Spring Tide to Selby.

The day started drizzly but the level of the river didn't seem to have risen after the rain of the last days. I think that it takes four days for water that falls in the hills to run through and lift water levels in York and below so we would be okay for a few days yet.

I walked round and had a word with the lockie who said to come round straightaway. There was one other boat to pen down with us. By the time we had rounded the corner from the pontoon the other boat, a cruiser 'Northern Lights' was in the lock. There has been a notice out about one of the upper gates at Naburn not been in use so I was surprised to see it open. However they had trouble closing it again. In the end they had to use belt and braces methods, almost literally, to get it closed before we were lowered down. I believe there are divers etc lined up for about now to rectify the problem.

It seem that 'Northern Lights' crew were ex yachtsmen and were really just getting into the cruising game. They were heading for Goole, then Grimsby and then out into the wide blue yonder and Wells next the Sea. A nice trip but I was glad that we didn't go further than Hull. Mind you I was toying with the idea of doing the full length of the Humber to Spurn Point and back. It would be just a matter of having good weather and using the tides. A step too far for Helen I'm sure.

Off we went and soon lost site of our lock companion. The Naburn Locks seem to be under a bit of a restoration at the moment. Not the actual locks but the buildings around them. I'm sure on a nice weekend the place would be/is very popular and a good place for a 'museum come shop etc so maybe that is what they are doing.

The weather cleared up and it was flat calm as we approached Naburn Ski Club. It was a Monday so nobody was about. I'm sure it makes it interesting when they are scooting up and down.

I had asked the lock keeper if there was any inbound traffic and it seems we were to expect five boats. I hadn't expected to see them quite so soon, but then on a spring tide they would be making a good speed. There were at least two wide beams among them. The spread of wide beams continues to the north also. I have nothing against them really, other than they do take up a bit of room, but for me I think that, just like a house, the more room you have the quicker you are tempted to fill it with 'stuff'. I quite like the discipline of keeping everything stowed and not just get more things.

We had headed up the Ouse on a neap tide but today was just off top springs so quite a bit of water running. You can see that the banks are covered much more with a bit of a tide. I think the difference between a neal and spring is more than 2 metres at Goole.

This is the River Wharfe that joins the Ouse. It is just a reminder of the many rivers that join the Ouse and Trent anbd hence the Humber and together they drain over 20% of England. The Wharfe actualy rises in Langstrothdale in the Yorkshire Dales and is 65 miles long which makes it the 21st longest river in Britain (obviously not the Amazon though). It is still publically registered for navigation as far as Tadcaster.

Just before Cawood we saw the Fire Brigades water rescue truck. Their rib with about five people in had passed us earlier going like a bat out of hell. It was like been on the Thames when we passed and actually had to head into the wake. All good fun and nothing fell off the table.

When we passed upwards towards York and Ripon Cawood Bridge was closed for road traffic and now, on the way down, we find it is open for boat traffic. It seems to be a delicate structure for this day and age and is getting a lot of love and attention that will keep it servicable for a good few years yet. The next bridge is York or Selby so the quicker they get the job done the happier the locals will be I'm sure.

Just after we passed Cawood Bridge the tide turned and out speed picked up a fair bit. I was very surprised to come round a corner and see a boat coming towards me as the tide had turned for it and it would now be struggling against the current and as it was it wasn't making a very good speed at all. The 'Sheaf'' is on the historic ships register as it was built in 1938 at Dunstons for Furley and Co for trading around the Northern system as a Sheffield size (61'6" long and 15'6" beam). She was bought by Waddington's of Swinton in 1966 and worked until 1981 when she was laid up. She was bought for restoration in 2004 and it looks like they are making a good job of her. Late the lock keeper told me that he was very late locking out. I hope they made it okay.

Earlier in the mont their had been a notice that a boat was going out to collect the large quantities of debris that was floating above Selby, backwards and forwards with the tides, and representing a bit of a navigational hazard to vessels. When we sailed up to York there was very little to be seen so they had doen their job. It seems in the time we had been up river a couple of days of rain and a good spring tide had meant that tree trunks had been washed off the bank and were once again sailing on the river, but really just in nthis one place for now. It looks as though they will ground again when the tides fall to neaps. I wonder where though!

As the ebb got away out speed increased and it seemed like we were hurtling along as we came to the turn at the mill to enter Selby Reach under the ex toll road bridge and the rail bridge. There was somebody up to no good I thought under the road bridge but it turns out they were welding something back on! We manged to miss all the piers and ended up clear iof everything and trying to spot the entrance to the canal.

It was then a matter of trying to judge the strength on the tide and when to swing so as to be lined up for the lock. I did swing a little early, but better than too late and having to power up to try to get back into the tide. It always feels like the boat is never going to come round, but we did. This is me looking relieved at having got round head to tide and just angling across the reach to head down to be opposite the lock and over towards it.

Helen went to the bow to pass a line round the  risers when we got in. The turning round head to the tide turned out to be the worst bit as once you have got your speed judge and just edging in to the lock mouth you soon get into the lee of the mud banks that have built up at either wing of the lock that the tide is lost or much reduced and then it is just a matter of hard a port and half ahead to get the bow swung into the lock and then tick over to move up to secure in the lock.

Once we were back up to canal level we thanked the keeper and carried on to the swing bridge and then on to the Selby Boat Centre where we were leaving 'Holderness' once again. Once tied up we got everything sorted and with in an hour we were on our way home for more Culture, courtesy of our sun pickg us up.