There was clear blue sky and bright sunshine first thing, but the cloud soon built. I set off at about 9am. Some of the lambs in the fields I passed were thoroughly enjoying themselves dashing about or squabbling with each other.
The old wharf buildings by Bridge 74 were looking better than ever. There seem to be a few businesses in there now, as well as flats. They’ve been done up over a long period of time.
Once through the double railway bridges, the vast new housing estate has come on since we were last this way, but there’s still a lot to do.
I’d been following a couple of boats for some time, so when I got to Hillmorton Locks it was no surprise that there were both heading down, and having to set the top lock to do so. The back-pumping here made it tricky getting in to the lock landing. I eventually re-set the towpath side lock and worked my way down. Fortunately an uphill boat was arriving so I could leave the gates open. At the middle lock a boat was coming up the offside lock, so I was able to go into that one after a short wait. This lock has a long tail, so I pulled the boat out far enough to close the gates behind me, knowing that it couldn’t go far. At the bottom lock, another boat was coming up the offside lock, and there was a volunteer lock keeper to lend a hand. I seem to have been too busy to take many photos though.
The official moorings just below the locks have a slanting stone edge, so I carried on round the corner to where there’s a long stretch of piling. There was only one other boat, so I could pick a nice straight bit to moor on. After lunch, I wrote up yesterday’s boat test. It’s been a bit blustery all afternoon, and I chose the wrong moment to go out for a walk as it began to rain. The shower was quite heavy but not too long, and sheltering under a bridge kept me pretty much dry. The sun has come out again since, and the weather hasn’t been half as bad as forecast.
6 miles, 3 locks. (52 miles, 37 locks)
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