A week on home waters

Well another week has flown by since I reached the end of the navigable Gt Ouse a couple of miles beyond Bedford. As I headed up the last half mile the river narrowed and I was expecting to see a sign marking the end and advising boats to turn around. Instead I ran aground on a gravel bank. Closer inspection showed that it was not just a small bank but in fact the whole river was now only 6 inches deep and I had infact reached the unmarked end. Much use of reverse and levering with the barge pole, which I managed to snap, finally got me afloat again with just the minor problem if reversing down stream until the river was wide enough for me to turn the boat. Thankfully I only had to reverse a few hundred yards before managing to turn around and head back the way I came.



The rest of the day was spent cruising gently back along the river through Bedford and on to the village of Great Barford where the river is crossed by a picturesque multi arched bridge. I spent the night and ate in the riverside pub which served a wonderful lemon cheesecake.

The river passes through Castle Mills lock which us one of the deepest I've been through. Quite tricky climbing the ladder with a rope and windlass in your hand but I managed without falling in.

Following a quiet night I moved on to St Neots where I moored up on the open grassland opposite the Priory centre. There was much activity on the green and I learnt that the annual St Neots 10k race was being held. After a look around the town and a trip to Waitrose to top up the larder I had an early night. The next morning I had breakfast at the cafe in the nearby park before venturing back onto the river to wend my way slowly back to St Ives stopping overnight at Godmanchester and Houghton. Houghton was the 4 Aug, the centenary of our becoming involved in WWI and I was keen to spend the night somewhere quiet. The island mooring below Houghton lock was ideal and Mother Nature provided a stunning sunset to mark the occasion for me. It was a remarkably quiet and peaceful night.

The next day I finally took the plunge and bought a small kayak in which to explore the smaller waterways and just enjoy quietly paddling along without the accompaniment of a diesel engine. Paul Beamont kindly drove me to the marina to pick up my chosen craft and then oversaw and photographed my maiden voyage. He seemed disappointed that I didn't fall in on this occasion as I had once before in his canoe.



Friday saw a rapid change in the weather and I got caught in a downpour as I moved down to St Ives. Thanks to Mr Tilley my head remained dry. After such a warm dry summer I'd forgotten how slippy the boat and locks are when wet and slipped a couple of times but managed not to fall in.

On Saturday morning I had a surprise visit from Paul and Debbie who were in town shopping. Earlier in the week I had bought a set of knives which had been reduced from £100 to £49 and Paul liked them. He'd bought a set that morning and was pleased to inform me that they had been further reduced to £39. I really didn't need to know that.

After lunch I spent a little longer getting used to the kayak with a new paddle and I think I'm going to enjoy it. This little backwater in St Ives is beautiful but simply not accessible in a 55' boat but ideal for investigating in a more intimate vessel.

That afternoon I had a visit from another ex Wyton friend Lesley-Ann who arrived bearing cake. We stayed on the mooring as she is not a keen sailor and I enjoyed catching up over coffee. After Lesley-Ann left I moved up to Houghton as the quayside in St Ives can be a little noisy on a Saturday night.

After a quiet night I awoke this morning to the sound of more rain which was quite heavy at times. By late morning the weather cleared and the sun even appeared. I headed off for a quick trundle up to Hungingdon but didn't quite make it before the next storm front blew in and I arrived soaked and listening to thunder overhead. After a quick hot shower I was once again ready to face the world and more importantly my friend Melissa who I was looking forward to seeing again after too long. Thankfully the rain cleared before Melissa arrived, bearing cake too. We spent an enjoyable couple of hours catching up on the past three years over coffee.

And that brings the blog up to date. I'm planning to spend the rest if the week in the area and I'm lunching with friends on Friday. Following that I'll begin the journey back to the marina at Oundle. I'll be spending a few weeks on the rivers around Ely before heading over the middle levels to Peterborough in mid September aiming to reach the marina by the end of the month.  I then have to put the boat through it's 4 yearly safety inspection - bit like an MoT. I'm expecting her to pass ok but will spend a week or so checking over all the important bits to make sure all us as it should be.