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.