MV EGREMONT departed Salcombe Harbour last week, to be towed up to Sharpness docks near Gloucester for a major refit.

The former Mersey ferry spent the first part of her working life crossing the river Mersey between Liverpool and Wallasey. She arrived in Salcombe in 1976 to start a new life as the base for the Island Cruising Club.

Every five years, Egremont leaves Salcombe for dry docking, surveying and maintenance. She last left the estuary for maintenance in 2008.

She left her home in the Bag on Thursday, September 29, and was towed out of Salcombe Harbour by the tugboat MTS Indus, along with a stern tug for safe passage through the harbour.

The main tug then took Egremont out to sea around Lands End, up the north coast of Cornwall and Devon and into the River Severn.

MV Egremont arrived at Sharpness outer dock at 9.30am on Sunday following almost three days at sea, before being towed into the inner dock at midday.

At the end of this week, she will be taken into the dry dock where she will be given 14 days of ultra high pressure cleaning to expose all of her steelwork, before being given a full ultrasound survey. After this, decisions will be made on the schedule of works.

Richard Martin, from the Egremont Trust said: ‘She is due to be given a 45 day stabilisation project - where the condition of her hull and superstructure will be stabilised, and her outside will be completely repainted.

‘It’s called stabilisation because it will be to arrest deterioration - so she should be in good condition for many years to come.’

‘The work will hopefully be completed by December, but this is dependent on the weather, both for her repainting and also her return tow to Salcombe. If we have a wet autumn, it will delay the process.

‘Egremont is strong, and she will be even stronger after this,’ Mr Martin added.

In 2012 ownership of Egremont was transferred from the Island Cruising Club to the Egremont Trust to allow a dedicated team to focus on her upkeep.

The Egremont Trust is a registered charity with the aim of maintaining the ship MV Egremont as a facility for the advancement of the education and development of young people, as well as raising funds to utilise the facility for young people from disadvantaged backgrounds.