New Year's Eve

I have spent a pleasant few days moored in Ely. Had plenty of time to walk around the city and also have a short train journey to Cambridge for a little retail therapy although didn't find what I was looking for.  The rain eased off mid morning and shortly after lunch I headed upstream to find a nice quiet spot to see in the New Year without being disturbed in the early hours when the pubs empty.

Heading up the Gt Ouse

I had planned on moving onto the river Lark and stopping in the village of Prickwillow, just because I like the name.  However, just after entering the river I felt a spot or two of rain and looked over my shoulder to see heavy clouds rolling in.

River Lark looking back to the Gt Ouse

A few minutes later the heavens opened.  I quickly abandoned plans for Prickwillow and headed instead for an earlier mooring on the river which was only a few hundred yards away.  Never-the-less I was still soaked by the time I got moored up. However, I'm now changed and warm while my other clothes dry by the fire.  All settled for a quiet evening culminating in seeing in the New Year watching Jools Holland's Hootenanny with a glass of rather fine malt.

Happy New Year to all.

As the sun sets on 2013

Leaving Cambridge

I only popped into Cambridge to be able to tick off the river Cam on my list of waterways I have travelled. I know the city well enough and the mooring was quite noisy with a road nearby and Jesus Lock wier just above me was providing some turbulent water. The sun came out around 9:00 this morning so I set off down the river to head back to Ely. This is me passing through Bates Bite lock, one of two on this stretch of the river. Both are electrically operated with a guillotine gate at the upstream end and V gates at the bottom.

Between the two lock is the Cambridge Motorboat club, and just beyond it is the Cambridge Sailing club. Both looked suitably affluent with an array of well maintained boats and tidy premises.

Once through the second lock the river opens into wide expanses of fen with lots of waterfowl to be seen. I enjoyed a pleasant morning cruising back up to Ely. I was hoping to stock of on logs and coal but neither marina I passed stocked these. I may try Littleport on Monday and failing that will try a bit further afield.

 

Boxing Day

Enjoyed a quiet night on a wonderfully peaceful isolated mooring out in the fens.  Spending Christmas with my children would be top of my list but a place in the country is the next best thing.  As the sun rose the mist cleared from the river and surrounding fens to leave a beautiful still view along the river Cam.

Morning breaking over the Cam

As the weather was dry I decided to move up into Cambridge today to find a suitable sheltered mooring to sit out the next storm which is due tomorrow evening. It was a pleasant trip along the remaining 10 miles of river to Jesus Green in Cambridge.  The river meanders through fenland before passing under the bury A14 and then into the city through Chesterton. The final couple of miles is a mixed picture with the University boat club houses on one side and some rather tatty long term moored boats on the other.

I moored up just below Jesus Lock which is as far up as my boat is permitted. Whilst I would love to be take her along the backs I can fully understand why it is not allowed - although it would be worth it to see the faces of the punters as I appeared on the horizon.

Tonight's mooring.

Jesus Lock - Cambridge

Christmas Day

Merry Christmas.

After the usual Christmas morning rituals of opening presents and sending thank you texts to my children, I'll call them later, I set off for a brisk walk up to the Cathedral which was looking splendid in the bright sunny morning light.

Ely Cathedral

Later in the morning I decided that, as I would be unable to get to St Ives until the river flow upstream eased somewhat, I would head instead onto the river Cam. It was a beautiful sunny day, if a little chilly, and the trip took me through a few miles of lovely open fens.

River Cam

I had intended on stopping on one of the GOBA moorings marked on the map but neither seemed to exist so I carried on  a little further to Upware and moored up on the EA mooring just past a pub with the apt name of  "5 Miles from Anywhere".

Tonight's Mooring

  

After mooring up I put Christmas dinner in the oven and settled down to await the Queen's speech after which I consumed far too much turkey and stuffing before retiring for a much needed afternoon nap. Some Christmas traditions have to be observed.   Just before retiring I took this quick photo of the sun setting on another lovely day on the river.

Sunset

Christmas Trip Days 7 & 8

As predicted the plan has gone out of the window thanks to the wet and windy weather.

I reached Ely on Sunday to find that the river from Earith to Bedford is on a "Strong Stream Alert" which basically means it is unsafe to navigate by boat. The Ely stretch is fine and I chose to stay put and sit out the heavy rain and gales in safety with all the trappings of civilisation nearby. Ely is a lovely little City with much to see and I intend to spend the next few days here until the river is behaving itself.  If the rain holds off I may visit the Cathedral this evening for the carol service.

Christmas Trip Day 6

A windy old night again which blew down my TV aerial - need a stronger mast fitting next time.  Anyway after leisurely start I popped down to the lock a little after 9 to find the lock keeper was already there and that the tide was high enough to go through.

The view from the lock exit looking down the tidal Ouse.

And the view inside the lock waiting for the gate to open. Not a lot of headroom at high tide, the cratch cover only just passed under the gate beams with a couple of inches to spare.

Looking back at Salter's Lode lock as I made the U-turn to head up river to Denver Sluice. This is a normal high tide and when the surge tide hit earlier this month it almost reached the top of the hand rails across the lock. A little unnerving for the lock keeper who lives in the cottage next to the lock.

After passing through Denver Sluice I joined the non-tidal Gt Ouse for the 15 mile run to Ely. This stretch of river is wide and deep and the boat ate up the miles at around 5 mph.  A massive storm cloud appeared as I approached Littleport and as the wind was quite chilly I took the opportunity to stop to warm up and have lunch.

 The cloud passed without raining and the sun was soon back although it was still cold in the stiff breeze.  The welcome sight of Ely cathedral soon appeared on the horizon.

An hour later I was safely moored in Ely in the afternoon sunshine.

Shortly after Paul and Debbie called in and we retired to the nearby Cutter Inn for Sunday roast and a pint or two of Doom Bar.  Great to catch up with these two friends.

Christmas Trip Day 5

Having moored up at the visitor moorings in March and topped up the larder at Sainsbury's I spent a quiet evening listening to the wind and rain lash the boat.  The weather was much better this morning with only a little drizzle and a gentle breeze.  I called the lock keeper at Salter's lode to book a slot for Sunday and am now scheduled to transit the tidal Ouse around 10:00.  Therefore today's plan is just a steady cruise through middle levels to Salters lode.

I left March and headed out onto the open fens. The sky looked ominous as the clouds gathered and the wind strengthened .

By midday I reached Marmont Priory lock just as the first rain shower arrived. Thankfully it passed quickly and by the time I cleared the lock it had passed.

The next stretch is quite shallow and therefore needs to be transited slowly.  For the next couple of miles the river meanders through the pretty villages of Outwell and Upwell which have imposing churches.

The villages also have one of the lowest bridges on the Nene-Ouse link route which I managed to ease under with a couple of inches to spare at the bows.

After leaving the villages the river continues across the open fens and the wind was now becoming a little too strong for comfort.  As you can see in this photo I had to aim the bows toward the right hand bank to counter the wind which was pushing the boat towards the left bank.   

After passing through the village of Nordelph I continued the final couple of miles to the sanctuary of the Salters Lode lock landing.  The rain came again just as I was pulling in and it was a slightly damp and windswept skipper that happily retired to the cosy warmth of the saloon.  

Despite the weather another enjoyable day aboard and a very pleasant few hours trundling through the Fens. 

Christmas Trip Day 4

My eldest son Steve joined me for a few pre-Christmas beers last night.  Very pleasant evening but a bit of a shock when he came to leave around midnight to find the river had risen about a foot and covered the pathway. Deploying the gangplank got him safely onto dry land.  The water must have dropped overnight as I awoke at 5:30 to find my bed trying to tip me out. As I got my bearings I realised the boat was listing around 10 degrees to starboard.  The river level had dropped back to normal levels but the boat had got caught up on the bank. Ten minutes with the barge pole and alternate ahead and astern engine rocked the boat off and safely back into the river.  

After a couple more hours in my now level bed I set off around 9:00 to fill up the water tank before passing through Stanground Lock onto the Middle Levels navigation which connects the rivers Nene and Gt Ouse. The sunrise brightened the Peterborough morning.

Stanground lock has a ridiculously low foot bridge across which is why I filled the water tank. I need the extra ballast to get the cratch under the bridge.  Managed with about 2 inches to spare.

 It was another beautiful day although quite cold and getting colder as the breeze stiffened through the day.  The fens are very open with few trees to block the wind but of course this leaves the view open.

Spotted this Kestrel hovering over a nearby field - hope Mr Mouse keeps his head down. 

And along the way I crossed the Grenwich Meridian,which the local Round Table have kindly marked.

I'm now safely moored up in March waiting to see what weather the morrow brings, the forecast is for more strong wind and rain so I may stay put for the day. Sainsburys is only a 5 minute walk so I may get the Christmas dinner ingredients sorted while I'm here.

Christmas Trip Day 3

Just a short update today. I spent the day moored in Peterborough while checking the situation at Salters Lode lock. Apparently the lock controls were inundated during the high tide which caused the floods last week and they are awaiting a replacement part. There is a chance it will be open before Christmas so I've booked myself through Stanground lock in the morning and will head onto the middle levels. Will probably stop in Whittlesea tomorrow night and then move onto March on Sunday.

Christmas Trip - Day 2

With rain and strong winds forecast for the afternoon I headed off at first light to complete the 4 hour trip down to Peterborough. I spent the night moored just above Elton lock so the first task of the day was to navigate the lock which looked beautiful as the sun rose behind the trees. A chilly 3c as I set off but bright and dry which makes all the difference.

The morning progressed well passing through some beautiful open countryside on a sunny Winter morning.

 

The field next to Wansford lock sported a dozen horses and ponies which came over to say hello and were disappointed at the lack of sugar lumps and carrots (I'm saving the carrots for Rudolf).

The farmyard theme continued at Water Newton lock which was populated by a pair of bullocks (check spelling) using the lock gate beam as a scratching post. As a country boy myself I knew they were not a threat and hopped off to give them a stroke - I wonder how long a towny would have waited for them to move. There are signs at most locks asking dog owners to clean up after their pet, I think we need another covering bulls - although the owner would need a bin bag. Stepping carefully around the bovine obstacle course I managed to safely navigate the lock and return to the boat with clean boots.

I stopped at Ferry Meadows for a quick lunch which was more of a late breakfast since I went for the full English - good value at £5.50 with a field mushroom which almost filled the plate.

Whilst moored for lunch I phoned the Stanground lock keeper to arrange passage through the lock tomorrow to access the middle levels. Whilst he was happy to lock me through he did rather spoil my day by explaining that Salters Lode lock - which gives access to the river Gt Ouse at the other end was closed due to an electrical fault and was awaiting a spare part. I'll call the lock keeper tomorrow to see what the forecast is but if it isn't fixed by Friday I would expect it to be out until after Christmas if not New Year.

As I said at the beginning the plan was bound to fall apart at some point. If the lock is not open my cruise will be limited to the middle levels, which are basically drainage ditches with March as the only highlight. With this unwelcome news I continued on what should have been a short 3 mile leg to Peterborough with only Orton lock to navigate. Two hours later I had finally got through the lock. The lock would not fill completely and I soon realised the guillotine gate was not closing fully and thus letting water out. Opening and closing the electronic gate a few times didn't help and on fully opening the gate I found a log jammed on the bottom edge of the gate. After much prating about with a barge pole, trying not to drop the pole or fall in the lock, I finally dislodged the log and normal lock operation was resumed.

So here I am moored in Peterborough with gale force winds rocking the boat around contemplating Christmas in Peterborough or alternatively in the wilds of the fens - High six anyone?

However, nil desperandum, after all - Tomorrow is another day :-)

 

Christmas Trip Day 1

Unusually for me day 1 went very well. Indeed so well I'm a day ahead of schedule already. I made an early start and got my act together leaving the house by 8:30.  After a quick visit to the supermarket to top up the grog locker,  just in case Paul B descends and drinks all my good wine again.  A detour via Peterborough to deliver my eldest son's presents and then over the the marina by 10:00.

Stocked up on coal, logs and diesel and headed out onto the river at 11:30.  It was a beautiful Winter morning with clear blue skies and only a gentle breeze.

I had the river to myself and enjoyed a lovely day cruising through the beautiful countryside bathed in sunshine.  I covered the 10 miles and 5 locks to reach the visitor moorings at Elton shortly after 3 just as the sun was dropping over the horizon and the chill beginning to return.  Quickly moored up put the kettle on and lit the fire.

Now settling down in my new chairs for the evening. Life doesn't get much better.

The Christmas Cruise Plan

Well the rivers seem to be behaving themselves so I plan to spend a couple of weeks on the water over Christmas and New Year. Having spent the last two Christmases onboard, once unintentionally, it seems to be almost traditional.

The plan is to head over to the boat tomorrow and either stay overnight in the marina or move a few miles down river depending on time and weather. I'll then spend a couple of days cruising the Nene to Peterborough and hope to move through Stanground lock to the Middle Levels on Friday morning.  Another couple of days should see me through March to the Denver Sluice complex which connects the middle levels to the Great Ouse. I need to check opening hours, which are tide dependant, but hope to get through by Sunday. That leaves a couple of days to reach St Ives for Christmas.

Outline Plan:

Tues 17th:  Depart marina late afternoon and moor up after a couple of miles at Oundle bridge

Wed 18th:   Cruise down towards Peterborough probably mooring at Elton or Wansford.

Thu 19th:    Continue to Peterborough and stock up at ASDA.

Fri 20th:     Move through Stanground lock onto the middle levels to March.

Sat 21st:     Continue through the middle levels toward Denver .

Sun 22nd:  Move through Salters Lode onto the tidal Ouse and then through Denver sluice onto the non-tidal Gt Ouse. Head towards Ely - how far I get will depend on time through Denver.

Mon 23rd:  Carry on up the Ouse, probably stop overnight somewhere short of Earith.

Tues 24th:   Final leg to St Ives.

Of course this is all dependant on the weather and lock hours so I could well end up celebrating Christmas anywhere on the river.  I'll keep the blog updated and hope to see a few friends popping in during the trip.