AT Foulis Point in East Ross, generations of motorists have diverted their child passengers by pointing out the ‘crocodiles’ that lie in the water there at low tide. These two oak skeletons are all that is left of 12 Zulu herring drifters that were last hauled up in 1914 at the safe winter berth of Ardullie with the help of a farm threshing machine. Many of the skippers never returned from the First World War and those that did found steam drifters driven by engines had replaced those that relied on sails and oars.
First designed by Walter Campbell of Lossiemouth in 1879, the year of the Zululand war in South Africa, Zulus were built up to the First World War. In their thousands they chased the herring—‘the silver darlings’ as they were known to Highland fisherfolk— down the coasts of Britain from early spring through to autumn. Family-owned boats from far-flung ports fished to sell to distant markets.
The Zulu took the best parts of two earlier Scottish fishing boats, the Fifie with its straight stem and the Skaffie with its raked stern, and combined them in one boat with a short keel. This produced a two-masted vessel that was easier to manoeuvre and had more deck space for the fishermen aboard. Now, only five examples of the Zulu remain in existence. Of these, the newly restored St Vincent, a 49ft dipping lug-rigged herring drifter, has just completed her sea trials and is ready to take up her role as a working museum, based between the Highland West Coast port of Ullapool and the nearby island of Tanera Mòr in the Summer Isles.
Denne historien er fra October 04, 2023-utgaven av Country Life UK.
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Denne historien er fra October 04, 2023-utgaven av Country Life UK.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
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Kitchen garden cook - Apples
'Sweet and crisp, apples are the epitome of autumn flavour'
The original Mr Rochester
Three classic houses in North Yorkshire have come to the market; the owner of one inspired Charlotte Brontë to write Jane Eyre
Get it write
Desks, once akin to instruments of torture for scribes, have become cherished repositories of memories and secrets. Matthew Dennison charts their evolution
'Sloes hath ben my food'
A possible paint for the Picts and a definite culprit in tea fraud, the cheek-suckingly sour sloe's spiritual home is indisputably in gin, says John Wright
Souvenirs of greatness
FOR many years, some large boxes have been stored and forgotten in the dark recesses of the garage. Unpacked last week, the contents turned out to be pots: some, perhaps, nearing a century old—dense terracotta, of interesting provenance.
Plants for plants' sake
The garden at Hergest Croft, Herefordshire The home of Edward Banks The Banks family is synonymous with an extraordinary collection of trees and shrubs, many of which are presents from distinguished friends, garnered over two centuries. Be prepared to be amazed, says Charles Quest-Ritson
Capturing the castle
Seventy years after Christian Dior’s last fashion show in Scotland, the brand returned under creative director Maria Grazia Chiuri for a celebratory event honouring local craftsmanship, the beauty of the land and the Auld Alliance, explains Kim Parker
Nature's own cathedral
Our tallest native tree 'most lovely of all', the stately beech creates a shaded environment that few plants can survive. John Lewis-Stempel ventures into the enchanted woods
All that money could buy
A new book explores the lost riches of London's grand houses. Its author, Steven Brindle, looks at the residences of plutocrats built by the nouveaux riches of the late-Victorian and Edwardian ages
In with the old
Diamonds are meant to sparkle in candlelight, but many now gather dust in jewellery boxes. To wear them today, we may need to reimagine them, as Hetty Lintell discovers with her grandmother's jewellery
