Menor’s Ferry

Bill Menor recognized that this single channel of the Snake River offered an ideal crossing point. The reaction ferry used there followed a design dating back to ancient times, using the river current to propel the boat. With the ferry on the west bank and its pontoons parallel to the current, traveler pulleys rolled along a cable and water pushed against the pontoons. When the captain turned the pilot wheel right to lengthen the rope on the right side, the rope angled, the pontoons caught the current, and the ferry moved east. Turning the pilot wheel left equalized the ropes, stopped the ferry, and brought it to the east bank.

Wyoming · United States