Retirement with No Problem

Hockwold Fens to Silt Fen, Rivers Little and Great Ouse, 13.5 miles 0 locks

Louise caught the train from Brandon on Friday, and I managed to turn No Problem with ease by backing into the lock entrance as suggested by a couple of GOBA members on their forum.  We moored outside of Brandon the night before, still not sure if it is entirely safe to moor at the end.  In 2005 when we moored by the lock there were a load of youngsters binge drinking on the parkland.  I noticed there were allotments there this time, but talking to a couple of local boaters it is still not the best place to be at the weekends..

Just by our mooring close to Brandon these two deer decide to chance a crossing of the railway..

They had the right idea, there are some lovely walks on the otherside, I was very tempted to do the same myself!

I popped into Brandon town for milk then we pulled the pins and made our way back to Hockwold Fen and the GOBA moorings there.  The two boats that had passed yesterday were already there, and room was short, so I moored No Problem just off the moorings.. good enough for us.. out went the plank!

What a grand weekend then and what a lovely place this is.. a view across the fen..

On Saturday, I couldn’t resist it, out I went with Lucy and Meg across this wonderful countryside, we were to do 7 miles along the flood banks and droves.  There was plenty going on, with the farmers frantically getting the last of the corn in while the sun shone hot..

In fact there were three combines in this field, and the dust they were creating blew for miles.  Look at these then…

I say these, there were a load of them in the pasture close to the river.. I think they are Parasol mushrooms, no doubt someone out there will know..  Didn’t pick any for eating this time as I wasn’t certain..

I put No Problem into the bushes on Friday afternoon.. a very narrow bit of river as I cruised downstream near Brandon it was.  Two of the largest hire boats from Ely came round the corner, and I moved to the outside of the bend to let them through, but the river was running quite fast as it was narrow, and the speed of the water pushed me to the outside of the bend and into the trees.. Not the fault of the hire boat crews, they did their best, and there was nothing I could do about it.. the river rules..

Anyway it was for that reason that we decided to move on Sunday.. it was a lovely day anyway, and we very much enjoyed the 13 mile cruise to get us close to Denver.  I knew I could do some work on the scratches from the trees on the hard edged moorings of the Environment Agency, and this morning after washing the boat down I set about making scratches disappear.. Armed with a bottle of T Cut and a couple of soft rags I rubbed and polished .. Looks OK now.. well looks much better than it was. 

Oh, does anyone know that this flower is?  Saw it while walking one of the droves, it’s not the best of pics..

It’s sort of like a cowslip, but it can’t be..

Sad day tomorrow then when we go through the complex at Denver, down the tidal river to the Middle Levels to make our way back to the Nene.  I shall, as usual, be sorry to leave the fens. We have had a great summer over here and revisited favourite places from previous years. We will be back!!