Sailing with the Kingswear Castle (Torbay Express)...

Hi all. Today, as you will read in the following post (as the blog tends to leave it in the order of the end of the post rather than when it actually happened) we were aboard the Torbay Express. Our fine dining experience had brought us by the power of steam from Bristol to Kingswear, for Dartmouth. Having taken the Ferry from the pontoon at Kingswear across the River Dart to Dartmouth, we spent an hour or so exploring the quirky and interesting little shops that the town has in abundance. With much more time to kill on this warm and sunny afternoon, we decided to take in a cruise on the River Dart. Most of the cruises are offered by the Dart Steam Railway as they seem to own almost every item of transport in the locality. The jewel in their crown at the moment is the 1924-built "Kingswear Castle", the last remaining coal-fired paddle steamer in the country. The vessel has been operating cruises on the river on behalf of the railway for the last 18 months or so and has become a popular feature of Dartmouth. Eyeing up the paddle steamer alongside the more modern diesel vessels makes up your mind straight away: "Kingswear Castle" for the win. We purchased our tickets for the 2pm sailing, which would take us on a cruise lasting around 75 minutes. We boarded at around 1:45pm and stepped aboard the wonderfully restored vessel with pleasure. We then took our seats for the cruise ahead. With a deep blast of her hooter style whistle, the "KC" got underway. We first headed up towards Dartmouth Castle and the mouth of the river which heads out into the Atlantic Ocean...

A view out to sea from the beautiful "KC"...

The "KC" then made a wide turn back towards Dartmouth. The friendly and obviously loving crew gave a fantastic and humorous commentary throughout the voyage. Many famous people have or have had property in Dartmouth, from Dame Agatha Christie to Sir Walter Raleigh. To this day, Dartmouth is known as one of the premier places to live in the country and its views have been voted the best in Britain. The "KC" was certainly the best way to see Dartmouth and I was so pleased that we took the trip. Both myself and the good lady were both in awe of the views and the interesting facts that came one after the other from the bridge via the tannoy. You could hardly hear the beautifully restored engines working below deck, and the gentle tapping of the paddles going around just added to the experience. The "KC" then made her way up through Dartmouth and further up river...

Now for the technical bits. As I've said the "KC" was built in 1924 by Philip & Sons of, believe it or not, Dartmouth! The "KC" is now well and truly home. The steam engines below deck which provide power to the common-shaft to turn the paddles date from 1904. They are in immaculate condition and have been restored to a very high standard. The "KC" worked on the River Dart from her build-date and plied her trade between Dartmouth and Totnes until around 1965. She eventually returned to Dartmouth, fully restored, in 2013 as part of an agreement to work with the railway company and provide cruises on the Dart. Since her return she has become a popular feature and we were certainly glad to be aboard her today. The engines are seen here from the deck...

A view from the R/H paddle looking forwards...

Views on the River Dart...

Aboard the "Kingswear Castle"...

The "KC", according to her crew, carries around 2-tons of coal at a time and uses around 1/2 a ton of coal per day. That's amazing in my eyes as we would use at least 3 times that amount for a day on 3803. This is of course due to the fact that she isn't really working that hard. The engines are sort of gently ticking over and paddles push her easily through the water. The "KC" burns welsh coal that, once you get it going, provides a pretty clean burn and aids the cleanliness of the vessel as well as throwing less smuts out over the passengers. The shot below is one I took in 2013 and shows the vessel with the plastic side sheets up out on the river...

"Kingswear Castle" on the River Dart in 2013

Following our cruise we were returned in good time to the pontoon at Dartmouth to spend the rest of our afternoon ambling about the place. The cruise was great and I heartily recommend it to anyone interested in steam or heritage. The "KC" is a gem of steam preservation and is great value for money. The commentary given out by the friendly crew is well worth a listen and Dartmouth just has so much to offer. The "KC", without a doubt, is the best way to see this beautiful place. All the best guys, Sam...