WHAT’S THAT BIG YELLOW THING IN THE SKY???

Sykehouse Lock

Thorne to Doncaster via Goole, 35 miles, 5 locks, 5 swing bridges, 3 Lift bridges and 4 canals collectively known as the Sheffield and South Yorkshire Navigation.

At last we are getting some decent weather and the sun has decided to grace us with its presence. YIPPEE

Setting off from Thorne was slow, this was down to the first swing bridge, its a strange one, electric but you are responsible for shutting the gates. These are similar to the ones used in railway stations, with 2 gates which meet in the middle. If you don’t get them to click in place, then the bridge won’t move, and they can be awkward sods. It took me 2 attempts, and then you wait, the bridge is sooooo slow swinging open, I could have dozed off whilst I waited.

But we were through and on to the next obstacle, a lock with a swing bridge at one end. As we got there I could see a couple scratching their heads, they couldn’t get the bridge barriers to release to stop traffic and pedestrians. Off I went, read the instructions, well almost. They were coming down the lock, so we had to open the sluices, fill the lock, and then open the lock gates before the barriers would release and we could open the bridge. What a palaver. But it didn’t end there, to operate the lock you use a BW key, but to get your key back everything has to be shut up again, even if there are other boats waiting to use the lock. Well that’s unless you are willing to lock everyone else through and then get your key back. A simple solution was to swap keys, so we did, and then I swapped again with the next boat waiting to use the lock. Not the best system in the world. But hey ho that boating for you.

The swing and lift bridges on this stretch are all completely electric so all I have to do is insert my key and push a button. Great.

We decided to moor above Sykehouse Lock, this lock has a swing bridge in the middle, but it only requires pushing open and doesn’t require the lock to be empty or full. As we had lunch a narrowboat entered the lock coming our way, and that’s where it stayed as the top gates wouldn’t open. The Captain went off to see if he could help, and soon after I followed. They had already rung and informed CRT of the issue but were still trying to get the levels to equalise so the gates would open. Then 2 more narrowboats turned up. It soon became apparent that we would have to wait for CRT to sort it out. A very nice young man came all the way from Rotherham full of apologies at how long it took him to get there, I personally thought he had done very well. He soon had the gates open and the trapped boat was free. We decided to lock down whilst he was there just in case there was a problem next day, we didn’t want to get to stuck.

The run down in Goole was quiet for me, as there were no locks and only 2 bridges to do. The Knottingley and Goole canal is very wide and straight. The visitors moorings at Goole were full, but we snuck round the corner and moored on what looked like moorings that belonged to the marina, but there was no signage to say what was what, and a boater in the marina said others moor there, so we stayed put.

Goole is the most inland port in the UK, the port opened in 1826 but the town dates back to 1306. The barges that were used to transport coal were called Tom Pudding’s, and this is relevant later, the Tom Pudding Hoist which was used to transfer the coal into waiting ships is still standing, and the 2 distinctive water towers have the nicknames Salt and Pepper.

Salt and Pepper

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Goole

Ton Pudding Hoist

It was quite a walk into Goole, I am very sorry to say that what we found was a sad neglected town, the shops in the pedestrianised area are mainly closed, and what looked to be a large market hall is no longer in use. We did however find a great micro pub called The Tom Pudding (now you see). They had Jolly Collier stout by Jolly Boys Brewery for the Captain, and a great selection of bottled lager for me. They were a friendly bunch and we had a great time.

https://tompuddinggoole.co.uk/

There is a large Tesco, so after getting a few bits we got Mandy’s taxi back to the boat. £5 but well worth it.

The good weather continued when we left Goole the next day.

The curse of Sykehouse lock raised its head again, as we approached we could see a couple of boaters loitering at the control panel, so I hopped off to see if I could help. It was not good news, nothing was working, and the control panel only showed a fault light. Nothing for it, I had to call CRT. Whilst we waited we were joined by Nadine, an ex-sailing boat, and Hurley Mist a small yogurt pot. The queue above the lock grew too. Eventually a guy from CRT arrived, but he had problems and resorted to doing the lock manually, but he got us through and off we went. We were in the lead when I realised that Nadine and Hurley Mist had stopped, there was obviously a problem, so we waited at the lift bridge to see if we could help. Nadine’s engine was overheating, it is what is called a raw water cooled engine. With this type of engine water is taken from the river or canal to cool the engine, and it would appear that there was some sort of blockage stopping the intake of water. The Captain and Hurley Mist Captain offered all the help they could, whilst I dog sat a lovely but noisy pug called Daisy. But nothing could be done, so Nadine’s Captain took the decision to return slowly to Goole. Unfortunately when my Captain checked the CRT stoppages Sykehouse lock was still out of action for them to get back, and as was the next bridge on our journey had also developed a fault. What a day !!!!

Nadine turned round to head back, and we continued on and moored by the bridge in the hope it would be repaired next day. Amazingly CRT turned out just after tea and sorted the bridge so we could continue on our way next day. The controls are in a small brick building with a tin roof, and because there was no ventilation so everything overheated and shut down.

The rest of the trip into Doncaster went without a hitch, but when we reached the visitors pontoons they were full. Bugger. Then a very nice Aussie couple on NB Elbereth (Wollongong) offered to let us brest up against them for the night, so we did.

That’s all for now folks