River Thames: Yarmouth Belle at Watergate
My first proper day 'out' for a while...I saw this coming down the river while viewing Marine Traffic on my phone, so heroically hung around in the cold (not really that bad...).
This is the Yarmouth Belle, which I've never seen before: it was built in 1892 at Great Yarmouth as a passenger steamer, sailing between Yarmouth and Norwich on the River Yare. It was moved to the River Thames in 1946.
Rebuilt in restored at Sunbury On Thames where, it seems, its funnel and paddle wheels were replaced (I'm not certain it originally was a paddle steamer...) by 'dummies'. It's been sailing as a pleasure cruiser on the upper reaches of the Thames, it seems, since 1946 and its publicity and other photos here, for example, show it in better condition (cleaner. fresher paint...). It's now moored off St Mary's Island at Chatham, on the River Medway, perhaps to be brought back to pristine condition as it's a lovely boat, even with its falsies. (26/1/2025: looks like it's in for a make-over at a Chatham boatyard...)
It looks like there was another Yarmouth Belle, of a similar age, which was twice requisitioned as a minesweeper, once in each World War. I don't think this is the same boat but will happily be corrected if wrong.
The building behind it is the Watergate entry to Tilbury Fort (before the river wall it opened on the water...).
[IMG_1109a]
River Thames: Yarmouth Belle at Watergate
My first proper day 'out' for a while...I saw this coming down the river while viewing Marine Traffic on my phone, so heroically hung around in the cold (not really that bad...).
This is the Yarmouth Belle, which I've never seen before: it was built in 1892 at Great Yarmouth as a passenger steamer, sailing between Yarmouth and Norwich on the River Yare. It was moved to the River Thames in 1946.
Rebuilt in restored at Sunbury On Thames where, it seems, its funnel and paddle wheels were replaced (I'm not certain it originally was a paddle steamer...) by 'dummies'. It's been sailing as a pleasure cruiser on the upper reaches of the Thames, it seems, since 1946 and its publicity and other photos here, for example, show it in better condition (cleaner. fresher paint...). It's now moored off St Mary's Island at Chatham, on the River Medway, perhaps to be brought back to pristine condition as it's a lovely boat, even with its falsies. (26/1/2025: looks like it's in for a make-over at a Chatham boatyard...)
It looks like there was another Yarmouth Belle, of a similar age, which was twice requisitioned as a minesweeper, once in each World War. I don't think this is the same boat but will happily be corrected if wrong.
The building behind it is the Watergate entry to Tilbury Fort (before the river wall it opened on the water...).
[IMG_1109a]