Leith, Granton & Newhaven
June 29, 2021
29 Jun '21. The Port of Leith is the main commercial harbour for Edinburgh - but never referred to as Edinburgh Harbour. Invisible from the land, you would never guess it is Scotland's largest enclosed deep water port. It has a strange feel to it but holds a few surprises.
I was shown around by Marine Officer Michael Gibson who had an exotic career in the Merchant Navy before joining Forth Ports in Feb 2020. His varied jobs included running cargo and passengers from Cape Town to the sub tropical resting place of Napoleon on the famous Royal Mail Ship "St Helena". And another, transporting the fleet of Formula E racing cars around the world.
His current job also involves some exotic ships residing in Leith Harbour. The most famous of which is HMS Brittania - probably the best visitor attraction Fiona and I have ever been to (photo 4 and 5) . She lies in retirement in the outer "cruise ship" dock and I strongly recommend a visit. Close by is MV Fingal - previously a lighthouse tender vessel - now Scotland's only luxury floating hotel.
Moving further into the imposing Victorian docks, rather more serious ships lie up, including the impressive Seawell dive support ship, capable of remotely decommissioning oil well-heads from the surface. With renewables overtaking carbon based energy, Leith seems to be one step behind other port developments I have witnessed on the east coast. However diversity seems to be going in another direction - the largest hangar in the port (photo 7) is now a massive film studio used by Amazon Prime and Netflix.
The history of Leith is certainly a chequered one and after WW2 the neighbourhood won a reputation for prostitution and crime. But in 2021 the area is being developed fast - you only have to look at neighbouring Granton and Newhaven to see how pretty this area is. My prediction, for what it is worth, is in 50 years time Leith will not be a commercial harbour any more but a very desirable waterside development!
I was shown around by Marine Officer Michael Gibson who had an exotic career in the Merchant Navy before joining Forth Ports in Feb 2020. His varied jobs included running cargo and passengers from Cape Town to the sub tropical resting place of Napoleon on the famous Royal Mail Ship "St Helena". And another, transporting the fleet of Formula E racing cars around the world.
His current job also involves some exotic ships residing in Leith Harbour. The most famous of which is HMS Brittania - probably the best visitor attraction Fiona and I have ever been to (photo 4 and 5) . She lies in retirement in the outer "cruise ship" dock and I strongly recommend a visit. Close by is MV Fingal - previously a lighthouse tender vessel - now Scotland's only luxury floating hotel.
Moving further into the imposing Victorian docks, rather more serious ships lie up, including the impressive Seawell dive support ship, capable of remotely decommissioning oil well-heads from the surface. With renewables overtaking carbon based energy, Leith seems to be one step behind other port developments I have witnessed on the east coast. However diversity seems to be going in another direction - the largest hangar in the port (photo 7) is now a massive film studio used by Amazon Prime and Netflix.
The history of Leith is certainly a chequered one and after WW2 the neighbourhood won a reputation for prostitution and crime. But in 2021 the area is being developed fast - you only have to look at neighbouring Granton and Newhaven to see how pretty this area is. My prediction, for what it is worth, is in 50 years time Leith will not be a commercial harbour any more but a very desirable waterside development!