Scrap, Lambs and What is a Houseboat?

Scrap - where does it all come from?  Last week we decided it was time to get rid of the rather large pile of scrap that had been accumulating over the winter as part of the Spring clean.  There were at least three bikes in the pile and I hadn't ridden a single one of them! With the car weighted down with a tonne of batteries and a full trailer of scrap strapped on we set off for the local scrap yard. 

On arriving at the yard we drove down a very narrow alleyway of scrap about 20 feet tall on both sides with no way out having been hemmed in by several tipper trucks and white vans. There was a large mechanical grab moving piles of scrap around which alarmingly kept getting a bit too near the car for my liking and I was fully expecting the grab to pick the car up and move us onto the nearest pile!  After moving on and off the weighbridge several times with much arm waving going on in different directions, unhitching and rehitching the trailer and attempting to do a 50 point turn in a very narrow space and getting offered some money for the car we were sitting in - I don't know how they thought we were going to get home; the scrap and batteries were added to the pile and we left a little lighter! The price for scrap metal at the moment is very good so it was worth the wait and it just goes to show that nearly everything can be recycled and reused!

 

The last couple of weeks have been taken up with lambing and we now have twenty five Herdwick lambs out in the field.  The Herdwick sheep traditionally lives out on the Cumbrian Fells, so they are quite a way south in Northamptonshire. It's all got too much for this lamb, so it's decided to have a sleep on mum.

Sadly one of the ewes died, so her two lambs were orphaned but we do have a willing helper who likes to give them their bottle feeds.  They will hopefully go out into the field with the rest of the sheep shortly as they are getting very bouncy now and want to play!

I think we can safely say that Spring has arrived: it has warmed up, there are lambs playing in the fields and the daffodils have eventually come out after spending weeks tightly wrapped up.

We were rather puzzled this week to find the Environment Agency has reclassified our butty Naples as a 'Houseboat' for licensing purposes.  Naples is a 1929 Small Northwich butty, originally horse drawn she worked with a number of different motor boats carrying all sorts of cargoes until her retirement. Now I am sure the people at the EA have thought very hard about this but I do have a couple of questions for them about their definition of a 'Houseboat' (a licence for which, unsurprisingly, costs about 10 times more)

This is a picture of butty Naples

And this is a picture of what I generally think of as a houseboat

 

 

 

They are both unpowered craft over five metres as per a class 12 category. But are they both  'Houseboats'? Hopefully we will find out soon.  

Sammy & Sumo Finally Get Away for Easter plus a Chilly Trip on the River

Once it had stopped snowing and the 'Beast from the East' had gone into abeyance briefly, there was a quick flurry of activity to get the boats ship shape for the first hire of the season over Easter.  Painting, fixing, cleaning, hanging of curtains, checking inventories was all well underway.

Boat Preparations Well Underway

The only problem was the river was still closed to navigation due to the recent high flow.  We had everything crossed in the hope that the Environment Agency would remove the Strong Stream Advice before our boats were due to go on holiday on the Easter Monday.  Crossing everything and having a chat with the weather gods worked and on Sunday morning the Strong Stream Advice was cancelled and not a moment too soon!

 

On Monday it was all stations go and our customers arrived and loaded their belongings onto the boats. Once the handover had been completed it was time to set off down to the lock with Dan for the demonstration of how a River Nene lock works.

 

Off on Holiday

After passage through Upper Barnwell Lock, it was decided that Oundle Mill would be a nice place to stop for an evening meal and out popped the sun for the remainder of the evening.

 

Sammy & Sumo moored at Oundle Mill

As the sun was out for a couple of days we thought we would take the opportunity for a trip out and have a look at what was happening out and about on the river.  So we popped in our day boat and headed off towards Lilford.  Jack, our furry friend decided to come along for the ride as well!

 

Jack & Dan on Board

Once out on the river the wind was whipping up the water and it was decidely choppy with a wind chill of about -20 (or that 's what it felt like) and the dog looked a bit sea sick.  It was nice to be out on the river even though it was rather chilly.  Here's a short video of us bumping along on the waves.  To get the full experience, stand in a cold room with a fan on maximum! Excuse the shaky camera, it was difficult keeping upright at times!

 

 

 

We carried on up the river, past Lilford Hall, a stately home in the Jacobean style built around 1635 for the Elmes Family before passing onto the Powys Family who were granted the title of Baron (Lord) Lilford. by William Pitt the Younger.

 

Lilford Hall

The geese were very busy along the river bank, although it might be a bit cold to start sitting on a nest yet! This Canada Goose didn't mind having its photo taken, although the Greylag Geese in the background were more reserved.  You can see the Church at Pilton up on the hill overlooking the river.

 

We passed under the bridge towards Lilford Lock and decided it was time to turn around and head back as Dan's hand was frozen to the tiller by now.

 

Pilton Bridge with Lilford Lock in the Background


Despite the cold there are definitely signs of Spring appearing along the river bank, the green shoots of the reeds are starting to reappear and I spotted some pussy willows whilst investigating a tree.

 

Pussy Willows

 And finally .......

 

One of the local swans who likes to knock on the boat hatch for a bit of breakfast, dinner and tea.  Mind your fingers!



 

Escaped Boats, Engines and Green Shoots

Getting the hireboats ready last March, note that Dan is wearing a t-shirt and there seems to be something called sun shining.

March 2012

Getting the hireboats ready this March.  A slight difference of about 20 degrees and a foot of snow!

March 2013

Last week one of the boats moored at the boatyard decided to slip its ropes and take itself off for a cruise down towards the lock and had to be rescued.  This proved quite difficult as there was still a considerable flow on the river and it was rather windy.  The boat was eventually pulled back to safety and a visit to the weir was averted.  On a more serious note it is important to check boat ropes, particularly during times of strong stream and fluctuating river levels.

 

 

Boat Rescue

 We are continuing to renovate our 70ft motor and unfortunately last year the freezing temperatures cracked the engine block. After much consideration, deliberation, unbolting, building of contraptions, pulling, pushing, lifting up, setting down again and general inventiveness, the Lister engine had been disturbed from its mountings, pulled apart and manhandled all the way up to the front deck with much huffing and puffing ready to be craned out and repaired.  The motor now had to be towed down to the dock at Oundle Marina ready for the engine to be taken out.  In the midst of snow, wind and freezing temperatures Bob moved the boat across the marina for us on Saturday morning.

 

Towing the motor across the Marina to the dock

 Waiting patiently at the dock side are all the boats that have been overwintering in the Marina waiting to be put back into the water ready for the boating season and Easter this week.  Admittedly it isn't really boating weather at the moment but I am confident that will change very soon.  I know the marina shop have just received their first delivery of ice cream, so we must be set for a heatwave!

 

Cruisers waiting to be craned back into the Marina

After a bit of manouevering and adjustment of the straps the engine was eventually on its way out of the boat!

 

And here it is all 3 tonnes of it suspended in mid air, merrily swinging above the marina.  This is when you hope to goodness that the straps are attached properly!

 

 

The engine safely reached the shore and has been packaged up ready for collection this week.

 

 

All that remained now was to tow the boat out of the dock and back across the marina. It was windy and very cold and after several attempts and being blown all over the marina the motor was finally towed out of the marina entrance.  Thanks to Bob & Richard for their help with this!

 

 

And finally ........

 

Just to remind you that Spring is just around the corner, I did spot a few green shoots this week. 

 

 

Spring Preparations, Snow, Stanground and a Sheep

The start of the boating season is fast approaching as we move rapidly towards Easter in a couple of weeks. At the boatyard we've been beavering away finishing jobs on the hire boats. All the soft furnishings have been washed and pressed and Mark from Nene Marine has been fitting a new rudder bearing to Sumo with his magic wand.

Making good use of a rain storm to clean the roof of the hire boats

After Spring made a cheery brief appearance it quickly disaapeared again as the Beast from the East popped back for a quick encore before hopefully retreating back to the East and remembering to stay there this time.  The temperatures dropped and the snow started again and we were transported back to December for a moment.

We took a trip out to Stanground and a bitterly cold wind was blowing straight across the Fens.  Arwen was not very impressed with this and Dad had to give up his coat before any further walking could take place!

Stanground used to be a village but is now a large suburb of Peterborough. From a boating perspective Stanground is well known for its lock which allows access from the River Nene to the Middle Level and the Nene-Ouse link.

Stanground Lock and Village

Stanground Lock is manned and you have to book passage through. The lockeeper lives alongside the lock. At Stanground, Moreton's Leam joins the King's Dyke and both rivers flow under a railway bridge, known as Black Bridge to join the River Nene. Moreton's Leam was constructed in the 14th century as an early attempt to drain the Fens. The King's Dyke is named after King Canute who allegedly caused it to be cut.

 

And Finally .......

 

Meet Ewedini one of our sheep who keeps escaping out of every field she's put in. She always remembers to pop back in with the rest of the flock in the afternoon for mealtimes and to spend the evening but likes to enjoy the day pleasing herself and trimming bits of grass she shouldn't be! 

 

An Early Spring Cruise and How Not to Turn a Boat!

After the excitement of the sun making an appearance on Saturday, we decided to take the boat for a trip out to Cotterstock and back as the winter months have been very limited with cruising opportunities this year.

The landscape was looking a little battered and sorry for itself after the winter floods and you could see the high water marks along the banks with flattenend reeds, muddy fields and lots of run-off still pouring into the river!  However, the river bank has remarkable powers of recovery and before long it will turn green and be buzzing with wildlife and water lillies again.

Out on the River

We went through Upper Barnwell Lock without incident and are pleased to report that Oundle Mill is reopening soon (Friday 29th March) following their closure in November after the winter floods affected them really badly. 

Carrying on towards Lower Barnwell Lock we passed Oundle Marina where they've got the crane ready to lift boats in for the Easter Weekend and the start of the boating season.

Entrance to Oundle Marina

We cruised on towards Ashton and even the cat decided to come out and watch the river go by for a while but then decided that sitting next to the fire was a much better option!

Boat Cat

Although Ashton Lock was open, mooring up was a bit of fun as Drake Towage still had all their equipment there. They had been busy carrying out the EA winter works programme on various locks along the river.

 

Lock Mooring at Ashton



 We continued onto Cotterstock, passing a couple of boats going in the other direction.  On reaching Cotterstock lock we thought rather than take our boat through the lock we would save time and turn above the lock - bad idea!  Our 70ft boat was about 6 inches too long and with the shoaling caused from the recent floods we became well and truly wedged right across the river.  After lots of rope pulling and pole action we were still stuck and wondering what to do next. Just then, two kind walkers came along the Nene Way and we gratefully accepted their offer of help and we managed to pull the boat free at last.  Our helpers suggested that the translation of our boat name "Hakuna Matata" should be "very long and heavy".  I do hope their arms have returned to the correct length.  There are no pictures of us stuck across the river as I was rather preooupied with a pole at the time!

 

We locked through Cotterstock, turned around below the lock and set off back. 

 

Entering Cotterstock Lock

The afternoon had started to chill off a bit as we passed back under Oundle Town Bridge and the entrance to Oundle Wharf, the home of the Nene Valley Brewery, lovely local beer and the Outdoor Centre at Trek-Kits.

 

Passing under Oundle Town Bridge

 We locked back through Ashton and here we are waiting for the lock to fill.  You didn't need to wind the paddles up very much as quite a lot of water was still coming over the lock gates.

 

Ashton Lock Chamber

And off we go, homeward bound!

 

Leaving Ashton Lock

It was lovely to be out on the river again. There are some signs of Spring if you look carefully and the river is slowly coming to life again after a long, long Winter. 

Along the Nene Way at Woodford

 

Another dry day and pleasantly warm we took the opportunity to walk along the Nene Way at Woodford.  Following the constant wet weather and snow melt over the winter, the paths are very muddy and impassable in some places without a pair of waders!  The Nene Valley is still very wet as the river struggles to discharge its floodwaters.  On the plus side these floodplains are providing a rich environment for waterfowl.

 

 

The River Nene at Woodford spills into its Floodplain

Woodford is a large village near the River Nene which has been inhabited since Saxon times. The Church of St Mary the Virgin with its tall spire is visible for miles around.

 

The Nene Way at Woodford with The Church of St Mary the Virgin in the background

A mummified human heart was found in the church in the 1800s and is believed to be the heart of Sir Walter Trailly, the lord of the Manor who died on Crusade in 1290, although there is no concrete evidence for this.  The Church is also apparently haunted by the ghost of a knight but he hasn't been seen since 1964. Another interesting feature of Woodford is the Three Hills Barrow which may date to the Neolithic or Bronze Age.  We didn't get chance to go the Barrow this time so will have to pop back for another visit.  Apparently if you stand on the vantage point of the old post mill to the north of the village, ten church spires can be seen across Northamptonshire.  I've yet to try this but will have a look next time.

Signs of Spring and a Visit to Stanwick Lakes

 

As the days start to get noticeably longer, the first signs of Spring are starting to appear around the Nene Valley.  Bulbs are starting to pop up, the snowdrops are out and catkins wave merrily on branches.  So there is some respite from the chilly weather at the moment, although we are promised another cold snap next week!

 

 

 

 

We decided it would be a nice day to pay a visit to Stanwick Lakes to let our 3 year old let off a bit of steam as she had been in quarantine for several days due to chicken pox and had a bit too much excess energy!  Arwen had a go in the kids adventure playground, some parts were still under a bit of water, notably the end of the slide which had turned into a log flume!  We then did a bit of bird spotting - this is not very easy with a small child as they sound like a herd of elephants.  So we made do with identifying birds on the board instead.

 

 

After a walk around the lakes and a game of hide and seek

 

 

We made our way back to the visitor centre for a spot of lunch

 

 

 

If you are boating on the River, you can access Stanwick Lakes by footpath from near Upper Ringstead Lock



Busy at the Boatyard

Although we are open all year round, the boating season doesn't really get underway until March.  After the winter we are now getting our hireboats, Sammy & Sumo ready for the new season and there is a lot of activity going on behind the scenes, particularly on the tiling front!  Sammy gets a newly tiled shower cabinet and Sumo has some work done in the galley and new tiles around the hearth

 

Sumo's Stove

 

 

Sumo's Galley

 

Meanwhile we are also getting a boat ready to sell but before we can put her up for sale her engine needs to have some work done on it.  As she has a classic Lister JP2M we need some specialist help.  So the engine needs to be removed and sent off for repair.  This involves towing the boat down to Oundle Marina and then craning out the engine as it weighs a couple of tonnes. 

 

Mark from Nene Marine working on the Lister

We are just waiting for the river to drop so we can fit under Barnwell Road Bridge! 



Frosty Days and Winter Cruising

 

Although opportunites for boating over the winter this year have been limited due to flooding, there has nonetheless been some beautiful winter days to enjoy.  We have had frost, snow, ice, rain and even a bit of sunshine at times!  The moorings at our boatyard near Oundle looked very pretty after a hard frost early one morning.

Boat Moorings, near Oundle, Northamptonshire

There was plenty of snow to be enjoyed this year and some hardy boaters braved the elements and went for a winter cruise up to Wadenhoe for a bit of sledging down the hill followed by some refreshment at The King's Head!

Boating in a Snowstorm

 

Sledging at Wadenhoe