Friday, 24th June
Today we travelled to St. Ives.On the way, we were going through a lock when a man came and asked us to look out for two youths. They'd stolen a boat from his yard. He described the boat, but sadly we didn't see it. The heavens opened as we travelled along and we got soaked. So, a change of clothes later, and off we set. But then the rain really came down. There was thunder and ightning, and the rain was the heaviest we'd ever seen. It just fell out of the sky. We moored up on The Waits mooring in the centre of St. Ives in the storm, and changed clothes yet again. This seemed like a nice mooring, but at around 2.00 a.m. the local night club closed and the happy clubbers congregated on the grass right by our boat. They stayed there for an hour or so, making quite a lot of noise and using some choice language, but left eventually. Then I couldn't get back to sleep until about 5.30 a.m.

Saturday, 25th June
We continued on our way back downstream. We called in at Earith for fuel and at last we got to see the seal! Sorry there aren't any pictures, but it was only her nose sticking above the water, and quite a distance away!

We moored up on some GOBA moorings. These GOBA moorings have been really good, and it was well worth the GBP17 it cost to join. I hope also that we've helped the Association with our contribution. We met some people who suggested that one could moor on the GOBA moorings without being a member, because they never check the moorings. But that's not quite in the spirit of the thing, is it?

Sunday, 26th June
Today we're aiming to meet friends, Margaret and Alastair, and moor up with them. I mentioned some time ago that four sets of friends were coming "out east". Well, of the four sets, one set went to France (not by boat, but with their car and caravan), one set changed its mind, a third set (Jean and Brian) did it but we missed them and the people we're going to meet today are the fourth set! I met Margaret on a patchwork course and we've kept in touch. We met them and moored up on a GOBA mooring at Otter's Reach, which isn't near anywhere in particular, right out in the sticks. We spent a pleasant few hours with them and in the evening we watched a DVD I'd bought--Ladies in Lavender. I thought it would be good, it had Judi Dench and Maggie Smith in it, and had had a good write up. But it was really quite boring and didn't seem to have any real plot. However, it passed an evening.

Monday, 27th June
Maragret and Alastair are on the way to Bedford, we're on the way back, so we said goodbye, and expect to meet again later in the summer, as they're intending to do the same route as us. I don't think I've told you our plans after we finish on the Nene? Well, we plan to travel north along the Grand Union to Braunston, on to the South Oxford Canal to Oxford, and then up the Thames to its source. This isn't the white knuckle trip but we did last year, but the gentle upper reaches, which we also did last year. We hope to meet Jean and Brian up there, too, as they're going that way.

Today we travelled on to Ely and moored up. I have to catch a train to Stratford-on-Avon tomorrow, as I have to have a routine mammogram. There was only one space left at Ely, so we moored up quickly! We went to The Lamb for lunch. We went there when we came through Ely before, but it was rather disappointing today. After lunch, I went to Ely Cathedral again, as I wanted another look around. It really is a beautiful building and I spent a couple of hours in there.

Tuesday, 28th June
I caught the 8.17 train to Birmingham, changed stations and trains, and went to Stratford, where my friend Malcolm picked me up and took me home for lunch. Then it was off for the mammogram. I had about an hour to wait for the train from Staratford to Brum, so went to the library to use the internet. Then, back on the train to Birmingham, a free hour and a half in Birmingham, which I spent in Waterstones browsing the books, and back to Ely by 8.00 p.m.! Twelve hours for a five minute appointment! I enjoyed the train journey, it went through some new countryside for me. From Ely, the train went through March, Peterborough, Oakham, Stamford, Melton Mowbray, Leicester and Nuneaton.

Wednesday, 29th June
So at last, we could set off for Denver and Salter's Lode. We did fourteen miles and arrived there quite early in the afternoon. We had 'phoned the lock keeper on the way, and he had said we could go through at about 2.00 p.m. However, when we arrived, he apologised and said that he wasn't happy for us to go through today. There was a relief lock keeper on duty at Salter's Lode, and he wasn't sure he'd know what to do with a 70' narrowboat! The regular lock keeper would be on duty tomorrow, and he would prefer we went through with him. If that was how he felt, then we were happy to go along with him! So we moored up and spent the night just above Denver Sluice.

Thursday, 30th June
We had most of the day to wait as we were going to go through at about 4.00 p.m. Eventually the time came and we presented ourselves at Denver Lock. I was a bit concerned about this return trip. I'd heard that some people have a problem getting in to the lock as they go downstream with the current. It's a very narrow channel to aim for. When the lockie opened the gate, the channel was full, quite different to when we came up from Salter's Lode a month ago. The tide was on the turn, so fortunately there wasn't a current. It's not very easy to see where you're aiming for, there aren't any signs and the lock is tucked behind a spit of land.

However, we remembered where it had been when we came up, and found the lock.

It really is a narrow channel and at a very acute angle to the river. But, as usual, my Captain took it all in his stride and we made the turn and got in to the lock without touching the sides! The lock keeper said he gives people marks out of ten, and awarded Trev ten points!

The lock keeper also said that he would have to keep us in the lock for about an hour, until the river level equalised with the level of the Middle Level. So we made a cup of tea and waited. Three hours later, the water still hadn't equalised, and the lockie said that they'd been having a lot of problems this year. The water often didn't equalise, something to do with the siltation in the river channel. In the end, he had to winch the gates open, and we sailed out on to The Middle Level. We made for Outwell, and found the first place to eat, which was The Crown, a very nice restaurant with its own mooring. We had a good meal there, and stayed on the moorings overnight.

Now we're on The Middle Level, I feel safe! I was a little apprehensive all the time we were on the other side of Denver Sluice, it seemed such a long way from home--wherever that is. It was all unknown territory, and everything was so different from the canals we're used to. Now I'm looking forward to the rest of the trip!

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