Riding on water

[otherwise]

Sunday 23rd Jan I linked up with 35 other riders mostly Triumph mounted and rode with the intention of using the 5 remaining ferries on the Hawkesbury River just north of Sydney. Just to clear up any international misunderstanding of terms, the ferries I am talking about may be called punts in some places. Flat bottomed craft attached to both sides of a river by cable and carry cars etc from side to side, they are slowly being replaced by bridges as the population eats into the country side. One of my mates sent this photo to me, unfortunately it was taken on a phone instead of a camera but I think it has nice feeling about it. We are mid-river at the crossing called Berowra Waters. That's me with my back to the camera sitting on my Street Triple with back pack on and in a black AGV. Some how I think it sums the day up, a group of people out for a good time who for a few minutes put our selves into the hands of the ferry master and just enjoyed the tranquility before we fired the bikes up for a mad race out of the valley.
:wink:

 

[Rocky]

We have at least half a dozen of those types of ferries here in Nova Scotia. A couple of our vintage bike club rides take in these ferries so we get to enjoy an "ocean voyage" too :wink:
The ferries are run by the provincial governmenrt and are part of the highway system. The fee is $5.00 regardless of how far the trip is. The longest takes just over ten minutes and the shortest takes about three minutes, but saves about 45 minutes.
The ferry crews always enjoy seeing us on board as they get to see some old bikes during the voyage.

 

[otherwise]

We cross for free, they are considered to be a part of the road system and therefore paid for by taxes. Naturally they are only to be found on minor roads and I'm sure many city people have never used one. This is another I used last year, part of the same river system. The crossing is called Wisemans Ferry.

This is the view looking down to one of the Ferries, you can see the road / ferry pick up point going into the river.

 

[Rocky]

Nice pics :y115:
Our ferries look like that, but are a bit larger I think. The ones I've been on can hold 12-15 cars depending on the size of the cars.
Last summer a buddy and I were the only vehicles (bikes) on one ferry as it held to its schedule.
It was like having your own private ship :ya2:
We enjoy the ferries as it's a nice break for a few minutes.

 

[CarlS]

Nice pics, Kevin. I like ferries. That looks like a fun ride. There are not many left now in the US. Here in Florida I only know of three remaining that provide river crossings. There are about nine ferries that provide transportation to various islands. They are not cable ferries; they are self powered. All of the ferries in Florida except one are privately owned and operated.

One is an antique. It is basically an old barge with a small tug attached on a pivot. It crosses the Saint Johns River just north of Lake George. The ferry's east dock is located in the Gateway Fish Camp in Fruitland, Florida. The west dock is at the end of the dirt Salt Springs Road in the Ocala National Forest. The ferry has been in service in some form or another since the Seminole and Civil Wars.

The current version holds two cars or eight bikes (in close quarters). The cost is $10.00 USD for a car and $5.00 USD for bikes if there are two or more bikes. It is 40 - 60 miles to the nearest bridge if one does not want to use the ferry. It is a nice and scenic trip.

The other ferry is a modern ferry and is operated by the Jacksonville Port Authority. It serves between Mayport and St George Island on Florida highway A1A. It is actually cheaper to operate the ferry than build a bridge. This one holds 40 cars. The cost is $3.00 USD for motorcycles and $5.00 USD for cars. Using this ferry saves 28 miles.

 

[DaveM]

These are just so cool :y115:

 

[Rocky]

A couple of our ferries are like the large modern one Carl showed. The others are smaller versions. I believe we have seven in this province and I've been on all except one. That one runs to a large inhabited island offshore and I have no reason to go there.
As Carl said, it's cheaper to run a ferry than to build a bridge.
In the places they run here the cost of a bridge is pretty well out of the question due to the engineering needed and the astronomic cost of building it. The modest amount of traffic using such bridges (rural areas) couldn't justify the cost and the cost of upkeep.
That's fine with me. We enjoy the respite of a ferry ride.