Day Picnic on a Boat | Lee Valley Country Park | Lee Valley Boat Centre
River Lee which runs through the Lee Valley Country Park is the perfect place to spend some relaxing time cruising away on a boat or a pedalo. On Tuesday we had been on a day's picnic aboard "Mr Toad" - one of the day boats which is hired out by the Lee Valley Boat Centre in Broxbourne. "Mr Toad" which can accomodate 8 people on board has facilities like hot and cold running water, interior and exterior seating, WC, 3 burner hob, radio/CD player, crockery and cutlery.
This was the first time we sailed on a boat all by ourselves and the first half an hour or so was difficult - getting a hang of the controls was not easy. But then as we moved up the river, we picked up the trick. It was easy to manouevre the boat after that. This was also the first time we got around to operating 'Locks'. Most rivers in England have 'Locks' and 'Weirs' along the way. These lock and weir combinations are used for controlling the flow of water down the river, most notably when there is a risk of flooding, and provide for navigation above the tideway.
We travelled upstream for 4 hours taking in some wonderful views. We then moored at Stanstead Abbotts. Here we cooked our lunch on the boat, had our meal and relaxed for some time. We were visited by swans, goose and ducks. The water birds seem to be acustomed to visitors and were expecting some food. The husband knew about this, so we had gone prepared. Please carry some bird feed along if you plan to feed the birds - don't feed them bread as it is not good for them. After spending some time at Stanstead Abbotts we travelled back downstream crossing all the locks again , back to the Boat Centre.
If you want to hire the boat, get in touch with the Boat Centre at
Lee Valley Boat Centre | Old Nazeing Road, Broxbourne EN10 6LX or call 01992 462 085. From passenger boats for larger groups to small rowing boats for up to 4 person, the boat centre has boats/canoes for all group sizes and budgets.
This was the first time we sailed on a boat all by ourselves and the first half an hour or so was difficult - getting a hang of the controls was not easy. But then as we moved up the river, we picked up the trick. It was easy to manouevre the boat after that. This was also the first time we got around to operating 'Locks'. Most rivers in England have 'Locks' and 'Weirs' along the way. These lock and weir combinations are used for controlling the flow of water down the river, most notably when there is a risk of flooding, and provide for navigation above the tideway.
Related | Boating on the very beautiful Norfolk Broads
We travelled upstream for 4 hours taking in some wonderful views. We then moored at Stanstead Abbotts. Here we cooked our lunch on the boat, had our meal and relaxed for some time. We were visited by swans, goose and ducks. The water birds seem to be acustomed to visitors and were expecting some food. The husband knew about this, so we had gone prepared. Please carry some bird feed along if you plan to feed the birds - don't feed them bread as it is not good for them. After spending some time at Stanstead Abbotts we travelled back downstream crossing all the locks again , back to the Boat Centre.
If you want to hire the boat, get in touch with the Boat Centre at
Lee Valley Boat Centre | Old Nazeing Road, Broxbourne EN10 6LX or call 01992 462 085. From passenger boats for larger groups to small rowing boats for up to 4 person, the boat centre has boats/canoes for all group sizes and budgets.
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