You may have spotted something interesting on the River Ouse this week…
What started off as an idea for a floating barbecue back in 2012 has evolved into the ‘Legend of the Ouse’ – a three-storey raft complete with seating, hammocks, lighting and even fake grass.
The raft was last on the Ouse in 2019, and now after a three year hiatus due to Covid is back on the river once more.
The Legend of the Ouse has been cruising the river since last Saturday (13 August) and will be dismantled this Sunday (21 August) until next time – so head down to the river to try and spot it while you can!
Created by a group of friends from York, the whole planning and building process took around six months.
Constructed completely from scratch using bought and donated materials, the initial structure was built on land before finishing the rest on the water.
A few of the friends are ex-army engineers and mariners. “Everybody brings a certain skill set,” said Legend of the Ouse member Rob Simpson.
The raft cost just under £1,000 to make – the most expensive part being the 25 horsepower engine.
Back in 2012, the idea for the first raft happened during when all good ideas happen – on a night out.
“We wanted to have a barbecue and we wanted to go swimming,” said Rob. “Then we thought – why don’t we just do both?
“That’s when the floating barbecue appeared. Then every year we’ve just progressed and upscaled.
“It gets us all together again. It’s a project for us to do and all engage with each other and have a good time.”
The raft attracts all sorts of attention from passers-by. “We like people engaging with us,” said Legend of the Ouse member, Nicholas Forsdyke. “The smiles on their faces, confusion – we get all sorts of different looks.”
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Legend of the Ouse wanted to emphasise that the raft is very safe to be on the water.
“We’ve met the police, the fire department and York Rescue Boat,” said member, Demps. “Everyone seems pretty cool with it. That’s been established over the past five years or so.”
“We give way to bigger boats,” added Rob. “As long as you’re respectful to everybody, everybody’s happy.”
The friends have also been fishing out rubbish from the river and riverbanks as they go up and down the river, collecting four or five bags worth in just one day.
For the first time this year, Legend of the Ouse is now on social media – which has been attracting a lot of people to the raft.
“We just want to thank everyone for their support,” said Nicholas.
“The response has been amazing,” added member, Munks.
In the future, Legend of the Ouse would love to get local charities involved and help raise some money, and also support local businesses by waving their flag from the raft.
Keep up to date with what they’re up to via their Facebook, Instagram and Youtube.