Would North Carolina really keep a crew on a back-road river crossing that, by NCDOT's own 2020 count, moved about a dozen vehicles a day? It would, and it does. Parker's Ferry carries SR 1175 and SR 1306 over the Meherrin River a short way upstream of its confluence with the Chowan, and in August 2026 the department named it, along with Elwell and San Souci, as one of the cable ferries still working every day.
Why trust a social media post? Because the contracting record lines up with it. Division 1 put the operating job out to bid in the summer of 2023, and an August 31 memo recommended Hunt's Enterprises of Ahoskie to start on September 1. That agreement can be renewed a year at a time for as many as five years in all, which takes it to the end of August 2028.
How does a crossing with no timetable work? You drive to the landing, and if the boat is moored across the water, you sound your horn, which is NCDOT's own instruction. The mechanics are the same as on the Sans Souci Ferry over the Cashie in Bertie County, run by the same division under a near-twin contract, so that page covers how the cable guides the barge. Here the questions are local: which bank you start from, what hour of the year it is, and how high the Meherrin is running.
Two daylight windows written into an NCDOT contract
Hours from NCDOT's Parker's Ferry operating contract (proposal dated July 28, 2023, renewable to August 2028) and the Town of Murfreesboro attractions page, both read October 15, 2026 NCDOT Division 1 — operating contract 54-CA-01-12090695 · 2026-10-15
Free to ride, paid for out of Division 1's budget
Nobody collects money at either landing. NCDOT's August 2026 post says so in plain words, and a 2020 report in the Roanoke-Chowan News-Herald noted that neither of the two Division 1 cable ferries charged a fee then either.
What the state does limit is the head count: the contract forbids the operator from casting off with more than six passengers aboard, the operator not included.
| Car or pickup with driver | Free |
| Each passenger (six per trip at most) | Free |
Free per NCDOT's August 6, 2026 post, read October 15, 2026 NCDOT (@ncdotcom) — post of August 6, 2026 · 2026-10-15
SR 1175 on the south bank, SR 1306 on the north
South landing (SR 1175)
The federal ferry-terminal inventory files this bank as Parker SR1175, under Winton, and records a parking area. Coming from US 158, watch the turn onto SR 1175: that junction is one of the two spots where NCDOT's contract requires a sign saying whether the boat is working.
North landing (SR 1306)
On the Maney's Neck side the same inventory lists Parkers SR 1306, under Como, again with parking. The second closure sign stands where SR 1306 leaves US 258. There is no street address for either bank, so plug the coordinates into your navigation app instead.
A 400-foot gap between Maney's Neck and the Winton side
Between the two landing points in the federal terminal inventory, the river here is only about 120 meters (roughly 400 feet) wide. The south bank belongs to Winton township and leads out to US 158; the north bank is Maney's Neck, the neck of land bounded by the Meherrin and the Chowan, where SR 1306 heads up to US 258 at Como.
North Carolina has three of these inland cable boats left, all run by highway divisions rather than by the coastal Ferry Division: Parker's, Sans Souci southeast of Windsor, and Elwell on the Cape Fear in Bladen County. Across the state line, Virginia's Merry Point Ferry works the Corrotoman under a similar six-passenger cap.
Rules the operator has to enforce
- Read the sign at the highway
Before committing to the dead-end road, check the closure sign at SR 1175 and US 158, or at SR 1306 and US 258. The contractor has to change both whenever the boat stops.
- Six riders, not seven
A carload of five plus a second car with two people means someone waits. The cap counts passengers, with the operator on top.
- Engine off, wheels chocked
Once you roll aboard, cut the engine and pull the brake. The operator chocks your wheels front and back and hooks a safety chain before leaving the bank.
- No fishing from the docks
Tempting as the landings look, fishing from the ferry or either dock is banned, and so is tying a boat to them.
- Watch the November cutoff
After the clocks change, the last chance to cross moves up to 5 p.m. Plan the return leg of a day trip with that in mind.
Shipyard, budget cut and comeback, 2018 to 2020
According to Coastal Review, which quoted NCDOT, the department has run this crossing since the 1930s, versions of it have worked the Meherrin since the early 1900s, and the current boat was built in the 1970s. In November 2018 it went by tow to the Ferry Division shipyard at Manns Harbor for an overhaul the News-Herald put at $125,000: a new engine, propulsion and hydraulics plus hull work. Then it waited, because the tug and crew needed to bring it home had higher priorities.
The spring of 2020 nearly ended the story. Facing a $300 million shortfall as pandemic traffic collapsed, NCDOT said in April it would cancel the operating contracts for Parker's and Sans Souci on June 13, and Hertford County's commissioners voted unanimously to ask Raleigh to find the money. Parker's returned to service on October 20, 2020, after almost two years away, and it has been bid out again since.
What Hertford County visitors ask about Parker's Ferry
Is Parker's Ferry operating in 2026?
Yes. NCDOT's August 6, 2026 post lists it among the cable ferries that run every day, subject to weather and river conditions. A high-water closure is posted on signs at US 158 and US 258 before you reach the river.
Does NCDOT charge riders at Parker's Ferry?
Nothing. NCDOT describes the ride as free, for the vehicle and everyone in it.
When does the winter day end at Parker's?
At 5:00 p.m. Under the contract, the cold-season day (November 2 through March 7) starts at 7:00 a.m.; between March 8 and November 1 the boat works from 6:30 a.m., or sunrise, until 6:00 p.m.
What's the passenger limit on each trip?
Six, not counting the operator. NCDOT's contract forbids leaving the bank with more aboard.
Who is the operator?
NCDOT Division 1 owns the boat. Hunt's Enterprises of Ahoskie won the operating contract that began September 1, 2023; yearly renewals are not published, so call Division 1 Roadside Environmental at 252-426-4180 to confirm who holds it now.
Where was the boat during 2019?
It was at NCDOT's Manns Harbor shipyard for a full overhaul from November 2018, and pandemic budget cuts then delayed its return until October 20, 2020.
Can I fish or tie up a boat at the landings?
No. The contract bans fishing from the ferry and both docks, and bans mooring any boat to them.