So I left home last Wednesday and headed into Ely for the night. On Thursday I headed further upstream to Popes Corner and turned into the Cam. The Cam from there is not much to write home about until you get through Bottisham Lock, it then improves significantly, becoming both narrower and more picturesque. The Cam Sailing Club is very traditional looking with its individual summer houses and main club house.
From Baits Bite Lock the river becomes even nicer with large properties and attractive gardens alongside, more rowers (bad luck last week Cambridge), large parks and boat houses. For a short distance, you have to move over to the left hand side of the river - no reason given. I guess its a long standing thing that no one wants to change.
I moored near Jesus Lock for the two nights and spent time in town window shopping and sightseeing. My spot by the river was idyllic and to be honest, I don't think any other accommodation could be bought that offered such a fantastic view of the lock.
It's hard to do the city justice when trying to describe it. The combination of historic universities in stunning buildings, high quality shops, restaurants, museums, art galleries, and of course the river, is a world beater and makes Cambridge a 'must visit' place for anyone who hasn't done so yet. Making the trip by boat and mooring so close to the city centre just adds a certain 'something special' that you would not get by car or train.
I returned to Ely and took a quiet mooring next to the Bridge Boat Yard. When I looked out this morning to a cracking sunrise, I found one of the trees on the opposite bank had collapsed. I'm not sure when this happened but all I could see was the crumpled mass of wood on the bank. It was a shame to lose such a significant landscape feature.
My journey back down the river to the Little Ouse Moorings was uneventful but in the clear warm weather it was perfect. On days like today, it was a pleasure to travel slowly and to stop frequently.
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