Arctic convoy veterans set for Wester Ross gathering

A POIGNANT Wester Ross service recalling “one of the worst journeys in the world” promises to trigger memories for a local veteran marking a personal milestone this weekend.

On Sunday, it will be 70 years to the day that World War Two veteran Reay Clarke sailed out of Loch Ewe on a perilous journey to Russia.

Members of the public are urged to join the service to pay tribute to the remarkable contribution of sometimes overlooked servicemen

On September 2, 1942, ships of the convoy coded PQ18 assembled in the Wester Ross loch and sailed from there for Iceland and onwards to Russia.

The plans for this convoy included a strong “fighting escort” of destroyers that were rigorously trained as a unit, and the first deployment of an escort carrier with a Russian convoy.

Reay, from Tain, was a young sailor aboard the destroyer HMS Farndale which was one of the Royal Navy escort protection vessels.

The convoy was made up of 39 ships which sailed and carried 4,400 vehicles, 835 tanks, 566 aircraft, over 11,000 tons of high explosive, over 157,000 tons of general cargo and 9,541 tons of fuel oil.

The 70th anniversary of this important WWII event is being commemorated this Sunday, with a memorial service at the Russian Arctic Convoy Memorial stone at Cove on Loch Ewe.

The site is high above the mouth of the loch, which was the anchorage for the WWII Arctic convoys.

Organised by the Russian Arctic Convoy Museum Project group, the event is being held at 3pm and is being attended by Reay, and also several families of veterans who are travelling from as far afield as Edinburgh and the south coast of England.

Reay still has clear memories of that day in 1942. He remembers the time the Convoy left exactly.

“It was 16.10 exactly and, because it was British Double Summer Time, it meant that it was lighter for longer.”

In 1940, during WWII, the clocks in Britain were not put back by an hour at the end of summertime, and clocks continued to be advanced by one hour each summer until July 1945.

During these summers therefore, Britain was two hours ahead of GMT and operating on British Double Summer Time (BDST). The clocks were brought back in line with GMT at the end of summer in 1945.

Also attending the Memorial Service will be families of some of the Veterans of PQ18 – including Leona Thomas from Edinburgh, whose father Leonard served on the “Ulster Queen”.

She and her husband are coming to Wester Ross for the weekend, to be able to take part in the Service. Leona made a film of her father’s war diaries and poems which was shown during the recent “World War II Week” in Aultbea.

Local piper Conal McDonagh from Poolewe will be playing the bagpipes at the service, and it is also hoped that a Royal Marine Bugler will be attending – one whose grandfather was also on PQ18 aboard the merchant ship the Atheltemplar.

The service is at 3pm on Sunday, September 2 at Cove, Wester Ross – all are welcome. You can find out more about the service and background about the project here.

For further information email info@russianarctic convoymuseum.co.uk or call 01445 731093.

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