Builders: Robertson & Co, Greenock 1867
Propulsion type: Paddle, simple oscillating
Owners: Campbeltown & Glasgow Steam Packet Joint Stock Co, Great Western Railway Co, David MacBrayne Ltd.
Service dates: 1867 - 1924
Tonnage: Gross 347 (later 403)
Comments:
A popular and lavishly fitted paddler, PS Gael took her maiden voyage on 17 April 1867 and was capable of a very respectable 16 knots in service. In 1879 she was re-boilered and refurbished but the improvements were not up to standard with her fuel consumption dramatically increased. This coupled with the substandard level of accommodation meant a decrease in her popularity and she was sold four years later to the GWR., she sailed out of Weymouth to the Channel Isles and the Continent and also in the Bristol Channel. She returned to Scottish waters in 1891 when she was purchased by David MacBrayne. She sailed for MacBrayne out of Oban to Gairloch, remaining on the Clyde during the Great War, being laid up in 1915 until 1917. She continued sailing out of Oban as a spare steamer until she was sold for breaking up in 1924.