Isle of Wight ferry services Isle of Wight ferry services There are currently three different ferry companies that operate vessels carrying passengers and, on certain routes, vehicles across the Solent, the stretch of sea that separates the Isle of Wight from mainland England. These are Wightlink, Red Funnel and Hovertravel. Since the Isle of Wight was separated from mainland Britain, probably about 7000 years ago, vessels have transported people and goods across the Solent. However the earliest record of an Isle of Wight ferry service is from 1420 when the Lord of the Manor in Ashey was responsible for boats crossing between Portsmouth and Ryde.
Downend, Isle of Wight hanged on the island and his body displayed in a gibbet opposite the Hair and Hounds pub. His ghost is still said to walk the street with an axe on his shoulder and in place of a face is a grinning skull. Downend, Isle of Wight Downend is a settlement on the Isle of Wight, off the south coast of England. It is the location of the Robin Hill adventure park. According to the Post Office the population of the settlement at the 2011 Census was included in the civil parish of Arreton. The hamlet lies to the north of