This morning we discovered that Ocho had left.
Although we were up, we had the boards in the windows on that side to keep the
sun out, so it looked as though we hadn’t woken up. We didn’t hear them go. They sent a text to explain themselves. We
spotted a white-fronted goose, which obligingly came over to have a photo
taken.
Kamili was still moored next to us, and we
noticed them getting ready to leave at the same time as we were. They were
going down to Peterborough for a pump out, and we were going for the day, so we
suggested they leave first as we didn’t think two would fit in the lock. They
thought there would be room, so we followed them out of the lake.
They were right about the lock, and we were able to fit
alongside. We left first, as they had crew to collect. We noticed that the
fishermen were there again, between the lock and the lock landing.
We made sure we didn’t block the pumpout for Kamili when
we moored up on the riverside. We walked into town to stock up on items from
Asda.
1 lock, 3 miles. Dep 1050, arr 1205.
Fri 9th August
Peterborough Waterfront to Dog-in-a-Doublet
Originally, we had planned to stay two nights in Peterborough,
but very high winds were forecast for Saturday. New Wine had closed early as
had many other festivals due to this severe weather warning. We therefore
decided to leave today and sit out the storm at Dog-in-a-Doublet, avoiding
boating in the gales.
This was a new section for us, previously unexplored. It
was wide and deep, and we made good time.
There weren’t many features on the route, and even less on the map. We discovered a new bridge that we weren’t expecting at Northey. It is called Shanks Millennium Bridge and it carries the Hereward Way footpath.
Leaving Peterborough
Past the turning to Stanground Lock - new territory for us.
Wide, straight and deep
There weren’t many features on the route, and even less on the map. We discovered a new bridge that we weren’t expecting at Northey. It is called Shanks Millennium Bridge and it carries the Hereward Way footpath.
We moored on the floating pontoon and went for a meal at
the Dog-in-a-Doublet pub, which has been here far than the lock with the same
name. We noticed two pill boxes, one of which was in the lock keeper’s garden.
0 locks, 5 miles. Dep 1235, arr 1335.
Sat 10th August
Dog-in-a-Doublet
The wind was very strong as had been predicted. We were
pleased that we had very little boating to do. We caught up with admin matters.
Later in the day we had a text from Mark and Rosie on Ace
to say they had left Peterborough. Half and hour later James went out to see if
they were in sight, and he could see them very small in the distance on the
long straight waterway. There was a powerful gale blowing and the water was
very choppy. When they arrived, we went to have a look at the lock.
Mark managed to reach the lock keepers wife on the phone,
and she said she would pass the message on, that we were here, and would like
to use the lock this evening, to save getting people up at 6am to do it then.
The lock keeper duly appeared, and he gave us useful advice about shallow
areas, and where to moor in Wisbech. We blew, rather than cruised, into the
lock, one behind the other.
We moored on the floating pontoon below the lock, where
thankfully it was a little less windy. We had a Pied Wagtail come to visit us
just outside the window.
Pied Wagtail
1 lock, 0 miles. Dep 1645, arr 1705.
Sun 11th August
Dog-in-a-Doublet to Wisbech
We set our alarm for 5am, with an agreed start time of 6am.
We were off very promptly, Gabriel going first, with Ace setting
off a few minutes later.
On the lock landing stage
Dawn start at Dog-in-a-Doublet
There were few landmarks. The channel was mostly straight,
but there was an occasional small kink for no obvious reason. We used these to
time the distance between us and Ace, and it was about seven minutes by the
end. The wind from yesterday had dropped considerably.
When we arrived in Wisbech we carried on past the moored
boats on their pontoons until we could turn safely in a winding hole designed
for ships. Ace is 41ft, and they were able to turn earlier, so by the
time we had turned and struggled up against the tide, they were just mooring
up. We found a pontoon with enough space and moored up as well.
Halfway on this cruise Mark had drawn our attention to an
email from Daryl our pilot, saying that tomorrow’s weather didn’t look good,
and that it would be better on Wednesday. We checked our weather forecasts, and
Wednesday looked wet and windy, and much worse than tomorrow. We sent emails to
Rob and Andy to warn them it may change.
We all went off to Kings Church, where we were in time for
their 0915 bible teaching service, which is followed immediately by a worship
celebration at 0945. We had a warm welcome. It was very much a family affair.
The lady who gave a children’s talk was the daughter of the preacher, and she
was married to the worship leader.
We found a very unpretentious pub for a Sunday roast, which
was very nice, and we explored a few of the interesting streets in Wisbech.
We phoned Daryl, and we discussed the pros and cons of
Monday versus Wednesday. He checked his forecasts again and agreed that Monday
would be OK. Texts, WhatsApp’s etc went
out again to Andy and Rob that it was on for tomorrow. When the water
slackened, we turned our boats round to face out to the Wash for the morning.
We settled down for an early night, which proved to be a
bit restless – a mixture of excitement and trepidation. The alarm was set for
5am once more.
0 locks, 16 miles. Dep 0600, arr 0905.
Next: The crossing of the Wash to Boston,
hopefully followed by a journey up the Witham to Lincoln.
No comments:
Post a Comment
Note: only a member of this blog may post a comment.