Friday 7 August 2009

Torksey to Muskham Ferry, River Trent

We left the shelter of the Torksey lock approach and ventured out onto the river again. 12 hours heavy rain last night managed to stop as we set off but it was so murky we almost needed navigation lights on. At times there were so many narrow boats and cruisers going in the same direction, it was akin to a flotilla. The waves created by some of the gin-palaces that over-took us were about 2 feet high which made for a very exciting white knuckle ride.

No sand barges today, but we had to keep an eye out and listen to the VHF. After about 3.5 hours we reached Cromwell Lock and the comfort zone of a non tidal part of the river Trent. Still fast moving water, and life jackets, but somehow a safer feel to it. We moored on a floating jetty built solely for patrons of The Muskham Ferry Inn, which was so idyillic at lunch time we have decided to stay overnight! The HOT sun came out, the real ale was good, and the garden overlooked the river, what more could we want.

The pub got its name in the thirties when the licensee was the ferry man who took the school children across the river from the village on the other side.

Thursday 6 August 2009

From Keadby Lock up the River Trent to Torksey

At exactly 6am the Keadby lockeeper released us onto the River Trent and for the next 4 hours we averaged about 7mph, as we made our way to the shelter of Torksey Lock approach. Our first picture shows the gloomy start to the day, and it was difficult making out bridge navigation lights. Lots of attractive properties along the way, including rebuilt windmills, but all looking very near the Trent despite the flood defences.

The journey was quite pleasant and a second breakfast during the morning was most welcome. We encountered only one sandbarge, who came at us from behind at great speed as our picture shows.

Very little floating debris made for a more relaxed time today, than we recalled en route from Selby to Naborne.

Our arrival at Torksey was marked with an aerial display from the Red Arrows, with red, white and blue smoke trails.

So this afternoon we have explored Torksey and its environs (and pubs) and watched boats going through the lock, and we are moored on a floating pontoon, and await the tide tomorrow to move again. If we have seen one cooling tower this trip, we have seen dozens - they are everywhere!

Wednesday 5 August 2009

From Thorne to above Keadby Lock, Stainforth and Keadby Canal

We have traversed the whole of the Stainforth and Keadby Canal now and we are moored ready to move at 5.45am into the lock, ready to be released onto the River Trent below at low water. Our dawn patrol will take us to Torksey Lock for a pub lunch hopefully.

Today's little jaunt was not without interest and adventure, as we had several electric swing bridges to deal with, each with its own slightly different procedure and some with dodgy contact points, that brought out workers from garages, and house windows opened and pedestrians all shouting advice, and help! The canal passed alongside some rail track where repairs were ongoing, utilising floating cranes, and we counted at least a dozen Network Rail personnnel wasting time beside the canal, watching the world go by. Nearer to Keadby we encountered a skewed sliding railway bridge only 2 feet above the canal, which was moved aside for us by a Network Rail man in a signal box. Apparently, there are only 3 of these bridges in Europe. it all seemed a little toytown to us!

We then passed a gas fired power station which Bob says was very interesting!

No problem about falling to sleep tonight, then!

Monday 3 August 2009

Pollington Lock , Aire and Calder Navigation to Thorne, Stainforth and Keadby Navigation, South Yorkshire

Today we have travelled on 3 waterways, including the New Junction Canal (built 1905) which is 5.5 miles long and follows a completely straight line, broken only by swing and lift bridges and one lock, with a swing bridge in the middle of it. Tall foreboding guillotine gates over aqueducts at each end, isolate the canal in times of flood. At the end of the 'new' canal, we turned sharp left and moved down the Stainforth and Keadby Canal, again wide water passing through ex coal mining areas, and on to Thorne where we are currently moored within Stanilands Marina for the next 2 nights.

Our passage down on to the river Trent from Keadby Lock is booked for 6am on Thursday!

Sunday 2 August 2009

From Selby Canal, along river Aire to Knottingley and onto Aire and Calder Navigation and down to Pollington Lock

A much better day, everyone was keen to make an early start - not us at 6am but some did! Perfect boating weather though and out onto the River Aire where the water level marker at orange meant that levels were high and navigable with care, but not in the dangerous red zone. Fortunately we didn't encounter any water skiers along the way, we saw them getting ready, with beer bottles in hand! Progress into the wind was tricky, but we battled on, consequently we feel quite weatherbeaten this evening.

We are covering new ground as we go down more of the Aire and Calder navigation, moving south from Knottingley towards Thorne and Doncaster. We passed several Tom Pudding boats, sadly disused now, just rusting alongside the colliery sites, they previously served. Not overly attractive countryside, but different none the less, and a good chance that we will meet commercial boats along the way, mixed in with the huge powerful cruisers, with aerials and masts and sonar and vhf and tinted windows, and and and........

Saturday 1 August 2009

Selby lock, Selby Canal


Wet, wet, wet = no boating today!

Friday 31 July 2009

York to Selby ( via Tidal Ouse )

We spent the morning looking around York again ( including M & S ) and went back to the boat for lunch. The trip boats plodding up and down the river every few minutes all giving the same commentary, apparently before the great fire of London houses in York were built without foundations so you could turn them upside down and still use them!!

Lunch brought about a small panic as Bob tried to cut his thumb off with the bread knife, but it turned out to be more shock than blood.

The daytime tide today meant that we had to be at Naburn Lock ready to go down about 4.30pm, to arrive at Selby about 7pm. Five narrowboats went down in the first penning and we were first out onto the river. We were soon overtaken by two narrowboats, one steered by a grandmother and her grandson, who were out to break records! The other two boats were much slower.

After about an hour and a half we realised we were catching up rapidly on the first two boats, they had slowed considerably and it was soon obvious that the first had a problem. We all came to a virtual stand still, then an enormous lump of wood floated away from the bows of the first boat. They had been pushing it for sometime hence the reduced speed.

Selby lock is only big enough for two narrowboats at a time so after radioing the lock to let him know we were ten minutes away we trod water for 15 minutes to let the two boats ahead get through the awkward bridges and make their turn into the lock.

Our turn eventually came and the turn into the lock was quite staight forward ( didn't even touch the lock walls on entering). We then had to wait about 15 mins for the arrival of the next boat to lock up with us.