Chasing the Swinderby by Steven Oakden – Part 3

A glorious sunny autumn day with clear visibility, a good day for my visit to Hull. The tide time was set for 11.03am. I went to see Pete Bayley first and check that the sailing was still on. After a chat with him I went up Lime Street and across to Sculcoates Bridge quickly working out that when the bridge was open there wouldn’t be any photos at this location.

Having been caught out on a previous visit by Swinderby being a bit earlier than expected I walked up to Wilmington with plenty of time. I decided to walk further up the river than usual and went past the railway bridge. I intended to try and get to Stoneferry to see the Swinderby on its wharf before departure. However, I found the surroundings very modern and along sections of Bankside I couldn’t access the riverbank. I decided that if I got to the wharf at Stoneferry I might have a rather long chase back to Wilmington!

I hung around quite a long time and checked out if there were any good positions on the other side of the river but there weren’t.  I had a quick chat with the bridgeman and eventually, very close to high water time, Swinderby appeared.

I wanted to get to the east side of the river for a change, so I then went down to Sculcoates bridge and crossed it making certain that I had plenty of time to do so before it opened for the barge. For a reason that escapes me I didn’t go to Scott Street and instead got to the south side of North Bridge. I was able to get quite a few photos there as Drypool Bridge wasn’t open yet.  I was pleased to do so with the old ship supplies building in the background and the former entrance to the Queens dock now a derelict dry dock.

I noticed that the high tide was due for 11.03 but although it was now after that, it was still rising very slowly and that it was low, as my photographs show. I got past the barge again deciding to go down by the entrance to Victoria Dock. Again, lots of photos. I suspect the low tide was the reason why Swinderby left Cargill’s wharf so close to high water.

I was aware that dumb (unpowered) barges had accessed the wharves on the river by going in reverse up stream. I hadn’t realised that this method of navigation applied to most craft using the river until I came across a film made in 1994. It shows ‘Mud Pilot’, as the River Hull pilots were known, John Drury taking a coastal tanker right up to Cargills wharf at Stoneferry:

I thought that this modus operendi was rather fun and somewhat outrageous, especially given the size of vessels such as the coastal tankers carrying edible oils on the river.  I just had to see this operation with my own eyes. I suspect that ex Hull rivermen wonder what all the fuss is about! 

I had been told at the start of the week that there would be an arrival of Swinderby on the Wednesday tide which was at 17.30pm. I checked with Pete Bayley and the only other time there might be an inward sailing in day light was on the Monday tide as there were no movements planned on the Tuesday. I decided I had to try and get to see Swinderby on the Wednesday. I had been given the information the previous week that movements from week starting 28^th November were going to be less, and on demand, rather than being scheduled as Cargills proceeded to wind down their operations. As it was the 23^rd November traffic was beginning to wind down already.

I went to Hull from Howden station on the 13.25 train in lovely sunlight after an atrocious morning of rain which was heavy at times. The views of the Wolds between Gilberdyke and Brough were superb. I decided to get down to the river straight away to reconnoitre likely photo spots. I went via the new bridge over the expressway and onto the Humber Dock and down to the pier head.

It was quite breezy and the tide flow in the Humber was swift despite the amount of fresh water that must have been coming down from the Trent and Ouse.

I looked at photo spots on Scale Lane Bridge and from the east side of the river. The east side didn’t give much access to the river, and I knew that the sun was better on the west side. Watching the Swinderby turn in the Old Harbour would have been wrong for the light on the east side, the low winter sun was going to create many shadows, not ideal for photography. I decided that Scale Lane footbridge would be where I would start. I had to kill time, during the wait the best thing I saw was a curlew probing the mud by the water’s edge. Then Swinderby appeared heading westwards up the Humber, it was travelling at quite a rate of knots compared to its cautious journeys down the river. This was due to its own speed being increased by the strong flow of the incoming tide. Swinging round it was carried past the River Hull entrance and disappeared from view taking several minutes for it to reappear stemming the tide. It entered the River Hull from the southwest as the entrance channel faces in that direction. The vessel slowed as it reached the calmer waters of the River Hull and smoothly came under Myton Bridge.

Once past Scale Lane footbridge and the former Whitaker’s quays, Swinderby’s engines boomed out as it was swung hard to starboard in order to swing. Due to a total lack of any dredging for years the method Tony the skipper had to employ was to run the bow of the vessel up on the mud in what should be a turning or swinging basin. Looking at the barge broadside it looked as if a lot of it was up on the mud, but the tide easily turned it and Swinderby slid off the mudbank and backwards towards the Drypool Bridge. Luckily for me this was still in the shut position to river craft, so I ran and managed to get the other side of Drypool Bridge as Swinderby edged past waiting for North Bridge to open.

By running/walking again I headed up Wincolmlee to the site of Scott Street Bridge having plenty of time to compose my photos of the barge as it slowly came backwards down river requiring frequent bursts of ahead to maintain its position and orientation and the deckhand was out with a fender, just in case.

I then managed to get some more photos between the mills as the barge passed Dean’s Marine. It was then off up Cumberland Street, so I headed up to the quayside just before Rix’s depot. I had a long wait here, more than if the barge had been just slow. Did it have to wait for the bridgeman or was it waiting for more water in the river? I doubt it as there was obviously plenty of water in the main channel.  I suspect they had to wait for a bridge man to come down from one of the other two swing bridges. The light was beginning to fade now, and it was 3.30 by the time Swinderby, came past me.

I was able to chat with the deckhand as Swinderby was now in a tight spot, there was plenty of water but it was on a bend. He told me he didn’t know what the agenda was for the next weeks operation, even if there were any, but that the short trips from Cargill’s to Croda would still carry on. I then got upstream of Wilmington Bridge to see the Swinderby the last time on this trip.

More photos were taken but it was getting gloomy, 4pm was approaching and my photography for the day was over. I hotfooted it back to Hull city centre and Café Nero for a much looked forward to Americano and luck was in, one apricot croissant remained! It was then back on the 16.50 train to Howden after a very worthwhile sortie to see the barge going backwards up river on the tide. The only time I was to witness the operation, another very worthwhile trip to see a tradition about to end.

Today was a bit of a long shot in that Swinderby was due off Stoneferry at 9.30am for a 10.06 high tide. All well and good as my train would arrive at 8.50 a.m. but… being morning, I was expecting the best light to be on the east side of the river. It turned out to be very misty, even foggy. My initial concerns were delays to the trains and how foggy it would be in Hull. I also wondered if I would have time to ask permissions to go on private land to get photographs, I needed this as the riverside was hard to access east side of the river.

The train was only 5 mins late, mainly due to slipping when leaving and cautious approaches to stations. I beetled off in what I thought was the direction of the river but had in fact gone a bit wrong as I was finding myself walking past the New Theatre. I was too far north so I cut through some back roads and past the Hull History Centre and then past the FE college and over North Bridge.  I went into the Yorkshire Dry Dock companies’ former yard to see if I could use the riverside there to photograph. Going upstairs in the Environment Agencies temporary office block permission was rapidly given so it was off up Lime Street to see if I could in get in at IBL’s Forge Wharf. Luckily the foreman was in, and he readily gave permission as I had a hi-vis jacket with me. I had a longer wait than I thought I might.  I was studying the old railway lines in IBL’s yard and the decrepit buildings across the river still in use when I heard what I thought were the warning sounds at Sculcoates Bridge signalling it was about to swing open.

Even so it was 9.45 am when Swinderby eventually came into view round Eagle Bight, going somewhat faster than expected.

I got busy taking various photos and got a wave from Tony as they came past, he must have recognised me as ’that fella that chases us on foot.’

I then ran out of the yard hoping to get to Scott Street Bridge before they did. I was very keen to get a photograph from the east side at this location with the old mill and W & J Olivers works in the background. Luckily, I made it.  A guy having a smoke at the bridge didn’t like the look of me, it was probably the heavy breathing from my running, and he hurried away!  Swinderby appeared, now going at a slow pace as it came round the bend from High Flags and passed the tin opener steelwork that remains from the bridge.

I then ran/walked to the EA yard at Lime Street. Swinderby had cut its engines as North Bridge was still down, with road traffic on it.

After banging off a trio of shots I then hot footed up Lime Street and to the riverside opposite the dry docks to photograph Swinderby coming through the bridge.

It then had to wait for more red lights before Drypool Bridge was opened. I was able to get onto Scale Lane Bridge down in the Old Harbour and got loads of photos of Swinderby slowing coming down river.

I had managed to photograph it on five locations despite only starting off at Eagle Bight. I then walked to see Pete Bayley. He confirmed that Swinderby had trips booked for the next two days, so despite warnings, this week looked like a normal one with a question mark over the Friday as nothing had been booked for the bridge openings. Pete told me that Tony the skipper had an interview with the Yorkshire Post the next day.