Boat trip (From Penarth Times)

Boat trip

THIS YEAR, about ten days ago in fact, I travelled on The Waverley for what was probably the first time in my life. I made a second trip on that paddle-ship only a week later.

The number of times I have travelled on The Balmoral I am now beginning to lose count of - perhaps three or four trips a year on average in the last three years.

I would estimate The Waverley did not seem to add a new dimension to cross-channel travel - however, it led to my decision to join the Paddleship Steamer Preservation Society, something which I should perhaps have done years ago.

The most recent trip was to Minehead, via Clevedon, then by coach to Bishops Lydeard, and for a ride on the West Somerset Railway.

It was my first trip on the West Somerset Railway too, a most enjoyable traject through very, very leafy and often undulating rural England.

Some of the boat party (including the writer) decided to take the diesel rather than the steam train for 'time-tabling' reasons, but we met a steam locomotive with a GWR emblem coming in the other direction.

Minehead may be associated in many minds with Butlins Camp, a feature no longer present in Barry Island of course.

The Minehead Camp was not ever as visually intrusive as the Barry one, as it was built on flat land not on a headland as in Barry, where it was very conspicuous.

But there is a prominent and interestingly elaborate and baroque architectural structure in the close vicinity of the Minehead Camp, which looks as though it could have come straight out of the world of Kubla Kahn, who did a pleasure dome degree, I seem to recall.

I think it may be an intrinsic part of the said holiday camp.

The coast footpath which starts at Minehead, and continues for hundreds of miles to Poole, is a feature which interests me, though I could only have walked two or three miles at the most, partly for lack of time, what with a 5pm boat to catch from Minehead back to Penarth.

I found the people perfectly friendly and the proprietors of the two cafes I visited.

I had a quite brief chat on the promenade with a family who owned a St Bernard dog, a female one four years old called Magic.

I am generally much more partial to large dogs than small ones who seem to do all the yapping and jumping around.

I could not take the responsibility of looking after a dog, but these are the sort of dogs one could take a great liking to.

I heard from an independent source, the owner of a cafe adjoining the Waverley pier-terminal, that the quadruped may have been a prize-winner!

On both my journeys on the Waverley this year, passenger numbers were very much below full capacity, partly because of the uncompromising weather, and also the fact that the trips (the other one was to Illfracombe) were both on week days.

From my past experiences of some weekend travel on the Balmoral, passenger capacity utilisation can be much higher and, if one is unlucky, there may even be a rowdy element among some of the younger adults.

None of this was a problem on either trip, I am very pleased to be able to state.

Michael O'Neill

Railway Terrace

Penarth