8th -19th Oct

The gaps between posts are getting longer!  Blame it on lack of internet access, then Jean being struck down by a mystery lurgy, which has held back our progress.

Anyway, our return journey up the Nene, retracing our steps from Peterborough to Northampton, is complete.  The first few days were sunny and peaceful - on average we met only one boat a day, and only shared a lock on a single occasion during the entire trip.

A bored heron

Swan taking flight

Pair of hopeful ducks

We saw river birds aplenty, and herons especially seemed much less nervous than on the canals, where they invariably fly off just as the boat approaches - on the Nene they appeared quite uninterested in our passing

We had a slightly scary experience exiting a lock, when the current caught the boat and carried her against the boom cordoning off a large weir.

Roger, Dave and Jean hauling the boat in

We managed to get away unscathed, but follow this link to see what might have happened - there but for the grace of God, went we!

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2226937/Shocking-moment-14-tonne-narrowboat-smashes-river-sluice-gate-Northamptonshire.html


The weather, which had been glorious for so long, broke eventually just before Sue and Dave were due to come and join us for couple of days.

An ominous sky

 Rain hammered on the roof all night of Sat 12th, and although it stopped as they arrived at lunchtime on Sunday the river was extremely full.

Stuck!

 We had been warned of several low bridges along the way which could cause problems when water levels are high and discovered why when we got wedged solid under a footbridge.

We finally regained Northampton on Tues 15th, and Roger spent the afternoon driving the car over to Braunston, then returning [slowly!] by bus.

Vincent Joseph looking lonely at Northampton

Next day we locked back on to the canal system with some relief - it feels much safer than the deep, fast-flowing  Nene,

River speed limit

although it has been exhilarating to zip along at the heady speed of 7mph [as against 3mph on the canal]

Not canal related, but an amusing memory
 from Northampton

We had grown accustomed to floating on  water so clear that we could see the riverbed - the Grand Union seems very murky in comparison!

We completed the 17 locks of the Northampton Arm on the Tuesday, but since then  our progress has been slow, due to Jean's feeling rough!  Now about to head up the 7-lock Buckby flight, followed almost immediately by the downward flight into Braunston, where we shall have a bit of a breather before continuing homeward.

29th September to 7th October

This week we have pressed on down the Nene to Peterborough, travelling over 60 miles and through 37 locks, gradually getting used to the differences between canal and river! Locks take a lot longer to operate;

Guillotine lock gate

most of them have "guillotine" type vertical bottom gates and even though most have been electrified the process still takes quite a while. A major difference to the canal system is the lack of moorings - even those marked in our guide book are often just a short stretch of grassy river bank, where we had expected a proper landing stage and mooring posts.

Weirs can be quite scary...

Moorings are pretty few and far between, so no stopping whenever you feel like a break - we have had to keep going today for six hours non-stop, eating at the tiller!
.
 On Tuesday we started the day by picking 4 lbs of rose hips in readiness for some winter wine - hope it's worth the scratches.... We then encountered the first manually operated guillotine gates - instead of an electric motor to raise them, a 3ft wheel is provided which has to be turned many, many times!!

Help!!!

At another lock, access to the pick-up point for the crew (ie Jean) was through a gate marked "Bull in field" - fortunately he must have been dozing. Eventually we managed to find moorings at a pub so we could reward our efforts with a pint (and scrump some fallen apples for a blackberry and apple crumble)

The weather has been beautiful and the landscape gorgeous, the river sometimes tree-lined, and sometimes passing through open fields giving lovely vistas as  it twists and turns past many pretty sandstone villages, although frustratingly one often can't moor to visit them.

So near and yet so far

However we have enjoyed Wadenhoe, Elton, Fotheringhay and Oundle ( home of a famous public school, many buildings of which are scattered through the town)

Ferry Meadows

We spent Friday and Saturday nights moored at Ferry Meadows Country Park, and took a trip into Peterborough on the Nene Valley Railway, who were holding a "Diesel Gala Weekend", with lots of  train-spotting enthusiasts.

Peterborough Cathedral

Today we're moored on the embankment in Peterborough centre, a stone's throw from the magnificent cathedral, having trundled 9 miles to and back from the amusingly named "Dog in a Doublet" Lock which marks the beginning of the tidal stretch of the Nene.

End of journey - Dog in a Doublet lock

That was the most easterly point of our journey, as we now have to start heading back towards the Midlands to settle down before winter sets in!