Category Archives: Churches

No Room At The End. 21st May

Second GOBA mooring to Second GOBA mooring via the end of navigation

Tilly was allowed shore leave this morning whist we had breakfast and joined the Geraghty Zoom. Brown muffin cases one of the topics covered today. As soon as we’d signed out the trip computer was started and we were pulling out our mooring spikes, time to see what else the River Wissey had to offer.

Not far upstream someone has made themselves quite a little mooring, no photo I’m afraid as it was hard to take one with their boat in the way. Steps cut into the flood bank, branch handrails, places to sit in amongst the trees, a kind of Robinson Crusoe affair.

I’d been told of an old fashioned butchers in Hilgay, it seemed to be the only shop we’d come across today. We pulled in at the 48hr public mooring and walked up through the village to reach AJ Dent, obviously a butcher with a sense of humour.

Inside the butchers counter was empty, all their meaty goods hidden out of view. I either know exactly what I want from a butchers, so this doesn’t matter, or I want to window shop, see what there is that might take my fancy. Sadly today I wanted to window shop, so came away with a newspaper and a small pork pie for Mick, well it is still his birthday weekend!

A chap and his dog sat at the bus stop whistling away the time as we walked on through the village. A lychgate led to a long lime tree covered lane, the other end another lychgate and most probably the village church. We had to go and see.

All Saints church is a medieval church built from carstone, the tower from white brick which replaced an earlier tower which collapsed. It was restored in 1862 by GE Street. It could almost have been built from gingerbread and royal icing. One face of the clock has seen better days, the others not telling the correct time anyway.

Did this Yew tree grown around the gravestone, or has it just ended up resting there?

Today we could only look round the exterior and graveyard as out of the two doors, only one had a handle and that was padlocked shut.

A very well kept village, even the more modern houses seemed to have immaculate gardens.

Back at the mooring we’d been joined by a cruiser who’d stopped for lunch, we followed suit. The chap we’d seen at the bus stop had returned from his trip and was starting up the small engine on his little dinghy, he headed off downstream as we headed upstream.

Plenty of cruisers moored along here, helping to keep our speed down. All different shapes and sizes were represented here.

Then out into the countryside again. Here damselflies flitted here and there, their turquoise, green and black flashing as they flew past. Terns swooped for insects. We wondered if the same terns were following us, but looking back it was obvious that the whole river was being dive bombed by them!

The views opened out a touch, followed by the not so picturesque sugar Factory. Pipes cross the river and end up at large piles of white. Are these the equivalent of the salt mounds around Middlewich? Giant sugar mounds?

Wide. Keep to the right side of the islands

Now the river widens out into a large pool. Knowing which way to head is handy. A mooring here would be great, a kind of Fenland Tixall, someone could even build a fake gatehouse to complete the look!

No Himalayan Balsam just a lot of this blue/purple plant. Anyone know what it is please? Possibly Comfrey according to Debby

A cruiser was pulled up on a bend, the chaps having just cut themselves a hollow in the friendly cover. Later on they’d dug themselves a fire pit and collected a lot of wood.

We looked forward to the view we might get at the Wissey Aqueduct, but large concrete walls gave us disappointment. Here the Cut Off Channel takes water from the Wissey, Little Ouse and Lark. In the summer months the water heads to Essex for drinking water, but in times of flood the excess water flows in the other direction to Denver Sluice, it’s main purpose when it was built in the 1950/60s.

Nearing Stoke Ferry and Whittington moored boats line the banks. One last chance for us to moor before the head of navigation would be reached. At Grange Farm Touring Park the one GOBA mooring space was already taken. Mick tired calling the park to see if they might have space for us elsewhere, but the answer came back no, we could of course breast up, but we didn’t fancy that.

On towards the end of navigation, we passed a rather lovely barn shouting out for a conversion.

Where Lode Dyke meets the River Wissey is as far as we could go. Someone has built themselves a nice little hut, with a landing and ladder for swimming here. A Kingfisher darted across our path and watched as we winded.

Our choices now were to either find a bit of bank we thought we’d be able to moor on without getting nettled too much, carry on back to Hilgay or even further back to where we’d started this morning. No bank showed itself, so we continued.

Just after the sugar factory on the north bank sits an expanse of greenhouses. Recently a cannabis farm had been discovered in the next street from our house in Scarborough. We joked that maybe tomatoes were grown in these greenhouses disguising the cannabis plants. Reading up in Mick’s new book later we discovered that we were almost correct in our jest!

In 2007 Wissington became the site of the first bioethanol power plant, spare heat was used to power on site greenhouses which produced 70 million tomatoes a year. In 2017 the greenhouses switched to producing cannabis plants for medical production. At harvest time that year a sweet smell spread over East Anglia emanating from the greenhouses!

The Pumphouse stands out from its surroundings, now converted into holiday accommodation. It sleeps 14 in 5 bedrooms and commands views across the Wissey Valley Nature Reserve.

Back in Hilgay there was space on the mooring, but we decided we’d rather wake up away from the road and would chance finding space back where we’d started the day.

Passing the boat on it’s homegrown mooring, the chap chatted as we passed, the same man who’d been at the bus stop and behind his narrowboat was his small dinghy, his dog lying watching the river slowly flow past.

At the GOBA mooring there were already a couple of boats moored, but thankfully there was plenty of space for us. We pulled up right on the end, hopefully we’d get away with Tilly thinking it was a whole new outside in the morning, it was now far too late for any shore leave.

0 locks, 18.65 miles, 1 wind, 1 butchers, 1 Saturday paper, 1 pork pie, 2 lychgates, 0 space, 2 kingfishers, 5332 terns, 90 minutes shore leave, 1 spun round outside left or tomorrow, 1 river ticked off.

Is This As Low As We Can Go? 18th May

Dog in a Doublet to Burnthouse Bridge Rural Mooring, Whittlesey Dyke, Middle Level

Yesterday Mick had phoned Stanground Lock to book our passage through for today. Kev, not Tina had called us back and booked us for midday. He also rang us this morning, yesterday he’d responded to a missed call on the mobile, today he was responding to Mick’s message.

We gave ourselves a couple of hours to return back up the Nene to Peterborough Junction where we’d turn onto the Back River, the aroma of partially cooked chips hanging in the air today. Does anyone know what the metal framed tower is on the north shore of the river?

The Back River brings you under a railway bridge, then past the back of the houses at Stanground. Soon we arrived at the lock and Kev popped up from nowhere, we were an hour early just as the timings on our maps had suggested, but better early than late.

Kev set the lock, the nearest paddle/slacker lifted to fill it, I could see straight through the opening, you don’t often get a view like that. With the gates open we were soon in the lock. Time to chat Anglian Passes.

About a month ago Mick had applied for an Anglian pass on line. This gives you access to the Middle Level and the River Cam and lasts a year. The pass is a fairly new thing and has caused quite a to do in certain circles. The website had said someone would ring to take payment. No-one did. So with our arrival getting closer Mick rang and was told that our application hadn’t arrived, could he fill out the form again and email it to them, then someone would call to take payment. This he did. We are still waiting for the phone call.

This tale was nothing new to Kev, he wasn’t surprised. He wrote us down on his sheet and took our details. Next we needed to purchase ourselves a key and a key. A different navigation authority means a new key to access facilities. We also required a different windlass, which in these parts is called a key. Kev had both for sale and quickly provided them in return for £17. We also enquired about Salters Lode on the other side of the Middle Level, we’d tried calling the Lock Keeper there but had had no response. Kev said we’d just need to arrive at a suitable time for the tide, he then provided us with the tide time. No need to book just turn up and we’d be locked through. What a helpful chap, very reminiscent of the Lock Keeper at Thames Lock onto the River Wey.

The paddles on the lock were lifted, the lock emptied, gates open. We’d descended onto the Level. Well maybe we’d descended a touch too far as Oleanna seemed to want to stay put in the lock. There was a little bit of movement so a push out at the stern and bow a bit of a jiggle and she was free! We are on the cusp of draft for the navigation. Mick later on read notes written by Simon Judge regarding deep drafted boats going through the lock backwards, well we know now!

Narrow and shallow, our speed would be a lot slower than it had been out on the river.

Here sky rules, when would we get to see our next hill? Flat as flat, well until we came across a new railway bridge being built.

A view of the brick works and McCains from the other side this time. Two churches in Whittlesey. Three work boats sat at the edges of the navigation, having their lunch break, weed cutters, one called Covid 20.

Ahead lay the bend we’ve heard of between bridges 111 and 110, the navigation is narrow the bend 90 degrees. Mick slowed Oleanna right down as we passed possibly the nearest vets to the waterways, then took us round in one go with plenty of room to spare.

A public park in Whittlesey has a 48hr mooring, space for two narrowboats, we pulled in for lunch then consulted our schedule. Should we stay here the night? We were already ahead of schedule, Tilly would be able to go out, other moorings further on looked like they would be alongside roads, so not deemed to be cat friendly.

‘Two hours Tilly, we might want to go out and explore ourselves.’

Another look at our schedule, planned mooring places for the next few days. Waterway Routes open as well as Google Maps satellite view. A meeting with family is planned next week, a mooring to have a birthday barbeque would be good too, so we’re only using the link route through the Middle Level at the moment. Our planned passage through Salters Lode to Denver Sluice had been on Saturday, but all of a sudden the moorings on the Great Ouse looked a touch more appealing. Did we have enough time to reach Salters Lode for Friday morning? If we cracked on today yes.

Fortunately Tilly had decided that the grass outside wasn’t up to much and had retired to the bedroom, but as soon as the back door closed we got complaints. ‘You know I said 2 hours, well I actually meant 2 minutes!’

Ashline Lock drops the navigation down by 6ft, it lay a short distance in front of us. The width of the locks isn’t enough to be able to share with another narrowboat, bottom gates should be left open, paddles closed to help conserve water levels. Time to use our new windlass/key, so new it’s grey paint not fully cured!

The paddles at the top of the lock are similar to those you find on the Leeds Liverpool canal, you just can’t see whether they are open or not, then how many turns until they are fully open? The lock gradually filled. The bottom paddles are similar but positioned on the gates themselves. I chose to count how many turns they took to open, twenty, thirty, thirty five, I gave up, the lock slowly emptied.

Is this the lowest you can be on non-tidal water in England? At Lodes End Lock to our south the level is variable and can be nothing, but it suggests on our map that to head west through the lock you may rise to be on the level we are on now. Around us the contour on the OS map was around 0 or even -1 in some fields.

In the pamphlet we’d been given it showed us the location of Rural moorings, but Mick had spied on the website that there were another four such moorings, two of which we’d be going past today. Might they be more cat friendly than the public moorings?

The first was at Angle Corner. 32m of bank had been cut and large posts added to tie to. Here you might be able to get off your boat without too much trouble, but the bank is steep, nothing that would worry Tilly. We made a note of its position to report back to Paul at Waterway Routes.

Just past Burnthouse Bridge there was a second mooring. We consulted our maps, if we didn’t stop here we had at least another two hours to cruise to the next mooring in March which may not have space. We pulled in flung our ropes over the posts, Oleanna sat a good meter out from solid land, a plank or major leap of faith would be needed here to get off, but that didn’t bother us. A quick cat health and safety discussion, she’d get off okay, but would almost certainly arrive back on board wet. No shore leave today for any of us!

2 locks, 13.89 miles, 1 wind, 1 left, 1 straight on, 1 hour early, 2 minutes shore leave, 2 hire boats, 1 private boat, 3 work boats, 1 new key, 1 new key, 2 levels, 10 new posts, 1 contract to sign, 1 storm approaching, 0 Anglian Pass.

https://goo.gl/maps/yqpCcmpAE7s4gvee9

Pomegranates. 12th May

The Boathouse to Peterborough Embankment

Tilly was given an hour shore leave whilst we had breakfast, with not far to go today it wouldn’t matter if she was a touch longer. As we started to get ready Mick chatted to the chap from the boat next door on NB Mushy P (good name). They compared notes about boating, moorings etc and it turned out we were both heading for water in Peterborough.

We ended up leading the way as the wind caught NB Mushy P out. Approaching the town bridges crossed the river, swans filled the water and two large barges hugged the banks, both bars and restaurants. The long embankment stretched out ahead of us, a boat already at the services, we pulled in behind having to be creative with how we tied up. Mushy P pulled up further ahead and we both waited for the tap to become free.

The chap from NB Bob imparted knowledge to us about moorings, pubs, and shops we’d find on our way. All useful information if you can remember it!

Once the tank was full we reversed back to a space and tied up. We knew Tilly wouldn’t be enamoured. The embankment even though it is a green space with trees is very open so quite risky. She didn’t stay on land long, came back inside to see if the outside at the bow was any better!

It wasn’t!

Time to do a bit of exploring. Our route took us past The Lido. An Art Deco swimming complex with three heated outdoor pools and sun terraces. We decided it was maybe a touch too windy for such activities today.

Peterborough Cathedral was a bit of a surprise to us. Neither of us had thought that it would be so big or important.

The first monastery on the site was founded in 655AD, at that time called Medeswell. It was built in timber but later replaced in stone. In 870AD Vikings, possibly led by ‘Ivar the Boneless’, attacked and destroyed the monastery. Between 966-970AD the monastery was refounded as a Benedictine house, a town began to spring up alongside which became known as Peterborough after St Peter, a statue sits high on the west facade.

The cathedral and monastery were attacked numerous times through it’s history, fires have also wreaked havoc. In 1118 a replacement monastic church was begun the start of the present cathedral, it was consecrated in 1238. The original wooden ceiling in the nave still survives, the only such ceiling in the country. It has been overpainted twice still retaining it’s original style and pattern. Today a group of ladies were busy working on a 3m long tapestry celebrating the ceiling, they get very cold feet and have been allowed a big light for when the sun doesn’t shine.

At the end of the 15thC the presbytery roof was renewed and a ‘New Building’ was created at the east end with fine fan vaulting showing off the late Perpendicular style.

Katherine of Aragon, Henry VIII’s first wife was buried in the monastic church, her tomb stone today adorned with pomegranates. In 1541 the former abbot John Chambers was made the new bishop and the abbey church became a Cathedral, was this because Katherine was buried here?

In 1587, 5 months after her death Mary, Queen of Scots was buried in the cathedral, after 25years she was moved to Westminster Abbey. The other day when we were at Fotheringhay I mentioned that the plaque relating to Mary had the dates 1586/7 on it. A comment from Tim Bridge explains this. The two years are because at that time, the year changed on March 25th (Lady Day). So Mary was executed in Feb 1586 by the reckoning of the day, but in 1587 by the way we count the years today. One side effect of this is that it is possible to look in a church register and find the burial in January of a child born in June the same year! Thank you Tim.

During the Civil War the cathedral was ravaged when it was taken by Oliver Cromwell, nearly all the stained glass, alter, cloisters and Lady Chapel were destroyed and many of the books from the library were burnt .

In the 1880’s the central tower was rebuilt, followed by refurbishment of the central and eastern ends of the cathedral. The fine hand carved choir was added and extensive marble was laid at the high alter.

A fine building all round, except I miss it having the presence from a distance that tall towers give other cathedrals. The west façade is worth a visit itself.

We then had a wander around town, sussing out whether the market would be worth a visit tomorrow. But when we arrived all we found was rubble!

The market is currently closed reopening on a different site next month. What a shame as I like a good market. We’ll have to cope with Asda and maybe some bits from Waitrose instead.

0 locks, 1.51 miles, 1 left, 1 full water tank, 0 rubbish, 1 unimpressed cat, 17 trees with comb overs, 1 cathedral, 1st wife, 1 Queen of Scots, 7 pomegranates, 0 market, 157 swans.

https://goo.gl/maps/CHwCMx3gMsRR4hseA

Shhhh, There’s Space. 9th May

Wansford Station to The Boathouse, Peterborough

No trains now until next weekend, so no point in hanging around and anyway we needed to find a mooring where Tilly would be allowed shore leave. We don’t trust her on pontoons especially on rivers where one wrong pounce into the friendly cover could have her swept away.

Another lovely morning as we wound our way round towards Peterborough. What a pretty lock Water Newton is. Church just there, converted mill over there, mown lawns, swans and three chaps smoking weed and dangling their feet over the edge of the lock landing! Not quite the place you’d imagine them to hang out, but the view was worth seeing.

By now we’d been caught up by a chap on a cruiser. I walked ahead to drop the guillotine and set the lock. He was happy to join us if we went into the lock first, he then bow hauled his boat in alongside us having to manipulate his ropes around a twiggy tree. He then went on ahead to set the next lock.

To think we have travelled along the A1 so many times and not realised that the river lay just so close. Zooming along you’d miss most of the little glimpses towards the river between trees and buildings, but on the water the noise follows you.

At Alwalton Lock our locking partner was just opening the gates for us to enter, perfect timing. I took over from him at the controls where a strategic stick had been used to hold the ‘lower gate’ button in. The gates needed a touch of adjusting so that the white light came on on the panel, then I could lift the guillotine.

Alongside the lock there is an EA mooring and on the other side of the weir cut is a FOTRN mooring, quite pretty but a touch noisy with the A1 so close.

We managed to swap with an uphill boat below the lock, our partner zooming off ahead, if he found somewhere suitable he’d moor up, if not we might see him at the next lock.

Park land draws you in towards Peterborough. The fancy Milton Ferry Bridge and Ferry Meadows. We considered mooring in the Meadows, there’s a 24hrs mooring there, but this would be too far out for our needs in the next couple of days. After an hour of cruising we arrived at Orton Lock the last none tidal lock on the River Nene.

Here big sluices line up alongside the lock. Our partner had waited for us and another boat was coming up in the lock, helping to set it for us. Down we came with Charlotte Rose our partner, he pulled in to make use of a nearby Co-op whilst we carried on in towards the city.

Peterborough has several moorings we could use, plenty on the embankment, but we had one in our sights, tucked away off the main river, but would there be space for us?

The entrance in towards the rowing course isn’t advertised, it brings you alongside the course and then opens out into a large pond, a private basin further along past The Boathouse. As we turned in we could see there was a narrowboat already there, but would there be space for us too? Yes, plenty of room alongside the decking. This will do nicely!

The decking has seen better days and reminded me of walking on scenic flats, knowing where the structure lay behind a wise thing so as not to put your feet through! With trees alongside and friendly cover Tilly was gone for some time.

This evening I have had a photo sent to me on facebook taken yesterday at Wansford. A friend I used to work with uses the tea rooms at Wansford as a pit stop when he’s on the A1. Yesterday he’d stopped for a break and a cuppa, sat at the picnic benches above the moorings and got a photo of the train coming into the station a couple of hours earlier than the one we saw, we’d missed him by an hour and a half!

3 locks, 7.51 miles, 1 locking partner, 1 very friendly boat club, A1, 2 boats passed, 1 mooring with room, 4 hours shore leave, 1 shopping trip, 90 minutes, 1 Mrs Tilly stamp of approval.

https://goo.gl/maps/ZZRke6PuTD6CWFa26

In Time For The 15:45. 8th May

Fotheringhay Castle to Wansford Station

Waking up in the shadow of a castle isn’t a thing we do frequently, Newark is the only other place we can think of. Windsor is too far away as is Beeston Castle. Fotheringhay made for a good view this morning, sheep now grazing where Tilly had explored last night.

As we had breakfast a group of people sat on the top of the mound, their three dogs following the trails around it of Tilly’s scent.

The church dominates the sky line for miles

What a glorious day, one for sun cream, maybe I’ll be swapping our wardrobes from winter to summer soon. But then again it may just snow next week! Pulling away we decided that this might be a good place to meet up with the London Leckenbys on our return. If they could get one of the river side pitches and us a mooring alongside that would be ideal for a weekend. Behind us for quite some miles the tower of St Mary and All Saints remained in view, I’m looking forward to have a look round it in a couple of months time.

At Warmington Lock we had great views all around, the sheep in the field next to us were very friendly, coming up to the fence to watch we were doing things right. As Mick brought Oleanna into the lock there was a sudden stampede from the far side of the field. Were the Mums and lambs being rounded up by the farmer?

It soon became very obvious that there was a dog in the field, but not a sheep dog. As two small dogs sprinted across the field I could see a chap running towards a gate from the next field, the dogs already way ahead! We watched, nothing we could do, only hope that the sheep could manage to get away before any harm was done.

Thankfully the sheep slowed down and the two dogs could be seen returning to their owner, one was picked up the other carried on to the other people before being put back on a lead. The path they followed came past the lock, through two gates. All three dogs were now on leads, but their owners didn’t seem to have the ability to close gates behind them! So much for the Countryside Code and keeping their dogs under control!

The route to Elton Lock is a little convoluted from the lock landing due to the route the weirs take. Once Oleanna was all tied up Mick came to help. Boats above polished their brasses in the shade of some trees whilst a Dad pumped up a paddleboard below ready to take his little lad for a ride.

Today the sky was filled with sky divers. Planes were taking off and dropping people way up high. As one group neared the ground another could be seen as tiny specks pulling their parachute cords. The views up there must have been amazing today.

Above Yarwell Lock we made use of the water point to top up. The pressure was good so after fifteen or so minutes we went to set the lock, just as we opened the top gates Oleanna’s water tank started to over flow, perfect timing.

A new looking executive estate sits around a basin. Inside I spied a dusty looking narrowboat. Most of the houses facing the river were making the most of their views with two story windows, views from the master bedrooms.

We managed to keep our distance despite the flow of the river

Soon we were following a couple in an inflatable canoe. They had no idea that there was 20 tonnes of boat gradually getting closer to them, Oleanna just about in tick over. They dabbled their paddles in the water occasionally, pointing things out. If the next lock hadn’t been round the corner we’d have given them a ‘Bip’ on the horn. We managed to stay at a safe distance but the wise words we’d been given before doing the Tideway cruise last year came to mind, ‘Keep looking behind you’.

The lock landing was full, two cruiser having just come up. We were spotted and stared at. Eventually the penny dropped that we might be wanting to use the lock and not just tread water for an hour or so admiring the view with nowhere to moor up! The crew dithered. ‘YES’ we did want the lock. The control cabinet was closed, the guillotine left down, one lady went to lift a paddle to fill the lock but changed her mind. What they actually needed to do was get back on their boats and move out of the way. This all took time as there had to be a discussion as they climbed back on board, but in the end they finally moved off. Good job the lady hadn’t lifted a paddle as the bottom gate hadn’t been closed fully, easily solved and the gate being almost down did save a lot of finger ache.

Now the river winds it’s way towards Wansford where the Great North Road crosses. First the original bridge, Old North Road Bridge, most of what is seen today was built in the 1600s but had improvement works done through the centuries, the main arch has a date stone of 1795. Just before the bridge are wonderful buildings, a coaching house from when this was the main north south route.

In 1929 the Great North Road moved to a new bypass with a bridge to the east. This bridge boasts that it spans into two counties and halfway across still sits the boundary post, even though the boundary changed in 1965, the two counties becoming one.

1929 bridge in the back ground, 1975 foreground

Increasing traffic necessitated a second bypass in 1975 running parallel to the first, this became the southbound carriageway the 1929 bridge the northbound.

Model railway where the scales have gone a little awry

The river now heads back southwards, we had our fingers crossed that there would be space on the EA mooring at Wansford Station. As we came under the railway bridge we managed to join a hire boat already moored up, mooring with our centre and stern lines was the way forward, adding another rope from one of the fender eyes to hold the bow closer to the pontoon, the flow of water wanting to push this out.

We settled down for a late lunch and had a look at the time table for the Nene Valley Railway. Currently trains only run on Saturdays and Sundays, the last one due back into the station at 15:45, twenty minutes time. When we heard the bell ring we made sure we were outside ready to see the engine coming back across the bridge into the station. Very well timed, 34081, 92 Squadron pulled the carriages in to the station.

We had a wander about later, the station closed, but enough for us to see. A check on the website for our return, we won’t be joining the whiskey train £100 for two, anyhow I’m not in the slightest bit partial to whiskey. Even a fish and chip trip would cost us a touch too much, maybe we’ll just save up for an All Day Railcar Rover at £12 a head.

4 locks, 9.19 miles, 2 dogs not in control, 1 field of worried sheep, 2 dithering ladies, 2 too relaxed canoeists, 3 bridges, 1 great road, 0 shore leave, 1 boat just in time, 1 Sunday roast chicken.

https://goo.gl/maps/JPB9RJ1991RqrTJv5

Beheading. 7th May

Peartree FOTRN to Fotheringhay Castle

Mick showing everyone a view going down in a lock

The Geraghty zoom was joined today from the helm. Camera facing forwards much of the time as we just seemed to be silhouettes. The family accompanied us through Wadenhoe Lock, the moorings by the pub chocka block, maybe our return here shouldn’t coincide with a weekend.

The day has been full of church views. St Michael and All Angels Church at Wadenhoe, St John the Baptist at Achurch, St Andrews at Cotterstock, St Mary and All Saints at Fotheringhay, I’m guaranteed to have missed some!

We’ve had paddle boarders, red kites overhead, locks and more locks.

At Oundle we remembered the day NB Lillyanne had her out of water survey done. We’d come down to meet the surveyor and hear his verdict first hand. She needed blacking, the lights inside sorting along with keeping her well aired to help with condensation. As we left we pulled in at the layby alongside Upper Barnwell Lock and called ABNB to confirm our offer, if I remember rightly a couple of grand off the asking price to pay for the works needed. As we sat there Merve and Elaine came past in Lillyanne so we could confirm the sale with them too. It was the furthest they’d been on her and had really enjoyed the cruise.

Upper Barnwell Lock has a very fine mill alongside. I think eight years ago it had been a restaurant, today its a kitchen and bathroom show room. Then a very low bridge at 7ft 10″, we’d been warned about it, but fitted through only having to dip our heads.

Lower Barwell Lock has recently had new sensors added to the slackers (paddle gear). I could just see them and as we wound down the slackers a little arm was pushed out of the way, connecting a circuit to allow us to operate the guillotine gate.

We got a glimpse of Cotterstock Hall before the lock and there are some seriously posh houses at Tansor. One of those would do nicely with a mooring.

Does anyone know what these signs are please?

The long straight on the river meant rowers. A chap informed us there were a few boats out on the river and just to ‘BIP’ our horn as we approached, which we did.

Many of the lock landings have an overhang, which means Oleanna’s cabin sides are at risk of being scraped. Mick has been deploying our big red buoy just where it’s needed at the stern to keep her a safe distance away. So far the cabin side at the bow has only been in danger once.

Alongside Perio Lock there is a large lake, one of many we’ve passed, where numerous fishermen were set up for a weekends fishing. They waved at us as we waved back, everyone happy not to be in the way of each other.

Perio Lock was the last for today, another wheel operated lock. The counter weight at this lock has been set incredibly well, at one point whilst raising the guillotine it wanted to raise all by itself! A bit more manual effort was needed to get it right to the top and locked off, but it was nearly a joy to work.

The very fine St Marys and All Saints church stands high above the surroundings, immaculte in the sunshine. Fotheringhay was to be our mooring for today, white posts marking where you can moor on a farmers field.

Plenty of of boats have bumped and scraped their way through here

The first stretch has a very high bank and we didn’t fancy it. Through Fotheringhay Bridge which if you are wide is the lowest bridge on the river. Downstream more moorings stretched out. We looked for a lower bank, this was possible but very close to some campers, so we decided to reverse back to join another narrowboat below the castle. The plank was brought out to make getting on and off that bit easier for humans, the four legged crew of course had no problem, well the amount of humans about was a problem at first.

Fotheringhay Castle was the birth place of Richard III on October 2nd 1452. It is also the place where Mary Stuart, Queen of Scots was beheaded. A plaque alongside a large piece of castle rubble gives the date of her demise as 8th February 1586/7, I wonder why the two years?

Time to give Mick a hair cut, I did my best and refrained from there being a second beheading in the castle grounds, although I can’t say the same for Tilly! With fewer people about she had the castle mound all to herself, well maybe a rabbit or two too.

She and I had a walk to the very top, a very good view with a breeze. From here I could plot my route down via as many rabbit holes as possible. Storm clouds gathered, the following rain storm didn’t deter Tilly from checking just about every hole she could get inside! Thankfully no large friends were brought home.

7 locks, 11.66 miles, 2 very low bridges, 6/7/12 churches, 1 buoy earning it’s keep, 0 castle keep, grade 3, 0 beheadings, 1 friend, 17 rabbit holes, 1 Mrs Tilly stamp of approval.

https://goo.gl/maps/Eik2LPVt4HQj9RDj9

All New Water. 6th May

Woodford FOTRN to Peartree Farm FOTRN mooring

We’d woken on another list, this time the other way round, Oleanna most probably just settling in the silt. Our neighbour got going before us and as we pushed out a narrowboat headed straight for our spot as if we’d been keeping it warm for them.

What a gorgeous morning! Blue skies surrounded us.

A chap sat on his lawn mower spraying out grass clippings as he went, obviously not part of the ‘No Mow May’ brigade. But then as we looked back we could only just about see his house! That’s one big lawn!

Woodford Lock was not too far away and we soon started winding down the guillotine gate. A wide beam appeared behind us, it had to tread water until Oleanna was moved off the lock landing. The advantage of being followed on these locks is that so long as the guillotine gate is raised enough for you to safely exit with your boat you don’t have to wind it all the way back up to the very top to lock it off, saving several minutes of cardio vascular exertion at the big wheel.

The river banks were mostly low today, cow parsley, rapeseed, and many plants standing tall in the sunshine waving in the breeze. Holy Trinity at Denford made for a good photo giving me a break from spinning the wheel.

More tight bridges to negotiate today. The old piers of a former railway bridge sit on a bend at an angle, a beep of the horn was felt necessary just in case. Then under Islip Road Bridge with it’s narrow arches. Just upstream of the bridge is a mooring, too soon for us to stop and a tricksy one to get into.

Through Thrapston, we made note of the Islip Dave mooring which has no land access, but would be a better choice for Tilly than the one by the bridge. It’s places like this that you’d like to be able to explore on foot, but being on a river just pulling in where you’d like isn’t really an option. If we wanted to explore Thrapston we’d need to either be by the bridge or on the EA mooring just out of town.

By Titchmarsh Lock we caught last nights neighbour up. He was obviously a local as people stopped to chat with him at the lock, he moors at Middle Nene Cruising club which has a fantastic mill alongside it. Our pamphlet from the EA suggests you’d be able to moor considerately on the downstream lock landing, but we’d be too long for any consideration of this sadly.

Not much further on to Peartree Farm Mooring. I’d been wondering if the moorings would get busier today with it being the start to the weekend, but as we pulled up we were the only ones. This is where Harpers Brook joins the River Nene and the land at the junction has been fenced off to make an idyllic mooring. Space for several boats we chose to moor on the brook to make use of what solar the day had left to offer.

Tilly had an explore, trying out several trees for size, many just a touch too wide for good climbing and the lack of nearby friendly cover knocked it down from a Mrs Tilly stamped mooring. There’s a barbeque area with a picnic table. Fairy houses in trees and bird boxes. Lovely, but I think I preferred the views of yesterdays mooring.

As the afternoon went on the sun hid behind clouds and the temperature dropped necessitating lighting the stove. We were joined by the widebeam that had been following us and then a narrowboat from down stream, all sitting out around a fire pit as it got dark and started to rain. The last boat to pass was after 10pm, someone holding a torch out front to see the way.

4 locks, 3 wheels, 6.57 miles, 1 sunny warm morning, 1 improvised handle, 1 week to mow a lawn, 2 pretty churches, 1 neighbour caught up, 1 mill, 2 many trees to choose from, 1 pile of ash! 1 grey afternoon, 1 wet night ahead.

https://goo.gl/maps/WCnEqg4eNdMbioU77

Eight Years And One Month to the Day. 5th May

Water Ski Lake, Ditchford to Woodford FOTRN

We woke on a list, one of those that’s a touch unsettling, thank goodness we have a cross bed so neither of us had fallen out of bed. It wasn’t that bad really, with me at the bow to help spread the weight, Mick reversed Oleanna off the silt with ease.

What a lovely day, the sun was out and blue sky cruising lay ahead for us. For much of our journey today we’ve been surrounded by lakes, the water ski lake stretches on for what feels like miles to a retail park. Both horizons seem to have developments going on. The north side new houses and currently the south has fencing around it suggesting more houses.

Today we’d encounter two more types of lock. The first Ditchford Lock which instead of a guillotine gate has a radial gate. Apparently there used to be several more of these along the river, but this is the only one that remains.

The bottom gate is curved and drops in at the bottom of the lock, all operated by fingers on buttons again. We should be keeping an eye out for other locks that have previously had radial gates as they have large downstream recesses that used to house the mechanism.

Then the longest reach of river we’ve had so far towards Higham Ferrers Lock, 2 miles! A boat was just coming into the lock from below so I tried to help close the gate behind it. Another boat appeared below too, but the chap said he’d shared with them and they’d said as he was in a rush to head onwards without them, he was a boat mover. Blimey that gate was heavy and took two people to get it moving. It turns out there had been a notice regarding it.

Up the boat came, but only so far. We went to check the bottom gate, the paddles had been left up! No indicator that we could find to show this. The last boat through had possibly been a hire boat (it had passed us this morning), possibly with someone wearing C&RT clothing, all speculation. With the paddles closed the boat came up and we could descend, by now the next boat was waiting below.

Yesterday Mick had had confirmation texts and messages that his phone had been registered for strong stream alerts on the Anglian Waterways. Levels can change suddenly down here as the EA manage water levels. If there is flooding the locks can be reversed, making them into sluices sending water downstream fast. The locks are filled, top gates chained open and then the guillotine gate is raised, being on pins downstream of a lock is not a good place to be! Follow the link below to register for warnings.

https://www.gov.uk/guidance/anglian-waterways-river-conditions-closures-and-restrictions

Irthlingborough looks an interesting place.

Heading towards the next lock we also signed up to the Friends Of The River Nene Facebook group here there are discussions and information about the river, more than you get from the FOTRN website.

A bridge had also stuck in our memory, Old Station Road Bridge, sits downstream of the New Station Road Bridge a concrete possibly 1920’s 30’s high bridge. The old bridge comprises of double and triple chamfered arches. Through the centuries it has been widened, Mid C14th and has date stones from 1668, 1829, 1754 and 1922.

Here you take a specific arch and a boat heading upstream had come a cropper coming through, getting stuck at an angle heading them straight off into the reeds. We cut our speed and then slowed as much as we could to tread water, good job the flow wasn’t stronger. They sorted themselves out and came past, we now had to try to line up with the skew arch and from a position we’d not have chosen to be in. Mick deftly turned Oleanna and avoided adding any more groves to the well worn bridge.

A pit stop at the EA moorings was had for lunch and to empty our yellow water tank. Then we were off again to Irthlingborough Lock where we had a couple of gongoozlers watching our every move. It’s funny without a car my geography of England is now centred around canals and rivers, proximity to cities and towns only a twenty minute drive away feels like it’s on the other side of the country. The gongoozlers mentioned Stoke Bruerne, a 30 minute drive yet on a boat it would take over 16 hours. For us that would be a 4 day cruise!

The river at times now gets quite narrow with trees here there and everywhere, you have to keep your eyes peeled for on coming boats. We passed two more FOTRN moorings, at least one is likely to be stopped at on the way back.

Upper Ringstead Lock was the place we had our very first night onboard Lillyanne. We tied to the end bollard of the lock landing and hammered a spike in for the bow rope. Today the lock landing looked tidier than eight years ago, but what hadn’t changed was the guillotine mechanism! This one is the first manually operated gate heading downstream.

This is one thing I’d not forgotten about the River Nene, the big wheel!

Once unlocked you spin the big wheel round and round and round and……. you’ve got the idea. The wheel may be big making it easier to move the guillotine, but the shear number of times you have to spin it is unrelenting! Thank goodness Upper Ringstead Lock is only shallow. I put one idea into action here, get Mick to drop the guillotine then I would raise it, splitting the arm ache between the two of us.

Soon we were at Lower Ringstead Lock, alongside Willy Watt Marina. This was the very first lock we ever did in Lillyanne and our first Nene lock. We didn’t remember it at all. Was it manual back then? Or fingers on buttons? I think we were so giddy at finally owning our own boat that nothing much was stored in the memory bank.

Round a big bend and under the old railway bridge, we were soon passing Woodford Riverside Marina, a little arm off to the west. Well it’s actually two little arms with an island between them. This is where Lillyanne had spent most of her life before we bought her and where we collected her from 8 years and a month ago today. We’d had one trip that day by car to off load our belongings and pick up the keys, Merve the previous owner was a touch twitchy not having received the proceeds of the sale via the broker, he was also twitchy as her licence had expired. We then drove to Crick Marina to leave the car and our friend Lizzie gave us a lift back.

Merve seemed happier this time, hopefully the £1 the brokers send through to check it’s your account before sending the rest of the money (the following week in our experience!) had arrived. It was late in the afternoon, we untied and pushed off down the narrow channel between moored boats to the entrance onto the river. We had a crowd watching us. It was the first time Mick had been at her helm and the turn out under the bridge was very tight, yet he managed it without touching a thing.

Not far 0.25km further on we pulled in at Woodford FOTRN mooring for the day. The bank was uneven for much of its length, a section having collapsed at some point, but we made the best of it and left plenty of room for someone else should they arrive, which they did later in the afternoon.

The chairs came out and we both enjoyed the view as Tilly explored the area. Good friendly cover and the occasional small tree to climb. She however didn’t spot the Yoyo flies that kept her occupied and us amused when we were on the River Avon a few years ago.

I had a good catch up chat with David, he’s moved away from Newark now, he has good and bad days, but is doing okay.

*I must not go on others peoples boats!*

5 locks, 8.15 miles, 8 moving boats, 2 gongoozlers, 1 empty yellow water tank, 1 stop for lunch, 8 years 1month, 1 yellow boats previous home, 2 shop bought pizzas personalised, 1 neighbour, 1.25 star review! 1 Mrs Tilly stamp of approval.

https://goo.gl/maps/gui6zcnYAzdQMeyY8

Strength And Courage. 5th April

Muskham Ferry to Newark

Waking up in the morning can take some courage. Having the strength to get out of bed to attend a meeting about your mental health is extremely hard, opting to stay hidden under the duvet a much easier option. Add into the mix not having slept properly for weeks along with not eating much for days. We all knew though that the meeting had the potential to be a step forward.

The taxi arrived bang on time and on our journey in to Newark I recounted our journey from Keadby to Cromwell. David has been around boats for much of his life and yesterday he’d been imagining where we’d been on the river, which bend, what landmark we’d passed. All this to help keep his mind busy.

A dated building close to Aldi was where we were to meet two chaps who’d come from the Crisis team. David wanted us there with him, to be an extra voice in the room. If things seemed to be going round in circles then hopefully we’d be able to help. Unfortunately the room could only hold three people, fine for the two chaps and David, but that wasn’t going to happen. We split into two, Mick staying with one of the chaps to have a conversation about our concerns, then David, myself and the other fella headed to a more private room.

We talked through David’s problems, what support he could access. The chaps had read through his notes thoroughly before coming this morning, he was already known to them. Hopefully he was reassured that he could access their help at anytime. There are certain things that David needs to do for himself, then other support channels will be open to him.

The room was too hot and stuffy, thank goodness the Covid guidelines had dictated only three of us could be in there at any time. But the heat was too much, fresh air was needed. Outside we now could chat to the other chap, his area of support different. The general thought was that if David could get back to Newark on his boat then he’d have so much more access to things that could help, they’d all be within walking distance of his boat, but the move had to come from David.

Now David was exhausted there was no point in continuing with the meeting. Before we left I made sure that they understood that living on a boat can be very isolating, please could someone call him regularly, just for a chat as well as to check on him.

In the taxi on the way back we talked things over that had been said, related them to other people we knew. For me it had been good to hear what the chaps had to say, and now be able to help David remember as I used to when my Dad had hospital appointments.

After a rest David joined us for a sandwich, at last we’d seen him eat something. Could we help him to get his boat started? He was afraid that over the last few weeks his batteries had dropped so much charge that they may never recover. He’d been surviving on what solar power he was getting. Certain things on the boat having stopped working.

With us around he summoned up the strength to pull out his generator. This was started to kick start his engine, but would it work? The generator worked and after a while David tried to start his engines, his boat has two. With lots of dials in the cockpit he could see what charge was going into the batteries, Mick and he consulted over such things. After about fifteen minutes both engines were running, his boat still had life. This alone was a huge achievement and one that brought a smile to everyone’s faces.

David now asked if he could move the boat with us up into Newark, he had purpose and drive. After a discussion it was decided that we’d move one boat at a time and that we should strike whilst the iron was hot. We would move David first, all three of us onboard, I would work Nether Lock leaving Mick and David in the cockpit.

A bit of rope adjustment was needed before we could set off as both boats were tied together as the mooring cleats on the pontoon were none existent for the centre lines. With this done and the Key of Power in my pocket, all three of us onboard the engines pushed us round into the current to head towards Newark.

Mick and I have never really been on a cruiser before, so being inside in the cockpit felt a bit strange, no wind burn for us today standing outside, but what a treat. All the gauges were checked by David, even the depth sounder was turned on! This was handy when we reached a section of the river where the depth below the keel reduced from 2.5m to 0.5m, no wonder our progress had slowed, the engines were adjusted accordingly.

Mick was given a go at the wheel. The difference between a tiller and wheel instantly showed itself as we started heading towards a bank! Just a different mind set, steer as you would in a car not a narrowboat.

Being able to climb outside and have a wider gunnel to stand on before going ashore was nice. They then took the boat back to hover whilst I emptied Nether Lock.

The newish lock controls here were really frustrating. They gradually allow you to lift the sluices, pressing the Open button when it is constant, but when it flashes nothing will happen. So you press it, wait for it to go constant, press it again. The sluices fully up the water drained out. Below the lock the water stopped being busy, obviously the water was now level, but the light kept flashing and flashing and flashing and fla….. you get the idea!

It was decided to close the whole thing down and try again. I still had to wait an absolute age for the sensor to realise that the lock was now empty and that I’d be able to open the gates. In came the boat, Mick using a rope to hold them in to the side and I gradually lifted the sluices when all was calm below. The top gates behaved as you’d expect, thankfully.

Back on board we now had to squeeze through a gap between the bank and a skip boat which had been left that bit too close to the bend. David just managed to get through, we wondered if Oleanna would have difficulty being longer.

In Newark we pulled in onto the pontoon. Mooring cruisers is slightly different than for a narrowboat so we followed the skippers lead. Time for David to have a rest.

We popped into town to pick up a repeat prescription and check in a couple of shops for a new sketch book for Panto. Sadly Hills didn’t have the one I like with a hard cover and suitable paper should I want to use paint, but not so expensive that you wouldn’t want to scrawl notes in it.

A taxi from Castle Station and we were soon on our way back to North Muskham to move Oleanna.

Untying took a bit of thinking about. The centre line wasn’t really doing too much, maybe taking a bit of strain away from the bow line. But as soon as the bow line was undone the stern would be pushed round by the current meaning I’d need to be onboard, Mick would need to whisk Oleanna out from the moorings as quickly as possible before the bow had chance to make contact with the cruiser on the other side of us.

It all went to plan and we waved goodbye to North Muskham. Thank you for helping our friend.

Deja vu cruising, just slightly chillier than being on the cruiser. We’d made sure we wrapped up well, winter cruising clothes and wind burnt faces. 3 egrets took off in front of us, don’t think we’ve ever seen three together before.

Mick pulled in below Nether Lock to drop me off at a ladder, no just stepping off as I’d done earlier. The large overhang causing concern for our cabin sides, but we managed to keep Oleanna away from harm.

Prepared for the wait at the bottom gates I’d taken gloves with me this time, nothing to do but kick one’s heels for ten minutes before the light turned solid and I could open the gates.

Up above Mick managed to squeeze Oleanna past the skip boat and pulled in to wait for me to climb back down a ladder. Caution should be taken with some of these ladders on Nether Lock as there is quite often not much room behind the runs for your toes!

David joined us for some food, a plate of chicken pasta, possibly the most he’s eaten in days. Conversations about boating, toilets of course! We got to see a bit of the David we’d met last year today. He’d been strong and brave and achieved much, he was rightly proud of himself. The day however had been exhausting for him.

1 lock twice, 2 boats, 3.4 miles, twice, 3 taxis, 2 chaps, 3 in a room, 1 sandwich, 1 plate of pasta, 1st repeat prescription pick up, 0 sketch books, 2 engines working, 1 day of achievements, 1 email from my cousin in Ukraine, 1 Harry, 1 lobster.

Here are a few links to places where you can find help with mental health

https://www.mind.org.uk/information-support/guides-to-support-and-services/crisis-services/

https://www.mind.org.uk/information-support/guides-to-support-and-services/seeking-help-for-a-mental-health-problem/where-to-start/

https://www.nhs.uk/service-search/mental-health/find-an-urgent-mental-health-helpline

https://www.nottinghamshirehealthcare.nhs.uk/help-in-a-crisis

Too Windy For Much. 19th March

Bramwith Junction

Exactly as the title suggests today was far too windy to go anywhere, even Tilly wasn’t too enamoured with the constant blowiness. Yet other people were on the move. Adams Ark a local widebeam was busy taking groups of cubs from Barnby Dun up to Bramwith Lock and then along the New Junction for a short distance. There was usually a very short person stood at the helm guessing which way to point the bow, they were accompanied by two adults who could see over the roof. Other boats came past struggling in the wind, one getting stuck on the bank opposite us as they hadn’t had enough umph to keep going.

After the Saturday morning Geraghty Zoom (amongst the topics, missing glasses, avoiding Labour and Swedes) we headed out to walk back to Barnby Dun to post off my socks and find a newspaper.

The ladies at the Post Office/Spar shop were very busy chatting away. The lady at the Post Office counter did interact with me briefly, but the lady I bought our newspaper from didn’t even look in my direction. Everything was purchased using contactless and nobody even mentioned how much things were. I checked my receipt a few hundred yards away, well it seems that I got some postage for free because they were all too busy gassing!

We walked through the village, which has been subject to new house building through the ages. Originally the village was an agricultural one, when the canal was built in 1732 produce was moved from Hull to Doncaster and Sheffield. In 1860 George Frederick Milnthorpe brought prosperity to the area by opening a malt kiln, this meant those who worked in the fields could now work through the winter. History Link. Land was sold off to Pilkingtons. Stainforth and Bentley pits were sunk at the beginning of the 20thC pulling people into the area. In 1959 Thorpe Marsh Power Station was built bringing more jobs to the area. The power station still appears on quite a few satellite images of the area even though the last two cooling towers were demolished in 2014 using no explosives, just a wire! They also appear in our Nicholsons guide in the Aire and Calder Section. A Gas fired power station was planned for the site, but has never been built.

We headed for the Farm Shop that I visited a few years ago. Set back from the road there is plenty of parking and a couple of picnic tables to enjoy a slice of cake and a coffee outside.

When last I visited there didn’t seem to be much fresh produce, although I think I’d only come for a carrot and a cooking apple which I managed to get. Today the place has changed.

A full rack of fruit and veg, fresh eggs, a butchers counter, plenty of the posh preserves and some frozen items. Little was priced! This always puts us off.

We picked up some spring cabbage and a leek for next week. Ogled at the 31 day dry aged beef in it’s climate controlled fridge, blimey those ribs looked good! At £31 a kg they weren’t the most expensive item, fillet steak was at least another £10. With no price on the boxes of eggs we refrained from buying any.

The people in front spent over £75, the chap behind had a shoulder of lamb and some pork fillet along with a box of eggs, his bill would be big too. In between them we stood with our cabbage and leek, £1.96! Well we are on an economy drive.

On our walk back be passed the Co-op, Mick popped in and bought the last dozen free range eggs. I wonder how long it will be before you can buy free range eggs again, or are hens destined to be barn dwellers forever due to avian flu?

Lunch today consisted of sad git’s Hot Cross Buns (M&S gluten free, very tasty) followed by our treat cheese. Ribblesdale Blue Goats and some Wookey Hole Cheddar, plenty left for another day.

Mick considered doing an engine service, the one he’s been meaning to do since November! But with the wind blowing straight across the canal he was worried he’d loose things like funnels, so this was put off again.

I got on with a new tension square with Lisa’s yarn on slightly bigger needles. This had meant pulling out the pouffe and revealing the secret passageway to Tilly, she’d so easily amused! I discussed sock knitting with lots of ladies on the March Knitting Challenge Group. I’d always been put off of knitting socks, never being able to get my head round four or five needles. But when I came across circular needles designed for socks and I gave it a go. I now love sock knitting and have my own pattern.

Cauliflower Cheese with extras, click on the photo for recipe

This evening I cut up the cauliflower we’d bought at Doncaster market. Blimey it was huge! I got half way through and decided I’d keep the other half for Monday evening, possibly a roast cauliflower korma that we’ve not tried before. Have to say size isn’t everything, we’ve been spoilt with our organic veg in Scarborough, Tree Top Press‘s caulis have so much more flavour.

0 locks, 0 miles, 6500 steps, 5 pairs posted, 1 newspaper, 2 chatty, 1 PO balance that won’t balance, £1.96, 12 eggs, 1/3rd of a sock, 0 service, 1 very blowy mooring.

Narrowboat Oleanna

Travels of Narrowboat Oleanna