Northampton Marina (River Nene) - Tuesday 5th August
Good news this morning as the police had finished their underwater investigations after the murder, and the Northampton Locks were open.
This is Hardwater Watermill, mentioned in the Domesday Book, ground wheat into flour for almost 1000 years. Thomas Becket, Archbishop of Canterbury, used the mill as a hiding place after escaping from Northampton Castle in 1164 and fleeing down the Nene to be sheltered by the miller before fleeing to France. The watermill ceased grinding flour after the Second World War. The present buildings date from the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries, and have been converted into dwellings.
At Whiston Lock Steve and Richard pulled about two great heaps of reeds, Steve even had a wooden plank!
We found this boat at Billing Lock.
Also at Billing Lock is Billing Aquadrome which has a rich history, evolving from a historic estate to a popular holiday and leisure park. It began as Billing Hall and its estate, mentioned in the Domesday Book, with royal patronage and aristocratic ownership spanning centuries. The park itself was established in 1945 as a small holiday park. Over the years, it has seen significant development, including the addition of lakes, a fair, and a caravan site, and has also faced challenges like flooding. In 2024 the park had to evacuate four times due to flooding. There are some permanent residents and in November last year flood sirens began sounding in the early hours of a Monday, following a danger to life flood warning. The whole park was then evacuated later on Monday, affecting around 1,000 people. Some had to be rescued by firefighters in boats. Authorities later declared the flooding a major incident.
Photo by Northampton Chronicle and Echo
At one lock, Tracey and I looked behind us and realised we were in one of the the “infinity”
locks, it was a scary sight!
At Clifton Hill Lock we came across a narrowboat in the lock, the first boat we had seen moving all day, except he wasn’t moving as one of the gates wouldn’t close. At that moment an Environment Agency chap arrived as someone had reported a tree down (which we all deduced there wasn’t). Mr. EA had a grappler in his car and was able to fish out half a tree (OK so I’m prone to exaggeration!). A most fortuitous time to arrive.
We finally finished the horrible guillotine locks. The guillotine gates are very slow, even the mechanised ones. I timed one lock and it took 15 minutes from the boat going in to coming out at the other end. The last three locks are “normal” ones and much easier to use.
We had booked into Northampton Marina for the night as we really didn’t like being on the Town Quay when we went down. I have to admit that I was rather surprised when we entered the marina as the entrance berths were full of very tatty boats which rather gave the marina a bad vibe.
Both Tracey and I felt pretty rotten in the evening, it had been a very tiring day battling the
wind at the locks so we thought that was probably the reason.
10 miles 11 locks
We knew we had a long day ahead and a long day it was!
We pulled out of the marina and passed the Town Quay where we had moored on our way down. There were flowers on one of the benches, obviously for the poor man who had been murdered. The bench was very close to where we had moored.
We passed The Latimer & Crick building, which was originally a corn and fodder mill, built in around 1893 with extensions in 1913. After a fire in 2006, the building was converted into private apartments.
Just before we turned onto the Northampton Arm two swans had found a nice perch in the middle of the river.
It was a bit chaotic at the bottom lock as we were two boats waiting to go up, one live aboard moored on the lock landing and one boat coming out of the lock which had a pair of trousers around their prop and needed to moor up.
Not far along the canal I could see the National Lift tower which started life as the ‘Express Lift Tower’. Construction started in 1980 and was officially opened by Queen Elizabeth II on the 12th of November 1982. The tower is 418 feet tall, 48 feet in diameter at the base and tapers to 28 feet at the top. The only lift-testing tower in Britain, and one of only two in Europe, it was granted Grade II listed building status on 30th October 1997, making it the youngest listed building in the UK at the time. While the tower was in use, safety gear tests were done by putting the lift cars into free fall down the shaft with rated mass at tripping speeds, to make sure that the lift cars decelerated and stopped within the requirements of the specifications. I have had many nightmares about being in a lift that is in free fall, but have always woken up before getting to the bottom!!
The day got hotter and hotter with the worst temperature being at the bottom of the locks. The lovely views were the only saving grace.
I managed to find a shady spot for Rio’s bed on deck until he got bored and went down below. Just as we got to the top lock I looked down and he was sitting on the gas hob!! I grabbed my phone to try and get a photo but, of course, he moved. He walked round to where I keep all his food and treats and I had to negotiate the lock while at the same time telling him no, each time he got near to the goodies!!
I was shattered in the evening and fell asleep in the chair and fell into bed about 8.30pm. Unheard of for me.
5 miles
17 locks
Stoke Bruerne (Northampton Arm / Grand Union Canal) - Thursday 7th August
We only had a short distance to travel today, so didn’t set off until 11am.
On Monday morning an electric day boat belonging to Gayton Marina exploded and burst into
flames. Firefighters believe that batteries thought to be made up of lithium-ion were the
cause. It is worrying as lithium batteries are the way to go, both in boats and motorhomes,
however they are very expensive so I doubt if they will become that common.
Photo by Northampton Chronicle and Echo
This is all that is left now.
We went through Blisworth Tunnel and Rio shook nearly the whole way through. It was his
fourth time through a tunnel and it hadn’t worried him before, so I don’t know what spooked
him today.
We moored up at Stoke Bruerne, where we would stay for two days.
I literally spent 6 hours planning our German trip and, I’m sure you will be pleased to know, I
finally finished! We will be away for 3 weeks and definitely in pastures new. We will be doing
the Romantic Road and the Black Forest so I will no doubt still do some reading about the
areas. In the middle we will be meeting up with a group of, I think, 12, motorhomes. When
we went to Europe in the Spring we did 5 weeks on our own then did a week with a group. I
enjoy being on our own but it's nice to be with other people too.
We went to the Navigation for dinner, our first meal out of the trip! All was good but we had to
wait for over half an hour for our desserts.
As we walked back to the boat there was a lovely sky.
4 miles
0 locks
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