Thu
22nd August Torksey to Cromwell
Moored on Torksey visitor moorings
We
had been told that the best time to leave Torksey would be 1210, so we had
plenty of time this morning. We took ten minutes to cruise slowly down to the
lock, and were there by 1100, in pole position on the lock bollards. The lock
keeper appeared an hour later and started to fill the lock, and at 1215 we were
into the lock, with three other narrowboats.
Waiting for the green light
We
cruised out from the Fossdyke and joined the Trent, very close to where Cottam
Power Station was making clouds from its cooling towers. This is the last one
to use coal and is due to close down at the end of September after 50 years of
service. It was designed for thirty years, so it has done quite well.
The
river Trent twists and turns, so the power station appeared first on one side
and then the other. There were few landmarks on the way to Cromwell, but the
route is marked by kilometer markers, so we didn’t lose track of where we were.
We kept our lead, with two of the narrowboats keeping up with us about five
minutes behind. The smaller narrowboat that came through the lock was soon left
behind.
We
arrived at Cromwell, with the long weir to the left, and the lock cut to the
right. We tied up on the waiting pontoon, and were told by the lock keeper that
a boat was coming down. A beautiful red admiral butterfly decided to land on
the boat, and it came through into the lock with us.
Cromwell Weir and Lock Cut
Waiting for Cromwell Lock
In Cromwell Lock with Gyptian
We
suggested the other two boats went first, as they were going to Newark. We had
decided to stop on the mooring pontoon here at Cromwell. We found it was full,
so we had to tie onto the wall, along with some large cruisers. We have never
seen it so busy. People had their deck chairs out, and were having a BBQ.
2
locks, 16 miles. Dep 1215, arr 1645
Fri
23rd August Cromwell Lock to Newark
The view from our mooring at Cromwell
Crowded moorings at Cromwell
We
left our busy mooring area at Cromwell and set off early on our cruise to
Newark. The river was wide, and there was a strong flow against us. It had been
much easier on the tide. The Trent divides into two above Newark, with one part
flowing through the town past the castle, and the other part taking a rural detour
for five miles to the north of the town, emerging at a place called Crankley
Point. Soon after this junction comes Newark Nether Lock.
The
lock was on self-operation when we arrived, and just as James was about to
empty the lock, another narrowboat appeared above the lock. James went forward
to open the gates for them, but the electronic mechanism was not lighting up
the correct light bulbs, and we couldn’t get it to work. Thankfully a volunteer
lock keeper arrived and operated the lock for us.
We
spotted a water tap, but it was not well positioned, being set well back from
the lock wall, with the need for the boat to be in the lock. When we hooked up
both our hoses, we only had a trickle. The lock keeper said the next tap was at
Hazelford Lock, way past Newark, so we persisted with filling the tank, until
boats started to arrive in the lock.
Boats arrive before we depart
Just
upstream of the lock, the busy A46 crosses the river on a flyover, and there are
some old buildings which used to have a purpose once, now all boarded up. When we arrived in Newark, there was a space
for us on the pontoon, vacated by the boat we had tried to help through the
lock. We also found a water tap, right by the bows of the boat!!!
A46 flyover by Victorian canal buildings
The Pride of Lincoln going by – the only
non-leisure traffic we saw
We
nipped off to Aldi and Waitrose, both very close by, for some items we needed.
Later we met Hazel’s cousin Rod and his wife Mary, and they took us in their
car to a pleasant unspoilt pub called the Lord Nelson at Winthorpe.
1
lock, 5 miles. Dep 0750, arr 1010.
Sat
24th August Newark
Flowers and riverside buildings in
Newark
We
had a wander around the town, looking at the sights, frequenting Wetherspoons
for a cold drink at one point. Sadly, no still ciders. Eventually we had a
lovely meal in Gannets.
Chimney for the old church heating
system
Ceiling in St Mary Magdalen Church
There
were four cruisers at the upstream end of the pontoon when we first arrived early
yesterday. They had chairs out, and barbecues set up, and we had to run the
gauntlet of two large dogs every time we left the pontoon. The moorings here
are for two days maximum. That can be interpreted several ways. We thought:
arrive on Friday, have Saturday and Sunday as our two days, and leave on
Monday. That might be stretching it a bit. However, these four cruisers would
still be there when we left on Monday.
No
boating today
Sun
25th August Newark
We took
a taxi to Boundary Road, to visit Christ Church, a not-so-traditional Anglican
church. We found that the church building was closed as it was being rewired,
so the service was in the church hall. We had some modern worship songs from a sound
system, and a very good talk about choosing friends wisely.
Paul Franklin, vicar at Christ Church
The church building out of action.
We
went off to a nearby park and consumed a picnic near the River Devon, followed
by a drink in a local pub, where Hazel was the only lady when we arrived. Then
an ice cream in the café, before walking to Shirley and Caroline’s house, where
it was great to catch up with friends. Caroline lived in our house for eight
years in Cobham.
They
took us back to the boat where we discovered that fireworks were happening at
the castle.
Name suggestions for this artwork please
No
boating today
Next:
going upstream to Nottingham
Sun
18th August Lincoln
We
left the visitor moorings and travelled through Brayford Pool and the Glory
Hole, mooring up near the water point by Stamp End Lock.
This sign “Where have you been” is at
the Lincoln end of Brayford Pool
We
walked the very short distance to Lincoln Baptist Church, where Chris and
Adrian Dann were there to greet us. The worship was keyboard led, backed up
with a guitar and bass and was fairly modern. Adrian was one of the singers.
The only song we hadn’t heard was a very old hymn. The talk was based on the story of Nicodemus
and his encounter with Jesus in John 3.
After
the service Adrian and Chris kindly took us in their car to a Sainsbury’s
supermarket, and then we all had a meal in a Hungry Horse pub nearby. They then
delivered us back to the boat.
When
we set off, we went back through the Glory Hole, and as we went into Brayford
Pool, we saw the flip side of the first sign.
The
visitor moorings were all full, but we found a space a few lengths further on,
which is technically for long term mooring permit holders only. We discovered
that only half the boats had the permits, so really the dividing line between
visitor moorings and permit holder moorings needs to be moved, allowing more
space for visitors. We planned to move in the morning anyway.
On the permit holder moorings.
0
locks, 2 miles. Glory Hole twice.
Mon
19th August Lincoln
We
left our position on the long term moorings and cruised further out to the
facilities block to empty cassettes and dispose of rubbish. We found proper
recycling facilities there for a change. We then cruised back into Lincoln
again, noticing the expensive visitor moorings in Brayford Pool were completely
empty.
No takers for the visitor berths at
Brayford Marina
We
cruised through the Glory Hole once more, mooring just the other side, opposite
Wilko. The footpath on our side was temporarily closed while shop refurbishment
works were happening, but there was a way through for boaters. We saw Tommy going past on his boat.
Moored near the Glory Hole
We
found a bus going to the Cathedral area, so we had a ride to the top of the
very steep hill. We looked round the Cathedral, where they were dismantling the
seating tiers from a production of Oliver, so we couldn’t see it all. Sadly,
the tower tours were not happening either, but it was a very impressive place
despite all the setbacks.
We
then walked a short distance to the castle, where we walked the walls. Last
time we came, many years ago, this was not open. We had visited the Victorian
prison and seen the Magna Carta before, so we didn’t repeat those this time.
Cathedral and Castle tower
We
walked back down the aptly named “Steep Hill”, exploring the small shops on the
way. We walked down to the boat, and then went for an Indian meal, which was
excellent. It was called “The Modern Indian Cuisine” and it was in the High
Street, south of the railway level crossing.
Cobbled Streets in Lincoln
Back
on the boat, we stayed put, and had a peaceful night until someone started
setting up a large market stall at 6am, making loud clattering noises as they dropped steel poles.
0
locks, 1 mile. Glory Hole once.
Tue
20th August Lincoln to Saxilby
We
needed to go to Stamp End Lock to turn round, before making our final run
through the Glory Hole and Brayford Pool. We spotted Don’t Panic, a boat
that had been next to us on the visitor moorings unoccupied. The owner had
evidently arrived to move the boat, and then gone away again.
Sculpture across the navigation
We
left the environs of Lincoln, passing a very long line of moored boats, before
arriving at our intended destination for the day, the Pyewipe Inn. Several
people had recommended this place so we thought we would give it a try. The
food was very good. Pyewipe apparently is an old word for Lapwing.
We
decided not to stay overnight, as there was a very busy road crossing the canal, and a
noisy railway running alongside. We went further along the Fossdyke, which was
built by the Romans.
We
arrived in Saxilby, and found a long length of visitor moorings, which were
full, except for one space beyond the bollards, next to the railway bridge. The
trains were very noisy, but they weren’t very frequent at night. At least the
busy road had moved away slightly.
Moored by the railway bridge
0
locks, 6 miles. Dep 1205, arr 1255 Pywipe. Dep 1740 arr 1840 Saxilby.
Wed
21st August
Saxilby to Torksey
We
did a few errands this morning. Hazel went to the shops for a few items, while
James emptied two cassettes. In the toilet disposal there were two taps. One
was very hot, and the other had a sign above saying, “drinking water”. As
boaters would have rinsed their cassettes at these taps, drinking the water
would not be a good plan.
We left the mooring at Saxilby to visit
our friends Adrian and Chris Dann. We thought their house would be just around
the corner, but it took about 15 minutes. We soon spotted their boat Essence,
moored by their house.
We
had a tour of their premises, which include a two-storey tower, which used to
be a pumphouse for a swimming pool. It is now Chris’s craft workshop. We stayed for a light lunch, before departing
once more in the direction of Torksey.
Farewell to Adrian and Chris
We
found a mooring that was not marked in the Nicholson Guide, and almost decided
to moor there, but realized that the busy road ran alongside, and it would be
noisy. The place had the delightful name of Drinksey Nook.
We
continued to Torksey visitor moorings where we found an abusive fisherman. We had not even remotely suggested that we were going to moor on his precious fishing spot, built for boats. Thankfully there were two more spaces available a little further on.
0
locks, 5 miles, 1 passage of the Glory Hole.
Dep 1055 arr 1110 Dann’s. dep 1350, arr 1450 Torksey
Next:
the tidal Trent up stream to Cromwell Lock, and then up the Trent to Newark and
Nottingham. Where we go when we reach Trent Lock is still undecided.
