Andrew Young recounts his trips on board the famous paddle steamer Waverley during her Western Isles programme in May 2025.
Waverley’s Western Isles programme ran from 19 to 27 May, and I was aboard for all nine glorious days. Departing Glasgow at 07:30 on 19 May, the paddler made a scenic run to Oban via Largs, Campbeltown, Crinan (her first call there since 1995), and the Sound of Jura, passing Isle of Arran and Lord of the Isles. Captain McCall deftly brought her alongside Crinan’s tight pier in the evening sunshine before continuing to Oban, arriving just past 20:15.
Tuesday’s cruise from Oban to Kyle of Lochalsh began with a watery salute from CMS Thunderer, a Clyde tug. Waverley passed Tobermory and Ardnamurchan into flat seas, with Eigg looming on the port. After a stop at Armadale, I rejoined the ship for a scenic passage past Sandaig Isles into the Kyle Rhea narrows and on to Kyle. An evening cruise under the Skye Bridge and through the Strome Narrows capped the day.
Wednesday brought calls at Raasay and Portree. I explored Raasay’s Iron Railway before rejoining for the Portree overnight stop. A bus delay returned me to Kyleakin late, but dinner was salvaged. Thursday’s leg to Gairloch and Ullapool offered stunning views, though I remained in Gairloch for the photo op I’d long dreamed of, albeit with imperfect framing thanks to a shifted rope barrier.
Friday saw Waverley make her first-ever call at Carbost, Skye. After a mechanical delay, we paddled through deteriorating weather to the Talisker-distillery village before returning to Kyle and bussing to Fort William. Saturday’s drizzly departure involved tenders and low passenger numbers, but the mood lifted for the lively cruise to Staffa, complete with rough seas and a triple-expansion engine backdrop to onboard turbulence.
Sunday’s planned cruise to Duart Castle and the Corryvreckan Whirlpool was scrubbed due to poor weather. Instead, a Loch Linnhe run via Ballachulish was offered. Monday’s Tiree visit was also cancelled; Waverley sailed to Salen Bay and through dramatic Loch Sunart, squeezing through narrow passages before an evening Tobermory dinner.
Tuesday, the final day, featured a first-time call at Salen (Mull). I went ashore for photos, joined Waverley again at Tobermory, and watched her poke around Ardnamurchan and Loch Sunart one last time.
She returned to Oban where a bus connection to Edinburgh was laid on—though the driver delayed an hour, which nearly complicated my flight to Germany to mark the 50th anniversary of Rheine’s steam express withdrawals. Fittingly, Waverley had entered preservation the same year that the DB Class 012 bowed out.
