Stopping to re-fuel, windfarm service vessel, Turbine Transfer prepares to leave the quay in Newlyn...
there's plenty of work underway aboard the William Sampson Stevenson...
as she undergoes a major refit as a precursor to the rigours of a DTI (marine equivalent of the MOT plus some) inspection...
the concrete will have been chipped out of the bilges from the fishroom...
with woodwork stripped out...
and work on her steering gear and rudder...
over on the slip, the Twilight III is having her hull anti-fouled under the waterline as a corroded anode is cut away from the hull - being softer metal (zinc) anodes are intended to corrode instead of the pipework that supplies cooling water to the engine and gearbox...
not only is the internal structure of the market but the external walls are getting a makeover and being faced with granite...
as the netting fleet has turned to ex-French and Scottish vessels when replacements have been made so the size of the sterns has increased, first the Govenek of Ladram entered the fray...
followed by the Karen of Ladram...
and today, the latest boat to join the fleet with the biggest rear end yet, the Amanda of Ladram...
who has just steamed down from Toms boatyard in Fowey where she underwent a nine-month refit and conversion from trawling to netting...
which provides an excellent view over the new boat...
which is no stranger to Newlyn as she fished from here as the prawn trawler, Asteria over the last two summers...
the boat has had a complete makeover and refit...
as the Amanda of Ladram...
new hydraulic controls atop the shelterdeck aft side of the hatch that allows access down to the fishroom for landing are typical of the modern netter layout...
the huge Spencer Carter N10 hauler is angled inboard when the boat is steaming and the open deck protected by this hatch that keeps the shelterdeck watertight in heavy weather...
steps aft side of the wheelhouse allow for access to the afterdeck...
with its straight edge down to the water...
over the huge net pound shelter with its hydraulic over-ending net handler...
access to the huge wheelhouse is via a port-side doorway...
inside is a rather minimalist layout which makes full advantage of flat screens for all the navigational and fishfinding electronics that vessels enjoy these days...
like CCTV covering every square inch of the decks and engine room below...
like any boat that hauls nets, pots or lines the skipper needs to have a good view of the hauler - in an ideal world the boat needs to keep the net (or backing rope for potters and liners) leading almost straight up and down from its point of contact with the hauler...
joystick steering and the Morse control that is the equivalent of throttle and clutch are all within easy reach as are the red kill buttons for the main hydraulics...
looking over the working deck from inside...
the spacious galley
after feeding in form the hauler the net passes along a deep trough so tat fish can be held securely and flipped out of the net...
from there they are passed to the gutting station and port-side fishwasher...
from there, the fish are placed in the boat's fish boxes that are held securely from the deck...
looking from the fish washer across to the hauler...
like every good Cat, the main engine sounds like a bucket of bolts being rattled...
while a Cummins motor powers...
the hydraulic motor and pumps...
looking down over the shelterdeck...
and the huge searchlight needed to spot dahns and buffs at night...
skipper John will be happier when the boat is loaded with nets, grub and ice aboard...
and her first landing of fish with tallies bearing E9 Amanda of Ladram are on the boxes of fish...
for now the crew drop the shore ropes...
so that she can shift astern...
and take a berth alongside the beam trawler Sapphire II...
who, despite being one of the biggest trawlers in the port, her bow dwarfed by the stern of the Amanda...
basking in the sunshine...
the Gardener 6LX powered New Venture...
the new crabber is slowly taking shape...
and the final touches are being made to the deck of the sardiner, Vesta
which will likely to see her miss this year's season...
and miss the opportunity for the new, for'ard wheelhouse layout being tried...
a panoramic image giving a better view of the deck layout employed...
the crane and powerblock make handling the big ring net a breeze...
looking astern...
it's that man Basher on the harbour forklift summoned to lend a helping hand and get some electricity aboard Mr Edward's latest charge...
just how many fishermen does it take to turn on the power?
