Off the Ouse.

We only had a few miles to day today as we were passing through Denver Sluice to Salter's Lode Lock once again. The start of the lock was supposed to be 1615 but as they are neap tides at the moment it seemed to start later. I got busy with a job I have been putting off, cleaning the chimney and the stove. I got a mooring stake and rubbed all the rust, soot and bitumen out of the pipe and down into the stove, remembering to keep the door shut. I then got the damper and grate out, and the fire bricks, and gave all a very good clean. I had had a bit of a water leak on the top so got rid of all the loose rust and gave it a coat of Feratan ready to wipe off and give a good go with the blacking at a later date. One or two other jobs got down too, before we left after the Archer's at 1430.

We wanted to take water at the EA mooring by Hilgay Bridge. It wasn't to be as a boat had moored very close,, plus there were a couple of fishermen all set up there. We chugged onwards.

This little tug/work boat stands out as a good old one. It was built in 1935 by the Rowhedge Ironworks Co. Ltd, near Colchester for the River Great Ouse Catchment Board. She is 13 GRT. I wonder if she was used for barge traffic to the sugar beet factory at Wissington, or the extending of the training walls at Kings Lynn in 1937. She was sold to Drake's Towing in Wisbech and into private hands in 2000.

This is the sluice that drops the Great Ouse down into the Relief Channel that heads down to Kings Lynn and is joined by the Cut off channel that we crossed on the other rivers.

There is a lock that allows you to head down the water way, non tidal to Downham Market, Stowbridge and Magdalen Bridge.

There were foru boats ahead of us to cross, and four to come in the opposite direction. We eventually got on the lock landing and waited our turn.

In to the Stygian gloom of the Denver Sluice as we were penned up into the river. The lock keeper told me that the most boats he has had through in one direction is 26. That took some going.

By the time we left the lock it was after 1800 and the tide looked on its last legs on a beautiful evening.

The lock soon appears as a bit of a surprise as there is no real distinctive feature until you do get closer.

I thought there was still a bit of tide running so turned when I could see down the lock. I was wrong and we just hung there!

In fact there was a drain of ebb away by the time we got round and heading in the right direction.

Fun in the sun. We then just went for the entrance and easily poked our head in and we were there once again. Not pretty, but we made it. Back on the Middle Levels.