Back Again to St Ives

Until late afternoon it was a dull and chilly day, but not as cold as the past few days. We were a little later setting off, but still early by most standards! There were few boats around for the first part of the morning - EA contractors were just setting up to continue work on the lock.


Several times today we failed to moor at listed places - either not there (which meant we ended up with eating lunch 'on the go') or insufficient depth (GOBA mooring we tried for the night stop) or too high (the EA mooring adjacent to the GOBA mooring). However, we did eventually succeed alongside the Re-enactment campsite just before St Ives.

We called again at Hartford to use all their services, including filling up with diesel. Along the way, bridges seemed to feature in our attention, although there are still plenty of churches to note, including one which looks as if thieves have made off with its steeple!

Late afternoon the sun broke through and it was a warm and delightful evening. Traffic built up after lunch and on one occasion we saw a procession of six boats coming out of one lock fill. We even had to share the lock with some river cruisers!

In this part of the navigation network, terminology is different - also different on Middle Level - as also is the practice in lock operation. The gate paddles are known here as Slackers and the normal practice is to leave the outbound end of the lock open. On the Nene it is mostly required to leave the bottom guillotine gate open, regardless of whether you are going up or down.

The 1970's saw quite a substantial programme of lock and weir improvement - over the years many have seen changes, even re-location and occasionally it is possible to see the old remains.