A neat hand powered bicycle ferry near Delft, Netherlands (Veerpont De Trekschuit)

The Netherlands is a country with a lot of waterways including canals, and one of the more interesting ways I have seen to cross a canal is 'De Trekschuit', a hand powered pedestrian and bicycle ferry located in the village of Schipluiden, between Delft and Rotterdam. De Trekschuit uses a hand crank which pulls on a chain to cross the canal in a completely human powered way. Very cool!

[@m.moolhuysen5456]

You can find are several of these hand powered bicycle ferry in the west and north of The Netherlands. They are pretty self explanatory, so it's not a problem if you can't read the language. The only thing that can go wrong is when someone (usually a child) cranks out the trailing chain at the back, instead of letting it run out by itself, because then the chain can bunch up inside its cabinet and get stuck. One time I had to help a group of foreign tourists who let this happen to them, causing them to get stranded halfway. I could reel them back in with the shore based winding stand, and get the chain unstuck from inside the cabinet of the winding stand on the ferry. So, (aiding to) unwind the trailing chain with the crank at the backside of the ferry is the only thing you have to avoid with these ferries.

[@evdweide]

Not explicitly mentioned, but you can clearly see in the video that the canal has a much higher water level than the surrounding area (the "polders"). This happens a lot in the Netherlands, and is part of the extensive water table management which prevents us all from getting wet feet.

[@jeffturner8927]

Quite a neat trick. Thanks for the effort to show us !

[@spinningtrue]

Thanks!

[@Rambles-and-random-animals]

I used that ferry 5 years ago when my daughter and I cycled from Liverpool to Amsterdam. We didn't have a clue until some locals turned up. Wish we'd had your instructive video then😅

[@spinningtrue]

Heh yeah it's pretty cool once you figure it out!

[@raymonray5444]

Done it myself , a great experience !

[@vincenttayelrand]

It is a decent arm workout for sure. Have you noticed how the ferry always seems to be on the wrong side of the river whenever you want to cross it?

[@Maguramishi]

Thanks for this video. Very nice to know this ferry exists. One of the things the sign says, is ‘Overige scheepvaart heeft voorrang’, which means the ferry should yield to other ships.

[@spinningtrue]

Thank you!

[@buddy1155]

You should always yield to all ships that follow the river, even professional shipping (beroepsvaart) with a container barge should yield to a canoe if it only wants to cross a river.

[@kekzoet7487]

There are a lot of these do it yourself ferries in the Netherlands! Nice video.

[@derekjolly3680]

There'd be some guesswork without being able to read the Dutch! I could only make out a few words. It all makes me think of that Clint Eastwood western movie with the ferry in it and they're being chased. I think it was "Josey Wales".

[@Cl0ckcl0ck]

Yup, The Outlaw Josey Wales. "And this is what we call a Missouri river boat ride." he says as he shoots the cable (chain on this one) apart. Excellent movie. The sound reminded me of the beginning of Once Upon a Time in the West.