Planning for my Ouse Cruise

With Christmas Day almost finished and absolutely nothing on the tv, I thought I would mention my visit to the boat yesterday.

I was partly interested to make sure everything was still OK following the high winds on Monday and I found everything as it should be. The remaining barge pole was still on the roof, wedged under the handgrip, alongside the gang-plank.

Everything inside was fine too so I started the engine and gave it a couple of hours running to boost the batteries. While I did this I checked the exterior and found the bow fender was resting on the jetty. I hadn't noticed this before. Looking at the watermark on the jetty, I could see the river had been about 6" higher than usual which, with a bit of slack on the mooring ropes (and no spring), Skylark had risen up to rest her nose on the jetty.

I carefully put her into reverse and she slid off the woodwork and came to rest where she should be. I then adjusted the ropes again and tied a spring back to a mooring post on the pontoon. This should stop it happening again. It reminded me of last winter when I found Skylark's nose right up on the bank.

At the Little Ouse Moorings, I was told the opposite; when there is a high flow, EA open the main Denver Sluice to drain the system, and it first takes water out of the tributaries nearest to the sluice. The problem may, therefore, be a sharp lowering of the water level without any warning. I'm told some boats upstream of the main  fuel jetty can be beached as a result. Where I'm going, further down the moorings, this should not be too much of a problem but I will need to be aware of it.

I'm now making initial steps to plan my cruise; getting my documentation together, registering with the EA for their Strong Stream Advice, checking my insurance is still valid, noting essential telephone numbers, thinking through my cold-weather packing list and so on.

I have a general plan to travel up the Great Ouse to Bedford first, weather and lock maintenance works permitting, and take in the three Cambridge Lodes again, before heading north to take in the rivers Lark, Little Ouse and Wissey, and the main Relief Channel that passes Downham Market and heads towards Kings Lynn. I may even have a go at the tidal section of the Ouse to Kings Lynn and test out the recently refurbished jetty - the reports are all good. This will need a bit more detailed planning and call to the KL Harbour Master.

I left Skylark at about 2.00pm, having carried out all my usual 'light-touch' winterising. I popped into the Malting's Antique Centre on the way home but nothing tempted me to part with any cash.

HAPPY CHRISTMAS

I wish all my family and friends

a very happy Christmas

and hope 2014 will prove to be a

good year for everyone.

Panto - DONE

Finishing a Panto always brings mixed feelings. Part of you is sad that it's all come to an end after weeks of rehearsal, rubbing shoulders with lots of like-minded people and performing on stage to full houses but part of you is glad it's all over because of the increasing challenge of learning lines, dances and songs, and of course the natural tensions on and off stage.

Overall, it's a great thing to be involved in and its even better when you get the very positive reaction from the audience. The last night (Sunday) was great and I could hear the screams of children including two of my grandchildren (and many grown-ups) as we searched for the ghost that was, of course, behind us!

Now, I've packed away all the gaudy the costumes, left the highly coloured makeup in its box and dumped my well-worn tights and fully padded bra in the wash bin (until next time?!?).

As a final reminder of what I've been doing....

Now, I can get Christmas out of the way and then it's back to the boat for my 3 month Ouse Cruise.

Too much on my plate?

I don't know if it's anything to do with being retired or my capacity for doing things is just less now I'm a bit older but I remember, not so long ago, I could have dozens of things on the go at the same time and seemed capable of doing them all reasonably well and within a decent timescale.

Now, my time is filled with rehearsing the Christmas Panto, practicing guitar and ukulele, having the Land Rover repaired and serviced, running our Christmas Street Fayre 'pop-up shop', arranging new moorings for Skylark, fixing a leaking roof, collecting Rosie from Lincoln, and planning and preparing for my three month 'cruise'. This should all be a doddle really but it all requires a reasonable amount of thought and discipline to get through it. I've even had to resurrect a prioritised 'things to do' list; something I thought I would not need since retiring.

I occasionally have to remind myself, it's much better than working for a living.

Putting this in context, I'm reading a book at the moment detailing the leadership style and qualities of Ernest Shackleton, as he and his crew planned their pioneering crossing of the Antarctic continent and the period after they found themselves trapped in the Antarctic sea. After their ship sank and with no hope of rescue, their escape through 800 miles of ice and sea took them 2 years and challenged them beyond anything we are likely to encounter. It was a truly inspirational journey, the success of which was largely down to Shackleton's remarkable leadership style.

I had already become aware of this when reading about Scott's last journey. It is without doubt their styles of leadership had to be inspirational to get men to put their lives at risk but their approaches were quite different. Scott drew on his Naval experience of rigorous planning, detailed preparations, achieving order, instilling discipline and creating clear demarcations of roles between the Officers, the scientists and the crew. His diary speaks of great hardships and courage but once his target had been snatched away from him, there is a great sense of disappointment (understandably) but also a sense of being overcome by the enormity of the challenge that lay ahead for them.

Shackleton, on the other hand, had spent time in the Merchant Marine and, while planning and preparation were still vital elements, he had developed an instinctive understanding of recruiting and managing men to best effect and leading them, side by side, through life-threatening challenges. He maintained a clear vision of his target, was able to change tactics as the need arose and instilled confidence in his men that he could achieve success.

As much as I admire Scott and what he achieved, I know which team I would have preferred to be in and I know which man I take most inspiration from.

Their achievements put our  comfortable lives into perspective!

Anyway, I must sort out my Ugly Sister dresses now, ready for tonight's Technical rehearsal.

Christmas Street Fayre

What a fantastic day! The High Street was buzzing.

We converted our front room into a 'pop-up' shop and during the day we welcomed a few hundred people into our home.

Mick and Gena, our boat builders, joined us with some of their brass and copper kettles and we completed the day feeling tired but very happy with the result. It was good to see Roy Hudd, the actor and comedian, who lives nearby. He even bought one of my books. I wish I'd asked him if he wanted my autograph. After all, it's not every day you get the chance to meet an Ugly Sister in civvies.

By the end of the day we had sold loads more bits and pieces to help fund the 'Float my Boat' campaign.

Now all we have to do is put everything away and return our home to normal - but that will have to wait until tomorrow.

After the storm

I knew I shouldn't have left anything on the roof. When I arrived on Friday, my gang-plank was teetering on the edge of my pontoon with one end in the water, the other end hanging on a neighbours mooring rope and one of my barge poles was missing altogether. I had not expected any significant problems because, when I left the boat last week, the weatherbods were predicting a cold snap and a bit of wind. As it turned out, it was the other way round with the worst storm surge for 60 years. Anyway, it could have been worse I suppose.

I went down to Ely, keeping my eyes peeled for a recently wood-stained 3m bargepole but there was no sign of it. Never mind. I still have one and who needs two barge poles anyway?

Ely was even quieter than usual. On days like that, I wonder if I've missed an important Civil Emergency message on BBC Radio Suffolk and everyone has been evacuated to a nuclear bomb shelter in the deepest fens. Anyway, on Saturday morning, I dragged myself out of my bunk and wandered up to the market to find there were still some people about. Phew!

With the real possibility of freezing weather in the coming weeks and months, I thought I should top up my coolant with antifreeze. To be honest, whenever I've topped it up during the year, I've used just plain water, so I thought it might be a bit weak so bought a 5 litre bottle from the local agri-depot and gave it a boost. I also checked the engine oil, which was fine and gave the engine a thorough checking over and clean up. I'll service it fully in the spring after my cruise.

After an hour so of reading my script for the panto (yes, I have read it!), I left at mid day and headed home. There were no other boats on the river so I had the river to myself. I guess the recent weather may have put many people off but it was pretty good from where I was standing.

When I left Skylark, I chatted to another boater at Lazy Otter and told him I would be leaving at the end of December, partly because of the hike in charges. He told me he was leaving too. I suppose this is a fairly natural process with some people shuffling from marina to marina to find the best deal at the time. Of course, the cost is not the only factor but it is one of the main ones, for me anyway.

Tomorrow, we are taking part in the twice yearly Street Fayre, hoping to convert some of our interesting clutter into hard cash. It should help to keep us afloat for another few months.

Little Ouse Moorings

I was sorry to receive notification that the mooring fees at Lazy Otter are increasing. Not unusual I suppose in this period of economic growth (to you and me I think that just means everything is getting more expensive!). However, a 20% increase is a tad over the top in my opinion. The owners put it down to a number of things - inflation, further capital investment for plumbing in an electric supply and, on top of that, they now have to charge VAT as well. I can accept the inflationary figure but, as I don't need an electric supply and don't want to pay VAT unless I can help it, I decided to look for somewhere else to moor - reluctantly, I should say, as I have been very happy with Lazy Otter. It's location is good, the facilities are adequate and the site is nicely secure. I don't want anything else really.

Anyway, I trawled the internet and thought about marinas I have come across and did some phoning around for prices. As cost is a pretty fundamental factor along with good vehicular and pedestrian access, security and pleasant surroundings, I plumped for the Little Ouse Mooring on Brandon Creek (AKA the Little Ouse). It's a little further from Ely (2.5 hrs) but opens up the northern Ouse for me to explore in more detail.

I have been there a few times to fill up with diesel so had a good idea what was on offer but I went to meet Natalie on Friday. All was as I hoped and expected so I signed up there and then. A deposit was paid and I take up my bank-side mooring In April. I'll report more once I've tied up in April.

In the meantime, I have a slight gap in mooring facilities, having to leave Lazy Otter at the end of December. So, my plan is to cruise for the 3 months between December and April with occasional trips home to 'touch base' as the Americans would say. This means I will be able to explore the northern fens and maybe head over to Northampton if all the locks are open. I was told the other day that Stanground Lock in Peterborough may be closed for maintenance until March so my plans will have to take this into account. Kay may also join me at times when her work and the weather allows.

So that's the overall plan. It may change on a day to day basis but I would prefer to be moving about rather than hitching up to EA or GOBA moorings for longer than the requisite 48 hours. I know some people do that, but it's not my way.

Now, what else did I do during my trip last weekend. I pottered up to the EA mooring opposite the River Lark junction - I think it's called the 'Diamond 48'. Very peaceful!

There was no other boat to be seen on the water. I had lunch, washed the boat and cleaned the floor, and generally tidied up.

During the evening, I went to the Maltings and watched the new film called 'Captain Phillips' with Tom Hanks playing a container ship captain. His boat is hijacked by a band of Somali pirates and we see how he and his crew deal with it, with the help of the US Navy. I have to say, it was gripping stuff and Mr Hanks did a great job playing out this real life story. It was quite moving at the end. I would recommend it highly.

When I got back to Skylark, my throat felt as dry as one of those desert sand lizards that stand on three legs at a time so I had to go into the Cutter to down pint of Doom Bar real ale and very nice it was too.

So that was it really. Another nice weekend away, doing boaty things on the river. This will be a busy week with rehearsals continuing, and preparations for the Christmas Street Fair.  

Lastly, Rosie, I thought you might like to see another narrowboat with your name emblazoned on it. Or is this the same one you saw in Lincoln's Brayford Pool?

Two nights away

With a gap in the rehearsal schedule, I took Skylark down to Ely on Thursday and Friday. The weather looked more like you'd see in the north Atlantic than on the River Ouse but I managed to avoid the heavy showers that were around. With the clouds moving slowly to my left, I aimed for that brighter bit of weather to the right...

Ely on a cold, damp Thursday doesn't look its best but then where does? Thursday evening, I went into the nearby Maltings and watched a film called Le Weekend. It's what, I think, is called a RomCom - a light comedy with fairly elderly actors occasionally holding hands and questioning their lives together - just what I needed on a damp Thursday in Ely!

Friday perked up a bit and everywhere started to look as it should...It's amazing the a difference the sun makes.

During the day, I decided to strip the peeling paint off my barge poles and repaint them, and the gang plank, in dark wood stain. This worked well despite the cool air and pale sunshine. The evening was spent on the boat with a plate of steaming chips and a couple of glasses of plonk - perfect!

And to prove that I don't waste all my time, I had a practice on my Ukulele and even opened my script and read a few lines from the Panto. I've given myself the impossible target of learning one whole page per week. I'm hoping by the last performance, I will be worm prefect!

A short trip

It's proving difficult to get away for more than a night because of panto rehearsals and other commitments. Anyway, I did manage one night away (Monday) and headed into Ely. This helps recharge both sets of batteries, mine and Skylarks.

As usual, I pottered about in town and on the boat. I polished a couple of copper funnels I found at the car boot sale. The difference a few minutes with Brasso makes is amazing...

 

I'll add these to the things for sale at the winter Street Fair. I'm sure someone will want them for their kitchen, workshop or conservatory.

The river today was looking its best under a clear blue sky. It's turning much colder now so I guess there will be even fewer people and wildlife about in the coming weeks. I hope to get away again soon.

Did I say it was starting to turn cold?

A good day out

Apart from forgetting to take my camera with me, I achieved a lot today. I walked around my local CBS, picked up 100 litres of diesel in 5 jerry cans from my usual supplier in the Fens, took them to the boat and loaded it. I unhitched and pootled down to Ely in bright sunshine. I rescued a decent Life Belt from a watery grave and found a clear mooring in Ely. All this was done by 2.00pm. That's not bad going for a single-handed 50something year old!

After lunch and a brisk look at my favourite shops including the Waterside Antiques, I headed back in the last of the daylight. By 4.00pm it was a fantastic sunset and the light was fading fast. It was then that I saw two Kingfishers and my first Barn Owl of the year. About time too!!

Leaving the Marina at 5.00pm I got caught up in the evening rush hour. A nice person let me out on to the Stretham Road and I joined the long queue to the next roundabout. From there, it improved somewhat and I took the opportunity to buy some diesel for the Landy in Bury's Tesco (v cheap by Suffolk standards) and got home by 6.15pm.

A good day out indeed!

I may get another opportunity next week between panto rehearsals and other commitments. 

Innovation?

I had a very pleasant drive up to Lincoln with Rose, deciding to take the more direct scenic route via Kings Lynn rather than the A1 around Cambridge, Huntingdon, Peterborough and Newark. It also chopped 50 miles off the round journey.

It was good to see Rosie's flat and her current surroundings - it all looked very nice, friendly and secure.

After a sumptuous lunch at the local MacDonald's (my second in a lifetime), we said our goodbyes and I headed south again. This time though, I turned off at Sutton Bridge and went to the boat. Despite the fact that Outwell bridge was closed and there were no diversion signs to Ely, I eventually found my way to Littleport. From there it was a quick scoot down the A10 to Stretham.

I reached Skylark at about 5.15pm and it was already getting a bit dark with the last rays of sunshine dipping behind the distant clouds. Not wanting to continue the drive home or to stay in the marina, I unhitched the boat and went down to Ely. By the time I got there it was dark and I found a mooring near the Maltings. Incidentally, I found cruising in the dark quite a change from the daytime but it was very enjoyable. Obviously I needed to keep a keen eye on the way ahead, not so much for other boats (in fact there were none) but more for floating logs, weeds, etc. The journey had 'an other worldly' feel to it. Through the darkness I could see distant lights of the city, and occasionally passing trains and car head lights through the trees but, with the quiet drone of the engine, it really felt like I was the only person left. Turning into the lighter Ely I found there was still some life about - but not much. These darker evenings really do affect our behaviour.

The next morning, I bought breakfast in the market, and negotiated the purchase of a copper coal bucket which I polished up and hope to sell at the Christmas sale at home.

I also completed an innovative seat for the steering position on Skylark. I had come across a nicely weathered piece of wood measuring about 4' long by 4"x2". My original idea was to turn it into something useful (like a fire) but it was too nice to burn so I smoothed off the uneven edges, painted it with a dark woodstain and placed it across the brass runners on the rear hatch to make a handy 'rural-looking' seat.

I thought at first it would be a bit tricky to get on to it and stay comfortable but having had the experience of riding motorbikes and knowing you really can't sit in one position for more than an hour, I didn't worry too much. In fact, I found it was more comfortable than it looks and that, with an occasional shifting of my weight, I was able to sit there for quite a while before I needed to move. The other good things are that it can be moved easily and didn't cost anything.

In these days of space travel, the interweb, blueteeth, HS2 and Teflon coated trousers, it's nice to make do. Perhaps I should join the Ray Mears Society for Making Innovative Things out of Rubbish.

Stormy weather?

After just one night away last weekend, I returned home to batten down the hatches for the impending storm that was predicted by the weatherbods. Well, It didn't amount to much where we live but I know it hit some places fairly hard.

As conditions could vary from place to place, I thought I should take a look at Skylark to make sure everything was still OK. This morning, all was fine. The wind was still quite high but nowhere near storm force, the water level was normal and my ropes still holding fast. I spent a couple of hours pottering about and then left for home.

I hope to get away again later in the week. First though, I'm taking daughter Rosie back to Uni and I have a couple more rehearsals for the Panto. By the way, the poster for the production is now out and tickets are selling fast.

If you want to see what an ex-local government officer looks like in drag, then book early to avoid disappointment!

(Here's a clue - I'm not the one in the middle)

Ely Apple Day

My weekend visit to Ely was not planned. I had planned to go up the Old West to St Ives and maybe Huntingdon but, as I passed 'Blue Iris' going the other way, Mr Iris called out that Brownshill Staunch was closed until early November. So, not wanting to spend the weekend at Earith, I turned around and headed for Ely.

I moored alongside the Maltings in one of my favourite spots and walked into town (sorry, City). Friday afternoon in Ely is a pleasant place to be; not too busy but still some Fenland life going on.

On Saturday, it got a lot busier. Not only was it market day but the annual Ely Apple Day event attracted many people to the Cathedral Green. Ely does put on a good event; heaps of tradition and culture mixed with a moderate portion of marketing and commercialisation. The other thing that stands out is the great sense of 'community' and lots of people enjoying themselves. I particularly enjoyed the tales from Ye Olde Worlde Yarnsmith from Norwich and the huge Apple Strudel I bought for lunch.

Mick and Gena also turned up  in the morning with their latest boat for sale and I spent a very pleasant evening in the Cutter with them downing  a few of pints of Ghost Ship (or something like that from Adnams).

Over Saturday night and the early hours of Sunday morning the heavens opened and the rain hammered on the roof, waking me up far too early for my liking. Anyway, the morning was quite pleasant but the forecast for Monday and Tuesday was poor so I headed home into a brisk headwind.

Another GiffGaff update

I was texted by GiffGaff last week to tell me they were sorry there had been an 'outage' and they wanted to put things right. I was not aware of the outage but I guess it impacted on people using the internet and stuff. Anyway, not only had they solved the problem but they wanted to say more than sorry by allocating some funds to A) those people most affected and/or B) invest in more improvements to the service. Well, as I have been very happy with the service and don't need to see any improvements, I opted for A).

Yesterday, I got another text to say 350 other people had also opted for A) so GiffGaff would credit my account £2.09. I know it's not a lot but it's the principle that counts here. I don't think jolly old Vodaphone would have done this!

I continue to be impressed by the service they provide especially when calls only cost 10p for the first minute and per second after that (PAYG).

If you haven't looked at their website yet, set aside a couple of minutes and do it! You will be amazed.

Ukulele update

I know the title of my Blog suggests this all about the continuing voyages of the narrowboat Skylark, but I couldn't go on without mentioning the continuing voyages of me and my ukulele.

I have been practicing most days since I bought it 3 weeks ago and I had my first 'outing' in public last Sunday in the Limes. Now, I'm not going to say it was a polished performance but it was passable and the audience was appreciative, helped by copious amounts of Greene King and Adnams strong ales.

As I said in my last post, if you've ever thought of having a go, I would highly recommend it. The instrument is often thought of as a child's toy but a toy it is not. Of course you can pick them up for a few pounds and they are not much better than a toy, and can put off would-be players by their poor quality but if you spend £100 or so you will get an instrument worth having and sounding good. Spend over £300 for a genuine Hawaiian and you'll get something that would grace any orchestra or band.

My Uke is concert-sized and of French extraction - but it was probably was brought up in China. It goes by the name of LAG U77C (catchy or what?) and is a lovely dark brown mahogany.

 

[Insert image on Blogger is playing up again. It's taken 24 hours to upload one picture. Why does it have to be so temperamental? Or am I doing something wrong?]

Getting the right size does matter. The smaller Soprano Uke is the traditional size but is much smaller and can sound thinner and tinnier. It can also be difficult for people with bigger fingers to hit the strings without buzzing up against adjacent ones. The concert comes next followed by the Tenor and then the largest, Baritone.

Now, if you need any more encouragement or inspiration, click on YouTube and watch the Ukulele Orchestra of Great Britain. Their 'Good, the Bad and the Ugly' is fantastic (amongst others). I also came across Jake Shimabukuro presenting his version of Queen's Bohemian Rhapsody. 'How can that be possible?', I hear you ask. Watch it and you'll find out. It really is a remarkable - on a par with a the best international classical guitar.

Now, back to narrow boats. The wintery weather looks like it may calm down this weekend so I'm off to experience the delights of the Great Ouse. Walking around the local CBS this morning, I invested in an extendable aluminium broom thingy with a hose adaptor for washing the boat. This should help to clean those 'hard to get at areas'.

I also bought one of those bike extension tubes for adding a child's bike to yours. If I can get it to fit, this may provide a good means to attach the large umbrella to the tiller arm. I'm not sure if it will work but will soon find out. If it doesn't, it will find it's way on to Ebay. Such fun!

End of summer?

The last three days on Skylark felt a little odd. I know it's early October but the weather was more like summer with temperatures in the low 20's and clear blue skies above. There were still lots of birds around, even quite young ones, and the grasses and trees still had a bright green colour to them. However, the weather forecast for the end of the week is a sharp decrease in the temperatures and strong northerly winds. So perhaps the summer has ended and we have to brace ourselves for autumn and winter. It could be a nasty shock!

For now though, the river is looking good. For one thing, I don't think there has been the same amount of waterweed in the river as last year. The upper reaches of the Old West River was a bit tangled at times but then we have to accept that there has been little flow and this stretch is quite narrow. The rest of the section north and south of Ely has been quite free flowing and now there is little sign of the encroaching weeds. The quality of the water also looks fine with clear sight of the bottom in many places and many small and large fishes to be seen (and last week quite a few crayfish too).

I took the short hop up to Prickwillow to see the annual ploughing competition. I remember last year we all had to wear wellies as it was so wet underfoot. This year the ground was so dry and hard the heavy horses couldn't be used; they tried but couldn't turn the soil to any degree.

I met up with Mick and Gina with their latest narrowboat, Slow and Easy. It's for sale if you're interested and based on the same 60' hull used for Skylark. Mick has also adopted the same interior design of tongue and groove panelling. I like the paint job they have created and may introduce some of the finer details on Skylark when I get around to tackling the exterior next year.

 



Now, to much more interesting things - spiders! Having been away from Skylark for a couple of weeks, a number of quite large spiders had taken up residence on the outside of Skylark. They were tucked up in all sorts of nooks and crannies like under the roof overhangs, inside the fenders, in the cracks around the hatches and portholes, and so on. As they popped their heads out to see why their new home was moving down the river, I either sent them packing onto dry land or gave them a quick swimming lesson. Inside, there were fewer of them as I had closed all the portholes for the duration.

While in Ely, I gathered a few handfuls of Horse Chestnuts to place around the boat. I know this technique has not been scientifically proved effective but there are many people who swear by it. So, anyway, I thought I would give it a try. First of all, I sliced each one open (in true Blue Peter fashion - making sure I didn't lose any of my fingertips in the process). This lets out whatever smell the spiders dislike.

Then I placed them strategically around the boat where spiders tend to gather, in the portholes, around the doors, in the corners of the engine room, etc. I was careful not to over-do it because I didn't want Skylark to look like something out of 'Winnie the Pooh goes for a Tramp in the Woods'. But, in small numbers, I thought they looked OK...

Now, I don't know what I was expecting, but I didn't see any of the little blighters jumping overboard in response to my onslaught but then I don't suppose I would, would I? In reality, I suppose this is just another technique in my arsenal of WMDs against spiders. As I saId before, I'm not getting paranoid...am I?

On Tuesday I left Ely to bask in the last few rays of sunshine before the winter chill descends. It was nice to have the waterfront almost to myself for a few days.

I will probably be out again next weekend to experience the odd pleasure of freezing my chestnuts off in a northerly gale followed by a hot meal and a pint of Abbot in the Cutter. Bon Voyage!

All's quiet

After a couple quiet days on the river last week, my time has been spent catching up on odd jobs around the house, rehearsing my half of the Ugly Sisters for Cinderella and undertaking a major new fund-raising project. Maybe more about that later but, for now, just to prove the recent newspaper report about the sighting of a cross-dressing thespian at Ickworth House is true...

Rather too much chest hair for my liking young lady! Now, don't lose sleep children.

I've finished the engine room

While I'm not searching for and eradicating spiders, I have been finishing the painting in the engine room. This has included touching up the edges of the floor panels with dark brown wood stain to colour match the top and bottom surfaces, completing the battens and step edges, and touching up the walls to hide the inevitable scuffs.

I think it looks a whole lot better in there but I may spend a little more time 'de-cluttering' as it has been so easy to just hang stuff off the walls thinking it should be within easy reach when actually most of it could be packed away in a nearby box.

A couple of mentions:

First a negative point - I heard a report of someone's diesel being pinched from their boat in the marina. This must have been by someone who knows a bit about boats as it's not the sort of thing an opportunistic thief would have a go at. He or she must have had a boat, a pump and maybe plenty of cans to carry it away. Anyway, be aware!

Secondly a positive - During my couple of days away this week, I took my newly purchased Ukelele and managed to learn many of the new chord shapes - all very different to guitar chords but not dificult. It is proving to be a great pleasure learning this instrument. If you have ever thought about learning, I would recommend it! 

No More Spiders!

Now, I thought 'that's a bold name for a product' so I have given the makers of this stuff the benefit of the doubt and bought a spray bottle off Amazon.

Reading the small print you will see it is a 'non-harmful deterrent...creating a natural barrier to deter spiders without harming them'. It contains stuff like a dollop or two of peppermint, the essence of horse chestnut and a few nuggets of technical guff but it all sounds very environmentally friendly (to humans at least).

Reading the lengthy operating instructions and the Health and Safety data sheets, I see you should spray it at arms length (away from your eyes) around any entrance or exit points like doors, windows, ventilators, etc. and re-apply it every two or three weeks or after cleaning (I know which will come first). Then, Spiderman and his mates will be put off entering due to the acrid aroma that only spiders can smell (presumably this includes essence of blackbird or thrush). We'll see.

Anyway, as it happens, just the sight of the bottle appears to have put them off as there is a noticeable lack of spiders on board Skylark. Of course, this may be because of the change in weather and they have all curled up ready to hibernate in my nooks and crannies. So, not wanting to waste my hard earned cash, I won't be squirting my 'No More Spiders' just yet. I'll report back in the spring.

In the meantime, as its autumn now, I may put on my new-age jumper and loons (yes you can remember them), and go into the countryside to collect a few horse chestnuts. Some people say these may help to keep the little blighters at bay if you dot them around the boat but opinion is split as to their effectiveness. Anyway, I'll see if they help and report back.

New floor in the engine room

I may have mentioned, I have never thought the engine room has looked really finished off properly so I took a couple of days to lay a new laminate flooring - the same as the rest of the boat. The original flooring was a thick ply with a very dark brown waterproof surface; all very practical but not the best thing to look at. This photo shows the floor with the middle section already removed. This allows access to the engine itself.

I then set about laying and sticking down the 3mm underseal to the original flooring to provide a bit of noise insulation (not much though) and also a soft bed for the laminate floor to lay on. I then cut and fitted the flooring, leaving the final cutting and planing until it was all fixed in place. A few strategically placed panel pins held the whole floor in place. Fitting it all together again was a doddle as it was simply fixed to the old floor.

I was pleased with the overall result. It is a lot lighter, complements the light yellow tongue and groove walls and ceiling, and will be just as practical as the old floor.  It's even looks like a single solid floor now as the laminate boards hide the joins between the panels.

I then spent time, doing the same to the stairs and finishing off the edges to hold it all in place until I ran out of battens and mouldings. Once it's finished it should look as good as the rest of Skylark and will 'feel' part of the boat rather than just that grubby bit at the back where I keep all the tools and boaty gear.

The stairs, showing work in progress...

 

I spent two whole days doing this - that amounts to at least five hours of hard practical work interspersed with eating, drinking and lying down on the job (no change there then) - and then I went home to recover from my exertions.

 

 

When I got home I found my new purchase lying in its box, on the floor, exactly where Kay had thrown it - a French concert size Ukulele. I intend to add this to my expanding list of hobbies. After all, I can't sit around all day writing Blogs.

Godmanchester

Lying just upstream of Huntingdon, on a couple of turns in the river, Godmanchester is said to be the oldest town in the county dating back to the Bronze age. While it owes its main growth to the Romans, it went on to become a bustling manufacturing and trading point on the roads between London, Cambridge, the east coast and the Midlands.

Now it's a very posh place with pubs, restaurants, hotels, mini-marts, riverside manors and an attractive millpond but it also has lots of houses with 'old' at the beginning - Old Post Office, Old Shoppe, Old Bakers, Old Surgery, Old Mill, Old Coach House Inn, etc, etc - you can guess why.

While we have passed by a few times, we have never stayed there until last week.

Travelling up from Lazy Otter, we stopped at St Ives on the Old Quay moorings next to the ancient road bridge. You would have to look far and wide to find a more attractive place. The town also makes a good place to stock up with food and drink. The Nelsons Head pub has recently been refurbished by Greene King and a very nice job they had done too.

Huntingdon was meant to be our next night's stopover but everywhere was taken so we moved on past the thundering A14 road bridge and around the bend to Godmanchester lock. Taking a sharp left-hander, we turned into the short cul-de-sac that leads to the town. While the place has a wealth of attractive buildings set in enormous gardens, a formal park and lots of places to eat and drink, it only has space for two or three boats - one of which is reserved for the local trip boat. We pinned a stake in to find ourselves too near a wasp's nest so moved a bit further down the line. The good Townsfolk of Godmanchester have been restoring the riverside and moorings for some years now but they really should do a little more to attract us boaters you know.

Anyway, we spent a very nice afternoon with the Mayor at his summer garden party in the park followed by a quiet evening and night moored up alongside the park wondering how many millions of pounds we would have to win to afford any one of the majestic heaps on the opposite side of the river. Now, I'm not one for jealousy or envy but I did wonder if all that wealth and property really makes the owners happy. Give me a well-made pasty and cold pint of Boddingtons on board Skylark any day!

Anyway, Godmanchester is well worth a visit if you're in the vicinity.

This week the river was flowing well and looking fantastic; clear, clean and relatively weed-free. There were lots of fish swimming about, loads of ducks and geese, swans, herons and grebes, and the most Kingfishers and dragonflies we have ever seen. We saw a couple of very young seals in the tidal stretch at Earith but still no barn owls. I suppose you can't have everything.

We returned to our crumbling heap on Tuesday afternoon in time to catch up on a few emails and recharge my batteries (on my camera). Life is so hectic for the retired.

Oh, one more thing. Answer me this if you can - why do some people make all the effort to take cans of drink with them to the riverside and then leave the empties on the grass for someone else to get rid of? Bring back flogging I say!

Homing Spiders!

I've had another couple of days away. I was aiming to go to St Ives but after I picked up some Diesel and sorted things out it was 6.00pm and the sun was quite low in the sky. This would have meant at least 2 hours cruising directly into the sun which is not good so I pointed myself to the east and headed for Ely.

I found a spot near the Maltings and busied myself on board including cleaning, polishing and painting - in between eating, drinking and chilling out. 

The sun was still shining and at one point, during a bike ride into town, the weather conditions forced me to take shelter in the shade of the cathedral. I then did a good impression of an old bloke snoring on the grass. I won't go into any more detail - you'll have to use your imagination.

Now, back to the spiders. As I said in my last post, it's important to keep on top of the spider situation unless you want to live in somewhere that could double as a Hammer House of Horror. Anyway, something I should have mentioned - if you catch a spider and send it over-board, you must watch where it goes, because, in my experience, they immediately start heading back to the boat. Of course, if there is a current or wind he may be forced elsewhere but if neither of these take him away, it's quite likely that the spider will return. So, be warned, your Spiderman may be a homing spider!

I went back to Lazy Otter yesterday morning, packed up and left. Lady Saga was working until 3.00pm and as I didn't want to get home to an empty house, I went down to Milton and cycled into Cambridge.

Cycling in Cambridge for the first time is interesting. For a city geared up to cycling, you would expect your trip to be easy but you have to be very aware of your surroundings - where you are, where you're going and the various priorities and dangers on the road. Most routes across parks or along the river are shared with pedestrians, which is not a problem provided everyone shows some consideration. Other routes are shared with cars, lorries, busses and motorbikes and you have to abide by the usual rules of the road. Some road signs and white line markings can be confusing with cycle ways appearing and then disappearing without warning. On some routes in the city itself, bikes are even prohibited and elsewhere you are forever having to negotiate with pedestrians wandering about in the road so you need your wits about you. One of the saving graces is that pedestrians and drivers do expect to see bikes everywhere so they are always looking out for you. Because of this, I would say cycling is a fairly safe activity and I would recommend it but would suggest, like everywhere, you never let your guard down.

Spiders

I sometimes wonder if, after 18months of boating, I'm beginning to get a bit paranoid about spiders. You see, in the past, I was never too bothered by them. They often turned up in the house, and still do, presumably preferring the comfort and warmth of indoors to the cold and wet of the garden and, as far as I'm concerned, provided they don't cause a problem, I tend to let them get on with their quiet lives. Of course, if they drape their webs over windows or doors, or start to make their presence more visible, I will take a bit of action to evict them but, on the whole, we co-exist fairly well. 

On the boat it is different. When I turn up after a few days away, I will find webs strung out from the mooring ropes, across the doors and hatches, hanging in the sunshine from the tiller and fenders, all of them advertising their catches of insects, blossom and seeds. Inside, I find them under the gunwales, inside the cupboards, around the ceiling, hanging in the engine room, and even across the tv, (presumably to get a good view). Particularly annoying are the long invisible strands of web that hang from one side of the boat to the other that catch you unawares. Now, I'm not saying it's like the opening scenes of an Indiana Jones film but it can get a bit much.

So, I spend some time ridding myself of them.

I know there are lots of things on the market to deter or kill spiders and some people even try natural remedies like conkers but I have not gone down those routes (yet). I prefer a more 'hands on' low input approach involving mainly a broom, a hand brush and an odd bucket of water.

Given that most spiders use trees, bushes and other over-hanging vegetation to make the journey from terra firma to nb Skylark, I try to moor away from these things - not always possible or desirable so compromise is often needed.

Also, as prevention is better than cure, I always close all the portholes when I leave the boat for any length of time. Ventilation has to be maintained so more compromise may be called for.

I also try to keep the amount of clutter down to a minimum, both inside and out, as this gives spiders too many places to hide.

My initial searches for spiders usually start around the mooring ropes and fenders. Spiders loves these as places to curl up and hide during the day so I give them a good sweep and an occasional dousing with river water. This also keeps them looking clean and tidy. Portholes, and other external openings come next. Spiders find them good places to catch insects so I give them a brush and a wash. Door hinges, latches, under roof over-hangs, etc all get a brush and occasional wash.

Inside, my regular sweeping of the floor includes looking for spiders. I sweep the edges, wooden walls, under the gunwales, along the ceiling edges, around any boxes, under chairs, etc, etc. This is not much more than I would do just to keep the boat clean so it's not a big job.

When I come across a spider I am not keen on killing it but prefer to take the humane option of evicting it either back to dry land if that option is available or it may be given a quick swimming lesson. Occasionally, they may get sucked up the hoover dustbuster or get squashed under a shoe but this is rare. Well, I do have a heart!

So, with a little thought I can keep the problem down to a manageable level and it really only involves a little extra work above and beyond normal cleaning routines. 'Little and often' seems to be the answer.

To end on another positive note, someone told me recently, if you have spiders on a boat, you have a dry, warm boat - that's why they like it. Now I'm not sure if I should be evicting them or not.

Ahhhhh! Tell me I'm not getting paranoid!

Cinderella

Great News luvvie! I have scooped the role of one of the two Ugly Sisters so if you happen to see me on the river or on a mooring apparently speaking to myself, I am learning my lines. This, in itself, is a rare occurrence because I don't usually bother to learn any lines, just hope that I've grasped the general drift of the story and 'wing it' on the night. After all, that's what Panto is all about, isn't it?

Now, what sort of Ugly will I be? A Les Dawson, a Lily Savage, a Camilla, a Fergie, a Hinge or Bracket? I wonder!

Update on giffgaff

It's been a week since I signed up to giffgaff and there are no problems to report.

The phone and text still work well (which are all I need) though the O2 service is a little temperamental indoors.

The over-riding plus is the cost. It's unbelievably cheap, cheap, cheap!

Without wanting to sound like a chicken, I can only suggest you visit their website and see for yourself.

Edit: I see '3' is advertising a very cheap PAYG deal but you must have a 3G phone (which I don't). Again, might be worth looking at.

Ely Museum etc

I reached Ely by mid morning on Monday and found a snug spot next to the Maltings though I think I may have disturbed a lady in her cruiser as I gracefully slid into the tight spot. She didn't seem inclined to smile much as I waved to her and mouthed a friendly 'hello'. Oh well, perhaps she got out of the wrong side of her bunk.

Anyway, not to be brought down by Mrs Grumpy, I pitched up and got the kettle on. The Great Ouse and Ely waterfront were looking their best in the bright sunshine.

 

I spent some time pottering about on Skylark, getting her looking her best and sorting out the catches for the relocated corridor door. I also did some more painting - touching up the edges.

 

After lunch on Tuesday I headed into town (sorry, city), and visited the little Ely Museum located at the top of one of the main shopping streets. The building has been used for many things including the local gaol. Having a healthy interest in prisons and the treatment of offenders, I couldn't resist spending some time in the gaol exhibition. Apparently this young chap was being restrained by his legs and has a spiked neck brace on to stop him escaping apparently. It looked to me like someone in the magistrate's office had a sadistic tendency!

 

 

If this wasn't bad enough, the next day he was taken off to have his neck stretched. Usually, the rope would be too short to break the convicted criminal's neck; he or she would just be pushed off a cart or ladder and left to choke to death. Family and friends would often rush up to pull on the person's legs to speed up the process and shorten his or her suffering. They could even pay people to this, hence the term, 'hangers on'.

 

Execution days were well advertised in the local press and often hundreds and even thousands of people turned out to watch and join in with the 'carnival' atmosphere. This type of rowdy behaviour was particularly prevalent in London and started to become frowned upon by polite society. The popular writings of people like Charles Dickens and Thackeray went a long way to get things changed once they had been to see a hanging for themselves.

 

In the Museum, there was also a section on the Ely and Littleport Riots in the 18th century. A large group of workers went into Ely to protest about low wages and this turned into a drunken riot outside and then inside the local magistrate's house. When he called the militia from Bury St Edmunds, the rioters withdrew to Littleport where they were arrested following further fighting. Various penalties were metered out including gaol, transportation and execution. This is what the rioters looked like apparently...

 

The Museum is a quaint little place, steeped in its own history and presenting a clear picture of the history of the city and its surroundings. It was only £3.50 to visit so really good value for money.

Back to the boat to practice some serious chilling out.

I left today and headed home. The Ouse was still looking fantastic.

giffgaff mobile phone service

I have just transferred my PAYG mobile provider from Vodafone to giffgaff. I was getting pretty annoyed at Vodafone's 25p per full or part of a minute call charges. My routine calls home were becoming expensive especially if I ran over a full minute.

So, I have gone to giffgaff, a community-run service based on the back of O2. PAYG calls are only 10p (minimum) and each second over that is charged per second. Texts are only 6p. giffgaff to giffgaff calls are free. Various options are available (goody-bags) for people wanting more calls, texts and internet services. These involve monthly charges from £10 to £25.

I have transferred my old number and wait to see if the service lives up to all the positive feedback left by its members. Remember, this is a community-run organisation not a commercial organisation. It's run by ordinary people for its members, it's simple, inexpensive, they use terms I can understand and it is a refreshing change from the commercial sector.

I suggest you look at their website.

I will report back on progress!

More odd jobs

A couple of nights in Ely. It was very busy when I arrived on Friday with only one spot available under the big willow near the Maltings. This is not good place to be overnight as roosting pigeons leave quite a mess on the roof each morning. So, as another space became available, I moved. The view from my front door, just before the sun went down...

Not wanting to over-stretch myself, I decided to paint my fairly new door lock. Being a bright shiny lock, I thought it might say to any would-be-burglar, 'There must be something expensive in there!' but, of course, there isn't. So, I painted the backplate the same dark green as the door. This has helped to tone it down a bit and may deter anyone from even trying to force it open.

I also moved the internal door from back end of the bathroom corridor to the front end. Lady Saga had put in this request to help provide her with a little more 'modesty' when she enters and leaves the bathroom in a state of undress. Believe me, this was a morning well spent.

 

Now considering further excursions before the summer ends.

Bedford

Leaving Lazy Otter by the middle of the morning, we aimed to be at St Ives in 6 hours passing Hermitage Lock half way. We had a short wait at Hermitage while the Lock Keeper finished his lunch and then carried on to Brownshill Staunch.

This stretch of the Great Ouse is very attractive. Once you get through the rather tight and weedy corridor of the Old West River, the Ouse widens out at Earith covering the short length of tidal waters. The seals are still wallowing about with their young which makes this an interesting section.

From Brownshill, the river becomes much more varied with traditional water meadows and hedges becoming the norm. Interestingly, EA have started to reintroduce Eels to the part of the river. Over the years their numbers have reduced by up to 90% because their movement upstream to spawn has been blocked by the lock structures. I saw quite a few of the young eels (the elvers) in the Brownshill Lock gates. These 3" tiddlers were already 3 years old and would grow over the years to 12" or more. We even saw a young seal eating one of the adults on our return trip. He was having quite a job keeping the eel in his mouth while he chewed chunks out of it.

St Ives was attractive as always and not too busy. Following a quite night on the town moorings, we headed for Huntingdon, stopping off at Hemmingford Grey just to have a look at all the posh places in the village. There's not much else to do in HG. Even the lone pub was closed.

Huntingdon waterfront was full so we went on. We stopped at St Neots to find we had stumbled on the annual rowing regatta.

We stayed overnight, spending a very nice evening with a couple of friends in a local Greek restaurant. The next morning the regatta people started to arrive on the opposite side of the river and it was quite interesting to watch this but, as the competitions started, it became obvious that the event was really only of interest to rowers and their supporters as there was no real 'public' stuff going on. Once we had seen a dozen crews going down the river and returning out of breath, we thought we'd seen enough so we unhitched ourselves from the Priory moorings and continued our journey up the river.

We hoped to over-night at the very attractive Great Barford moorings but all the places were taken. The EA moorings next to the Anchor we taken by 5 narrowboats and the GOBA moorings on the opposite side were taken by about 20 cruisers attending a GOBA event. So we went on and decided to visit on the way back.

In contrast, Bedford was quiet and we appeared to be the only visitors. We went through Bedford Lock involving a sharp right-hand bend followed by a sharp left-hander.

We moored at the 48 hour Sovereign moorings just past the County Court.

If you're interested in fairly recent English history, this is where James Hanratty was convicted of the A6 murders in 1962 and was later hanged at Bedford Jail. He was the last man to be hanged in England ending thousands of years of capital punishment.

While the moorings were quite near the city centre, we were not disturbed at any time. However, if we moor here in future we will probably find a more secluded spot on the Victorian 'island' near the lock chamber. This photo shows where I waited for Lady Saga to prepare the lock. It gives a good impression of the attractiveness of this whole area...

There's nothing much else to say about Bedford from my point of view though I guess the local Tourist Board could think of something positive to say about it. By the way, the Imray Guide says public navigation is possible right up to Kempston Mill. As I was not sure about this, we took a walk along the river to see for ourselves. Apparently the Mill was burnt down about 20 years ago and the area is now built up with trendy houses. The river is narrow and shallow, and I could not see anywhere to turn a boat longer than about 20 feet. I was glad I had not tried to get there in Skylark - it would have been a stressful operation reversing a 60 foot boat back down the river for almost 2 miles!

Our return journey to Lazy Otter gave us the opportunity to stop at Great Barford (below), St Neots, Huntingdon and St Ives.

At St Neots we saw the best sunset of the trip and, yes, I had to photograph it above one of my newly polished mushroom vents!

Not wanting to return home too soon, we went down to Ely for a couple of days. Being a fairly vibrant 'arty' sort of place, the local folk had organised a couple of bands on the Jubilee Gardens on the Saturday and then another couple on the Sunday. It gives the place a real sense of community activity.

Incidentally I read in the GOBA magazine that East Cams District Council is waiting for some Government chappie to sign a document handing over the ownership of the remaining bits of waterfront to them. It may take him more than 48 hours to sign it but once this is done, they will enforce the 48 hour mooring conditions much more vigorously. This will probably upset some of the 'over-stayers' who have set up home there.

When we left on Sunday afternoon, we passed the Fish and Duck Marina and had a brief opportunity to speak to a resident there about the crane that had fallen into the water. He said the jetty had collapsed under the weight of the crane - a nasty surprise for the driver! He fortunately survived the accident.

So, that's it. A very pleasant 10 days cruising in a very tranquil and attractive part of the country.

I would recommend it but, shhhh, don't tell everyone!