A short walk along the River Lark

The River Lark, a tributary of The Great Ouse, runs for 31 miles through Cambridgeshire and Suffolk.

Last Sunday I cycled the three miles from Ely to the attractive fen village of Prickwillow where I began my walk along the river.

View River Lark (from Prickwillow, near Ely) in a larger map

It was early afternoon when I started the walk, the sun was out and the breeze was gentle, a perfect setting for a quick hike.

The River Lark near Prickwillow

The river is navigable at this point but I only saw one boat along the way.

Ocean Blue, moored near Prickwillow

With the sun out it was a joy to walk along the riverbank, I love the soft crunch of frost under my feet.  Birds were out and singing, ducks and swans were preening and chatting to each other.

South bank of the River Lark

As I walked along the riverbank a huge cloud began to block out the sun.  The play of light and shadow was emphasied by the big fens skies and landscapes.

Big fen skies

I walked for about four miles east alongside the river.  With the sun obscured it had become chilly. I stopped and drank tea from my flask, delicious.

As I turned to retrace my steps back to Prickwillow the sun appeared from the other side of the huge cloud.

The sun dropping into the west

The sunset fell directly onto the Lark, it was a beautiful scene.

Sunset on the Lark

I arrived back in Prickwillow with the light fading and cycled on home.

Tagged as: "river Lark", Cambridgeshire, fens, hiking, rivers, sunset, winter