Have you ever ridden a ferry boat?

[Telecaster]

We have a ferry across the St. Johns River at Mayport. I've done it many times. It's more fun than any theme park ride (not to mention way cheaper), probably because it's real.

 

[THE PILGRIM]

Have ridden a number, big like Vancouver to the Island,
Remember - our tour bus is on the truck deck, not the car deck.
Meanwhile down in SW Indiana N of Evansville let's Cross the old Wabash.
Got a picture in the garage if I could find it.
The main boat isn't that large, maybe 6 cars.
The Power unit boat hooks to the side of the main boat with a swivel connection.
So it swings and reverses direction to push the main boat back and forth across the Wabash.
Damn these Hoosiers are clever!

 

[ACORN]

Only one. Heading east across Lake Champlain from New York to Vermont.
I kept my eyes peeled for Champ to no avail.

 

[CH4]

Yes, I've rode on a few, including the large ferries of the Alaska Maritime Highway, traveling from Bellingham, WA to Haines, AK, via the inside passage. As an Alaskan cop we could ride the ferry for free if we worked as the ship's security. They allowed one cop per trip. I did it twice when moving to and from Alaska. It was a great experience.

 

[jeffrefrig]

Not counting all the riverboats in Pittsburgh, I think we were on one from Corpus Christie to an island & hung out there for a while on the beach with the kids. But we didn't have to ride it back. I think on the North end there was a bridge or something. Can't remember?

 

[Deceasedeye]

I've ridden the ferry in Southport NC and a much smaller one driving to Burlington VT.
Pretty sure I'm forgetting one or two- there is a ferry going to Kelley's Island on Lake Eric, and I was there a few times as a kid.

Sent from my Pixel 2 using Tapatalk

The North Carolina Ferry System is the second-largest state-run ferry system in the United States, operating 21 boats on seven regular routes across five bodies of water.

 

[hittman77]

Not only have I ridden on a ferry, I worked on one in the mid to late 70's.

It's been closed since about 2014 but at one time was the longest continuously running ferry on the Mississippi River. It began operations in 1853.

Bridgehunter.com | Canton Ferry

 

[mike from st pete]

Once upon a time in a kingdom far to the northeast I rode a ferry from Cape May NJ to Lewis DE and back just to waste a couple of hours.

For some bizarre reason folks are pushing for the return of a passenger ferry between St Pete and Tampa.

Someday I should take the ferry from Ft. DeSoto to Egmont Key just to say I have done that.

 

[Bladeswitcher]

Anyway, our drives in the country always bring back memories of my childhood.
I remembered my first ferry boat ride. It was on the Current river aboard the powder mill ferry on hwy 106 . . . There is one ferry operating on the current at Akers.

Since then I have used the ferry's on the Illinois river and the Mississippi River countless times and it's actually really fun. It's like going back in time for 15 minutes.

Have you ever had the opportunity to cross on a ferry boat?

We're talking car ferries, right?

I've taken the Ferry at Morrison on the Gasconade River when it was still operating. I've also taken the Winfield Ferry across the Mississippi. I've watched the Akers Ferry operate but I don't believe I've ever taken it (didn't need to get to the other side).

But the grandest ferry I've ever taken was the Badger, which operates between Wisconsin and Michigan and makes a four hour crossing on Lake Michigan. They have a restaurant and bar, video games, a movie screen, etc.

As for people ferries, I've taken those a number of places, but those are really just boats, right?

 

[JH1951]

I live in a town that has a ferry. Millersburg, PA is home to the last wooden double stern-wheel paddle boats operating in the USA. It has a fleet of two boats today and is suspected to have been transporting since the mid-1700's. If you are ever in south-central PA, it is worth taking a ride.Millersburg Ferry Boat Association – Enjoy a Ride into the Past

 

[pharmer]

I've been on the Staten Island Ferry at least 100 times. Last time I took the wife who had never been to NYC, she was blown away, especially if you leave from Manhattan and go back- it's free. Worst ferry of all time was in 1973, Oostende Belgium to Dover, 6 1/2 hours across the North Sea. Waves were 30 feet high, it was like something out of a movie. I'd hate to have been the clean up crew after that trip. Joe

 

[vigil617]

The North Carolina Ferry System is the second-largest state-run ferry system in the United States, operating 21 boats on seven regular routes across five bodies of water.

With our Outer Banks barrier islands, the state-run ferries are not only inexpensive and useful but also sometimes the only way to access the islands. They vary from a short 20 minute ride from Hatteras Island over to Ocracoke Island to 2-hour-plus rides to Ocracoke from the Inner Banks mainland towns of Swanquarter and Cedar Island. There are also ferries crossing the wide Pamlico and Neuse Rivers from mainland departure points, and the previously mentioned coastal ferry from mainland Southport, NC to historic Fort Fisher, also part of a long barrier island. I've ridden most of these and the rest are on my bucket list.

I've also ridden the ferries from Woods Hole, Mass., over to Martha's Vineyard and Nantucket, as well as private passenger-only ones from New Bedford, Mass. over to pretty little Cuttyhunk Island in the Elizabeth Islands chain and also to Nantucket. Great rides all.

 

[Aggie1906]

Surrounded by water here, so in addition crossed the Rhein, and the Channel..yes, Hovercraft.
Earlier: The Straits pre-bridge. Lake Charlevoix. Does the Badger across lake Michigan count? Oh, wait: Chain ferry at Saugatuck. Beaver Island too. Count keeps growing, that's just how it is here.

 

[wheelgun28]

The only real ferry I can think of being on was Hong Kong to Shenzen China.

Ferry was a catamaran it went was fast. Was a cool rainy day with a few good waves. The ferry terminal was like an airport as it's an international port. I remember being so tired with only a few hours of sleep in a hotel getting off from a sixteen-hour flight.

 

[wood714]

We have a ferry across the St. Johns River at Mayport. I've done it many times. It's more fun than any theme park ride (not to mention way cheaper), probably because it's real.

Took it one time on my motorcycle back around 2001 when I first moved to FL.

 

[Faulkner]

Obviously, there are a lot of different sizes and styles of ferries. From the pictures in above posts some of those ferries are small ships. I've ridden the Staten Island Ferry when I was in New York and it's a lot different that river crossing ferries in middle America. Even the ferry that I've used that crosses Mobile Bay in Alabama and the one that crosses at Galveston are small compared those in the northeast and northwest.

When I plan a motorcycle trip I try to include alternate routes that include a ferry crossing. One of my favorites is the Peel Ferry across Bull Shoals Lake in northern Arkansas. This ferry boat used to cross the Arkansas River at the Toad Suck crossing back in the 1960's and 70's, but the Arkansas Highway Department relocated it to Bull Shoals Lake when the new Toad Suck Bridge was completed across the Arkansas.

Just about my favorite ferry crossing is across the Mississippi River between the Missouri boothill and Kentucky. The Dorena-Hickman Ferry is off the beaten path but is worth the trip if you've ever wanted to cross the Mighty Mississip on a ferry. I've crossed here numerous times while guiding motorcycle groups and it's always a highlight of the trip.

 

[NYlakesider]

Ferry Boats a few times! Did the one on Lake Champlain a lot, as we were going to Vermont to a drag strip up there in the 60s


Here are a couple that I really enjoyed!

Up in Canada one year (98 or 99) and took a car/people ferry to cross a big body of water, it was around the QE2 highway. (funny thing it was free for both people and vechicles)

Queen Emma Pontoon Bridge, Willemstad, Curacao, they also had a ferry that we took.

 

[Absalom]

But just a friendly reminder and a warning, in case you're not into 80s music ....

[ame]https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=Q-a5TAL-IXs[/ame]

 

[Chuck24]

Rode the ferry between Newport News and Norfolk many times before the Hampton Roads tunnel existed. Also the Jamestown ferry.
What I won't do however is get on a ferry in Asia , Africa or some parts of Europe as they seem to sink on a regular basis

 

[crazyphil]

Was in Seattle on business many years ago and needed to go out to
Whidbey Island for a meeting. Went North from Seattle about 20 miles
to Mukilteo. The Ferry is operated by the State, so the cost is very
reasonable. The ride is only 15 or 20 minutes, and the experience was
great. Whidbey Island is home of the Naval Air Station. Some of the
scenes in An Officer and A Gentleman were filmed there.