 Rafting
through time
The raft race follows a sea route rich in history and legend.
Strong tidal streams, cruel reefs and baffling winds; that is one image
of the central Menai Strait, one that has created myths that are talked
about in sea taverns the length of Britain. These are the waters that
form the backcloth to the Raft Race, and they conjure up visions of the
remote past when seafaring was in its infancy, when boats were paddled
and the square sail was the norm.
No one knows when the first humans ventured across the Irish Sea. Some
of the Neolithic tombs of Anglesey have decorations similar to those in
Ireland suggesting sea bourne interaction, and there are examples of
such monuments on the shores of the Menai Strait. During slack water and
fair weather periods these waters would have provided an ideal place to
develop maritime skills, and they still do.These restless waters are a
focus for a very old maritime culture, and in it the Raft Race has a
natural place.
The rafts will pass by shores rich in history, and sail over many relics
of past seafaring. Near the start they cross the area where the Moel-y-Don
Ferry Boat sank in August 1820. At Pwll Fanog they sail over the wreck
of a medieval slate cargo vessel, a square sailed ancestor of the slate
schooners of the 19th Century, which made the slate industry of Gwynedd
the largest in the world.
 Pwll
Fanog is a famous fishing mark and its ‘deep hole’ has its own legends.
One, recounted by George Borrow in his book ‘Wild Wales’ written in
1854, tells of a small vessel, the Robert Ellis, that in 1805 was
followed by ’an immense worm’ which climbed on board and coiled itself
under the mast. Borrow said he got the tale from a book, but more likely
it was from a pub in Port Dinorwic.
These waters are also a cradle of recreational sailing in Wales, from
the early days when yachting was very much the preserve of wealthy men,
to the popular and diverse sailing activities of today. It was held that
if one could sail in the central Menai Strait, with its fierce tidal
streams, one could sail anywhere in the world.
As the rafts approach the Britannia Bridge they pass a statue of Lord
Nelson, which was set up in 1872. This was sculpted by Lord Clarence
Paget, who had the reputation of being one of the most humane of
admirals in the Royal Navy.
The shallow tidal rapids known as the Swellies is another famous feature
of the Menai Strait. Evidence of Viking ships on the Strait comes from
place names. The name Swilly or Swelly derives from the Old Norse
‘svelgr’ which means a whirlpool, and it can resemble a maelstrom under
certain conditions of wind and tide. A document of the fourteenth
century describes this stretch of overfalls, vortices, gyres, and
turbulence as ‘ a swelowe that draweth to schippes that saileth and
sweloweth hem yn, as dooth Scylla and Charybdis’.
In places, the tidal streams are so powerful that no marine growth
occurs on parts of the underwater rock flanks between Swelly Rock and
the shore, the rock itself seems polished by the current and its
suspended sediment.
Old stone built fish traps, dating at least from the medieval period,
are found in the Swellies. They operated by taking advantage of the
large tidal range and the tidal streams.
It was at the Swillies that the land bridge once linking Anglesey and
the mainland was breached to form the Menai Strait. Recent research into
rising sea level suggests that this breakthrough would have occurred
around 4200 BC. This research continues and a clearer picture of how the
Menai Strait was formed will emerge. What effect this flooding, and
consequent landscape changes, would have had on the local ancient
communities is something to test the imagination.
The Swellies have claimed many ships, the most notable being H.M.S.
Conway, which hit the Platters, south-west of the Telford Bridge in
1953. Another wreck is that of the stone carrier the Wynsford, which
sank by the south spur of Swelly Rock about 1821; bits of her lie
embedded in the crevices of the reef. In this area one of the
Porthaethwy Ferry Boats was sunk ‘by tempest’ in 1364.
The two bridges, engineering marvels of their time and icons of the
Menai Strait, need no comment. The final leg of the Raft Race requires a
knowledge of the tidal stream that sweeps under the Telford Bridge and
forms, at the start of the flood following slack water, a anti-clockwise
gyre on the Anglesey shore, a useful push as many raft teams have found
since the race was established in 1984.
Menai Bridge, a town steeped in maritime tradition, is a fitting
destination for the rafters.
Its reputation as ‘marine science town, Wales’ is complemented by its
older connections with the sea, from early steam ships linking it with
Liverpool in the 1830’s, to more ancient sea faring activities of which
the Raft Race is, in a way, a celebration that adds a colourful
dimension to a venerable tradition.
Menai Strait Raft Run 1984 - 2009
On May 29th 1984 when the first raft run set sail from Y Felinheli
everyone involved
was floating into the unknown. Seventeen rafts sailed off and all
reached Menai Bridge safely.
There was a true sense of adventure then, the fear of the unknown.
Cynical mutterings of
'...it's never been done before', or 'I wouldn't try to go through the
Swillies on a raft'. But
there were far more positive approaches, such as 'It's mad, but could be
fun. Let's give it a go'.
Such was the success of that very first Run it was decided there and
then to organise
another for the following year. The Raft Run was born.
That spirit of adventure and the enthusiasm that went with it has rubbed
off onto many
quite diverse groups of people young and old throughout the years. The
strong sense of commitment,
purpose, fun and above all else team spirit ensure its continued success
and status.
As the years go by some of the rafts get more and more complex in design
& build, but for the majority
it is about groups of people having fun whilst raising money for
charities and good causes.
We believe that the sums of monies raised by the 600+ rafts that have
navigated the course
to date has exceeded the £250,000 mark.
One of the great joys of The Raft Run is the fact that the greater
proportion of the money raised
stays fairly local. It is with this in mind that The Great Strait Raft
Run is organised
by locals, in locals for the benefit of locals and for the entertainment
and enjoyment
of locals and visitors alike. |
