It was an idea which sprung into Fiona McIntyre’s mind as she surveyed rock pools in Aberdeen teeming with life and spotted dolphins in the North Sea.
If she was fascinated and captivated by these forays into the natural world, wouldn’t there be an audience for a visitor attraction which was dedicated to showcasing the region’s rich variety of marine creatures of all shapes and sizes?
“Build it and they will come” may be a famous movie mantra, but it’s difficult to make the locals sit up and take notice with a budget which merely aspires to being shoestring in a city which often takes for granted what it has on its very own doorstep.
Yet Fiona, a driven individual with the determination and resolve to turn abstract words into affirmative action, has been tenacious in traversing any obstacles in her path as she continues to create something worth cherishing at Greyhope Bay.
And already, her labours of the last five or six years have borne fruit, despite financial travails, a global pandemic, a fleeting sense of “What am I doing?” and other factors.
The scheme is a work in progress
There was a sense of serendipity about the fashion in which she had originally planned to return home to Ireland once she graduated from Aberdeen University. In most other circumstances, Fiona simply wouldn’t have had access to a coastal cornucopia.
But, after finishing her Masters and PhD, she began working at Marine Scotland’s laboratory in Victoria Road in Torry – a place which sparked her imagination, while working as a data analyst, researcher and field scientist, both on and offshore.
In the early days, her sights were set on establishing something similar to the grandiose plans which were being unveiled on Dundee’s Waterfront and she eventually had to scale down her ambition to something less Cecil B DeMille and more Bill Forsyth.
Yet she realised Aberdeen was in transition and couldn’t rely forever on oil and gas. So, she took a “leap of faith”, quit her job, enrolled on a business course and embarked on the process of organising a new charity and forming a team who shared her vision.
And, years later, all that time spent building partnerships and spreading the gospel with an evangelical enthusiasm, has been the catalyst for something truly exciting in the city.
‘It still feels a bit overwhelming’
She said: “It was from my time working at the Marine Lab in Torry, walking the headland, enjoying the dolphins and the incredible coastal vantage thinking something could be done to bring a facility to the area so more people could connect to our coast.
“It feels good, a little overwhelming and I think I still don’t quite believe it [now the visitor centre has opened]. The project has taken many years to come to fruition and it was through building a community around us that has made this achievement possible.
“The pandemic definitely slowed us down and delayed our build schedule by a year. There have been times where I personally found it difficult to move forward with the project – I had run out of energy and the determination to keep moving forward.
She persevered in the tough times
“There was one particular moment where I thought ‘I can’t do this anymore’ and I wanted to run away. I was given some great advice which is that it wasn’t mine to throw away; if I wanted to put the project down, then I needed to find a way to do so, such that someone else could pick it back up.
“And, in trying to put it down, it made me understand what the project needed to keep going, creating a structure for individuals, community groups and local businesses to see themselves in the project and be part of it.”
It’s proof that, if nothing happens without blood, sweat and tears, that only makes things sweeter when the obstacles have been surmounted. A triumph of Greyhope over experiencing a brick wall when would-be backers swither on the periphery.
No wonder Fiona feels a swell of pride in what she has achieved, even if she recognises this is an ongoing adventure, a journey still to reach its final destination.
There’s something tangible in Torry
She said: “There’s no need for me to ‘believe in’ the project any more, because it is actually happening. We’ve made this. We know that it will bring people to the city and we know that the community are behind it.
“My hopes for the centre is that it can continue to be a space for participation and engagement with both our coastal and built heritage. We continue to identify opportunities and needs of the community and the historic monument of Torry Battery.
“The [current] centre is too small for the high demand and competing interests of the cafe, community and education workshops within the same space.
“But, with the next phase of the project, there is an opportunity to rebalance activity into the outdoor environment, allowing visitors to directly engage with the heritage and define a place that incorporates the entire monument.”
The future offers plenty of potential
It had been a long trek from those early rock-pooling days as a child in Ireland to overseeing a high-profile initiative in Aberdeen, but Fiona’s efforts have been inspirational and she isn’t finished cranking up the momentum.
When I mentioned that the return of the Tall Ships in 2025 could be used as a springboard for a large-scale marine event in the north-east, encompassing everything from the delights of such summer hotspots as Stonehaven and Cruden Bay to the Scottish Traditional Boat Festival, held annually in Portsoy, it was clear she isn’t prepared to dither after being left in limbo during the worst days of the pandemic.
On the contrary, she declared: “We can’t wait for the Tall Ships; we have the best expansive view of the harbour and coast and will hope to have a Tall Ships festival at the centre that weekend.”
A labour of love and deep knowledge
Fiona had lived in Aberdeen for four or five years before she started to comprehend the potential for something extraordinary, something new and magical.
And she speaks about her connection to the sea and the coast with the true wonder of somebody who has been caught in its spell.
She told the Press and Journal in 2020: “I loved the opportunity of being at sea. It’s a vast and powerful and humbling thing and to be able to see the things that survive in the water is a wonderful experience.”
Her philosophy hasn’t changed in the intervening period. The maxim tells you that Rome wasn’t built in a day, but the job was pushed forward through the attitude that genius is an infinite capacity for taking pains and it’s a similar story with Greyhope Bay.
Or you could look at it another way and conclude that nothing would have been done at the site at all without the unstinting industry of Fiona McIntyre.
To find out more about how to get involved, visit www.greyhopebay.com
FIVE QUESTIONS FOR FIONA McINTYRE
- What book are you reading? ” I’m into podcasts at the moment. The Witness Podcast has me hooked.”
- Who’s your hero/heroine? “Olivia Colman.”
- Do you speak any foreign languages? “I am learning Spanish as my husband is from Argentina.”
- What’s your favourite band or music? “Queen.”
- What’s your most treasured possession? “My cats. Are they a possession?”
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