The Hamble–Warsash Ferry is an 'on-demand' passenger ferry service on the

River Hamble The River Hamble in south Hampshire, England, source (river), rises near Bishop's Waltham and flows for through Botley, Hampshire, Botley, Bursledon, and Lower Swanwick before entering Southampton Water between Hamble Common and Warsash. The ...

Hampshire Hampshire (, ; abbreviated to Hants.) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Berkshire to the north, Surrey and West Sussex to the east, the Isle of Wight across the Solent to the south, ...

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

. The ferry operates between

Hamble-le-Rice Hamble-le-Rice, commonly known as Hamble, is a village and Civil parishes in England, civil parish in the Eastleigh (borough), Borough of Eastleigh in Hampshire, England. It is best known for being a flying training centre during the Second Wor ...

on the west bank of the river and

Warsash Warsash is a village in southern Hampshire, England, situated at the mouth of the River Hamble, west of the area known as Locks Heath and south of Sarisbury. Boating plays an important part in the village's economy, and the village has a sail ...

on the east. The current service is the latest incarnation of a service that has operated for several centuries; there are records of a ferry across the Hamble is in 1493. It was an important link on the route between the cities of

Portsmouth Portsmouth ( ) is a port city status in the United Kingdom, city and unitary authority in Hampshire, England. Most of Portsmouth is located on Portsea Island, off the south coast of England in the Solent, making Portsmouth the only city in En ...

and

Southampton Southampton is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and unitary authority in Hampshire, England. It is located approximately southwest of London, west of Portsmouth, and southeast of Salisbury. Southampton had a population of 253, ...

. It was also a key link in more than one pilgrimage route. The ferry now provides a link in local, national and international footpaths such as the

Solent Way The Solent Way is a long-distance footpath in Hampshire, southern England. For the most part, the path follows the coast of the Solent, the sea strait that separates mainland Britain from the Isle of Wight. The Solent Way forms part of the Kin ...

and cycle routes such as

National Cycle Route 2 When complete, the route will be long. Route The route has several sections. # Dover to Hastings. The route follows the Chalk and Channel Way along the cliff tops to Folkestone and crosses Romney Marsh to Lydd. From Rye it follows the coas ...

. Before the introduction of motorised ferries passengers were rowed across the river for the price of one penny each way. The current motorised ferries (''Claire'' and ''Emily'') each carry a maximum of twelve foot passengers and are painted in a pink livery, having been painted white until a change of ownership in 2002. The pink paint scheme is echoed on the shelter by the landing on the east bank of the river. A water taxi and mooring service are also operated by the ferry company. Throughout the nineteen sixties and seventies the ferry was run by Ray Sedgwick, a local boatman who hired boats out to tourists. The ferry shelter on the Warsash side was built in the early 1900s by the Bugle pub who sold beer to other local pubs. The shelter was used to store kegs as well as providing shelter from the rain.

References

External links

Official site

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hamble-Warsash Ferry Ferry transport in England Transport in Hampshire