A Punt is a flat bottomed boat without a keel and is propelled by means of a long pole. These were introduced as a pleasure craft in Edwardian times. Now they serve as a means to view the famous bridges and colleges along the River Cam.
The Punts at Scudmore’s. F.Scudmore founded his business in 1910 and today has the largest fleet of Punts, nearly 150.
Punts today are 6 to 7 meters long and 1 to 2 meters wide. The pole is 5 meters long.
One of Cambridge’s bridges in the background. More on those in a later blog.
Before railways much of England’s trade relied upon rivers as roads became mudpits after rains. Transport by Punts was slow by very economical. A punter can push well over a ton along with no more fuel than a few cheese sandwiches and a pint of Guinness…or so the story goes.
Of course the locals like to race…