Repatriation: Day 5

We needed an early start this morning, and that knowledge meant we were awake early.  I got up and showered, during while Adrian went to sleep again, so I had breakfast and got the boat ready to go.  There are many aspects of the departure procedure which can be done quietly, but starting the engine is not one of them — so he was woken up at just a few minutes past 7.  I crept past the boats moored in Rugeley, noted that they are building a ramp up from the towpath at the Tesco bridge, and put my coat on as it started drizzling.  We were soon at the start of the former Armitage Tunnel, which is very narrow.  Signs say to send a crew member ahead to check the way is clear and stop boats entering the other end.  But my crew (having provided me with a cup of tea) was about to shower, it was still before 8am, and you can see 80 per cent of the way through heading in this direction, so I just went for it — and it was fine.

At Handsacre, another Braidbar boat was moored, Autumn Years, and Graham said hello.  His boat is exceptionally shiny, and really put us to shame!  We carried on to Woodend Lock, where a boat was coming up and more were waiting below.  Adrian went to help the boat in the lock, and a crew member from one of the other boats arrived to check that we were going down.  She then went back to stand by her boat, while Adrian worked us down on his own.  By the time we were ready to leave the lock a third boat had arrived, meaning it was a bit busy down there.

At the Fradley Locks, a volunteer saw us coming and set the lock.  A boat was also coming up the lock below, so you’d have thought we could have just swapped locks, but the volunteer at the second lock turned it for another uphill boat.  When it was our turn, he checked which way we were going at the junction, and displayed a sign to the volunteer at the lock below the junction.

Adrian walked down to swing the bridge at the start of the Coventry Canal.  A boat was coming out of Junction Lock, and I though he might also be going our way, because the volunteer at the lock we’d just left insisted that Adrian shut the gates.  As it happened, he was going on up — which makes you wonder why the Junction Lock volunteer doesn’t also have signs so the one above knows what’s going on.  Anyway, I made the turn.

Our initial target for the day was beyond Bridge 91 — because Adrian needed to do a video call, and the coverage maps suggested that 4G returned there.  This is where a feature of Paul Balmer’s Waterway Routes maps comes in very handy: the fact that many good, yet unofficial, mooring places are noted.  There was one after Bridge 90.  I couldn’t remember what was there, but sure enough, a long stretch of piling presented itself.  With two boats coming the other way, we ended up towards the far end of it, where our stern wouldn’t come right in to the side, but it would do.  We were moored up soon after 11, in good time for Adrian to check that the signal was strong enough and everything worked ok.  While he had his call, I washed the towpath side of the boat, and got some polish on it.  It’s a big improvement (although not up to Autumn Years standard!

With the call done by 1pm we set off again, having lunch on the move.  There had been masses of boats on the move, and we continued to meet more.  It also rained on and off.  At 3pm I joined a virtual staff meeting as I steered, to hear about the latest BBC cuts.

We called it a day on the approach towards Fazeley Junction, stopping a bit sooner than normal where the canal is wide and before both sides are built up; it was around 4.30.  Once moored, Adrian took everything off the well deck and gave the area a good clean — so we are gradually getting there.

18 miles, 3 locks.  (82 miles, 46 locks)