Wellingborough to Denford

Sun 9^th Jun  Wellingborough to Irthlingborough

The flour mills opposite were making a noise all night, probably from extractor fans.

Flour mill by night

We walked via minor roads and footpaths to visit a Vineyard church in Wellingborough. The talk was about the Holy Spirit, and the worship was well led by a 5-piece band. Many people came to say hello, which was very encouraging.

Worship team at Wellingborough Vineyard

We walked back via Tesco for a few bits and pieces. James returned to the boat to fill the water tank and empty a cassette while Hazel finished the shopping. The water tap was on the outside of a bend, where he couldn’t moor so he had to use two hoses joined together. While waiting for Hazel to return with the shopping, he had conversations with four different people.

Water tap on a bend

We set off, hoping to moor at a FOTRN site at Rushden Lakes, 2 locks and 3 miles away.

Lower Wellingborough Lock was the first challenge. It has vee doors at both ends, and it was in our favour, with the top gates open. Fortunately, we noticed that the paddles on the top gates were also raised, so we lowered them before raising the paddles on the lower gates.

Lower Wellingborough Lock

Further downstream we cruised under the 14-arch railway bridge, with the FOTRN mooring at Ditchford soon afterwards on the right bank.

14 arches railway bridge

Ditchford mooring

Ditchford Lock was next. This lock is unusual in that instead of a guillotine gate at the lower end, there is a radial gate – the only one on the Nene.

Ditchford Radial Lock

The mooring we were heading for was described in our booklet as being on the right after two bends, just after a “slow-moored boats sign”. We looked hard and saw no possible place to moor. There were no signs and no moored boats.

We carried on for another two miles until we came to Higham Lock. There were some lads having fun at the lock, and they opened the gates for us. We gave them a tube of sweets to share. This lock has vee doors at each end. Soon after this we passed under the A6, and then through an arch in a medieval stone bridge. Me moored up soon after, at the Rushden and Diamonds football ground, where there is a long line of mooring bollards.

Irthlingborough Bridge dates to 13^th century

Moored at Irthlingborough

Stanwick Lakes nature reserve is close by, and James went for a walk. He spotted a bullfinch and a whitethroat. Then three Oyster Catchers flew over, as well as four separate egrets. As he was taking a photo of the lakes a swan decided to stretch out its wings.  There were rabbits everywhere. As he crossed the river on a footbridge, he saw the FOTRN Stanwick Lakes site which looked very nice.  On the way back he met a fox on the towpath.

Stanwick Lakes

Stretching swan

Rabbits

FOTRN Stanwick Lakes

Mon 10^th June  Irthlingborough

A wet day, raining almost continually. We didn’t move from the boat and didn’t take any photos. We caught up on a few admin things.

No boating today

Tue 11^th June  Irthlingborough

Another wet day, although it brightened up a little in the late afternoon, too late to set off anywhere. James went for a short walk to see what was happening at the lock. He discovered that a lot of water was pouring over the lock gates, and the downstream landing stage was under water. There was also a red board out advising boaters not to navigate.

Lock gates

Downstream landing stage

No boating

Wed 12^th June  Irthlingborough to Denford

A boat came up through the lock mid-morning, and we asked what the river was like. “Fast flowing but OK” they said. James went to look at the landing stage, which was now visible, but the water was still high. The red board was still out, so we decided not to go yet.

Landing stage now visible

Instead we went shopping and discovered a new Aldi close by which was not on our map. We walked into the village and had lunch in a café, before visiting the church, which has an unusual tower.

St Peters Church

Church tower

As we returned to the boat, an Environment Agency River Inspector was there to take down the red board. We were OK to go. We checked the weather forecast, and there was no rain forecast until about 6pm. We thought we could get to the FOTRN site at Woodford at least, and maybe further to Thrapston. So we set off at 2pm.

Looking back at the mooring at Irthlingborough

An egret was there to see us go

Stanwick Lakes footbridge

Upper Ringstead Lock had some work boats on the lock bollards, so we had to go ashore across them. This was the first of the locks that have a manually operated guillotine gate. This operated by turning a large heavy flywheel, which needs many turns as it is low geared.

Work boats

As we left the lock, we noticed a marina on our right, which was not on our map – Blackthorn Marina. We needed to empty a cassette, and were looking for Willy Watt Marina, which was marked on our map a little further up on the right. We came to a railway bridge, where the waterway forked, with a mill stream and some moored boats on the left, and an arrow pointing us towards the lock to the right. We took the right fork as instructed and used the lock. There we found a sign for Willy Watt Marina. We had missed the turn, but there had been no sign. And they were on the left, not the right!

Keep right

Willy Watt Marina

We phoned them up and asked if we could trundle the cassette round on the road. They agreed and said the elsan point was behind the cottage. When we got there with the cassettes there was more than one cottage. Thankfully some helpful people showed us where the elsan point was.

We continued on through a section with several bends and overhanging trees as the rain started, two hours earlier than forecast. We saw the FOTRN site at Woodford, but decided it was unsafe in high flow conditions, being just a grassy slope on the outside of a bend. Woodford Lock had another wheel, even more difficult to operate when it was wet.

Low Willow Tree

Boating in the rain at Woodford Lock

We continued to Denford Lock, and after passing a weir, we spotted a place that looked suitable as a mooring. We needed to use mooring pins, but we were in the lock cut, and there was little flow, and little danger of rising water levels, at it all went over the weirs.

We put up the hood, and mopped up the stern as best we could.

Moored above Denford Lock

4 locks, 6 miles. Dep 1400, arr 1715 including 25 minutes at Willy Watt Marina.

Next: probably a full day on Thursday sitting out the rain, and hoping to get to Thrapston on Friday. Our target of Oundle by Sunday looks unlikely now.