The Bac du Sauvage or Sauvage Ferry is a

cable ferry A cable ferry (including the terms chain ferry, swing ferry, floating bridge, or punt) is a ferry that is guided (and in many cases propelled) across a river or large body of water by cables connected to both shores. Early cable ferries often ...

across a branch of the

Rhône The Rhône ( , ; wae, Rotten ; frp, Rôno ; oc, Ròse ) is a major river in France and Switzerland, rising in the Alps and flowing west and south through Lake Geneva and southeastern France before discharging into the Mediterranean Sea. At Ar ...

in the

Camargue Camargue (, also , , ; oc, label= Provençal, Camarga) is a region of France located south of Arles, between the Mediterranean Sea and the two arms of the Rhône delta. The eastern arm is called the ''Grand Rhône''; the western one is the ''P ...

region of southern

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

. The crossing is long and carries a road across the Petit Rhône about from

Saintes-Maries-de-la-Mer Saintes-Maries-de-la-Mer (, lit.: "Saint Marys of the Sea"; Provençal Occitan: ''Li Santi Mario de la Mar'') is the capital of the Camargue ( Provençal Occitan ''Camarga'') in the south of France. It is a commune in the Bouches-du-Rhône ...

and a similar distance upriver from the

Mediterranean Sea The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean Basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Western and Southern Europe and Anatolia, on the south by North Africa, and on the ea ...

. The ferry crossing is located on the territory of the

commune A commune is an alternative term for an intentional community. Commune or comună or comune or other derivations may also refer to: Administrative-territorial entities * Commune (administrative division), a municipality or township ** Communes of ...

of Saintes-Maries-de-la-Mer. Between October and March, the ferry operates from 0700 to 1200 and from 1330 to 1830. Between April and September, the hours are 0600 to 1200 and 1330 to 2000. The ferry operates every 30 minutes, increasing to every 10 or 15 minutes if traffic volumes demand it. The ferry is operated by the Syndicat Mixte des Traversées du Delta du Rhône, which also operates the

Bac de Barcarin BAC or Bac may refer to: Places * Bac, a village in Montenegro * Baile Átha Cliath, Irish language name for Dublin city. * Bîc River, aka ''Bâc River'', a Moldovan river * Baç Bridge, bridge in Turkey * Barnes County Municipal Airport (ICAO ...

, and is free of

toll Toll may refer to: Transportation * Toll (fee) a fee charged for the use of a road or waterway ** Road pricing, the modern practice of charging for road use ** Road toll (historic), the historic practice of charging for road use ** Shadow toll, ...

s. The current ferry boat, ''Bac Sauvage 3'', was placed in service in 1972, and can carry up to 8 cars with 30 passengers plus a crew member.Technical specifications of ''Bac Sauvage 3''
The boat is long and wide. Whilst guided by cables, the ferry is propelled by

paddle wheels A paddle wheel is a form of waterwheel or impeller in which a number of paddles are set around the periphery of the wheel. It has several uses, of which some are: * Very low-lift water pumping, such as flooding paddy fields at no more than about ...

. This unusual arrangement was shared with the Number 7

Dartmouth Higher Ferry The Dartmouth Higher Ferry, also known as the Dartmouth–Kingswear Floating Bridge, is a vehicular and passenger cable ferry, which crosses the River Dart in the English county of Devon. It is one of three ferries that cross the tidal river fro ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

. This operated from 1960 to June 2009, but has now been replaced by a new, more conventional cable ferry. Besides carrying cars, the ferry is often used by horse riding tours of the area.

References

External links

Official web site of the ''Syndicat Mixte des Traversées du Delta du Rhône''

Official web site of the Gypsy Flamenco music Group "Roma y Yardani Les Princes du Bac Sauvage"

Bouches-du-Rhône Camargue Ferries of France Transport in Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur Cable ferries {{ferry-stub