Looking for the Motor Yacht JUNE

[Douglas Bay]

Hello Dear Fellow Mariners.

I am at the end of my tether!
I have been searching for my late father-in-laws motor yacht "JUNE" for some years now.
It was designed by John Silver and built on the Clyde in 1936.
It was a ketch rigged 36 feet long teak and mahogany boat that plied the Sottish waters up until
the 2000's when it disappeared sadly, not to be detected again.
Friends of ours said they'd heard that she had been re discovered in 2022 around the Ardfern area in Scotland,
but try as I might, I could not sniff her out.
Call it nostalgia, but I am determined to find out what happened to the old girl.
My wife and I did all our swooning on here (me recently out of the Merchant Navy, proving I was a worthy
person for my father in laws pride and joy!)

Any assistance please do let me know ...ops@scorpionoil.com ... and I'd be eternally grateful.

The JUNE is probably still up in Scottish waters ... so the search shouldn't be too wide spread.

Also, which is the Shipping Index I should bring up when searching for yachts.

Thanks a lot guys

all the best

[Doc Vernon]

Motor Vessel JUNE built by James A. Silver Ltd in 1936 for E. F. Warters, Whitby. Yorkshire., Yacht (clydeships.co.uk)

No mention of its fate though?
Will keep looking.
Cheers
May give one an insight as to what the Yacht looked like
Cheers

Motor Yachts on the Clyde | Clyde River and Firth (dalmadan.com)


Have you thought about contacting the Yacht Centre there at all?
Cheers

Ardfern Yacht Centre, by Lochgilphead, Scotland

[Mike Hall]

Well,I have just been searching for a picture of the yacht and found a number by the name "JUNE"

Type the following into your search box-image yacht june no 161021

[j.sabourn]

#1. Well Douglas you are the first one I would come to for advice when I first heard that expression “ where do you think you are ? On your Daddies yacht ?”. One of the few ex. Merchant mariners who could answer in all truthfulness. I wish you well in your search and have every successs in finding her history.The old girl must be lying up some backwater praying for someone to rescue her. Every success in your endeavours . Cheers JS
PS just looked at your cv and see you were with Athel line from 1965 . I was mate with RS Dalgliesh then and sailing with a chief engineer ex Athel line who would have been second engineer with them prior to your starting there , his name was Candiotis and lived in North Shields he had been involved in some incident on one of their tankers and supposedly badly burned although must have been on other parts of his body as weren’t visible when dressed . Can you recollect of any incident talked about when you were there ? Cheers JS

[Douglas Bay]

Well,I have just been searching for a picture of the yacht and found a number by the name "JUNE"

Type the following into your search box-image yacht june no 161021

Hi Mike,
Thank you for taking the time to reply with the suggestion.
I typed "image yacht june no 11021" in the search box and the advanced search box, sadly to no avail.

I do have an old photograph of her, but my tech-knowledge is so infantile, I wouldn't have the slightest idea
as to how to transfer it to this forum .... I know it's easy for a lot of folk, but sadly, I'm not one of them!

I will keep hunting though!

[Douglas Bay]

Motor Vessel JUNE built by James A. Silver Ltd in 1936 for E. F. Warters, Whitby. Yorkshire., Yacht (clydeships.co.uk)

No mention of its fate though?
Will keep looking.
Cheers
May give one an insight as to what the Yacht looked like
Cheers

Motor Yachts on the Clyde | Clyde River and Firth (dalmadan.com)


Have you thought about contacting the Yacht Centre there at all?
Cheers

Ardfern Yacht Centre, by Lochgilphead, Scotland

Hi Doc,

Many thanks for the reply and all the suggestions enclosed.
My wife and I visit that part of the world up in Scotland quite a lot, and I have on several occasions,
dropped in to Ardfern Yacht Marina to enquire as to June's whereabouts.
As I mentioned in my first post, the last time they spotted her was in early 2022, but not a whisper since.
Kinda makes me think that she may have been bought and taken down South ...
I will try the publishers of Motor Yachts on the Clyde though ...
Heading back up to Lochgilphead around February, and will, once again, drop in to Ardfern,
Thanks again Doc.

[Douglas Bay]

Hi John,

I had to chuckle when reading your reply - for which many thanks, it's much appreciated.
Not quite "Daddy's yacht", though close enough as I did go on and marry his beautiful daughter!
I was, as a matter of fact, "vetted" by father Bill on the yacht as he sought to see whether I was BS'ing
about my abilities to discern bouys, currents, navigation channels etc, being 2nd mate with Athel
at the time... and this 2 week holiday with the family was my test!
It was great fun, especially as on one of the days we went sailing up the Clyde only to be heading for a buoy
up ahead a mile away. "I'd steer clear of that one Bill, come to port and pass well clear of it" was my suggestion.
"Meh," came the reply, "I've passed that fella several times close to in the past - should be all right"
"I wouldn't" I repeated. He took some persuasion, but finally followed my directive.
When docked, he got out the Book of Buoys ... "Hmmm, you were right to pass clear, but I was right because we only
draw 3 feet draft. Spoils shared ... it was an Isolation Danger Buoy marking a submerged wreck... honours even,
I passed the test and was accepted into the Clan Menzies!!

I joined Athel in '65 John, but only once came across the name Chandiotis in later years when in a nostalgic gathering.
The name that readily came to mind was Roger Charlton ... an immensely funny man, Geordie, standing well over six feet
and one for the women! He got me into loads of trouble across just about every port we touched in on - quite an experience
for a wet-behind-the-ears junior apprentice. Charlton did the round tours across Ben Line, Blue Flu, Clan Line etc after leaving Athel.

Sadly the only major incident I was ever involved in at sea (thank God it was the only one) was the retrieving of the C/O's body
from the bottom of an empty Toluene tank in the middle of Hiroshima Bay at 2 am in the morning. He had taken his gas mask off
for a split second to check the elephant suction foot and he was done for... Stupid, I know, but tragic nonetheless, a lovely man
who left behind a widow and four children, one of whom I still keep in touch with to ensure Ed's legacy never died. Good man.

Anyway, back to the search for the June.... wish me luck! Now I have a few spare coppers in the bank and I can afford the boat
I can't bloody find her!! Sod's law ... toodle pip!

[Douglas Bay]

Re: MY JUNE

It is with great sadness that yesterday I was advised of the demise of this wonderful James Silver Yacht.
She was sold off Lochgilphead last March by hr owner to a local boatyard in extremely poor condition (I was sent photos)
and according to the yard owner, was well beyond repair.... so she was scrapped in June (ironically) 2023 nearby.
The greater irony was that my wife and I visited and had dinner at a restaurant literally 100 yrds from where she
was laid up by the Crinan Canal before she was taken to be scrapped three months later. We often go on holiday to that area of Argyll !
I vividly remember when we left the restaurant at around 10pm, seeing the shape of a white hulled cruiser up on blocks along the edge of the Canal
but never gave it a second thought - it was June! If only hey .....I am not embarrassed to admit a tear did roll down my cheek upon hearing how close I was...
Anyway, the yard owner has retained some stuff taken off her and has offered me the steering wheel and the compass.
A decent chap on whom the irony was not wasted!
I've yet to tell my wife Fiona, but I will break it to her sometime soon.
Thank you for the loan of your eyes and ears on here ... time to call off the search party.
Grateful thanks to all.

[Des Taff Jenkins]

Hi Douglas.
Such a poignant story, there is a magazine printed in Scotland , been running since the 1800, a short story to them about your Yacht would go down well maybe, just a thought. The Magazine is called The Peoples Friend.
Cheers Des

[j.sabourn]

#9 My mother used to read that Des. JS