A Dumbarton-built ship which took generations of day trippers 'doon the watter' has been saved from the scrapyard.

The MV Second Snark has been brought back to the Clyde from Plymouth to undergo a £350,000 restoration to get her sailing again.

Built by Denny and Brothers in 1938, the little vessel has been saved by Hamish Munro, a former owner.

Mr Munro, who runs Clyde Marine Services in Greenock, paid for her to be brought back to Scotland and then donated her to a new charity, the Second Snark Preservation Society.

The society has now launched an appeal to raise the £350,000 needed to complete the restoration of the vessel which had been languishing in a Plymouth shipyard.

On its Facebook page, the society says the ship's American owner had abandoned his own restoration of the vessel after £400,000 worth of work.

After Mr Munro got involved, the 'Snark' was loaded onto a heavy transporter and made the 514-mile trip back to her homeland by road.

She is currently at Fairlie in North Ayrshire.

Gavin Stewart, one of the founding trustees of the Second Snark Preservation Society, told the Reporter that hard work over the past 12 months had come to fruition and the Second Snark was now back on the Clyde where she belongs.

"The trustees are indebted to Hamish Munro for having donated 'The Snark' to the new charity.

"We are determined to be exemplary stewards of this famous little ship, which has such a strong connection with the world famous Wm Denny & Brothers.

"Having gone through a process with our naval architects and also the national marine regulator, we know that the ship definitely can return to service.

"With some £400,000 already invested by her previous owner, we are starting on a very solid footing.

"We hope that your readers will join us on our journey and help us raise the estimated £350,000 that we need to complete the restoration, so that this much loved Dumbarton 'daughter' can once again sail 'doon the watter'."

During a varied career, The Second Snark has taken day trippers on the Forth as well as the Clyde, worked as a ferry between Govan and Yorkhill Quay and made an appearance in James Watt Dock in Greenock as part of the Greenock Tall Ships Race event.

For more information, go to 'Secondsnark' on Facebook