This is a high number for our local waterway.
Here we see them at the turning point, close to where Spring's jam factory once stood.
This bulge in the river was to allow barges delivering to nearby wharves to turn round and head off back towards South Ferriby, the River Humber and Hull.
Senior Brigg Blog followers may remember an old barge abandoned on this stretch of the river which remained semi-submerged for many years.
Now it's autumn, could we suggest the swans have left their cygnet-ture on the river for 2015?
1. In the next few months, dad swan (cob) will appear to get nasty towards his off-spring....Dad will chase the young swans away. This is nature way of ensuring the family genes are well dispersed as the immature swans find other water courses to live.
ReplyDeleteThey will then form 'teenage' groups of mixed genes...and after about another two years they will bound with a mate....have kiddies...and after a time, Dad will chase them away......ie nature repeating itself.
2. As for the Turning Circle...non-powered barges needed the help of manpower to turn the craft to face the other way.
Powered barges use their engine and their rudder.......Large powered craft gently ease the bow into the bank, or wall.....then keeping the power on, turn the tiller, which, in turn turns the rudder......A burst on the throttle and the turned rudder creates a stern thruster in which the thrust is diverted somewhat sideways causing the barge to pivot about the bow, which is contact with the bank/wall.
Before the hull is allowed to slam sideways into the bank/wharf.....reduce throttle, turn tiller the other way and then give it a burst of power.....it acts the as reverse thrust on an aircraft after landing.
Narrowboat skippers use this technique to turn their long craft around in the confined space on canals.....
Modern, sophisticated craft......liners to river cruisers, now often have bow....and probably stern thrusters.......ie powered props that spew out water streams sideways.
ReplyDeleteThis allows craft to travel sideways and get into narrow mooring slots.....or alternatively, slip out of a mooring....without the past need to undertake numerous manouvres without the danger of colliding with other vessels in the process...