‘I think it’s genuinely one of the loveliest things you can do in Dartmouth, for the price of a cup of coffee, and if you’ve got children it’s just about the right length. ‘The fare has been kept honest because it’s a very popu- lar walk to the castle and if we were greedy with the fares people would walk both ways. ‘People don’t have to plan their day around our time- table, the boats come and go in quick succession all day long and we don’t have to wait for a boat to fill before we leave. It’s a premium, bespoke service and you have to keep it frequent so it’s all a pleasure.’ Julian added: ‘The Ferry is part of the cultural landscape
of Dartmouth because all these boats have been around the river for a very long time. We do a lot of weddings, taking brides to and from St Petrox Church, and they are fun. I’ve also had two coffins on the boat, special requests for a last trip around the river before the church service.
‘One of the funniest things I’ve seen on the ferry involved Geoff Sharam who was working on a building site above the bight when he saw some seagulls mobbing two young buzzards, forcing them into the water so they would drown. Geoff ran all the way down into town, jumped in the boat and we drove down there as fast as we could. ‘The first buzzard had drowned but Geoff had the sec- ond one out of the water; he stood on my engine box and swung him around above his head. Pints of water came out of the bird’s throat, it blinked and was back with us. It was well enough by that evening to take a chunk out of Geoff’s mum’s thumb.’
When Julian took over the Castle Ferry run he found himself working alongside longstanding fellow Castle Ferry operators Dave Griffiths and Bob Stevens. Bob recently sold his share of the business and his
Cornish-built ferry Y Worry to local man, Mark Strudwick, who had been made redundant from the Dartmouth-based Vosper Thorneycroft where he spent 15 years as a boat surveyor. Mark decided to invest his redundancy package in the new venture. This is his first season on the Castle Ferry. He said: ‘I just wanted to get back out on the river again. It’s a fantastic job, just being out on the river where I want to be – it’s beautiful.’
Poole Farm has been in the Thomas family for over half a century producing award winning pork, sausages, dry cured hams and bacon smoked and unsmoked.
Our produce has won Taste of the West awards for the last 6 years and we are proud to supply to shops, pubs, hotels, farm shops, restaurants and cafes throughout South Devon, with a delivery service. We also sell directly to
Silver ‘Taste the West’ award for Cooked Honey roast ham, green gammon cooked; plain pork sausages and pork chipolatas; dry cured, smoked streaky, smoked back bacon and our dry cured green back and green streaky bacon.
Hog Roast & BBQ’s are our speciality
the public through Farmers’ Markets,.
We offer a wonderful Hog Roast and Barbeque service available for parties, events and special occasions too. This includes fill service and clearing away leaving no work for you.
Sally Thomas trained as a Chef, has many years of catering experience and is happy to directly discuss your requirements.
* We also supply shops, pubs, restaurants, cafés & farm shops * Come and see us at Farmers’ markets, Local shows and events
´ ´
For more infomation tel: 01803 812719 (Poole Farm) 01626 821056 (Office) Sally 07788 925773 Email:
info@poolefarmltd.com
Pool Farm 153x225
Advertorial.indd 1 8/9/10 10:27:58
Dave Griffith’s boat Achieve, which is now operated by his son Carl, was built in Seaton in 1968 as a pilot boat for the River Dart. Dave used Achieve as a board- ing and landing vessel for 25 years, during the days when the river was bustling with commer- cial activity. Since then, Achieve has exclusively been a Castle Ferry vessel.
Dave, who worked on the Castle Ferry for over 30 years, believes the Castle Ferry trip is one of the best loved short trips in the country. He said: ‘I don’t think there’s any harbour in Britain that can compare with the little trip between the quay and the castle. I’ve been around the whole of the British Isles with the Merchant Navy and I’ve never ever come across a harbour entrance like this.’ For more information visit www.
dartmouthcastleferry.co.uk.•
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