Away at last

Tuesday 24 July

When we woke this morning, the river level was way down, below the top of the top gates for the first time since we’ve been here. I was not long back from the village with the paper when the EA Landy rolled up, and the guys got out and dropped the top paddles. They said that the storage reservoirs were now empty, but that it would be at least 24 hours before they could unreverse Doddington Lock so that we could leave.

I told them we were getting concerned about our water supply, but they reassured us that if necessary they would bring water out to us.

We spent most of the rest of the day hanging about, reading and doing all the odd jobs we could think of. It got a bit like a slow day at work, when you realise that there’s no excuse to put off dealing with the stuff that’s been lurking in the bottom of the In tray for weeks.

At lunchtime a different EA team turned up in two vehicles, ate their lunch and then got out strimmers and mowers and started tidying up the lockside. We seized this chance to leave the boat unattended, and went to have another look at Doddington Lock. The flow through it was now much less, though the bit of the weir stream that goes under the former mill was still foaming away in fine style.

When we got back to the boat, I carried on up to the village again and bought some meat from the butcher, as well other bits and bobs from the Co-op. There followed another quiet afternoon, and a beautiful sunny evening.


Wednesday 25 July

Another morning where we woke early and I made a trip to the newsagent first thing. The hanging about got really hard work, expecting the EA Land Rover to show up at any time, finding it hard to settle to do anything else.

At 11.30 they came with the news we’d been waiting for. As far as they were concerned we could go. They were about to unreverse Doddington, and although the stream was still strong in places, it should be OK for experienced boaters.

We took little time getting underway, and in fact beat them to Doddington, even though Earls Barton is a hand wound guillotine, and so quite slow to work. At Doddington, the top gates were still chained open, but the guillotine was right down, so we went into the lock to wait for the EA team. It being 12 by now, I took the opportunity to make some lunch sandwiches, and was just eating them when up came the Landy. By 12.30 we were out of the lock and boating down the reach towards the next one.

We were at Wellingborough by 1.30, and had our first serious encounter with the effect of the flow. Wellingborough Embankment curves left, and there were some boats moored on it already. This made it difficult for Sheila to bring Sanity in close until the last moment, and I was too slow getting off the bow and getting back to the stern to take a line from her. The stern started to swing out into the stream, so I grabbed the bowline and secured it to a bollard.

Sanity ended up winding, and with some steady heaving I brought her bow into the flow and we were able to secure her. It was a close call, and shows how easily things can go wrong in flowing water, especially when you’re a bit out of practice after a winter and spring on the forgiving calm of the canals.

We now had the bow close to the water point, so we strolled around trying to look as if that had been the intention all along. Sheila stayed with the boat, watering, running the washing machine and eating lunch, while I went to the nearby Tesco to restock on stuff that the Co-op didn’t have.

With the tank full and a wash load of socks well on the way, we set off again. With the stern mooring line undone, passed round the bollard and back to Sheila in the steering position, I let go of the centreline and then the bow. With just a slight push off, the bow swung out into the current and we winded once more, the stern fender acting as a pivot on the towpath edge. Once well round, Sheila let go the stern line and brought it aboard, gunned the engine and we smoothly pulled away from the edge into the centre of the river.

Off we went, still travelling at a brisk rate, through three more locks and so to the excellent moorings at Rushden and Diamonds Football Stadium. We had a final moment of excitement as we approached: the bridge just before the moorings is one of the old ones with narrow arches, with a left hand bend immediately after. Standing in the bows, I could feel Sanity accelerate as she shot through. Fortunately, the moorings are on a long lock cut of dead water, so there was plenty of time to slow down before our arrival.

There used to be a major Doc Martins factory here, and they sponsored the stadium, but the factory closed some time ago. The mooring is about five narrowboats long, and was full when we got here. However, EA had told the moorers here to expect us, and they were looking out for us. One of the boats is presently unoccupied, so we have tied outside them.

Apparently these people have mostly been here for a week, and EA reckon it will be another two days at least before the river below here is safe to use. We now have access to water, rubbish disposal and pump out, so we can look forward to a further stop with reasonable equanimity.

Our fellow boats are Blue Belle (inside us), Carpe Diem, Festina Lente and Acorn (ahead of us) and Victoria May (behind us). All seem to be crewed by very pleasant and welcoming people. Apparently they had a barbeque last night, but the weather is now deteriorating so we just have to hope it doesn’t rain excessively and raise the river level again.