Boat trips are available from South Queensferry on a vessel called Maid of the Forth. She is licensed to carry 225 passengers over two levels. The lower deck is completely enclosed while on top you can experience the sea air. The regular daytime cruises are themed around the small islands in this part of the Forth estuary, or the three bridge crossings. Occasional wildlife specials are also scheduled and we booked ourselves on a three-hour winter expedition to see the seal pups on Inchkeith.
It was a drizzly day as we boarded just before lunchtime, but it was expected to clear up soon. The sky was grey and thankfully there was no mist over the water, something that had rendered our bridwatching cruise last year a complete non-event. Almost immediately we passed below the mighty Forth Bridge, opened in 1890. Part of the East Coast Main Line and also carrying local Edinburgh to Fife traffic, the rumble of trains overhead is near constant. The rocks around Inchgarvie Island bear some of the bridge's weight and the wartime defence posts are still evident today. An aerial battle took place above the Firth of Forth in 1939 - the first German air raid on Britain during the war. On that day the Luftwaffe were intent upon hunting down British battleships and the bridge was left intact. The stramash marked the first occasion in the war where enemy aircraft entering UK airspace were fired upon (and shot down) by the RAF. Inchkeith Island lies 10 miles downstream from the Forth Bridge and we took a course more or less down the middle of the tidal river. We sailed by the deep-water floating Hound Point oil terminal, opened in 1975 and connected to a storage facility on the shore. Raw crude from the North Sea is brought in by pipeline and stabilised upriver at Grangemouth before being pumped back down to Dalmeny. The oil can be transferred to ships for worldwide export without them having to pass below the bridges. An older installation is the wartime military base on Ichmickery. From a distance, the tiny island resembles a battleship, due to the sheer amount of infrastructure. This may well have been a deliberate plan. By this time the fine rain had cleared and we could stand freely on the open deck in comfort. Inchkeith loomed in the distance.
Around 500 grey seal pups are born on Inchkeith every year. The boat keeps a respectable distance from the harbour area in order not to disturb the mothers and young. We obtained good views through binoculars and some nice photographs, the latter process rather tricky since the boat was gently bobbing. We saw a youngster being suckled and others cried out for attention. The adult males were hanging around the beach, some of them in the water, their part in the reproductive cycle now over. Meanwhile, a seal of indeterminate gender had clambered up to the top of the harbour wall and was blissfully slumbering. Having a thick layer of blubber makes outdoor napping a perfectly acceptable winter sport. The captain slowly spun the boat around to ensure a panoramic view for all passengers and we spent a good half hour absorbing the scene. Inchkeith is currently uninhabited and the lighthouse (67 metres tall) has been operating since 1804. The island served as headquarters of the Outer Forth defence during both world wars. The measures were designed to protect Edinburgh and the naval anchorage from distant bombardment and also to deal with ships attempting to force their way towards the Forth Bridge and Rosyth Dockyard. In both conflicts, anti-submarine booms were placed across the river at this point. A minefield (controlled from Inchkeith) was laid during WW2. Military use of the island ceased in 1956 and control passed to the Northern Lighthouse Board. The last keeper left in 1986. It was time to leave the seals behind and there was an unexpected bonus on the journey back to South Queensferry.
We sailed in close proximity to Inchmickery and this was the best view I'd ever had of the small island. No seals were present today but the urban explorer in me was thrilled to see the decaying defence structures in all their glory. The island - just 200 metres by 100 - is now a nature reserve managed by the RSPB. It was formerly a breeding site for the rare roseate tern but the red-listed birds have now moved elsewhere in the firth. Access to Inchmickery is restricted in order to protect the wildlife and it was a real treat to experience the next best option. I can thoroughly recommend a cruise on the Maid of the Forth. Bizarrely I have never set foot on the historic Inchcolm island, just off the coast at Aberdour - a regular stopping point on the Maid's intinerary. I must do this trip next summer.
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