The forecast for today was pretty bad with thundery showers and some heavy rain, but actually it’s been nothing like that. We’ve had the odd bit of rain, but nothing to write home about. This morning, one of Adrian’s former colleagues who lives in Mansfield was coming to see us, so we walked down to meet here by the marina. There was a big Park Run going on at the Weir Fields recreation centre.
I diverted to the Beeston Canalside Heritage Centre to see if I could find someone to talk to for a podcast episode.
It’s a lovely place with a tea room and a nice garden, and not only did I find an interviewee, I also got a sneak preview of the canalside cottage which has been dressed to look how it would have done in the 1840s, which opens in the next couple of weeks. I went and found Adrian and Michelle in the Boat House Cafe at the marina, and we walked back to the boat as Michelle wanted to see it. Then we went to the Heritage Centre cafe for excellent toasted sandwiches for lunch.
After saying goodbye to Michelle, we walked into Beeston town, which is a bit of a step but has much more than we’d expected. Among the attractions is a street art trail, and we found a few examples.
We’d already decided that because of the forecast we wouldn’t be going anywhere today, and shortly after we got back to the boat there was one of the heavier downpours. I’ve spent the rest of the afternoon making another podcast (because I always like to have a couple in the bag ready to go), while Adrian has been reading and listening to things. It’s a surprisingly nice spot here, but we’ll be on our way again tomorrow.
0 miles, 0 locks. (76 miles, 53 locks)
The mural with the ladies and the shells, commemorates the ladies who worked at an munitions factory in Chilwell, the Canary Girls. During WW1 the factory filled 19 million shells with explosives. In 1918 there was an explosion in the factory which killed 134 people and injured another 250. The next day the factory was up and running again.
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