Author: Twelve Mile Circle
-
Tangier Island Ferry
Reedville to Tangier, Virginia (June 2000) We drove down the spine of Virginia’s scenic Northern Neck, a broad appendage of land between the Potomac and Rappahannock Rivers that becomes increasingly isolated as easterly-flowing waters widen on their way to Chesapeake Bay. We traveled along Route 3, then onto Route 360 until we ran out of…
-
Russian River Ferry
Chugach National Forest, Cooper Landing, Alaska (July 2010) The Russian River Ferry is certainly one of the more unusual ferries that I’ve experienced (and I’ve taken rides on many others). It doesn’t function to link communities on opposite riverbanks or to unite a ribbon of asphalt or to provide a shortcut. No, it exists solely…
-
Faial – Pico Ferry
The Azores (Açores), Portugal (March 2001) In most cases the quickest way between islands in the Azores is by airplane. However Pico and Faial are exceptions, and are easily accessible to each other by regular passenger ferry service. The ferry runs several times a day and takes about a half an hour. This makes it…
-
Madeline Island – Bayfield Ferry
Crossing to Lake Superior’s Madeline Island, Wisconsin (August 2007) We drove north up the peninsula from Ashland but we still had to find a way across the Chequamegon Bay to Madeline Island. No road connected Bayfield (map) to La Pointe (map). With only 200 year-round residents, it simply wasn’t practical to build a towering suspension…
-
Lake Michigan Car Ferry
Manitowoc, Wisconsin to Ludington, Michigan (September 2000) The S.S. Badger crossed Lake Michigan between Manitowoc, Wisconsin (map) and Ludington, Michigan (map). The total trip took about four hours and saved significant time versus driving around the lake, although we actually took the ferry more to enjoy the ride. The huge boat held perhaps a hundred…
-
Jamestown-Scotland Ferry
Crossing the James River near Jamestown, Virginia (October 2007) I wanted to avoid heavy traffic on Interstate 64 during my drive to Williamsburg, Virginia, electing instead to hug the rural southern bank of the James River. It took longer and I went farther, but I wandered empty winding ribbons of rolling terrain, woodlands, plantations and…
-
Hatteras-Ocracoke Ferry
Hatteras Island to Ocracoke Island, North Carolina (March 2012) We drove down 75 miles of North Carolina’s Route 12, the Beach Road, along the spine of the Outer Banks. This was a long slog even during the winter when the length of highway was blessedly free of tourist traffic. Patience is a virtue. It took…
-
Green River Ferry
Mammoth Cave National Park, Kentucky (July 2013) While visiting Mammoth Cave National Park — and with an interest in ferries already — a slight detour to the Green River Ferry seemed in order. It was easy. The ferry can be found southwest of the Visitor Center. Drive out of the Visitor Center on the Mammoth…
-
Ferry Wahkiakum
Crossing the Columbia River between Cathlamet, Washington and Westport, Oregon (July 2012) It used to be difficult to cross the broad Columbia River between Washington and Oregon, especially as one moved closer to its terminus at the Pacific Ocean coastline. Even today with the Astoria-Megler Bridge near the mouth and the Lewis and Clark Bridge…
-
Belle Chasse Ferry
Belle Chasse, Plaquemines Parish, Louisiana (April 2010) I’ve been to the New Orleans area on numerous occasions but somehow the Belle Chasse Ferry in Plaquemines Parish had eluded me. Finally I made a special effort, traversing the Crescent City Connection bridge towards the West Bank, and drove down through the suburbia of Gretna before arriving…