on board
Welcome to the river where the fish are bigger than the timetable.
Your not-quite-ordinary crew
Meet the pair
behind the wheel.
Rufus keeps the kettle warm.
He can mend a brass hinge, recognise a friendly ripple and misplace his own hat while wearing it. His best navigation tool is the question, “Shall we ask the fish?”
Pack three oddments
There’s room for a story.
And three useful things.
Choose any three objects. They will give your imaginary expedition a particular sort of start. No object is the “winning” one.
The trunk is empty. Tap an object to pack it; tap it again to leave it behind.
A bend with possibilities
Where shall
we drift?
A lighthouse with a rainy problem.
The roof keeps everyone dry. Unfortunately, it keeps the lamp in the shade as well.
Visit Umbrella Light →
Oddment 01 / The wind-up key
The anchor
that wouldn’t
stay put.
A cloud makes a splendid shape for an anchor. It makes a rather poor weight. Rufus has a key, a bell and a fish with something to say.
Wind up the first tale ↗Two more objects from the trunk
A little shelter.
A very large cuppa.
Umbrella Light
Climb a lighthouse whose roof has become much too helpful.
Go up to the lamp ↗
Teacup Rapids
Someone has poured the whole river. Perhaps a smaller splash would do.
Follow the pouring river ↗
Oddment 04 / A stubborn compass
North has
gone visiting.
North: a familiar direction with an unfamiliar fish in it.
Find out where north went ↗Down by the kettle engine
Every adventure
needs a small repair.
The ferry’s engine runs on patience, warm tea and a remarkably ordinary cog. Tilly keeps the spare parts in a drawer marked by shape rather than size. Rufus keeps the biscuits somewhere “obvious”.
Open the workshop drawer
One spare hinge. Two unclaimed buttons. A spool of blue thread. A note from Tilly: “The thing you’re looking for may be the thing you put down to look for it.”
Rufus’s end-of-day note
“A good voyage
leaves room
for a surprise.”
Today we found a roof that was too generous, a cup that was too enthusiastic and a compass that needed a friend. Tomorrow we shall take the long way round.
Rufus, with one biscuit remaining.
Before the
lanterns go out.
Are these real places?
No. Spool Quay and its river are an original fictional world. The voyages are illustrated stories, not tours or travel advice.
Do the choices cost anything?
No. Packing the trunk, turning the compass and choosing a story branch do not involve payment, stakes, rewards or prizes.
Will the site remember my voyage?
Your choices stay in the page while it is open. This version does not automatically save them in browser storage. You can begin again whenever you visit.
Can I read without choosing?
Yes. Each tale includes its beginning and conclusion on the page. Optional controls reveal extra viewpoints and playful variations.
Can I send the crew a note?
The real shore-office form is for website questions and corrections. Rufus and Tilly are fictional characters; they do not receive mail or make bookings.
Back at the pier
A note
for the shore?
Found a page problem or a muddled passage? The website’s shore office can record your question.