Punting on the Cam

My response to dVerse Poets Pub Open Link Night # 177

Gayle of Bodhirose’s Blog was the host for Thursday’s Open Link Night. She mentioned that three of her siblings have birthdays in August, as do I! Mine was on Wednesday and my husband took me on a surprise trip to Cambridge.

While the Poets Pub was in full swing, we were watching novice punters wobbling about on the river and bumping into each other’s boats from the comfort and safety of The Anchor Pub, where the members of Pink Floyd used to hang out and where Syd Barrett allegedly got his name.

Little did I know that I would be sitting in a punt the next day! Here’s a little bit of doggerel about that trip.

 

 

The water of the River Cam

Snakes between hallowed halls,

Echoes bounce off bridges and walls

Of buildings old and new

Composing a traditional view:

Shouts and laughter,

As they avoid disaster,

Trickle between punts propelled

By amateurs with poles

Dripping cool

Drops of water

As they rise and fall.

The afternoon is kind and hot;

The river is a favourite spot

For a summer’s afternoon adventure

Flanked by history and architecture.

 

© Kim M. Russell, 2016