Ryde Pier

This is Ryde Pier, one of the main sights you'll definately see if you come to the Island as a foot passenger from Portsmouth. Due to the severe tides in this part of the world, the pier has to be long! nearly 700m long to be precise. A bit of background information from The Heritage Trail :

'Designed by John Kent of Southampton, the foundation stone of Ryde Pier was laid on 29th June 1813, the completed pier opening a year later on 26th July 1814. Overnight the perilous embarkation and disembarkation of the seafaring public had become a thing of the past. Originally built of timber, to a length of 1,740ft (527m), the pier was little more than a 12ft (3.6m) wide wooden jetty able to handle only relatively small sailing boats, but as the size of passenger vessels increased so did the pier. Ryde Pier was extended to a length of 2,040ft (618m) in 1824 and the pier-head was enlarged in 1827. A further extension in 1833 took the overall length to 2,250ft (681m), while the pier-head was again extended in 1842 and the late 1850s.'

View Satellite image of Ryde Pier @ Google Maps.
(looks like Google messed up a bit on this shot!)