SYC  NEWSLETTER  January 2026 

Message from the Secretary    Graham Gillies

 

A Guid New Year to ane an’ a’.

This year is the 50th Anniversary of the Serpent Yacht club founding so we are planning a celebration dinner to mark the occasion on 1st May -more details later.

Our Annual Dinner in December was as enjoyable and sociable as ever and we were pleased that the high standard of cuisine set by the new caterers last year was maintained. We enjoyed a personal and entertaining speech by David Brice from Belfast on cruising on the west coast of Scotland.

 

Our 2026 Serpent AGM will be on the evening of 24^th February 2026 at the

Royal Gourock Yacht Club 7 for 7.30pm. Coffee / teas will be available from 7pm.

After the brief official club business, Serpent member Séamus Lalor will be giving an illustrated talk on his recent Atlantic crossing, Tenerife to Martinique, crewing onan Amel 54 yacht. I look forward to seeing many of you there.

 

Photo shared Mid-atlantic     S Lalor  

Norena McAdam has organised our Winter visit to Dundee next week and has an update here for the 20 of so members who will be attending :-

 

Winter Meeting Dundee  15^th-16^th January 2026

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

January has arrived with a wintery entry into 2026.  I’m looking out at six inches of snow in the garden and am glad to hear gentle dripping as it thaws. 

The Winter Meeting is just a week away so it’s time to fill in the details of the programme.

There will be guided tours of HMS Unicorn and Discovery Point including RRS Discovery. Also a meal in Jute Café Bar, at Dundee Contemporary Arts.

The event begins on Thursday 15th at 14.00 at HMS Unicorn, for a guided tour of the Unicorn. Some members will be having lunch in the Apex Hotel nearby at 12.30 and you are welcome to join them if you wish. The tour will finish by 16.00, giving plenty of time to settle into your accommodation and meet at Jute Café Bar for a meal which is booked for 19.30.

We will meet again at 10.30 on Friday morning at Discovery Point for a guided tour, including a tour of RRS Discovery, Captain Scott’s ship. This will last approximately two hours and is the last official part of the Winter Meeting.  However you may wish to take advantage of the proximity to the V & A and add on a visit there in the afternoon.

Thursday 15^th January

14.00  Guided tour of HMS Unicorn, South Victoria Dock Road, Victoria Dock, Dundee DD1 3 BP      Cost £8

19.30 Informal dinner at Jute Café Bar, Dundee Contemporary Arts, 152 Nethergate, Dundee DD1 4DY.  Cost  will be divided between those attending and allowance will be made for the prepaid deposit of £10/person.

Friday 16^th January

10.30  Guided tour of Discovery Point and  RRS Discovery. Discovery Quay, Dundee DD1 4XA         Cost £13

Payment for the tours will be made individually on entry.

Looking forward to seeing you all in Dundee.

Norena  07748944594

Diary of Events for 2026

 

Dundee Winter Meeting 15th -16th January 2026

 

Serpent AGM  24^th February 2026 at Royal Gourock Yacht Club 7 for 7.30pm

 

Serpent 50th Anniversary Dinner – 1 May – Venue to be confirmed

 

Anniversary Muster – 16/17 May – Tarbert

 

Craobh Muster –  13/14 June followed by Cruise in company

 

Ormidale BBQ  –  8 August Loch Riddon

 

Autumn Muster – 12/13 September – Rothesay  

 

 

 

2025 Serpent Photo Competition Winner    Seabow Loch Sunart   Val Glen  

 

 

 Photo competition 2025

 

Here are the entries for the 2025 photo competition .

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

1 Reflections      Caroline Hutchinson 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

2  Seabow     Val Glen  Winner

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

  

 

3 Evening Sun     Mike Forbes

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

4 Race Start    Stewart Toy 

 

 

 

 

  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

5 Cowes Week Sailing       Roy D’Silva 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

6 Is it a boat or a boatymacboatplane?     Séamus Lalor  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

7 Game On          Freda Forbes

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

  

8 Early Summer Lunga        Dugald Glen Runner Up

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

9 Things are looking up           Trevor Watson 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

  

10  Yes we went round this stack in the Faroes     Marie McDougall 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

11 Surreal Dolphin       Graham Gillies 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

  

12 Sunset Anchored at Skye Bridge      Robert Rodger 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

  

13 Anyone bring the gin??      Norena McAdam

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

14 Rounding the windward mark      Ross Carter 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

SYC NEWSLETTER November 2025

Message from the Secretary Graham Gillies

Our Pint and a Curry night in October was well attended again with 13 drouthy souls in attendance all of whom made it to the Horseshoe bar. The Bombay Blues buffet with its assortment of spicy dishes didn’t disappoint and much chat ensued of the season’s cruising and plans for the winter.

The Serpent Annual Dinner and Prizegiving is on Saturday 6th December 7 for 7.30pm at the familiar and colourful Glasgow Art Club in Bath Street. The after-dinner speaker this year will be the Rev David Brice who will be joining us from Belfast. He and his wife Esse are fellow sailors and enthusiastic Serpent members. The cost of the evening will be £70 pp, to include a Prosecco Reception and choice of 3 course meal followed by tea or coffee.

Please see attached Menu and application form for the dinner. As usual, we require to have pre-orders for menu choices. The Chef will tailor dishes to any stated diet requirements.
Orders must be received by 1st December.

Photo Competition It's time for this year’s Photo Competition. The trophy for the winner is a fine watercolour painting by the late John Turner to enjoy for a year and an enlarged print of your Photo which will be displayed at the Dinner. All competition entries will be posted on the Serpent website and you, the club members, will once again be the judges. This has proved to be popular and enjoyable distraction providing some colour and interest to the website, so please do send in your contribution.

The Competition rules are, that a member submitting a photo must have taken it themselves within the past year. One photo per member. The theme is suitably broad, ‘A boating or marine scene’. You must be happy to have your photo posted on the Serpent website.

Please email your photo, in the highest resolution possible together with a title to Graham at gwagillies@gmail.com The closing date is not far away on Tuesday 11th November so don’t delay. 

 

 

2024 Photo Competition Winner ‘Late summer dawn Crinan’ - Dugald Glen

 

Diary of Events for 2025 /26

 

The Annual Dinner & Prize-giving on

Saturday 6th December Glasgow Art Club, Bath St.

 

Dundee Winter Meeting 15th -16th January 2026
We are holding a winter meeting in Dundee comprising a tour of HMS Unicorn, Scotland’s Oldest Ship, followed by an evening meal in the Jute Restaurant.

The following morning, we will tour Discovery Point and the RRS Discovery, Captain Scott’s Ship.

 

Our 2026 Serpent AGM will be on the evening of 24^th February 2026 at the

Royal Gourock Yacht Club.

 

 

Arran Backdrop at day’s end GG

 

 

 

SYC  NEWSLETTER  October 2025 

 

Message from the Secretary    Graham Gillies

 

As the sailing season begins to draw to a close, at least for most of us, it appears to be going out with a bang rather than a simper. I hope your boats and homes are safe and undamaged in the wake of Storm Amy, which sounds like something of an oxymoron all the more-so for its fierceness. Silverjack is still on her mooring (I hope) and soon to be put to bed for the winter.

 

Our September closing muster at Rothesay went well despite the lack of takers for a race. Thirteen folk were there, three arriving by ferry, with the remainder cruising there on one of the 3 boats that attended, Micky Finn 4, Taylor Maid and Silverjack. The Saturday was overcast and blustery but certainly didn’t dampen the spirits of those attending. After suitable socialising on board, we walked as a group to the Glenburn Hotel for dinner. The walk was shorter than I remembered with a modest incline up to the substantially refurbished hotel. We enjoyed an excellent evening with surprisingly good food and an attentive service. We were also well looked after at the harbour by Iain and the staff at Bute Berthing who provided the cheapest berthing fees of the season which included electricity. There was talk that the venue worked well and may  be worth revisiting.

 

Pint and a Curry. Our next meet up is next week already on Thursday 16^th October when we will be repeating last year’s popular evening of a Pint and a Curry. This is a relaxed and informal occasion to meet up with friends and catch up with their summer exploits. The buffet curry, which is excellent, is at the evergreen Bombay Blues Restaurant at 7pm. Those inclined for a pre-prandial pint (other refreshments are also available) are meeting up at the Horseshoe Bar at 6pm. The Bombay Blues Restaurant is conveniently close to Central Station in Hope Street just opposite the station. If you would like to join us, please let me know by email or text (07876 505307) by Tuesday 14^th next week. I look forward to seeing many of you there.

 

 

 

 

 

Diary of Events for 2025 /26

 

Closing Supper Thursday 16^th October By popular demand, we are repeating our Pint and a Curry experience. Meeting in the historic Horseshoe Bar from 6pm (optional), followed by a Buffet Curry at 7pm at the long-established Bombay Blues Restaurant in Hope Street opposite Glasgow Central Station.

 

The Annual Dinner and Prize-giving on Saturday 6th December will once again be in the inspiring venue of the Glasgow Art Club.

 

Winter Meeting  15th -16th January 2026
We are having a winter meeting in Dundee comprising a tour HMS Unicorn, Scotland’s Oldest Ship, followed by an evening meal in the Jute Restaurant and stay in a local hotel – (most folk have booked at the Apex hotel). The following morning, we will tour Discovery Point and the RRS Discovery, Captain Scott’s Ship. This has already been well subscribed but we could probably include one or two more if you are keen.

 

 

A swallow at sunset      GG

 

 

SYC NEWSLETTER September 2025

Message from the Secretary Graham Gillies

I hope you have been making the most of this summer’s remarkably warm settled weather. It looks like it has left us for the moment, although we can hardly complain. Let’s hope it returns in time for our Autumn muster which is only 2 weeks away, on Saturday 13th September at Rothesay. For those racing, there will be a race on Saturday morning from, and returning to Rothesay. Dinner will be at 6.30pm at the Glenburn Hotel which has been extensively refurbished. Details and application forms are attached to this email. I hope many of you will be able to join us there.

We encountered a pod of dolphins on two separate occasions in the summer both times off Arran’s east shore. We also saw them feeding in Lamlash Bay. With the bay now being a well-established no take zone for fishing, perhaps the dolphins will remain local to the area as some pods do. 

 

Dolphins off Arran      GG

 

Our August barbecue at Ormidale on Loch Riddon was a relaxing and sociable affair. There were crews from 7 boats at the party although not all had sailed there. In addition to the usual suspects, it was good to see Richard and Marie-Anne Poyau there. They are now keeping their Nauticat yacht Gabriella on the Clyde. We were also delighted to welcome visitors Nathan and Eileen, who sailed from Kip in company with Alan Kirk’s Tailor Maid. Midgies were notable for their absence, perhaps aided by the citronella torches and barbecue smoke. Despite forecasts to the contrary, it remained dry and proved to be a most enjoyable evening. 

 

 

Barbecue at Ormidale       Norena McAdam

 

Save the Date January 2026

Winter Meeting - 15th -16th January 2026

The club is planning a winter meeting in the dark days of January, an opportunity to get together, catch up with other members and swap sailing stories.
The plan is to meet in Dundee; tour HMS Unicorn, Scotland’s Oldest Ship, have a meal in the Jute Restaurant and stay in a local hotel. The next day we will tour Discovery Point and the RRS Discovery, Captain Scott’s Ship, the following morning. Hopefully you will put the date in your diary and plan to come along.

Diary of Events for 2025

Autumn Muster – Rothesay – Saturday 13th September There will be a Race as usual before meeting up at the inner marina berths in Rothesay Harbour. Following the customary socialising on board, dinner ashore in the evening will be at the Glenburn Hotel. See attachment for details.

Closing Supper Thursday 16th October By popular demand, we are repeating our Pint and a Curry experience. Meeting in the historic Horseshoe Bar from 6pm (optional), followed by a Buffet Curry at 7pm at the long-established Bombay Blues Restaurant in Hope street opposite Glasgow Central Station.

The Annual Dinner and Prize-giving on Saturday 6th December will once again be in the colourful surroundings of the Glasgow Art Club. 

 

 

 

                                 Settled Sunset Bute August 2025 GG