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XXI
FROM NORTHAMPTON TO THE WASH ON THE RIVER NENE
AFTER a pleasant experience on the Great Ouse from Bedford to King's Lynn on the Wash, our party decided to spend the next vacation on the River Nene -or Nen - another important and neighbouring river in Northamptonshire. Northampton was practically the starting point for this cruise, although we really did our journey from Gayton or Blisworth on the Grand Junction Canal, thereby making the link of communication with that canal to the junction of river. The distance is some five miles with seven locks, the greater number of which are grouped together not far from the start, and there is nothing much to remark about this portion, further than that it is kept in fair condition. It is a far cry from the London Docks, but barges are navigable from there right up to these parts. The Grand Junction referred to we had already navigated from Brentford to Braunston, Northants (some 95 miles), and by accomplishing these few miles we did still another of the numerous branches of this large canal system.
At Northampton, our starting point for the Nene was Collins' boathouse at the bridge, and where we had procured our "good ship," a skiff, fully equipped for the voyage. Before going afloat we made a detour of the town, and viewed all the important sights, then, after obtaining our pass, paying the dues, and procuring the necessary lock keys, winches and crowbar, the captain gave the command "all aboard," and we were off on our long cruise.
Our crew was made up of three old river men and our usual handy man. I use the term " old," as it is just a quarter of a century since three of the present crew (with another for the present in South America) did a good day's work on the Thames, pulling in a skiff from Thames Ditton to Windsor Bridge and back in one day, a distance of about 45 miles. That trip, we well remember, was a non-stop one and was done under 12 hours.
We were all fit and ready for a spell of work, but with a useful breeze springing up, we were induced to hoist our sail to take advantage of it. The river is well known for its winding character, but notwithstanding, we sailed all the way down the 18½ miles to Irthlingborough under the most delightful and perfect conditions.
The locks were numerous and these we had to work ourselves. They are in fair condition, although requiring a deal of handling in some cases, through their comparative disuse. These occur about every mile or so, and consequently we had our work cut out for us, and we were at it all day from 10 a.m. until 9 p.m. After passing several small villages on the route we at length reached Irthlingborough, our halting place, where we put up at the Bull Inn.
We had all sorts of reports about the condition of the river, even to the extent that it would be impossible for us to navigate the through journey. As to this we were agreeably surprised, and we found with one or two exceptions, as at Ditchford, where we encountered weeds and rushes, that it was a fine and attractive river, well worth doing.
Our progress was slow on this canalized river, with the lock stoppages, and instead of doing say 30 miles per day as we did on the Ouse, we could only manage about twenty miles on these reaches, and we found it would be impossible for our launch to travel on the waterway for the through journey.
The second day we were early astir and had the usual look round the town, in which there is not much to be seen except a town cross of apparent antiquity in the market square, but as to its history, there seems to he little local knowledge.
Irthlingborough is a comparatively large town some 5,000 inhabitants, and, like Northampton, is also engaged in the boot-making industry.
Our crew was here reinforced by another member from town, "our medical" and strong man of the party, and now with a full crew of five, we were ready for anything, making up a pleasant party, keen on river and canal work.
And now for the Nene once more.
The favourable breeze continuing, we again hoisted our sail, notwithstanding the restless energy of the crew, and soon we were spinning away down stream at a great pace. Nearing Woodford Mill, a pretty spot, the wind was blowing half a gale and away went the step of our mast, which mishap created "cussory" comment. This looked like upsetting our sailing programme, but we were fortunate to get our damage repaired, and were soon off again at full speed, and shortly after we came to Denford, a sleepy looking place where we landed for lunch by the lock side. Here the scenery is not quite so striking as on the earlier reaches, but it gradually improves as you progress, especially after Thrapston. This improvement continues until Lilford Lock is reached, and here the beauty of the surroundings attains its height; in fact it is described as the prettiest and most attractive scenery on the river.
We saw this to rare advantage, especially at the point near the lock where there is a picturesque bridge, and below is a fine old mansion, the property of Lord Lilford. One feature in these parts is the number of mills at the locks, mostly, however, now in disuse; another is the numerous church spires on the route, and never have we seen so many in all our wanderings. They pop up in all directions, even where there are no apparent signs of habitation. At one point - Thrapston - it is said that by going to the top of the rising ground, you can see as many as thirty-two of these prominent landmarks. None of the crew, however, showed any great desire to verify this, so we took it for granted. These steeples we observed were all more or less of one type, there being a decided absence of the towers in Northants.
The lower locks on the route are well constructed and in better preservation than the others, having quite a modern appearance. This looks as if the Nene river authorities had made a good bid for traffic in the past, but the later encroachments of the railway companies had upset all chances of success commercially This, in a word, is another example of the futile efforts to compete with the modern railways. The Commission on canals may do good, generally speaking, but I have come to the conclusion that it is simply a waste of time and money to try and develop them in many cases. When canals proper were built, now about a century ago, the routes were chiefly along the valleys, being so constructed for economical reasons, whereas, perhaps, the populous towns do not generally lie on the canal routes, and it has been our experience that for miles and miles one traverses uninhabited country
After sailing about three parts of our day's journey of 20 miles we at length reached Oundle (Northants) late in the evening We had some difficulty in seeing our way in the dark, but finding a friendly pilot on the bridge, he directed us to row our craft under one of the side arches, where we pulled her up high and dry. Two of our crew went to the hotel to procure a trap to convey our baggage, and soon after we found ourselves safely housed at the Talbot Hotel as the town clock struck ten. Our stay at this hotel was a pleasant one. It is an old type of house with exceedingly interesting associations, as the very stones that the house is built of came from Fotheringay Castle, and the staircase, also from the old castle, is a fine example in old oak.
History relates that Mary, Queen of Scots, was imprisoned and beheaded in Fotheringay Castle, which was situated a short distance from Oundle, and James I demolished the castle to obliterate all associations of the place; and all that now remains is simply a cairn of stones.
Oundle, which is said to be a contraction in name of Avondale, is an old-fashioned town with no particular indication of how the inhabitants thrive, but the Grocers' Company of London have a fine large school here, of considerable architectural pretensions.
Pleasure boating is not much indulged in up this way, notwithstanding the natural advantages for it, but we were pleased to note that the Oundle school boys had their rowing club and boathouse. So far as we could trace, there are only a few motor boats on this river, one being a covered lifeboat, made into a houseboat with a stern wheel arrangement. The weeds do not tend to encourage the pastime.
Our journey down was an agreeable surprise, as the scenery and surroundings were of such a character as to be quite a revelation to us, with the fine long stretches, ample water and well wooded banks. This is not confined to some reaches, but is continuous more or less, all the way down to Peterborough.
There is one thing that strikes the traveller coming down the Nene, and that is the paucity of towns or villages en route; in fact in such a populous county, from Northampton to Peterborough, in a distance of some 60 miles, we should reckon a couple of thousand would be a good estimate of the population, actually by the river bank. All this goes again to prove the contention as to the reason for the non-development of the waterways. It may, however, be said that the Nene Navigation is largely maintained and used for drainage purposes for which rates are levied on the adjoining lands. The Nene, with all its attractions, might be described as an unassuming river. Its flow is of a particularly slow character; in fact it is said to be the third slowest flowing river in Europe.
After a very pleasant run down stream we eventually reached Peterborough - that fine cathedral city - and here we put up at the Grand Hotel. At this point the river becomes tidal and we made an early start at 7.30 on our fourth day, so as to catch the ebb down to Sutton Bridge, 27 miles ahead. The course from Peterborough Bridge is an extraordinarily straight one, perhaps the straightest one in England for the long distance. It is very uninteresting, and for the greater part of the way cannot be described much better than as a tidal waterway.
As it turned out, there was again a particularly fine breeze in our favour, and we hoisted our canvas once more, and sped down the whole distance to Sutton Bridge in fine style, and had as delightful an experience as one could wish for.
We passed Wisbech (Cambs) on the way and reached our destination shortly after noon, doing the 27 miles in 5 hours, or 5 miles an hour, a fine bit of sailing for such a craft as an ordinary Thames skiff.
It is curious to note how such a fine river should change its character so suddenly as it does, yet the same might be said of the Ouse from Denver Sluice to King's Lynn, where the river banks become steep and uninteresting. At some parts of the route even in the tidal way, it becomes so narrow that it is not even broad enough for sculling purposes. Navigation is carried on up to Peterborough, but not very satisfactorily, as the shallow depth of water at places is a drawback, and we passed four laden barges which had been there five days waiting for the better tides.
The Nene, strangely enough for such a lengthy river, has very few tributaries; and as to the tides they run very strong, with a heavy rise and fall in the lower reaches where the river becomes wider.
It may be mentioned that at Sutton Bridge there is a large disused dock of about 10 acres in extent, constructed some thirty years ago. Misfortune, however, overtook it, for just after everything was practically completed and a steamer had made its entry, the dock collapsed through the action of shifting quicksands. It has never been repaired, and the money ventured was lost; and now it remains a melancholy derelict of wasted energies. Shipping, however, is carried on to Wisbech, about seven miles higher up the estuary, for steamers carrying up to as much as 2,000 tons.
Our impression of this river was a favourable one: with its natural beauties and attractions on the upper reaches, which came to us as a surprise:
The distances travelled were as follows : -
| Miles. | Locks. | Staunch. | |
| From Blisworth (Northants)to Northampton Grand Junction Canal | 5 | 7 | |
| Northampton to Irthlingborough | 18½ | 15 | 1 |
| Irthlingborough to Oundle | 19½ | 10 | 3 |
| Oundle to Peterborough | 22½ | 8 | 6 |
| Peterborough to Sutton Bridge (Lincs) | 27 | ||
| __ | __ | __ | |
| 92½ | 50 | 10 | |
| __ | __ | __ |
CANAL DEVELOPMENT. - The following letter by the author of this book appeared in the Shipping Gazette of February 5th, 1914 :-
The question of canal development is again before the public, and perhaps you will permit a few lines on this subject from one who has travelled over 2,000 miles on the waterways of this country.
There is much to be said in favour of the said development, especially in the direction where there are such industries as collieries, brickfields, or quarries and like concerns.
I would, however, particularly advocate their use within a radius of, say, 50 miles or so from a seaport town, for the good reason that the heavy dock and landing dues on general goods for distribution are thereby avoided. Beyond these advantages caution might be observed, as there are numerous difficulties to be overcome, the water supply being the chief, and no comparison in that direction can be made with such countries as Holland and Germany, with their natural advantages. Where the water has to be utilized by artificial means the expense would be so costly as to eliminate any advantage there is in the difference between the canal and railway rates, and, after all, the whole contention is to effect an economy. The writer has also found in his travels that the canals in England do not, generally speaking, pass through populous towns, likely to encourage heavy and paying waterborne traffic.
Furthermore, the all-important point of wages must not be overlooked, as the canal boatman, if such development did take place, might not accept the rate of remuneration he is now receiving.
These are points that want looking into seriously, and that on the top of the vast amount of capital required for such a reconstruction as is suggested.
Pictures related to this cruise
Charming Scene on the Nene (Lilford)
Irthlingborough, Northants, the Village Cross
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