BotF normal service resumes, dolphins and Daleside Old Legover

For the last month we’ve being doing it tough (relatively) on the Back of the Ferry. Due to renovations of the Manly Wharf, the Back of the Ferry has been the Front and we’ve missed our usual spot. The room, the rear and the repartee. Not that there wasn’t repartee out the front, but it was a little more windblown. So it was with much relief that illiards and this correspondent were able to resume the traditional position out the back. The weather wasn’t that clement, but really it didn’t matter – we were home again, and things were right in the world.

The boys at Vintage Cellars at Wynyard continue to lob in the occasional new beer into their fridges. They’re exploring the English and US beers and tonight’s @Untappd unique came from Yorkshire. We’re big fans of single entendre humour on the Back of the Ferry and Daleside’s Old Legover is a worthy contributor to that genre. Lovely label, 500ml bottle, t-shirt on offer on the neck – plenty to like. To be honest, though, we were both underwhelmed. This isn’t a bad beer, it is just – well – mediocre. Could probably drink 1000’s once on a roll, but at $8.99 a pop – it isn’t good enough.

So back out the back, a couple of beers, a dry journey despite the overcast skies, a couple of lightning bolts, plenty of political and sporting conversation – it couldn’t get better, right? One would have thought so until a rather large pod of dolphins started to surface off the port stern. As we peered out to the side, we started to work out that there were about 20 or more dolphins in Manly Cove. They were spread from the point off Fairlight Beach to the waters on the south of the Manly Wharf. As I walked from the ferry home, the dolphins had moved to 20m from the shore next to the Manly Aquarium. Simply bloody fantastic.