MV The Second Snark
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MV The Second Snark was built in 1938 by William Denny of Dumbarton on the Firth of Clyde, Scotland, as a tug and tender for use at their shipyard, replacing their previous steam driven vessel The Snark. A 1957 photograph shows her towing "the well known Clyde barge Bojum" (laden with a large marine diesel engine) from the engine works down the River Leven to Denny's Leven Shipyard, Dumbarton — evidently someone liked Lewis Carroll's The Hunting of the Snark.
From 1960 to 1963 Denny's used The Second Snark for summer cruises on the Firth of Forth, returning to the Clyde in winter, but when the company went into liquidation in 1963 the ship was taken over by Brown Bros. who continued Forth cruises initially while concentrating mainly on research work for ship stabilisers. When the research project was completed in 1969 they sold The Second Snark which then became part of the Clyde Marine Motoring fleet. Since then she has continued in use for cruises on the Firth of Clyde under the flag of Clyde Marine Services Ltd, mainly from Princes Pier, Greenock, which was once a busy railhead for the Glasgow and South Western Railway and its Clyde steamers. She now comes under their Clyde Marine Cruises section, based at Victoria Harbour, Greenock, and also occasionally serves on the Gourock — Kilcreggan — Helensburgh ferry service, substituting for the 1936 MV Kenilworth.
Although The Second Snark is a fairly small vessel, Clyde Marine Services Ltd show her Passenger Capacity as 120, restricted to 60-80 if full onboard catering is required. She still retains many original features including teak decks, varnished woodwork and polished brass. Two underdeck heated saloons, one with a bar, contribute to her continuing popularity as a cruise boat and charter vessel from April to September, particularly for "booze cruises".
