From Rio Vista on Hwy 12, we turned north along the main shipping channel. After a few miles on the levee, we took the car ferry called the Real McCoy across Cache Slough to Ryer Island.
We rode around Ryer Island to a smaller ferry named the J-Mack on Steamboat Slough. The J-Mack is one of the last operating cable ferries. A cable ferry pulls itself along a cable that is fixed between the banks of the river. The ferries are free and even though the rides are short they are a lot of fun.