Whittlesey final arrival - 4th May

And so my crew finally bring my royal barge to Whittlesey.

At Old Crown Lane my court pays homage and swears allegiance.

I can return home to the West Country confident that my kingdom is secure in the East

And so to Fotheringhay - May 2nd

My subjects come to greet me.

We moor for the night at Fotheringhay.  The natives appear to be friendly.

My loyal subject hear of my imminent arrival and journey out to greet me bearing gifts of chicken and sundry other goodies.

However I learn that Richard III was born in the castle here and Mary Queen of Scots stayed here and neither of them had a happy ending, so I move on quickly.......tricky business this monarchy game.....I realise I must be careful with my confidences.

Wildlife of the Nene

On down the Nene

One of the essentials on any voyage for a King and Captain is to observe and bark at wildlife from the rear deck.  I even saw a wild otter but the crew were too slow with the camera.

Northampton to Peterborough - 29th April to 3rd

Curiosities of the River Nene

The guillotine locks that are needed for flood control.  OK but slow if they come with an electric power hoist for the gate, but very hard work on the ones raised manually with a large hand wheel.

User friendly gates in the lock compound fencing.

And pedestrians carrying giant bananas.