York mates launch giant wooden raft on Ouse for summer fun

Look out for a giant DIY pleasure craft floating up and down the river - and causing waves (in more ways than one) among locals and visitors.

The York Hornblower is a three-storey raft which has been lovingly built from scratch by a group of friends who have been sharing their progress and story on their Instagram page @Legend_Of_The_Ouse.

York-based photographer Lucinda Grange climbed aboard this week and took some photos of the craft which we are sharing with readers today.

And Press reporter Dylan Connell recorded a video of the vessel powering through the river last weekend - complete with one of the gang being pulled behind in a rubber dinghy.

Alistair Frazer, who helped build the river raft, said it's been great fun - and mostly going down well with the people of York.

He said he and his friends have been constructing DIY rafts for pleasure cruising on the Ouse since 2012 - with a three-year break because of the pandemic. They take drinks and a barbecue on board - and have been enjoying this summer's great weather.

He said this year's design is the biggest yet - and has been catching the eyes of passers-by.

All aboard the York Hornblower as it takes to the Ouse in York. Photo by Lucinda Grange

He told The Press: "We have had a few incidents - the police and the fire brigade have been down because they kept getting reports about about an 'unsafe, rickety' raft on the water, so they came down to observe it. But it is a sturdy craft - we have had about nine or ten people on it for four days and we've not had one issue with the structure of it.

"We have not broken any rules or laws nor are we causing havoc or problems. It is just a bit of fun and giggles - something that brings us all together."

He said the complaints have not been frequent: "when we are driving past, most people just wave and say 'hello'".

And he said: "It has been declared safe so people can stop reporting it and wasting the emergency services' time."

Alistair and his friends have been doing good deeds while aboard - collecting rubbish left on the sandy areas that line the Ouse, and 'rehoming' life rings.

He said: "We like to go wild camping, but follow the ethos: 'leave no trace'. So we don't like it when we come across nice locations, especially the sandy banks near Clifton, where people have been in the nice weather and find rubbish."

Some of the rubbish the crew have collected from the sandy banks by the Ouse this week

He said he and his friends had collected three bin bags of rubbish from these areas this week.

"We also pick up bottles and beer cans from the river as we are sailing along," he added.

The boat is powered by a 25 horsepower outbound motor and made from wooden pallets and plywood. It is kept afloat by 28 210-litre empty barrels attached to its base.

Alistair said: "We love the fact that people are taking photos and posting them on Facebook and Instagram!"

You can follow their adventures on Instagram at: www.instagram.com/the_legend_of_the_ouse

If you have a great Instagram story for us, send it straight to our newsroom via this online link: www.yorkpress.co.uk/instagram/