The Cairn

**The Cairn** (; ) is a wee veelage in the historical coonty o Wigtounshire in Dumfries an Gallowa, Scotland. It lies on the eastren shore o Loch Ryan, 6 mile north o Stranrawer. Twa ferry services connectin Scotland an Northren Ireland serve its port.

## Herbour

The Cairn his twa ferry stances connectin Scotland tae Northren Irealnd. The first, sooth o The Cairn, appent in 1973, operatit oreeginal bi Townsend Thoresen an noo bi P&O Ferries, links Scotland wi the port o Lairne. Pairt o this stance uises Cairnryan Lighterage Wharf. The seicont, at Old House Point, juist north o The Cairn, is operatit bi Stena Line linkin til the Port o Belfast in Belfast.

## Bus links tae Stranrawer an Ayr railwey stations

A bus link operatit bi Wigtownshire Community Transport rins atween the P&O Ferries ferry stance an the Stena Line ferry stance at The Cairn an Stranrawer. Stranrawer railwey station is aboot a 15 meenit walk fae the bus stance.

Stena Line operates a coach service atween the ferry stance an Ayr railwey station tae connect wi certaint sailins tae an fae Belfast.

## History

The Cairn is a linear dounset, leukin ootower the main A77 road tae Loch Ryan. It wis estaiblisht in 1701, whan Lochryan Hoose wis built, alang wi mony o the hooses, in the North End o the veelage, for wirkers on the Lochryan Estate. A sclate quarrel can be seen in the side o the face o the Cairn Hill that leuks ootower the veelage, that the sclates for the hoosin ruifs wis soorce't fae. Featurs o the estate includit a deer pairk an a boulin green. Thir anes, alang wi hooses on the shore side o the main road, wad make wey for the war biggin the veelage wad see. Lochryan Hoose was remodelt in the 1820s an the imposin structur, juist visible fae the main road nouadays, wis the upshot.

In the 1800s, The Cairn wis an important stagin stance on the coach route til Ayr, wi hauf a dizzen inns alang this streetch o coast. It achieved an aw a nae so desirable reputation as a howff o briganders preyin on that same passin traffeck.

Durin Warld War II The Cairn becam No.2 Military Port wi three herbour piers an a military railwey, linkin the veelage wi nearby Stranrawer, aw built bi the airmy. Anely ae pier remeens; the tane being dismantle't an the thither ane bein malafoustert in an ammuneetion flist shortlins efter the war. The remeenin pier is noo in a state o ruination an is palint aff. In maugre o this, mony anglers uise this pier for tope, mackerel, cod, dugfish, mullet, an plaice. Anither role, durin Warld War II, wis the biggin o some sections for the twa Mulberry Harbours, the fleetin ports that the Allies lippent efter D-Day.

Thoosands o troups wis sted local, in militar camps. At the end o the war, the Atlantic U-boat fleet surrendert in Loch Ryan an wis anchort in the port afore bein towed til the Sheuch (North Chainel) an sunk. This acteevity wis codename't Operation Deadlight. For a speak efter the war, conteenuin at least until 1958, the port wis uised tae receieve, by rail an Victory ships an Liberty ships, owerplus an time-spiret ammuneetion that wis laiden ontil airmy laundin boats for pittin by at sea. Thae comin bi rail hid wagons labelt wi the address "Davy Jones' Locker, Cairnryan". Haundlin an pittin by wis an unchancy task duin bi 13 Coy Royal Pioneer Corps (sted at Quarry Camp, ahint the Loch Ryan Hotel) that, in the early days, teuk the lifes o several at the port, while the lang-term an wider risks o sic pittin by hae anely later become mair evident.

In 1957 an 1958, Cairnryan Lighterage Whart an the port/jet wis again uised in a jynt Airmy/RAF operation cried Operation Hardrock. This operation wis tae build a racket-trackin station on the hiddly island o St Kilda, servin the South Uist Missile Range, whaur the 'Corporal' missiles wis lencht fae. The ceevil ingineerin wirk wis duin by the RAF's 5004 Airfield Construction Squadron, Wellesbourne, Mountford. Staffs, machinery an ither gear bein transportit tae/fae St Kilda uisin RASC Landing Craft Tanks (LCTs), operatit bi76 SQn RASC (LCT), sted at Portsmouth. Militar port acteevity ceased in the early 1960s, whan maist o the militar infrastructur wis abandont syne dismantle't, forby fae the pier an the lighterage wharf.

In the early 1950s, til the South End o the veelage, hooses wis built at Claddyburn Terrace that increased the population o the veelage. In the late 1960s, shipbrakkin becam the main industry; the Breetish aircraft carriers HMS Centaur, HMS Bulwark, HMS Eagle, an HMS Ark Royal wis aw sent for brakkin up, as weel as a nummer o ither boats, includin HMS Mohawk an HMS Blake. As recent as 1990, Soviet Navy submarines wis bein dismantle't for orral-metal.

In 1973, Townsend Thoreson stairted a ro-ro ferry service fae The Cairn tae Lairne for passengers an caurs, uisin the ship "Ionic Ferry". Fower month later, the service wis extendit tae commercial vehicles. TT wis later taen ower bi P&O.

## Futur

P&O Irish Sea conteenas tae depairt fae The Cairn, an Stena Line hae operatit fae a new ferry stance at Old House Point syne 2011. This means a major financial investment in the North Chainel routs an signeeficant lang-speal security for the veelage an the wider Loch Ryan Basin.

## References

*Photos o The Cairn durin Operation Hardrock in 1958
*Leetit biggins in The Cairn