We’re counting down the days now, until the hire boat season opens, and for the first time in two years our plans are working to schedule. Cape Fox has had her bottom coated and is now going to the paint shop for the finishing touches to be added. The Sparkle Oven Cleaning Company have just made the cookers on board all shiny, and we’re ready for the 1st April!

Around here, the first signs of spring are the daffodils, primroses and chocolate eggs appearing everywhere, along with the sound of the first narrowboats chugging cheerfully down the river on a day trip or an Easter holiday. The waterways in spring are less crowded than in summertime, new waterfowl are born and the amateur photographer can take photos of all the tree blossoms. There is something very photogenic about the stunning skies of the Fenlands remote landscapes. You only need a smart phone to capture the sunset reflected in the water, or the local ducklings, cygnets and dragonflies. Don’t forget to take pics of you and the gang steering the boat and working the locks, to show everyone back home.

If you’re on a narrowboat holiday with us this Easter, spring is a great time to visit and discover the wonder of WWT Welney Wetland Centre. Not far from the River Great Ouse, it’s a perfect place to start exploring the wetlands, get up close to the wildlife and make memories with your family. For peace of mind, reserve your tickets and pay in advance online. The best way to visit is to take a taxi from either Denver or Littleport to the centre. Fox Route 1 will take you on the River Ouse. You could also see Denver Sluice on this holiday. Without its complex engineering, tens of thousands of homes in Cambridgeshire and Norfolk would be flooded. Denver Sluice plays a key role in river navigation, conservation, water abstraction, agricultural and land drainage and fisheries.

Also near the River Great Ouse, RSPB Fen Drayton Lakes is a complex of lakes and traditional riverside meadows. Explore and see ducks, swans, geese, terns, a variety of dragonflies and maybe even otters. These lakes began life as a flooded sand and gravel quarry next to riverside meadows.

On a narrowboat holiday this spring you could head west from March crossing the Greenwich meridian line at Floods Ferry and on to Whittlesey, Stanground, Peterborough and the Nene valley. Alternatively, if you travel east to Upwell and Outwell, then cross the tide at Salters Lode and head on towards Littleport and Ely and Cambridge you’ll visit pretty villages and ancient cities. Imagine starting your day with a coffee and a hot cross bun in the sunshine on the deck of your canal boat. Then try shopping for Easter chocolate in Peterborough, Ely, Cambridge or smaller picturesque market towns that you can visit by boat.

Alternatively, with Easter just around the corner why not treat the family to a day hire voucher?  You can then choose when to take a trip afloat. Call 01354652770 for a voucher or book a day out online.

Our well-equipped, comfortable boats are the best way to discover the waterways around the Cambridgeshire Fens. To get more tips and advice about travelling these navigations sign up now to receive regular articles by email (See ‘Follow Blog’ to the right of this article.)

Image Credit: Welney Wetlands Centre 2022 – Deposit Photos MikeLane45

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The following morning after a breakfast cooked on board we arrived at the Salters Lode lock for the tide crossing to Denver.  We gained an insight into what to expect from Paul the lock keeper and very soon we had crossed the tidal waters and were on to the river Great Ouse.  We moored for the evening at the Environment Agency moorings in Littleport and headed off to find the memorial to William Harley, grandfather of the ‘hog’.  William Harley was born in Littleport in 1835.  In 1859 he immigrated to Oswego and went on to have children.  One of his children was William Sylvester Harley who went on to form the Harley-Davidson Motor Company with Arthur Davidson in 1903.

William Harley memorial, Littleport

The following morning after an early start we arrived in Ely, from here we took a 20-minute train journey onto Cambridge.

In Cambridge we visited Scudamore’s to take a punt tour along the College backs.

I was intrigued to find out that the well-known Mathematical bridge is officially known as the wooden bridge and that back in 1963 students hung an Austin 7 car under the Bridge of Sighs having used 4 punts to get it there.

As a lover of cheese we then visited the Cambridge Cheese Company for some delicacies and before returning to the train we visited the Eagle pub for refreshment.  The pub has an RAF bar that has the inscriptions by World War II airmen covering the ceiling and walls.  In 1953 it was in this pub that Francis Crick interrupted the patron’s lunchtime on 28th February to announce that he and James Watson had ‘discovered the secret of life’ and they had come up with their proposal for the structure of DNA.  Here you can sample the special ale Eagles DNA.

After a fun day and short train journey we were back to Ely and the moorings where we stayed for the evening.

The following day was an early start and we headed down to Denver and crossed on the lunch time tide to wind our way back to March.  We crossed the Middle Level Main Drain at Muilicourt aqueduct before passing Outwell and Upwell, here we would have liked to stop at The Five Bells for a meal as I have previously eaten here and the food is plentiful however our holiday ended the following morning so we continued on to March for the night and moored in the town centre.

Total cruising hours for this journey 18, miles 58, locks 6.  Note there is a Tide Crossing to take into account when planning this journey.  Please consult Fox Narrowboats or the lock keepers at Salters Lode or Denver for crossing times when planning your trip.

This blog was written by Emily our general manager based on her boating holiday in May 2019

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Attribution: Wikipedia Oxyman

If you’ve been browsing the internet reading about narrowboats you probably think you have a good idea of what a narrowboat hire holiday is like. It’s just slowly drifting through narrow canals and English countryside with occasional stops at country pubs right?

Or is it? I thought I’d feature one of our more unusual cruises which offers four things that you don’t normally see on the English canals!

The March to Cambridge holiday presents a seventeenth century sluice, the home of Oliver Cromwell, a thousand year old cathedral, and a world famous university city.

1) Denver Sluice

Denver sluice was first built in 1651 and has suffered many mishaps, collapses, closures and repairs since. It famously held back the sea from drowning most of Cambridgeshire and Suffolk; and Dorothy L. Sayers based some dramatic events around it in her renowned 1930s novel, The Nine Tailors.

The sluice plays a vital role in the drainage of the fens. It is here you would leave the Middle Level Navigations to cross the tidal river Great Ouse. Read more in our article: Our Top Safety Tips for the Salters and Denver Tidal Crossing.

2) Oliver Cromwell’s birthplace

As you travel up the Great Ouse, you’ll discover St Ives, famous in medieval times for its international fairs, and now famous as the birthplace of Oliver Cromwell. Today it is a quiet market town with a variety of restaurants of different cultural origins from Italian, Chinese, Indian and a Greek Taverna. The town also has a number of pubs, hotels, tea rooms and cafes where you can eat. Lovely little shops can be found in Tudor style buildings and alleyways.

There are moorings at St Ives Quay (with a water point) and The Waites. Moorings are also available for customers at The Dolphin Hotel. Carry on cruising to Ely to visit Oliver Cromwell’s house.

3) Ely Cathedral

The famous lantern tower of this cathedral can be seen for miles around, but Ely is also known for its antique centres, ancient narrow streets, timbered houses and medieval gateways. The waterfront is popular among walkers, cyclists and boaters. When you visit the cathedral you’ll see the delicate carved stonework of the Lady Chapel, and the Stained Glass Window Museum is a hidden treasure within the cathedral, with a display of over 100 original stained glass panels.

4) Cambridge

Cambridge is a beautiful city bustling with students and bicycles. The architecture of the ancient colleges is truly stunning, and if you want to enjoy an alternative kind of boating you must try punting. A good way to take in the city is an open top bus tour. Shopping offers an intriguing mix of craft workshops, antique centres, jewellers, art galleries and familiar high street stores.

If you’d like a canal holiday with a difference this journey offers a variety of “one off” experiences. Have a look at our full itinerary of cruises for more ideas on which places to visit.

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One summer we decided it was time to venture onto the waterways between Northampton, Ely and Cambridge. As this area of the country was new to us, we asked the Hotelboat Mafia who to talk to. Everybody recommended Fox Narrowboats as being the experts in and on these waterways. They were wonderful, and gave us lots of great tips about which local towns and villages we should visit, and which of the little rivers were worth investigating.

We loved our six weeks cruising this area – the waterways are so different to any others we’d travelled.

These were the things we and our guests loved most about cruising from March to Ely:

1. Super-friendly lock-keepers, who came out to help us work through the locks, sometimes with their whole family!

2. Surprise seal sightings on the tidal stretch between Denver Sluice and Salters Lode.

3. Big skies – Canals and rivers tend to follow the contours of the land, meaning lots of lovely rolling hills, but no stunning horizons, not here though!

4. Upwell and Outwell – the two villages that run either side of the Well Stream, it’s like cruising down the middle of the road, and the names raised a smile too.

5. Wind farms – there is something very surreal about boating through fields of huge wind turbines.

6. Kingfishers, kingfishers, c! We recorded over 30 sightings in one day – no photos though, you’ve got to be quick to get a picture of a kingfisher.

7. The River Nene… pronounced Neen at one end and Nen at the other, obviously.

Without the help of Paula and the team at Fox Narrowboats, we wouldn’t have had nearly such a good time; they helped with the planning, gave us a great mooring and full service for our guest changeovers – they even took in our huge Tesco shop for us, when we were a little bit late arriving – it completely filled their living room!

If you’ve never been, then you should call and book your trip today, I wonder how many kingfishers you’ll see?

This is a guest post by Corinne Thomsett

http://www.uk-va.com

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