Harbour Walk 5/6   

PARRAMATTA RIVER  

Ferry Ride     

June 2012 

2 1/4 hours    

Standing under the Gladesville Bridge after finishing my Drummoyne walk  I thought how sad to leave out that part of Sydney Harbour which lays  beyond this bridge. Walking all along the western part of the harbour with the many bays would take years. But there is a good way to explore that too and fast and easy: just going on the Parramatta River Ferry. 

The Parramatta River service goes from Circular Quay to Rydalmere. However I hopped on the ferry in Drummoyne, at Woseley Street. The ferry stops from then on at 8 wharves, in Hunters Hill, Chiswick, Abbotsford, Cabarita, Putney, Meadow Bank, Olympic Park Homebush and terminates at Rydalmere. 

The ride took 40 minutes and one gets great views of the many foreshore parks, of new residential developments where once factories were and where grand mansions on big land grants stood. The first wheat for the colony was grown on the banks of Parramatta River. We went under many bridges, even crossed a car ferry. There are still a few factories along the river.

At Rydalmere one can continue on to Parramatta by going on the express service from Circular Quay to Parramatta.  

The last stretch along Parramatta River takes 20 minutes. The ferry has to go real slow to protect the mangrove on both sides of the now  narrow river. It is so nice to observe the many waterbirds there. Some time ago I saw some pelicans here, but now there were none, maybe they have all migrated to flooded Eyre Lake! At very low tides the ferry service is suspended to protect the environment. 

The ferry stops only a few minutes at Parramatta. Would be good to take a later ferry back and go for a walk. Parramatta is a nice place, and has still some very old buildings. By the way Parramatta was founded in the same year as Sydney in 1788 and was the first white settlement away from the coast. Parramatta means in Aboriginal  "the place where the eels lie down”.

I decided to go straight back. After all this is a harbour walk, well, this time a harbour  ferry trip. Going back from Parramatta to Circular Quay with only one stop at Rydalmere took 1 1/4 hour.

                            Gladesville Bridge