The Jetty - 3

By the early 1980s the slipway below The Ferry Stores was in a sorry state, broken into several sections which, as the tide came in, resembled a line of islands.

During the winter of 1983/84 it was repaired by a local, co-operative effort, the volunteers working at weekends. Roddy MacLeod provided cement to mortar the existing stonework, and Highland Council tarmacked the access road. These repairs encouraged a small group to restart the annual Kilchoan Regatta, a traditional event which goes back many years but had lapsed in 1962. The first 'new' regatta took place in the summer of 1984.

However, the sea continued to erode the structure until, in 1996/97, a substantial grant was obtained by the West Ardnamurchan Jetty Association to restore the jetty. The work resulted in the much more substantial structure we see today, with a well-formed concrete wall running down the seaward side. At the same time, the two stone buildings which had been part of the salmon fishery were refurbished, the one between the shop store room and the Ferry House was converted into a shower block and the other, Shore Cottage, above, made into a premise available for local use, such as boat storage, and the office for the Regatta.

Since then WAJA, now a company limited by guarantee, has struggled to raise funds to maintain the facilities, its only sources of income being the four moorings it provides for passing yachts, a '100 Club' which it runs, the takings from the shower block, and an annual payment from the Regatta Committee. Thus, when storms recently damaged the jetty, it was repaired by volunteers. A recent inspection showed that parts of the concrete surface of the jetty are, once again, showing signs of wear.

Despite this, the jetty continues to provide a centre for the village's many maritime activities. The two local creel-fishing boats use it for repairs. Numerous craft, from kayaks to keel yachts, rowing boats to RIBs, launch from it, and visiting yachtsmen land at it. And, as summer approaches, a crew of crabs assembles in eager anticipation of the annual bacon feast - provided on the ends of orange crab lines by groups of laughing youngsters.