Day 224/17. The only service in the world.

Running between Portsmouth and Ryde on the Isle of Wight in the UK is the worlds only remaining passenger hovercraft service.
Today was the height of summer and the service was running at top capacity providing the crossing over the Solent in just 10 minutes.
With the wind blowing moderately, the hundreds of kids and big kids watching the craft roll up onto the concrete slipway took delight in getting soaked with sea spray thrown off the craft (see extra image today).
The hovercraft service is a tourist attraction in its own right. Hovertravel was established in 1965 and over 29 million passengers have travelled on the service. The advantage of the hovercraft is that they can travel at extremely low tides. If it hadn't been for the tides, this service might never have existed. The low tides at Ryde, take the sea out far beyond the town's esplanade, and it has always been impossible for any ship to berth anywhere near roads or bus routes