Cogenhoe to Great Doddington, River Nene, 4 miles 5 locks

After visiting the village for fresh milk and bread we pulled the pins on our mooring at Cogenhoe and made our way to the lock.  The Environment Agency had just decided at that time to take their boat down through the lock!..

Errrrrr sideways! .  Seems the skipper let go the ropes at the lock landing there on the right before turning on the engine, and the engine wouldn’t start, which left him in quite an embarrassing situation across the river!  However it was roped into the lock, locked through, and finally got going about 10 minutes later on the lock staging downstream.  Meanwhile we ‘moored’ in the lock and filled with water.  A glorious day today, the sun was warm, just perfect.

EA are doing a lot of painting, well all the bollards and white bits around the locks, it really does look quite smart..

They had just about finished here at Cogenhoe, and by the time we had gone through the next lock at Whiston and on to White Mills Lock we met the ‘EA Painting Crew’ again, just about to start on that lock, and they very kindly locked us through that one..

All the guillotine locks so far had been mechanical, and Vic and I knew the next one would have to be done by hand.. “Your turn to do this lock Chas and Ann” we called as we arrived with Moore2Life at Earls Barton Lock.. Teehee!!..

Round and round they turned the wheel.. no push button here to lift the guillotine.  I can’t remember how many turns it is now on the big wheel, I wonder if Chas counted.. anyway he was well pleased with himself by the time he had finished!..

Arriving downstream of the little footbridge that takes a footpath over the river to the pretty village of Great Doddington, we shoved the two boats into the side and put out the long plank.  The vegetation was well high, but we have a rip hook, or bill hook some people call it, and made a path from the gangplank to the meadow.  Then time for a cuppa, and we got the chairs out and spent a very nice hour or so enjoying the late afternoon sun..

After tea Ann and I took the dogs across the meadows and through the village of Great Doddington.  The view from the village is stunning.. you might just spot Moore2Life and No Problem in the very centre of the picture, the Nene is along that tree line in the middle of the pic ..

We will stay here tomorrow and explore