Smuggling past was put in focus
Ballantrae’s smuggling past came alive again with two fantastic events.
On Friday, pupils at the village school were treated to an On the Spot storytelling session where they heard the smuggling history from two points of view - from both the skipper of the HM Customs Revenue Cutter and the leader of the local Smugglers.
The King’s Arms Hotel hosted a Smugglers’ Supper on Saturday, with traditional Scottish fayre on offer while Davie Hunter, Lorna McColm and Beatrice Clark provided traditional music on the night.
And on Sunday, five skiff crews from coastal rowing clubs across the south west of Scotland battled it out in Ballantrae Bay for the hand- crafted Ballantrae Smugglers’ Chase Trophy. The Firth of Clyde Coastal Rowing Club took the prize for the second year running.
Andy McAlpine, chairman of the Smugglers’ Festival, said: “This year’s festival has been spread over four months rather than being concentrated in a week or weekend.
“The session with the children on Friday was great fun - they asked us good questions and didn’t let us away with anything.
“The staff at the King’s Arms were the perfect hosts for the Smugglers’ Supper and Davie, Lorna and Beatrice were fantastic.
“On Sunday we had more boats in the water and more rowers than last year. Thank you to everyone who made this weekend a success.”
This year’s festival has one more event on Saturday, September 23 with a Carrick Smugglers’ Road Trip from Ballantrae to Heads of Ayr, ending with a book launch of Carrick’s Smuggling Story.