' when visiting the Continent.

Yacht skippers, you need to be aware!

Light reading: https://www.kegels-co.com/single-post/2018/10/30/The-marking-of-gas-oil-subject-to-full-taxation-is-in-conflict-with-Directive-9560EC

 

 A beautiful little bird; we shall call him Martin.

The house martin nests mainly under eaves of houses and its upper part is blue with a distinct, white rump. Its tail is also forked, though smaller than a swallow’s. Sand martins are similar in shape to house martins and, as the name suggests, nest in sand banks and quarries. You can see sand martins outside the north wall of the Battery. They dine daily on the flies which hatch in the East Beach's seaweed. By October they will start to migrate to Africa.

The next photo is a gathering of house martins around McArthur's Store at evening time on Friday 23rd August.

Click READ MORE to view

photos by Kenny Maule

Harbour Hound Day coming on Sunday 29th Sept. There'll be 'afternoon tea for dogs', see above for menu, plus 'dog and owner look-a-like' competition and more ....

On Friday 30th August, Rhona's Tasty Toastie had "Tea by the Sea, take 2" on the harbour-side in aid of Maggie's Centre, Edinburgh, raising £612, a tasty sum. A wonderful afternoon tea was enjoyed: tea, coffee, sandwiches and cake!  Click READ MORE to see that photo.

photos by Kenny Maule

September 13th 7.30--8.30pm, The Soldiers of Dunbar 1650 (free event).  Hear the story of the prelude to the Battle of Dunbar and meet the different types of soldier. Joining us will be descendants of some of those taken prisoner at the battle.Event concludes with musket salute over the old harbour.

https://www.eastlothianbattles.com/dunbar-2019

---------------

September 28th, 7--9pm, Pix in the Stix

September 29th, Sunday afternoon, Tasty Toastie is having a Harbour Hound Day with an unusual menu and competitions.

.... and for next month's Newsletter....... a report of Sparkling Dunbar!