Nottingham Castle Marina

Today's Canal : Beeston Cut

We did not have far to travel today, under three miles, with no locks, to the marina where the boat will stay for about three weeks whilst we return home. As a result it was almost 11 by the time we eventually cast off. Our mooring was just the other side of this footbridge, built to give pedestrian access to what was once the huge Boots estate.

As can be seen, the sky this morning was very much that of the past four days but, after the thunder and rain last evening, the temperate had moderated and a cooling breeze generally kept us in pleasant conditions.

Since Boots separated from its pharma businesses, becoming principally a retail business, the need for large manufacturing space is diminished. As a result, much of the estate that was created in 1926 and has a number of Modernist style buildings, many now listed, has be designated for residential use. We could evidence with many new homes built close to the canal, only a few yet occupied.

Nottingham is well served by railway lines (even better before the Great Central lie was closed!) We passed under two lines on this short trip - this one heads west out to Long Eaton where a complex junction connects north, south, east and west!

At one time, the northern part of the Erewash Canal and the Cromford Canal were connected Nottingham Canal to the north of here has long since been abandoned. The junction is often called Lenton Chain, It is said that the two sections were run as separate businesses and boatmen from one had to pay fees to the other. Passage was only allowed when a toll keeper was present and at other times a chain prevented passage! The southernmost part was adopted in modern times as a new route for the River Leem. Little can be seen at this location and it is unlikely that many users of the towpath or canal are aware of its former significance.

Another railway bridge links to Sheffield and Mansfield to the north. As soon as we were under it we could begin to see boats moored in the marina. The actual entrance from the canal was a little further and we had to keep a careful watch so as to be prepared for the sharp turn from the canal.

We had been instructed to head initially to the service pontoon. As we wanted to fill with diesel, we first had to swivel around so that we could reverse in. We then went to the office to sort out what is where and to make sure we were  properly logged in to the new electricity app. (This is new and has signs of rather hasty introduction before fully road tested!) 

After filling, paying(ouch!) and disposing of waste, we were off to our mooring. Just as we were turning to back into the given slot, a sudden arrival of a fresh breeze  added to the task! The pontoons are short and floating so do not offer much help in these conditions, but we were soon tied up.

First impression is of a very well staffed marina with a keen emphasis on customer service. When Aquavista acquired the marina it was rather run down we are told, but over a £million has been spent on improvements. They now have permission for about half of the spaces to be residential and this is proving increasingly popular with professional people working in the city. Rail access to London is fast. Although clearly set in an urban context, the marina itself is very open and now has the range of facilities that urban marina dwellers have come to expect. On Saturday, the marina are holding an Open Day to promote itself and the very recent completion of the improvements (final touches were still happening including no electricity for tomorrow whilst the former aged installation is replaced!)

All of this activity - including making a start on packing for the return and swapping winter clothes for those suited to late spring and summer - meant that we have so far failed to take pictures of the new surroundings but we are not leaving until Friday so time yet!

The Stand

Time to tell the story of The Stand. Last year, Christine could see that at times Mike struggled a bit to stand up after kneeling down, especially when mooring to Armco or towpath rings. She found an aid online and bought it - but, it has to be said, Mike was neither dismissive nor making too much use of it.

This year, especially after the problem a fortnight ago back at Kilby, it has come into its own and is now in regular use, at times making mooring a much simpler task. (To give scale, it is adjusted to be, at the top, at Mike's knee height)

This is all part of the process, rather conscious this year, of adapting our boating techniques to avoid unfulfillable demands! (If you know what we mean, you will know what we mean . . .)

2.6 Miles - 0 Locks

Beeston

Today's Navigations : River Soar, River Trent, Cranfleet Cut, Beeston Cut

We opted to get away again as soon as we could and untied around 8:45.

Planes were by now in full flow and as we moved away from being directly under the flight path we could now see the airline name. CargoLux is based in Luxembourg and is a leading carrier of specialised goods.

The short cut between the weir and Kegworth Lock should be wide enough for boats to be able to moor here but the offside vegetation and, just a little later , towpath side reeds and lilies, reduce the width to one boat at a time.

A wide beam moored in front of us was away even earlier and, alas, we saw that he treats these locks as river locks where (sometimes) it is common practice to leaves gates, top or bottom, open on departure. Although Kegworth New/Deep Lock is on the river, above and below, it is not generally considered exempt from the usual rule of leaving all gates and paddles closed before leaving. This meant that before staring the usual working of the lock, Mike had first to walk down to shut one bottom gate, walk back to the other end to cross over and then down to close the other bottom gate. Only then could he return to start filling the empty lock. 

Last year we found this lock very slow to fill, both travelling up and down river. We had heard that some work was done to alleviate this and were keen to see how successful. Although it still takes some time to fill, it is a very deep lock and it levelled out quite readily (the problem last year was that even when the lock looked full it took ages before a gate would would move)

This lock is also noted for the frequency with which boats hang up on the cill. This is always a serious matter but here more so not only because of the size of the cill from the lock gates but also because of its height above the lower river level.

At one stage of planning our night stopovers we had considered looking for a spot 'below' Kegworth Shallow or Flood Lock where we stopped last year. The risk when going downstream is finding it full and that there is hardly anywhere else before arriving at the River Trent. One of the reasons for mooring above Kegworth was just this risk. When we arrived at the lock we were very glad that had decided that way as the spaces (and more) were all occupied by what looked like long staying moorers. There is a useful space to park vehicles alongside the lock!

We were getting slightly low on fuel and had hoped to top with diesel at a  boatyard below Kegworth, We called here last  year and found them very helpful (apart from only dealing in cash!) Although the owner was around also was A CLOSED sign. It transpired that he is in some form of disagreement with HMRC over the handling of fuel duty for boats and until that is sorted he will not take risks of serious fines!

Finally on the Soar we came to Ratcliffe Lock, which feels only a stone's throw from the still standing cooling towers. Actually it about a mile!

Alongside the lock we noted a large ditch from which a substantial amount of sand and gravel had been removed and then we saw this gravel bar at the end of the lower lock landing. We have not heard what was the cause but it looks as if storm conditions washed a lot of the material down from that ditch above.

We were keeping a good lookout as we passed Redhill Marina as we understood that Oleanna was still here for painting. However, we failed to spot it - perhaps it is in the paint tent right at the back, centre of the photo. Perhaps Pip will be along later with an update that gives better news than her last posting.

And finally Redhill Flood Lock that is also usually a straight run through.

On the final part of the Soar there is a small hill to the east that gives its name to the place: Redhill. The side nearest the river was long ago eroded exposing the red stone. Unfortunately the direction of the sun makes it a little hard to see (the colour, that is)

As soon as we turned out onto the Trent our speed over the ground dropped significantly whilst we crossed the main flow (but not like in 2007!) We knew also that our route was to go just behind the sailing club buildings, quite a landmark for some distance. We spotted the flagstaff well before joining the river.

Trent Junction is four way - to the left in the photo is Sawley and soon the quieter waters of the Trent and Mersey Canal. Straight ahead is Trent Lock and the start of the Erewash Canal. And to the right is Cranfleet Cut and the route to Nottingham. Behind, of course is the start of the River Soar or, if you miss the turn, the uninviting tumble of Thrumpton Weir!

Just after joining the Cranfleet Cut we passed through Cranfleet Flood Gates - this time not a lock but a single pair of gates that protects properties and boats along this cut when the river is in flood. Perhaps because they operate automatically,. it does seem from the routine Stoppages reports that this closes and opens quite frequently, especially in the wetter parts of the year.

The railway line from Nottingham to Loughborough passes over the canal here as well - Mike came over on Friday at the end of his 'epic' car shuffle journey.

At the end of the kilometre long cut is Cranfleet Lock that returns the navigation back to the river level below the weir. Alongside is the base for the Nottingham Yacht Club (NYC). There is what was once a substantial lock keeper's house. Long gone are the days of permanent and residential lock keepers. A notice says that a keeper (presumably volunteer) is on duty on Fridays and Saturdays and there was an appeal for more volunteers. Perhaps also from the time of full time keepers, all the paddles have handles welded in place.

On the opposite side of the lock, the yacht club is in (a) box!

Below the lock we join a four and a half miles of winding, but notably wide, river with very few identifiable landmarks along the way. Nevertheless, the banks are much more picturesque than some other rivers.

This sign warns boaters of an obstruction.

Here it is (what was it?). A little further is another similar obstruction but it warrants no warning sign!

We passed a model aircraft club on the bank side. There were several cars alongside a small club house. One plane was in the air doing complex acrobatics. Without a high quality zoom camera we could not do much to capture the plane but here is our least worst shot! We wonder how such clubs and enthusiasts will survive the recent surge in small scale drone technology.

Near Barton-in-Fabis we passed this delightful sailing vessel making its way slowly upstream. Almost no wind so we think they were probably helped by their small outboard.

This probably quite old but impressive cruiser is moored along with a static caravan in what seems to be a long way from anywhere else. We could see no name so unable to Google its history,

A sign, somewhat in need of refreshing, welcomes boaters to Beeston Marina - a long line of pontoon moorings stretches back from Beeston Weir and Lock. Boaters at this end appear to have quite a long walk to their boat along a pontoon that is not always level!

As we neared the lock we realised that the battery in the camera had run out so no more pictures for today. Perhaps just as well as we had already almost run the gamut of the alphabet in name suffixes to identify the photo files! 

Beeston Lock is unusual (although not unique) in that water is run continuously through it to maintain flow in the longer Beeston Cut that runs all the way through Nottingham, rejoin the river below Meadow Lane Lock. One paddle at top and bottom is marked in red and notices ask that they are both left open after passing through the lock. The upper lock landing nearest the bank is a pontoon and sits at quite an angle to the line of entry into the lock. Trickly manoeuvre! 

After the lock is a long stretch of ring moorings but there also seemed to be a lot of road traffic and parked motorhomes beside the canal. We recalled that we had moored long ago close to the Boots Footbridge so pressed on - but not far. As Waterway Routs indicates, the mooring just before the bridge requires pins - some stretches are currently No Mooring to allow sand martins to nest in the canal side wall! We moored in a suitable space (about the last one!) and found it fairly quiet. We were moored just after 1 o'clock. The rest of the afternoon was extremely oppressive and we found it hard to do much other than just sit. 

However, Mike did force himself to do two DIY tasks. Firstly we noticed this morning that when mooring last night an overhanging tree that was a tad more substantial than it looked had pulled out the rubber seal surround to the starboard bathroom window. This is not immediately serious as its function is to protect the screws/bolts that hold the windows in place but it does look untidy and we now know how to fix it quickly.

The second task was to look at a fan we bought last year but not used. Christine has assembled it on Friday and it has proved invaluable these past few sweltering days. It had been rattling rather annoyingly. Some nuts were tightened but Mike realised that a small nut and bolt mentioned in the assembly instructions but not in the parts (list) had not been supplied. It is moderately important in that it prevents the front of the fan guard from falling off. An item in the tool box provide a temporary fix but we will need to look further for the proper thing.

The promised thunder started to roll in around six leading eventually to a real flash and clap. That presaged the arrival of 'proper' thundery rain which very quickly brought the temperature quite a bit.

9.8 Miles - 4 Locks (Our log says 6 locks but two of them were flood locks)

Kegworth

Today's Navigations : Zouch Cut, River Soar

We awoke to yet another very bight, cloudless day with the forecast that max maximum temperatures might reach 32C.

After feeling very exhausted by the heat yesterday afternoon, we decided to get away as soon as we could manage. Not very early but we did manage to untie by 10 minutes to nine!

A boat had just come up Zouch Lock so we hoped for it to be full but, alas it is rather leaky and the level had dropped next to half full. A single hander arrived a just moments later and he gave us some help to get through. We did take rather longer than we should have as, whilst chatting, we only opened gate paddles on one of the two top gates! He moors at Pillings Marina and reported that, after the shenanigans between CaRT and the original owner of the marina, it is now well established under a new owner who delegates almost everything day-to-day to a manager. This boater had been there for six years so it cannot be bad!

Shortly after the lock we re-joined the River Soar which has been on a trip around the fields with a radial weir to control water levels.

The next stretch is wide, open and very attractive but with few notable  features. Here is the upstream end of Devil's Elbow, a small island where part of the river flows around - but is not navigable that way.

And here is the downstream end.

In some ways, this waterside house is quite ordinary but what caught our eye was the way in which it has developed over time with all sorts of bits added on. What is especially 'stand out' is the patio garden on the garage roof, complete with a greenhouse. And it comes complete with room to moor two river cruisers.

At the point where the A6 and the River almost collide there has been a pub since at least early 19C. The original Navigation was rebuilt more than once and the  present building only dates from 1996. Despite advertising itself as the perfect riverside English country pub, it seems to have turned its back on river trade as none of the earlier moorings is now usable and to get to it from the opposite bank is a very long walk!

Next to the Otter is a set of moorings, mainly for river cruisers, and uses a short stretch of water just away from the river and is part of a series of ponds that appear to be of recent origin as they only appear on modern maps.

The protected 'inland' moorings emerge just downstream - we think we could later see from a distance that moored boats can exit this way.

Christine began to wonder if we needed to drop down any more locks before a stopover and promptly indicated a mooring spot (with good piling to which boats can tie up) just before Kegworth Deep. Mike duly brought our boat alongside into a gap between several wide beam boats already moored there. Alas, we once again demonstrated that most wide beams are much shallower draft than Alchemy. Eventually we managed to make fast even if the stern is a bit too far out to be able to step of easily. The bow is just fine.

We are also directly under the flight path for planes coming in to East Midlands Airport. Although the sound of them flying overhead is noticeable, in practice we could only hear them for a very short time - perhaps less than 30 seconds. The start of the runway is just one mile away so they are below the tree line quite quickly (the airport is not visible from the river)

Across the fields alongside our mooring we can still see the now closed Ratcliffe Power Station, the last operating coal power in the UK. The complete removal of the development will take some years. The first stage is to remove all of the equipment inside the buildings. The more visible work of bringing down the eight cooling towers and the tall chimney is expected in 2029-2030.

This healthy brood of Canada Geese and ducklings were being taught how to scrounge food from boaters. They already seemed to know what to do but also that it is not worth wasting effort on those that show no inclination to throw out good bread to them!

Kegworth village is on the opposite bank, just a short distance further downstream. Despite the tempting sight of the church spire (which we considered as an option for yesterday until we realised that there is no way across from the towpath side until Kegworth Shallow Lock. About a mile and a half on foot) We wrote about The Hermitage in last year's blog.

By the time we moored it was barely ten thirty but here we were to stay the rest of the day, doing as little as the heat would permit!

Late in the evening a local farmer decided to cut the grass in the field next to the mooring. Using a rather shiny tractor with cutters both back and front (the front mowers fit in between the paths of the rear ones so as mush as possible can be cut at the same time) he completed the task in a little over an hour, well before the sun finally set. Christine captured the process hen she went for a walk along the riverside path.

Finally she managed a rare photo of Mike! She did not say what she was doing and the heat had so slowed his movements that the picture was taken before he could react!

 

2.4 Miles - 1 Lock

Zouch

Today's Navigations : Loughborough Cut, River Soar, Zouch Cut

Having decided not to pursue our original plan of attending Normanton Church that sits right beside the river, we opted for All Saints, Loughborough Parish Church, a shortish walk from the basin. As the service did not start until 10:45. we had a chance to get up slowly!

As we wa;ked to the church we could hear the bells being rung but only had any view of it from close up. The building dates back to the 14th century and is one of the largest in the county. 

Inside the church has been adapted for present day needs and has a substantial seating capacity. (New seat cushions were in use today for the first time!) The height of the nave is impressive - if perhaps making heating a tad expensive!

The service was quite conventional - the music was 'proper' but could do with a little bit more liveliness about it. All the hymns were already around (and dated) in our youth. It was all conducted in an efficient and relaxed manner.

The parish has made a particular bid to meet needs of the very diverse communities that have come to occupy the town, mostly since we were here. The variety of native mother tongues amongst the congregation and the wider community was recognised. An app is provided with 'simultaneous' translation of the liturgy into quite a number of different languages.

As we walked back we made a brief detour into the former churchyard where an early Rectory remains (now a museum). Parts date back to 13C and the manor house of which it was part was home to the rector until mid 20C.

There was also a wicker bell, installed after a large event in 2023 to celebrate the town's long association the bells and the bell foundry, and was made by a local artist to represent Great Paul, a nearly 17 ton bell cast at Taylors for St Paul's Cathedral in London and remains the largest  bell in current use in the UK.

We returned to the boat just after 12:30 but in the heat neither of us felt like having lunch just yet. We quickly changed into 'boat' clothes and cast off from the mooring pontoon. However, the boat that had been moored on the other side of the pontoon had moved temporarily to the water point. This reduced the amount of room for us to manoeuvre and turn towards the exit from the basin. Mike opted at one point in the process to back into the vacant space to gain a better turning circle.

Alas as he did so there was a sudden change in the engine sound and the prop only shot water sideways and not backwards. We managed to come alongside the non-mooring side of the basin in order to investigate the weed hatch. Turned out to be a mixed bag of plastic in many different forms but it did come away much more easily than that at Lime Kiln.

By the time we ready to try again the boat on the waterpoint had moved back to its pontoon but also another boat had arrived and occupied the space we had earlier vacated. It was still tricky to make the turn but in the end we managed without running into another boat!

As we passed the bridge across Loughborough Junction (underneath goes back towards Leicester) a small boat emerged. Its size and shape brought back fond memories of Fiona that we had in the late Sixties but sold in 1971 as we had by then moved to the North East - not a lot of connected canals! Of course this one will have been made from sterner material than ours (marine plywood)

At the first Lock, Loughborough Lock, it was already being filled by the crew from one of the Le Marchant charity boats out on a trip form its base just to the south of the town.

A notable former lock cottage stands alongside having long since passed into private ownership and now has no connection with the lock.

Just above Bishop Meadow Lock we paused to fill our water tank. As it was quite empty we also had time for lunch. Christine also chatted to a member of CaRT staff in the adjacent compound area. It seems that the facilities we saw part constructed last year are now designated for use only by moorers living on the nearby long term moorings. This is despite the fact that waste disposal is still listed here on the CaRT website. The conversation revealed that a growing number of boaters are perceiving difficulties with the way in which the new facilities policy is being implemented. There was also a suggestion that those at Trent Lock at the start of the Erewash have either been or about to be removed, despite the advice posted at Barrow Mill. Like the one at the previous lock, the Cottage here has long been privately owned.

Once the tank was filled we made our way to the lock which remained full from the trip boat. A boat arrived below and the crew asked whether we were going down before they emptied it. Made life a bit easier for us.

We next passed Normanton where at one stage we thought about going to the church this morning, but the lack of access rom the river made it not possible. The village is basically a short ribbon development with most properties between the Main Street and the river bank. The first part are largely single storey properties, close to the water, with some measure of flood protection ie built on short pillars. We do not know whether they have planning consent for year-round occupation or are more holiday and leisure use.

The middle section, including the church, contains much larger properties with frontages to moor narrowboats or larger river cruisers.

We did not get the best pictures of these properties because we were really on the lookout for the best view of the church. The vegetation has grown significantly since most well-used publicity photos were taken and good open views are rare. This is about the best we caught this time.

The third section returns to the small wooden structures but in between there is a boat club and a pub - lots of small unpowered craft in action. we had to be super careful as a line of stand up paddle boards was strung out across the full width of the river and none of the riders took one glance behind them. Their shocked surprise when we almost caught up with them  betrayed a worrying lack of awareness and, indeed, water safety.

Next came Zouch Cut, a short canal section that starts with a large radial sluice used to control water flows. Just after 15:30, the heat overwhelmed us and we took a mooring shortly before the lock at the end of the cut. These are good moorings that we have used several times before.

3.8 Miles - 2 Locks