Explorer looking for a place in the sun

It is a 1956 steam driven fishery research vessel with all sorts of ‘modern’ innovations, and it may be opened to the public.

Based on a deep sea side trawler with a hull strengthened for Arctic expeditions, the SS Explorer was considered to be advanced for its time and boasted several developments that were new for the era, including radar, gyro-compass and even a computer which took up most of a laboratory. The ship has accommodation for 38 crew, eight of which were scientists. It is remarkably luxurious, with solid mahogany bunks, wardrobes and tables.

The ship was withdrawn from service in 1984 and sent for scrap. Initially interested in taking out the engines, Aberdeen Maritime Museum purchased the Explorer. However, it was too good just to pull apart so they kept it intact, although during the ten years they had the vessel a berth could not be found and once again the Explorer was sent down to the scrap yard.

This time the boat’s plight drew enough interest for a group (the SS Explorer Preservation Society) to be formed, but it was an eleventh and a half hour rescue. Simon Sawyer of the preservation group told MJ, “By the time we turned up at 9.00 on the Monday morning with the money to put on the table, the Explorer had already started to be dismantled.”

Surviving the close call, it was brought to Leith in 1994 for restoration, where it was given a free home courtesy of Forth Ports.

So far it has been hard to allow people onboard to see the vessel, but this may be about to change, partly because it is now sufficiently restored for people to come and look it over, said Mr Sawyer. The society is currently in discussions with Forth Ports to see if it can be moved to a less commercial area in Leith Docks so that the ship can be visited by the public.

The ship is now a far cry from when the society first purchased it in 1994. A lot of decayed material has been removed, various areas of corrosion have been scaled and painted, the wheelhouse interior has been stripped back to bare wood and varnished. The Society has recently started to strip the main engine for internal condition assessment, and has thus far proven to be surprisingly good.

The Society is also doing a costing exercise for various projects, including drydocking, re-wiring and boiler repairs. All of this is in anticipation of a Heritage Lottery Fund application being compiled and submitted. For further information, visit www.ss-explorer.com