It was a bit blustery yesterday, but no matter. I have a woolly hat, a jacket with a hood, and a scarf, that will keep me snug for a walk along the river.
The River Humber is very wide, and it's tidal, so the wind was creating waves. Just like being at the seaside. I parked at South Ferriby and went down onto the beach, for a walk towards Barton on Humber. I couldn't go the whole distance on the beach because the path which is part of the Viking Way, turns inland for a bit to avoid the boggy reed beds. At one point it goes around the edge of a farm, and then there is a track along the top of the bank. The wind really whipped across on that section.
The white stones give it the look of a paradise island, but it it hellish to walk any distance on it.
That's the cement works over there at South Ferriby, operated by Cemex UK.
I made it to the Humber Bridge, then turned round and headed back, by a slightly different route.
Almost back, I finished the walk off on the track above the beach. Into view came a boat. Quick get a photo. There are several small docks up river, and this boat was on it's way out to sea.
Then came another.
And another, they were following each other.
The river is difficult to navigate because of all the sandbanks. They can only go up and down it at certain times according to the tides. They zig zag across the water. You can see the blue boat just coming into view as it follows the green one around that buoy.
Well that was a bonus to see these, I didn't expect to see four boats. One had a Russian name, the others were H & S Wisdom, H & S Prudence, and Leiria. I've just been on the Marine Traffic web site and see that Leiria is at Moerdijk, Netherlands at the moment. It took one day and four hours to sail from Groveport UK. It was built in 2003, and sails under the flag of Antigua Barbuda. Fascinating eh!
I've just had a look to see where my yacht ILONA is at the moment. It is moored at Vilanova in Spain. The information on Marine Traffic used to be free, but like most sites now, if you want more details you have to sign up to a plan, which costs. It was through this web site that I found out where the ILONA yacht was moored at Canary Wharf for the Olympics in 2012, which prompted me to go down to London to see it. This is the
blog post about the visit. Oooops I digress, back to the walk. There is a pond at South Ferriby which is being looked after by volunteers. I remember years ago it was just a stinky manky mucky hole in the ground. Now the gardens have been cultivated and planted, a path has been laid, and a bench sited. It's very pretty.
It was a lovely walk, I really enjoyed it, and another five miles added to my total. I think some of these photo's are in the wrong order, but I think you get my drift.
Thanks for popping in. Toodle pip. ilona
It's nice to walk by The Humber. I have visited that pond myself. I guess the chalky beaches have taken many centuries to grow - with chalk from The Wolds - both Yorkshire and Lincolnshire.
ReplyDeleteI put some of those white pebbles into a tumbler once, hoping to buff them up and make them shiny. Of course it didn't work they just got smaller and smaller and disappeared altogether into the sludgy mess.
DeleteI always enjoy your walks. Interesting about those ships.
ReplyDeleteThank you. I am interested in any form of transport, whether it's on wheels, glides through the water, or takes to the skies.
DeleteThat was a lovely walk you took us on, thank you. I like the beach and the pond garden very much.
ReplyDeleteIt's like a private beach that not many people know about. Not a good place to sit though with the wind coming across the river.
DeleteSome of those photos look like a beach in Barbados.As though in the Summer you would expect to see tourist laying on sunbeds there!Its interesting to know that ships can be traced.I used to love watching the ships in Ramsgate harbour coming in and unloading all the German cars.They were backwards and forwards every few days and I would sit there for ages watching them when I was a kid.It looks like a lovely place where you live.To have the country side and a beach not far away!.You cant wish for more than that!xx
ReplyDeleteBulk carriers are very popular for moving grain, feed and fertiliser around Europe and the UK. They come up the river Stour to Ipswich all the time.
ReplyDeleteI have always been a great armchair traveller as like you I don't like crowds of people but I do love to see different parts of our world. I did venture abroad once, in 1976 to Rome. It was beautiful to say the least. But I get terribly homesick and these days, a day out is just fine. Thanks for sharing your walk, I was interested to hear there is a ship called Ilona!
ReplyDeleteI really envy your varied walks in your area. A good place to blow away the cobwebs.
ReplyDeleteI am amazed that you can go for walks, alone, through out your area and beyond! I live in the Midwest of the US. I enjoy being outside, walking and observing. I would not feel comfortable walking in the countryside alone... makes me a bit sad, but that is the way it is here. I have ancestors from Kent and Cambridge England. What an experience that would be to walk through those areas! You are fortunate to have that freedom.
ReplyDeleteI am lucky that I live in an area which is mainly rural so there are lots of open spaces to walk. My home town in the Midlands has grown so much over the past years, I think more caution would be needed there. Kent is very densely populated so I would be careful there to choose where I went. The county of Cambridgeshire has lots of open spaces, so I would be happy with that. It's all about using common sense and being aware of your surroundings.
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