Red Wharf On The Trent

[ValandPete]

Thanks Tony, I've saved this info. Perhaps I will use it in the future! I read your posts with interest, rivers and tides fascinate me, your knowledge is awesome.

 

When we were planning our trip I got the tide table and up to date river guides and prepared for the trip, planning times to leave Torksey and then the lock from the Chesterfield Canal to leave the river at Keadby. I enjoyed doing this, learning something new etc. However none of the lock keepers agreed with my timings and we were only allowed onto the river when they said we could go.

 

The difference in time was hours. Of course I may have totally miscalculated however there was no opportunity for discussion so I could understand what was going on. The lock keepers were obviously in touch with each other and I do remember thinking at the time that we were boating to their timetable not ours.

 

I will never have the confidence to challenge them of course, and now I doubt I will have the opportunity or courage to do so.

 

Or perhaps I will?!?

 

Val

[matty40s]

Tony guessed my arrival time at Cromwell bottom gates within 7 minutes.

[Naughty Cal]

Thanks Tony, I've saved this info. Perhaps I will use it in the future! I read your posts with interest, rivers and tides fascinate me, your knowledge is awesome.

 

When we were planning our trip I got the tide table and up to date river guides and prepared for the trip, planning times to leave Torksey and then the lock from the Chesterfield Canal to leave the river at Keadby. I enjoyed doing this, learning something new etc. However none of the lock keepers agreed with my timings and we were only allowed onto the river when they said we could go.

 

The difference in time was hours. Of course I may have totally miscalculated however there was no opportunity for discussion so I could understand what was going on. The lock keepers were obviously in touch with each other and I do remember thinking at the time that we were boating to their timetable not ours.

 

I will never have the confidence to challenge them of course, and now I doubt I will have the opportunity or courage to do so.

 

Or perhaps I will?!?

 

Val

You should. If you don't agree with their timings tell them.

 

We always do our own times and they don't argue the point with us anymore.

 

Of course you have to work around the time they can actually get you in and out of the locks!

[Tony Dunkley]

You should. If you don't agree with their timings tell them.

 

We always do our own times and they don't argue the point with us anymore.

 

 

Encouraging boaters with little or no knowledge, and very limited experience of a tidal river such as the Trent to attempt to work out their own tide timings is foolish and irresponsible, and likely to result in the sort of situation illustrated by this [your] captioned photo in an earlier topic of your boat waiting to float off on the next tide after grounding in a potentially dangerous location near the outer end of a shallow/drying ness between Mere Dyke and Burton Stather Jetty :~

 

. . . . . . We slowed to a crawl before deciding it was no longer wise to carry on and dropped the anchor before the beached the boat. It was a peaceful enough spot and with no water in the channel we were not causing an obstruction to navigation so we brewed the coffee, broke out the cheese and crackers and listened to some music whilst waiting for the tide to lift us back off the bottom."

Edited July 8, 2016 by Tony Dunkley

[Naughty Cal]

And?

 

That has what to do with the lock keepers?

 

You really must be running out of amo to keep trawling up posts from so very long ago. 2012 if I'm not mistaken?

[Dave123]

This might be a silly question but can you arrive to late for the pontoons at Torksey or Cromwell? Ie do they dry out at low tide?

[Naughty Cal]

This might be a silly question but can you arrive to late for the pontoons at Torksey or Cromwell? Ie do they dry out at low tide?

There is a bar forming across the cut at Torksey but if you don't cut the corner getting in you should clear it.

 

Having never stopped on the pontoon at Cromwell bottom side I can't comment on the depth there, however they have had the dredge there recently as a bar formed across the entrance to the lock there as well.

 

The pontoons at Torksey stay afloat at all states of tide.

[Tony Dunkley]

This might be a silly question but can you arrive to late for the pontoons at Torksey or Cromwell? Ie do they dry out at low tide?

 

No, not a silly question at all. There is always an adequate depth for pleasure craft on the pontoons below Cromwell Lock and in Torksey Cut at any state of the tide.

 

From what you said in your post #9 you will be coming upriver from Keadby, so the build-up of sand/mud at the outer end of Torksey Cut won't cause you any problems even if you do cut across the turn-in.

The build-up of sand/silt occurs only on the upriver side of the Cut entrance, and is due to the slowly circulating 'slack' at the Cut entrance dropping suspended sediments over the 10 hours of ebb that runs down there.

The greatest depth in Torksey Cut entrance is to be found by keeping closer to the steep downriver side edge of the bank, rather than the upriver side, as you turn in when coming from Keadby.

If you make the same sort of time/speed as most narrowboats seem to, then there won't be much tide, even on Springs, left under you by the time you get there, so you can turn straight in and whatever is left of the slowly circulating 'slack' there is on the flood won't hinder you if you keep plenty of way on.

Edited July 8, 2016 by Tony Dunkley

[Dave123]

That's great...thanks! We have a particularly shallow drafted narrowboat anyway so should be fine then

[Victor Vectis]

We went downstream into Keadby in Warrior, hitting the wall quite a clout on the way in. Once on the SSYN we stopped at the first rubbish point to get rid of our broken crockery. I opened the bin and it was full of broken crockery. Didn't feel such a duffer then.

Thanks for that Sarah.

I don't feel quite so bad about it now after reading your post!

 

Changing the subject..............

Once in the lock there was a lot of weed and swimming near the surface was a dark, snake like creature, about 4 - 6 inches long. What could it have been. A lamphray or a baby grass snake perhaps? I thought it might be an elver but I don't associate the Trent with eels.

 

Any offers folks?

[RLWP]

Trouser snake?

 

Richard

[Alan de Enfield]

Trouser snake?

 

Richard

 

Nah - Its a bit too big.

[Victor Vectis]

 

Nah - Its a bit too big.

You haven't been talking to my wife, have you?