The Kingswear Castle – the Medway’s fabulous paddlesteamer

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The Kingswear Castle getting up speed on the Medway

Lean-lined paddlesteamer Kingswear Castle gets up speed on the Medway. As usual, clicking on each image will bring you a much larger and more detailed photo

‘So where are the photos of the paddlesteamer?’ a few folks have been asking. They were always next on my agenda, and here they are. The coal-fired paddle steamer Kingswear Castle was built in 1924 by Philip & Son of Dartmouth and regularly carried passengers up and down the River Dart until the 1960s, apart from a a few years in WW2, when she was leased to American forces in the area.

Kingswear Castle looking forward Kingswear Castle looking aft Kingswear Castle engine room

Kingswear Castle looking forward, looking aft, and looking into the engine room

The Kingswear Castle's tea room is open The Kingswear Castle's bridge Kingswear Castle toilet bowl

The tea room is open; the bridge (rather splendidly, the captain uses a speaking tube to talk to his engineers); and the bowl of the Kingswear Castle’s outstanding washdown water closet, which is itself well worth a visit*

Maritime writer and historian David Williams‘ record or the history of the paddlesteamer around Britain over the past century mis available from Amazon: Paddlesteamers (Glory Days).

*This is British humour. If you’re not British, please forgive and forget any insult to your sensibilities.

A stroll by the pretty River Medway

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Scenes from the river, December 2008. As usual, click on the thumbnails for larger images

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The mediaeval bridge at Farleigh – the handsome Egyptian-style waterworks is for sale
as a dwelling, should any reader be in the market for a new home

A favourite family winter outing in for us Atkins and Arnotts is a walk along the River Medway, which is at its most attractive between Maidstone and Tonbridge.

There weren’t too many boats worth photographing on the river this week – it is midwinter, after all – but we had only arrived on its banks a few moments when we resolved to spend some time rowing on it in the dory this summer.

For more intheboatshed.net posts about the Medway, click here; there’s more good stuff at the Wikipedia and at the local council’s website.