Gloucester docks

After I finished my shopping in Gloucester I drove round the back of the old docks and spotted a parking place in exactly the right place for me to explore.  It was right beside the entrance to the renowned shipyard of  T. Neilsen and Company.  Their website says they have 'become one of the world's leading specialists in repairing, restoring and building traditional ships and rigging'.  

I walked through the entrance, which has always been closed before, and immediately saw a three masted wooden sailing boat in their dry dock.  The water had obviously only just been drained and there were several people inspecting the hull's condition.  I tried taking pictures but the dull light was rather inhibiting with the black hull and the thin rigging making a detailed image rather difficult.

I walked around the boat and then looked at several other wooden boats all moored in the adjacent main docks, overlooked by all the old warehouses.  Each of the boats had a few men working on them, mostly with hammers it seemed from the noises emanating and echoing loudly.

The light suddenly improved when the sun shone through the big scudding grey cloud cover.  I spotted this view taken looking away from Neilsen's yard northwards towards Gloucester Cathedral in the far distance.  It is strange because the top of the Cathedral just visible behind the big warehouse is in the shade.  I liked the reflections on the water from the light in the sky and the warm glow of the red brick from the warehouses.  The little raft belongs to the boatyard and I was amused by the old stool on which painters probably float around the wooden hulls to do their work.