Ain't life grand, sleeping ducklings in Ely
As the river was nice and wide where we were moored (Mile End road) we opted to wind there instead of travelling the full length of the river. It was dead easy really, just let the bow rope off and push the bow out into the gentle flow of the river which took the boat round nicely. Once the bow was far enough round I just untied the stern and walked it back a few yards until the bow was pointing in the right direction and we were away. We only went less than half a mile to the Prickwillow moorings which are on the opposite bank to where we had been moored, but this mooring has a water point which we both needed.
Leaving the River Lark and turning out onto the Great Ouse is like leaving port and hitting the open sea, plenty of water and not another boat in sight. As it is a dead straight run to Ely we made good time and upon arrival soon found the facilities block before finding our moorings for the night at the end of Jubilee park.
We made a quick trip into town for some provisions and had lunch at the Cathedral while we were there. With this warmer weather we are going to have to cut back on storing fresh vegetables and buy them little and often now as we have had to throw away half a bag of carrots and a broccoli which went off in the heat.
Getting back to the subject of the cathedral It was interesting to note that the Cathedral was started about 1081 and took decades to complete. A big sign at the door has a friendly welcome but lets you know that it costs £3000 per day to run and maintain the building. To do this they charge up to £6 entry fee unless you only go into the coffee lounge for a snack or the souvenir shop where they can extract a few quid from you. Of course all the people staffing the establishment are volunteers trying to help keep the cathedral viable.
Oliver Cromwell's house in Ely
1131 locks, 1514 miles, 41 Tunnels, 41 swing bridges and 19 lift bridges since Nov 2006
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