This is every Captains dream, a nice rock n roll swell to challenge you...its pretty boring job going back and forth from the quey to manly...it been on one of those trips it was a hoot, not for those that get sea sick or jangled nerves, pretty cheap thrill ride I went over got my wobbly legs off, It took 5 goes to dock as we keep slamming against the pier and then went back...lots of fun even my motel bed was moving latter that night or was it the floor
It's been over 40 years, but I can clearly remember several trips from the Cerculer Queue to Manley on the ferry in heavy weather. The crew of the ferry weren't able to get a line over to the guys on the jetty, and the ferry almost ended up on the beach. Before the skipper started reversing back out to an area between Sydney heads. We did this a couple of times before finally the crew managed to get a rope across the blokes on the jetty and securing the ferry. Good times
I used to sail out of various clubs on sydney harbour. When I was sailing out of CYCA in rushcutters Id catch the ferry home to neutral bay. If I had my wet weather gear with me and the weather was like this Id gear up and go out the front to have a bit of fun. Sailing out of sydney amateurs once on a saturday we were just south of middle head when we were hit by a freak storm that came out of nowhere and laid a deep fog over us in what felt like seconds, accompanied by huge winds that knocked us flat. Then it just lifted. The harbour looked just like this video, but in the middle of summer. Being a saturday all the boats were out and everywhere you looked there were skiffs and boats knocked flat. it was all over, except for the wild wind and seas, in 10 minutes. Never seen anything like it before or since.
Sounds like an exciting experience. And I was already wondering whether I would make it to shore swimming if the unthinkable were to happen. Just the usual panic of an absolute landlubber 😂. Thanks for watching ❤
A lovely little video thanks for the memories over65 years of travelling on the ferry I remember the north head and south Steyne and sometimes the wild sea.
Collaroy is not struggling, she can handle swells lot bigger than that. The Freshwater class ferries, MV Freshwater, Queenscliff, Collaroy and Narrabeen revell in big swells.
Reminds me of the time when l was a kid on the Dee Why on route to Manly. The swell was epic and to watch that triple expansion steam engine working hard with those flashing rods and steady beat was just magic,memories?
True dat, she also did day trips to Broken Bay, occasionally. Well worth the train ride from the Burgh, on the railmotor. A truly fantastic experience, for me.
Struggling? Hahaha....far from it, that's just a normal day across Sydney heads. The only ferries that can handle it, not like the new emeralds rubbish. Blech.
Ah yes those were the days...you could always tell who the tourists were ,screaming in terror and panic..meanwhile Muggins here(Me) would be standing at the F'ocastle(Pointy end of bow .)Yelling yeah .Come and Take me !....
My grandmother would have loved it. If there were rough weather forecast, she'd do what she could to make a trip on the last ferry before services were suspended - that of course was back in the 50's and 60's.
A bit of an exaggeration in the title. If you can't change it, take it down. I've been these ladies so many times in much bigger seas. Only once did I think I might be swimming ashore!
I remember visiting sydney back in the late 70s and being on board one of the wooden ferries, ( always my favourites) it was horrendous weather and that vessel hit the massive swells on the way to manly, it was brilliant how that vessel handled those heavy swell it was truly well worth the ferry ticket price watching the bow go down so far then ride it up so high, loved it, unlike many of the other passengers!
My late father reckoned that the ferry trip to Manly in this type of weather was the best fun for three pence (about two cents), this was of course 90 or more years ago.
we were on holiday in Sydney.. from Victoria and I can remember doing a trip like this l.. I guess I was 6 or so... to say I was all agog would be tame... I can remember huge grey walls of water rushing towards us , then bounce and there was open space, then another wall of grey water... it was, WOW
Great vision, thanks for the memories...hope the passengers did not have breakfast at the Manly wharf before leaving. I'll never forget the queen of the Harbour, the mighty Scottish built South Steyne. What a workhorse and sight she was back in the 50's and 60's. Largest steam propellled ferry anywhere and used to make these waters look like a duck pond....
I would have loved to have seen this ship in service, but when I first came to Sydney in 1994, the South Steyne had long since disappeared. She had an exceptionally beautiful shape, something that is unfortunately no longer built today. Thanks for watching ❤
Travelled in the 70's on the South Steyne. I remember having to lift our feet inside the ferry to prevent our shoes getting wet on the way to work. Great memories
Poor Collaroy will likely never see service again :( Excellent footage of my favourite ferry of all time, this video clearly demonstrates that she is a good vessel and fit for service. Such a waste to retire her for seemingly no reason. Thanks for uploading this great video of my most beloved boat :)
The first time I saw the four Manly ferries in 1994, I took them to my heart. On every visit to Sydney since then, travelling to Manly on one of the four boats has been one of the first things I've done, it's become something of a tradition. Unfortunately, I haven't made it to Sydney since 2013, and to read that these four ships will probably not be in service for much longer makes me sad. I really hope that I can make it back to Sydney in time before they are finally decommissioned.
