Date - 16 /07/08 Day - Wednesday Start - 0945 Five Mile pub End - 1600 GOBA mooring above Pike and Eel
Harnser's present position http://tinyurl.com/harnser-16 The Five Mile pub has a themed menu every night, last night it was "bangers and mash with peas" which coast us the princely sum of £4 each for s sausages, potato and peas, I think this has been our cheapest pub meal ever. This mooring was bright but windy when we set off downstream on the Cam to the junction of The Great Ouse and the Cam at Popes Corner, here we turned left towards St Ives on the Great Ouse also known as the Old West River. this was quite a bit narrower than the Ouse we had got use to and we were also travelling upstream so progress was down to about 3.5 mph. As it was so windy we decided to stop for lunch on the GOBA moorings at Aldreth. After lunch the first lock we came to was Hermitage Lock. The river above here is tidal so the lock is manned. I went up and had a word with the lock keeper and he set the lock for us, by now a large plastic was behind us. No sooner had we entered the lock and the cruiser started in behind me, the locky instructed me to go right forward and touch the gates, by now the cruiser was roped behind me and I had to get Diana to come along while I held the boat in gear to attach the centre rope so we didn't run back, the gates closed and we started to go up. After the lock the cruiser shot passed but had to wait at the next lock as there was a boat going up. I asked him if he would like me to go in first but he declined. he went in and put both ropes ashore and was holding his boat fast, I crept in behind him but because he was so far back from the top gate JUST TOUCHED him, he went mad, "you've crashed into me, you should wait until I told you I was ready and called you in" etc. This went on all the while the lock was filling. Once full he inspected the damage." I had made a great gouge in his gel coat with my fender" he said. I couldn't see any mark and he didn't ask me to pay. I didn't like to point out that in the previous lock he had not waited for me to get secured or invite him in, also I didn't point out that if my fender had gouged his gel coat my bow would have split his bathing platform in half first. He stopped at the Pike and Eel moorings but I thought it prudent to go on to the GOBA moorings and walk back to the pub. -- Brian <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Join SOW and help save our waterways http://www.saveourwaterways.org
