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Remains of a fishing vessel on the southern shore of Hooe Lake, near Oreston in Plymouth.

Type

Motor fishing vessel, Drifter-Seiner, Dive support vessel

History

The 20.7m long Scottish drifter-seiner Bon Ami was built at Jones Buckie Shipyard in Scotland in 1957 for Donnie Jack of Hopeman in Moray, Scotland. The ship was built as yard number 88 and was registered in Inverness as INS69 then at Kirkwall as K469.

In the late seventies the Bon Ami was owned by Billy Rendall of Burray, originally from Roadside in Stronsay, who used Bon Ami as a fishing boat before getting a contract to ferry oil workers to the island of Flotta in the Orkney Islands.

In 1976 she was up for sale and George Costie bought the seine-netter in 1979 from William Rendall of Holm, Orkney, as K469. Sirius, Enterprise, Scottish Maid, Rivo and Bon Ami were the forerunners of Westray’s modern fleet.

In the late 1980s and early 1990s she was a dive support vessel for Currie Bros Diving with the skipper Geordie Costie. The Bon Ami was deregistered in 1999 and was seen in Plymouth afloat in 2006 converted to a live-aboard boat before being put up for sale in 2009 for £20,000.

Bon Ami was beached in Hooe lake between 2010 and 2012 and by 2012 she had been bilged with planks removed from her hull on the starboard side.

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Description

Bon Ami now lies on her starboard side on the foreshore of Hooe Lake, stripped of fittings and bilged. In 2013 when she was photographed by Giles Richardson she still had her wheelhouse but by 2016 this was gone along with most of her starboard side bulwarks. The hull is now degrading so within a few years the hull will collapse in on itself like her neighbour Dignity .

Location and Access

Hooe Lake, Oreston, Plymouth

From Oreston, take the Lower Saltram road off Plymstock Road then turn right into Kingfisher Way. Follow the road down to the lake and there is a car park at the end. Take the footpath heading south under the folly and follow it round to the hulk, there is a gap in the bushes where you can walk through to the beach. Alternatively, walk round via the beach but take care as the rocks are slippery.

Nearby hulks include the trawler Dignity , Acacia , Hooe Lake 8 , Hooe Lake 9 , barge Hooe Lake 10 , motor launch Jade .

Last updated 03 Jan 2021

Position OS: SX 50155 52817
Position GPS: 50.356143, -4.107816

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