Stromness The Hamnavoe approaches the ferry terminal

MV ''Hamnavoe'' is a car and passenger ferry, built in 2002 and operated by

NorthLink Ferries NorthLink Ferries (also referred to as Serco NorthLink Ferries) is an operator of passenger and vehicle ferries, as well as ferry services, between mainland Scotland and the Northern Isles of Orkney and Shetland. Since July 2012, it has been ope ...

across the

Pentland Firth The Pentland Firth (, meaning the Orcadian Strait) is a strait which separates the Orkney Islands from Caithness in the north of Scotland. Despite the name, it is not a firth. Etymology The name is presumed to be a corruption of the Old Nors ...

from the mainland of

Scotland Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...

to the

Orkney Islands Orkney (), also known as the Orkney Islands, is an archipelago off the north coast of mainland Scotland. The plural name the Orkneys is also sometimes used, but locals now consider it outdated. Part of the Northern Isles along with Shetland ...

Description

The ship, with a length of and beam , measures . ''Hamnavoe'' has a capacity for 600 passengers and 68 cars. Facilities include passenger lounges and bars, a self-service restaurant, a children's playroom, a sun deck and a games room. There are 16 passenger cabins with two or four berths, which are all en suite. There are two specially adapted cabins for the disabled and wheelchair access throughout the ship. ''Hamnavoe'' is powered by twin MaK 9M32C diesels, totalling and resulting in a service speed of .

History

''Hamnavoe'' is the first ferry to have been specifically built for the

route, and was given the old Norse name for

Stromness Stromness (, ; ) is the second-most populous town in Orkney, Scotland. It is in the southwestern part of Mainland, Orkney. It is a burgh with a parish around the outside with the town of Stromness as its capital. Etymology The name "Stromnes ...

, meaning 'Home Port' or 'Safe Haven'. The ship was originally ordered in October 2000 from Ferguson Shipbuilders at

Port Glasgow Port Glasgow (, ) is the second-largest town in the Inverclyde council area of Scotland. The population according to the 1991 census for Port Glasgow was 19,426 persons and in the 2001 census was 16,617 persons. The most recent census in 2011 s ...

but Fergusons withdrew from the contract only two months later due to design arrangements and production scheduling. The construction was re-allocated to

Aker Finnyards STX Finland Oy, formerly Aker Yards Oy, was a Finnish shipbuilding company operating three shipyards in Finland, in Turku, Helsinki and Rauma, employing some 2,500 people. It was part of STX Europe, a group of international shipbuilding compani ...

Rauma, Finland Rauma (; ) is a town in Finland, on the western coast of the country. Rauma is in the Satakunta region, by the Gulf of Bothnia. The population of Rauma is approximately , while the sub-region has a population of approximately . It is the most p ...

which had already been awarded contracts for two larger ferries for NorthLink. The ship was the third vessel in Aker's build sequence, after and the , and was completed in October 2002. However, due to delays in the building of the new pier in

Scrabster Scrabster () is a small settlement on Thurso Bay in Caithness on the north coast of Scotland. It is some from Thurso, from Wick, from Inverness and 271.7 miles (437.2 km) from Edinburgh. Scrabster Harbour is an important port for the ...

, ''Hamnavoe'' was laid up in

Leith Leith (; ) is a port area in the north of Edinburgh, Scotland, founded at the mouth of the Water of Leith and is home to the Port of Leith. The earliest surviving historical references are in the royal charter authorising the construction of ...

. Since 2003 the formal ownership of ''Hamnavoe'' has changed in line with changes in the operator of NorthLink. Since 2018 the ferry has been registered to Caledonian Marine Assets Limited, and operated by

Serco Serco Group plc is a British multinational corporation, multinational military, defence, Healthcare, health, Space industry, space, private prison, justice, Human migration, migration, customer service, customer services, and transport company ...

Service

''Hamnavoe'' was introduced on the

lifeline ferry service between Scrabster in

Caithness Caithness (; ; ) is a Shires of Scotland, historic county, registration county and Lieutenancy areas of Scotland, lieutenancy area of Scotland. There are two towns, being Wick, Caithness, Wick, which was the county town, and Thurso. The count ...

and Stromness in

Orkney Orkney (), also known as the Orkney Islands, is an archipelago off the north coast of mainland Scotland. The plural name the Orkneys is also sometimes used, but locals now consider it outdated. Part of the Northern Isles along with Shetland, ...

in 2003. The voyage takes approximately 90 minutes and is made up to six times a day. Overnight accommodation is available on board in Stromness for passengers travelling on the 6:30 a.m. sailing. The route gives a superb view of the spectacular sea stack the Old Man of Hoy, and the tallest vertical cliff face in Britain, St Johns Head. New piers and walkways have been built at Scrabster and Stromness specifically for ''Hamnavoe'', and fitted with lifts to accommodate disabled passengers.

Volcanic ash cloud

In April 2010 as the volcanic ash cloud from Iceland closed much of Europe's airspace, ''Hamnavoe'' was taken off her normal route for three days and sent to

Bergen Bergen (, ) is a city and municipalities of Norway, municipality in Vestland county on the Western Norway, west coast of Norway. Bergen is the list of towns and cities in Norway, second-largest city in Norway after the capital Oslo. By May 20 ...

in Norway to rescue stranded British residents. More than 150 passengers took the 18-hour trip from Bergen to Aberdeen. On returning to her usual route, ''Hamnavoe'' made an unscheduled trip from Aberdeen to Stromness in Orkney carrying passengers.

Footnotes

External links

NorthLink Ferries - Official Website

Ships of Calmac
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hamnavoe NorthLink Ferries 2002 ships Ships built in Rauma, Finland