Wye Invader - The Impossible journey?
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 11 ก.ค. 2024
- In 1989 the 38 metre (124 foot) Dutch Barge "Wye Invader" sailed across the Channel, round the South Coast, into the Severn Estuary then up the River Wye to Hereford, the largest vessel to navigate the River Wye, including the famous Symonds Yat Rapids, in over 150 years. This is a record of the journey filmed by the crew on VHS video. 23 years later in 2012/13 she was to return back down the River Wye, but that's another story...... wyeinvader.uk
Wye Invader would like to thank the following, without whose help the ‘impossible’ journey would not have been possible:
Pat (former business partner) and Brenda Hooker
The James family - Big John, Madeline, David, Little John & Sally for their continued support and the video of the journey
Harry Sandra and Richard Barton
Fiona Gurney
Bernard Jessop (Narrowboat Buccaneer)
Tony & Gerald Gardiner (Boatmen - Symonds Yat)
LAD REME from Stirling Lines Hereford - (Ballast removal)
and lastly, The Goodwin Family for our Hereford mooring for 20 years.
![[TH] VCT Pacific Stage 2 - Playoffs Day 1 // GEN vs RRQ | TLN vs TS](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/JhkzKOhvOps/mqdefault.jpg)
What shame on the people who objected - The voyage was undoubtedly historic and courageous. Navigating rivers is the most hazardous thing you can do with a boat, especially a flat bottom one. Well done to all. I did not imagine that this was going to be such an exciting video, and most interesting too. Edge of the seat stuff one might say. Great effort!!
I now understand why you sound so chilled navigating Wye Invader 2
I’ve only just discovered your channel. I’m lost for words, at the wonder of what you’ve done with both the boats featured in these videos. I’ve been boating for over 60 years, at sea and on inland waterways, including narrow boats and have never seen such wonderful documentaries. Thanks for the entertainment and the motivation!
For those that try and succeed in there endeavours you’ve got to have the utmost respect for. That Sir is an achievement you should be proud of 👍
Although it is years later.... This voyage brings a smile to my face. Can Do Must Do is the spirit of adventure. Lots of memories of how I Did It My Way👍👍👍👍
Incredible Journey !
Totally brilliant mate! You have balls of steel! I spent 7 years working on the traditional sailing barges in Holland and the Loggers, sea going schooners. I've crossed the atlantic on them and as far north as Sweden. Even been rescued by French coastguard whilst crossing the channel in a luxmotor. T thought I'd seen it all....... until I saw this! 5 Star and I know what nerve it takes! I'll buy you a pint or 8 when I meet you! Cheers
Loved every second of your trip.
What a complete Nob that landlord was !...those overhanging willows or whatever ,could have been cut right back with absolutely no harm done ,and are totally regenerative .
Words can hardly describe how epic this journey was. I am a commercial inland skipper myself, so i know a thing or 2 about hard to navigate rivers. But this is something else completely.
Hats of to you and your crew, sir!
In 1959 I was a Cadet in the New Zealand Shipping Co Ltd on board the MV Rakaia. I was also a Choice Quartermaster which meant I was one of 3 out of 32 Cadets who had the privilege of steering the ship through difficult passages,
I can tell you without doubt that you would have also made it to Choice Quartermaster status. Fantastic journey. Congratulations.
you are one amazing bloke
fifteen years ago myself and my mate paddled down the wye and I was so amazed to come around a corner and find your barge
D
Fantastic inspiring story!!! What an amazing vision you had and saw it through as far as you could. I can't imagine how frustrating the bureaucrats must have been whilst trying to bring a wonderful attraction to Hereford. People like you make the world a better place!!!
Fantastic movie, I'm well impressed. I owned and lived on the 24m Dutch Luxemotor barge mv Lucia for six years, so I know exactly how hard what you did was. Hy hat, is very definitely off to you...
What a cracking video skipper,I was on you tube and this was recommended,by did I enjoy it.
Brilliant helmsmanship,took me back to my days as a young fisherman of the wash and later as a mate/engineer on coasters sailing from Boston to Europe.
What a rubberhead that landlord was!!
They do say there's nowt as queer as folk.
this is the best video I have seen to date at times I was on the edge of my seat will dun 1st class
well done great effort by everybody and you had me hooked from the start.
What an epic journey! Well done!
Geweldig
What a fantastic story - thanks
This is amazing camera work for the late 80's, lovely video. :3
madeline james work of hereford
A fantastic journey. Great filming and editing. Cheers.
Brilliant -quite the most enjoyable video I have seen for years. Great seamanship with a well tempered sense of humour and skill. Happy, enthusiastic support team and crew. Thank goodness for a stout reliable engine! Thank you for posting - would be nice to have a follow-up! Henry (Strictly landlubber and follow of preserved Rail/Steam)
Henry, many thanks for the kind comments. The follow up ((23 years later) is here: th-cam.com/video/nailxdPq40c/w-d-xo.html and there's more info on the Wye Invader website here: wyeinvader.uk/
Excellent video just watched this and the return video.
ooooo my trees, at least you took half the countryside with you whilst enjoying a beer at the helm
Een heel leuke video! De moeite waard om hem te bekijken. Het gebeurt niet zo vaak dat een klein Nederlands vrachtscheepje zo'n reis maakt!
What a great adventure. I envy you.
Great Video I kept thinking generator was going to be lost of coach roof !!
wow,Inspiring . what a journey.
Inspiring ..
As a canal buff who has done many run jobs in the past, spent time on trawlers off Iceland, and a Trinity House lightships man, as well as owining my own 90ft luxmotor.I take my hat off to you and your crew. I hope you didn't use the Hope and Anchor. I'm afraid I would have hung him up on one of his dam trees.
I am sure that some parts of that waterway still look just as it was in the days when it was a trade route for the ancient Brits long before roads were constructed.
I envy you guys.
I found this to be an absorbing & compelling video. I don't doubt your knowledge but I am surprised to hear that the last commercial vessel up the Wye was so long ago though. I recall reading "Sea Breezes" in the 1960's & seeing that a coaster with a cargo of cattle had come to grief in the Bristol Channel. It was bound for Hereford.
I can't help thinking that you had the most scenic views of the landmarks you passed by, even though you had your hands full at the time. Great work. Thanks !
Suzy, some information I was not aware of, I've searched for references to the Coaster but can't find anything - Do you have any further info?
After some checking, the best reference I can find is here: www.wikiwand.com/en/River_Wye it states commercial traffic to Hereford stopped in the 1850's when traffic moved to the railways. I still have an enquiry in with Sea Breezes and will let you know if they come up with any information on the cattle coaster and it's destination.
Wye Invader Thanks. I'm sorry I don't have specific details. It was just something that stuck in my head when I read it. Between my young head then, when I was just learning to use my brain & my old head now, where I am forgetting, I just wish I could have been more efficient in the details. Anyway, Happy Easter.
@@steadynumber1 Suzy, I've had a reply for Sea Breezes (on a Bank Holiday Monday!) - They do have all archives but they are not 'searchable' so unfortunately can't help. I've searched Google extensively but can find no references. This will be one of those comments I'll probably spend the next 5 years or more looking for information on now!
foxvideoproductions I can only apologise if I am the cause of such a long term search, especially since on the face of it, it carries in itself no reward. Another idea comes to mind however If Lloyd's Register of ship losses is accessible. Doubtless the archives are held somewhere. I'm now compelled to make initial enquiries.
Nice
Just a week ago I was in Hereford with my scouting group and we made a 20 km Kano journey down the wye and at 26:52 u can see a between there is a tiny piece of land and I went back first throw that gap and then got stuck 😂
Now that would have been a strange sight for a canoeist 😂
The geezer with the beard looks like SAS
Well I thought that I had done some whacky things on boats in my time, but that journey tops it. What a fantastic adventure, and yet sadly it was not appreciated by so many. A big diesel bow-thruster would have been put to good use at some of those bridges and bends. I salute you and doff my cap to you!
It would be interesting to know the engine and gearbox details, sounds like a DAF 11.6 litre although with the high revs it may be the smaller 6.2 litre engine. Is it direct drive or reduction geared. A photo of the engine room would be great. Thank you for a very interesting video.
All the technical details including a full engineers report are on the Wye Invader website - wyeinvader.uk/offsite/technical/
wyeinvader.uk/offsite/buyers/
I hope this helps.
Brilliant can I book on the downstream cruise ?
+Ken Round Bring a helmet ;-)
Who Dares Wins !!!!!
When the Wye was navigable centuries ago, it was because it had weirs and locks to hold back the water and keep the level up . . . . . . . or you could just mosey on up there during a storm flood I suppose! :) I wish they would rebuild the locks though, just think of the visitors it would bring. Lovely record of a fantastic challenge.
We've recently added some new documents relating to the River Wye and the Chepstow Ship builders to the Wye Invader website you might find interesting - www.wyeinvader.uk/legal/chepstowship/
@@WyeInvader hi frank ignore my non de plume hope you are keeping well and your following in bernards naviagation campagning boatsteps with wye inv 2 and you got over maismore and went downstream is that right ? we tried in 88/89 i cant remember all the best il seek you out at sharpness when the covids is conquered , to this day it was a stunning achievement and we got too the bottom
monnington falls and you got it back to chepstow 23 years later ! so where is wye invader now ? best regards paul jennings
Thanks for the above,I don't think more than a dozen people were aware that Wye Invader spent a couple of weeks 16 miles above Hereford at Moningtonfalls,another half Meter and we might have stopped at Hay on Wye for a few Pints.@@markjones4704
@@WyeInvader yes we would have been supping in one of the boozers in hay and dancing the whole crew inc little fiona i forgot it was there a few weeks we walked across harry cotterells land and he and his man approached us our reply was we are getting out vittals from the boozer over there he said get off my land we carried on walking to get the beers in, scary as hell coming back down though, big john dropped anchor just under wye greyfriars bridge and maddy caught the rope from me i think like a true pro she was and wrapped it round a tree and wye inv just turned on the anchor and slipped into the bank where she started from and all the fans on the bank clapped and cheered thats what i remember i dont know if you remember any different frank ive been reading the docs on the website about richard 1 the lionheart and hereford castle im fascinated il look again at all tommorrow night
I'm really surprised that the UK doesn't have an agency or authority that maintains the water way and preserves the waterway for navigation. I'm watching a lot of content from You Tube and really surprised to find in may ways British citizens have more rights or freedoms than Americans. Heck try putting rubble in the river here for fish habitat and the Army Corps of Engineers will be on your case so fast you won't know what hit you. I also find it interesting that your canal system has been kept in a somewhat functional state where many here in the US have been abandoned and in some cases filled in. In the states many railroad right of ways have been turned into paths or trails for hiking or cycling and in some cases snowmobiles or ATVs but the canals were abandoned when railroads started hauling most of the freight.
Hi, it would seem reading your post that we are actually in the same boat as you (no pun intended!). We do have an agency / authority called the Canal and River Trust (canalrivertrust.org.uk/). We’ll ignore the bit about throwing sand in the river (that was over 30 years ago, we probably wouldn’t get away with it today!) Our main canals are still functional and mainly used for leisure purposes although lacking much needed investment, the smaller canals have been abandoned and filled in, many ceased to be functional with the arrival of the railways which made canal transport too slow to be viable and like yourselves, many of our smaller disused and abandoned railways that started to be shutdown in the early 1960’s have become cycle or walking paths.
@@WyeInvader I was more focusing on the rocks that had been thrown across he river for fish habitat. That's been a no-no here in the states for quite a while. Like the UK many of our canals have fallen into disrepair, been filled in or abandoned, rivers not so much. Although I don't know of any major canal systems west of the US State of Illinois, once past Illinois the trains and natural rivers were the dominant transportation source for both development and commerce. I've lately been wondering if the efforts put into preserving our rivers the same hasn't caused some long term consequences and disrupted the long term ecology of some aspects of the river system. It seems to be a natural phenomenon that river change course and or seek new channels, Our Corp of Engineers prevents that.
Excellent video! I'm doing a video about the history of Hereford from the past 25 years. I'd like to have a small section on this, so is it ok to use some short clips from this video (I'd credit & link to you of course)?
Thanks for your interest and no problem at all using clips from it..
Thank you :)
web_admin@wyeinvader.uk
Hendrick, did you get my email address? - any news on the photos or any information you can let us have?
She's currently in Sharpness dock, all the information is on the website wyeinvader.uk/
What lump have you got down below?
volvo penta md 86
Cant believe you threw that sand into the river like that.....
Amazing team of people .so sad hereford council f you over
not bad m8, not bad at all. keep up the good work. you an yours stay safe an well eh! don't flog ya crew, they might get a bit ticked, an theres more of them than you :D
Worth watching Dick Warner Irish Waterways who had to like push his way thru on Royal Canal I believe
great video, but did you not check the regulations about floating restaurants on the Wye ???
Planning permission was given, the document is on the website here: www.wyeinvader.uk/offsite/planning/
After 20 years Wye Invader had to return to Sharpness Dry Dock as an insurance requirement before the project could be fully implemented.
Nyimak dari aceh
A great story and an epic journey, but one that should never have taken place. To call Hereford a port is a joke. The clue is in the Name HereFORD. Hereford was, and still is a crossing point.
The barge is a beautiful vessel but it became an eyesore as it sat rotting below Hereford. All the planning documents appear to be in 1992 after the 1989 voyage?
IT WAS how do you think the stone for the cathedral and herefords walls and bridge got to hereford ? of course it was a ford before sandys built locks and weirs during the 17th and 18th century then it bacame a fully fledged river naviagation your ignorance is astounding
@@markjones4704 It was never called ‘The port of Hereford’
Navigable yes but please find me one official reference of it as a ‘Port’
@@anglingescapadesdaverobert2513 now or in the past my friend
@@markjones4704 Ever. You might find nautical reference as in this video, but at no time has the City of Hereford listed itself as a port!