Post Crick -- Day 2

I was just about to start cooking dinner last night when there was a knock on the roof:  Kathryn had read the blog, and walked up to tell us about a stoppage at the top lock in the morning.  It was due to start at 8am, and continue until 4.30.  If only we'd gone down the top two lock like we normally do!

As it happened, Adrian had gone to the pub to use the wifi, and was planning to call on Kathryn on his way back.  When he did, he was a bit surprised that she already knew where he'd been.  Later in the evening, we went with Kathryn to The Navigation for a drink, and a very pleasant couple of hours chatting.

On the way back to the boat, I knocked on the roof of our neighbours (our locking partners for the Buckby flight), because I knewthe stoppage would disrupt their week's hire.  We agreed that we'd set off together, early.

And so it was that at about 7.40 this morning, I was heading to the lock with a windlass in one hand and a cup of tea in the other.  It was raining again.  The CRT guys were already there to start work on the lock, to stop the bottom gates leaking so much.  One of them told us it was pointless going down, as someone had been sent to lock the bottom lock, to stop people coming up.  This seemed like a mad idea to me, as people could still come up to the long pound, or go down from it.  Anyway, we filled the lock, got the boats in, and were down the lock before 8am.  As he set off, Adrian told a couple of Wyvern hire boats behind us what was going on; they also got moving quickly, but I'm not sure whether they were quick enough.

Our locking partners moored up in the long pound, as they had friends meeting them for a bit of boating today.  Fortunately, a boat had just set off from the same pound, so we teamed up with them for the remaining five locks.

The couple on the other boat had owned it for 25 years, and moor just this side of Marsworth.  We had a very efficient and pleasant trip down the locks with them.  There was an enormous amount of water down the flight.  At some locks, not only was the water over the gates, it was also over the sides and flowing down the towpath.  At the bottom, which we reached before 9am, we told a few crews about the stoppage.  No-one knew it was happening, and there were no signs anywhere.

We had a very easy run back to the marina, arriving a bit after 10am.  We were soon moored in our berth and had our stuff packed up.  Within an hour, we were in the car heading home.  We were saying as we drove that Crick is one of the most sociable times of the year, with plenty of meeting up with friends from around the system.

6 miles, 7 locks.  (28 miles, 21 locks)

Post Crick -- Day 1

I listened to the weather forecast on the Today programme this morning, and couldn't determine whether we were in the part of the country where the rain would clear in favour of a much brighter day, or the bit where there would be heavy rain all day, leaving dangerous amounts of standing water on the roads.  It seems we were in the latter part.

We set off at 8.10 in the rain.  It was a little under half an hour to Norton Junction, and just as we approached a Napton hire boat went across, heading to the locks.  It meant we had a locking partner for the Buckby flight.  The couple on board are long time hirers, and we made good progress.  A few of the locks had to be turned, but we also met a couple of boats coming up.  It seems I took just one photo today.

At the bottom of the locks, Adrian pulled onto the offside mooring so he could get some firelighters and logs, while I walked back to the next lock to go to the farm shop for pork chops and some veg.

Setting off again, I steered the long lock-free pound while Adrian worked.  We had a stop for water just through Weedon, as we haven't filled up since before the show.  The tap had decent pressure, so it didn't take too long.  In the afternoon it stopped raining at times, but it was still pretty cold and damp.  We came through Blisworth Tunnel without meeting anyone, and then had a decision to make.  We prefer the moorings two locks down as most of the ones at the top are in a rather gloomy cutting; but we decided that if there was a nice open mooring in the village we'd stop there.  As it turned out, there's almost no-one here at all, so we tied up at about quarter to four, just as it came on to rain again.  I was so wet and cold I had a hot shower to warm up. Our locking partners from this morning have just arrived, and slotted into a space in front of us.

17 miles, 7 locks.  (22 miles, 14 locks)

Crick Show -- Day 3

It's rained on and off all day, and more on than off.  With no particular reason to get up early, we were a bit later to surface.  Once we'd had breakfast we decided to turn the boat around so set off up to the winding hole.  Having turned, we slotted back into our space.  The whole thing took about forty minutes.

As it was raining, we both did some work before heading over to the show ground at lunchtime.  We hadn't been there long when there was a text from Kath asking if one of us would go on the waltzer with her granddaughter, Grace, as neither she nor Neil could face it.  Adrian was volunteered, and it's safe to say he enjoyed it less than Grace did.  Next stop was the dodgem cars, where I was the accompanying adult.

We were waiting for the result of the vote for Favourite Boat at the show.  It went to Shackleton, by Boating Leisure Services at Heyford Fields Marina.

We set off a little before 3.30, trying to get ahead of the crowds a bit.  We passed two boats in the tunnel, then arrived at Watford Locks.  One boat was coming up, and there was a queue in our direction.  One boat was in the pound below the top lock, and we were seventh in the queue at the top.  I went ahead with a windlass and helped the six boats in front of us down the top lock.  We were a bit too efficient, as we kept having to wait for the top lock of the staircase to be reset.

Finally it was our turn.  People from the five boats which had arrived behind us came to help us down the top lock, then it was a fairly rapid descent of the staircase.

With the two lower single locks done, we decided we'd stop at the first nice looking spot we saw.  A bit of piling just before Bridge 3 looked appealing, so we pulled in.  It was nearly 7pm -- a pretty late finish for us these days.  With the queue at the locks, a pretty short journey had taken a long time.  Fortunately, Adrian had started to make dinner hours ago, so we could eat soon after stopping.

5 miles, 7 locks.

Crick Show -- Day 2

Last night we went to see Toyah Wilcox.  She was pretty good, and the crowd was the biggest I've ever seen for the evening entertainment.

Today was much sunnier.  Andy and I looked at five widebeam boats, and because we started before the show opened, we were all done by about 10.30.  Adrian and I then had a look round the show, which seems smaller again this year.  We went back to BR for lunch, then both did work for an hour.  In the afternoon, we met up with Catherine and family, and popped over to the marina to see Chris and Steve who showed us round their boat, AmyJo.

In the evening we had a few people round for drinks.  Unlike last year when everyone turned up together, this time we had visitors strung out over the whole evening.  We ended up going for a food from the Chinese up at the show ground, eating it with friends on the back of a show boat.

Crick Show -- Day 1

The day started with rain, which was torrential at times.  I went over to the show site at about 8.30, and Andy the photographer arrived shortly afterwards and we started looking at boats straight away.  By the end of the day, we'd looked at eighteen narrowboats.

The weather cheered up by late morning, but there was still the odd shower around.  Then at a bit after 5pm a very black cloud came over, and there was the most tremendous thunder and hail storm.

I went back to the boat and have written up a good few mini boat reviews.  We'll go back over to the show site a a little while to see what's available to eat, then Toyah Wilcox is playing later on.

Pre-Crick -- Day 4

Just a short update today.  I spent most of the morning over st the show site, and managed to look at a few boats.  I've even written up some of them.  Adrian arrived back from London at about 3pm, and shortly afterwards we were invited over to Herbie for tea and cake with Kath and Neil.  It rained pretty hard while we were there.  We went straight from Herbie to The Moorings, for the pre-show Braidbar dinner.  The food was pretty good.

Pre-Crick -- Day 3

Back to yesterday evening first of all, when we had a visit from my second cousin, Catherine, and family, as they live just a few minutes from where we were moored.  It's great how the kids, Grace and Matthew, just come into the boat and make themselves at home now, without any shyness at all.  Matthew was particularly excited about coming to see us in the evening, as he hadn't done that before!

There was heavy rain overnight.  By the time we left at around 8am, it was looking pretty miserable behind us, but much more promising up ahead.  We did the top lock at Buckby, then headed for Norton Junction.  Braunston is to the left, but we turned right onto the Leicester Arm.

Before long the clouds cleared and the sun came out.  Waterproof trousers and coat came off too.  The countryside is pretty, but what the photo doesn't show is the roar of the M1 which is never far away.

Arriving at the bottom of the Watford Locks we were amazed to find no-one waiting.  I walked up to find the lock keeper, who was near the top, and booked us in.  He said we could come up the first two locks, which are singles, but we'd have to wait while boats came down the staircase of four locks.  So we moored below the staircase and waited for about an hour while four boats came down.  I re-set the second lock each time, to speed them on their way.

Then it was our turn to go up, by which time there were at least three more boats behind us.

Above the locks, once you get underneath the M1, it's pretty rural.  I spotted a green woodpecker in a field, then lost it, then spotted it again.  Consequently, I have just two rather poor photos.

We'd been warned by another boat that Crick tunnel was very wet inside.  They obviously haven't done Blisworth Tunnel after rain, because it wasn't that bad at all.  It's just the last couple of hundred yards which give you a soaking.

We wanted to top up the water tank as we'll now be here for the show at the weekend, and we had to wait for a few minutes while other boats sorted themselves out.  When the tank was full, we set off to find our booked mooring.  There are signs in the hedge, but they're too small to read from the boat, so Adrian got off at the bridge and walked along to identify our spot.  To get there I had to negotiate the temporary bridge which is built each year for the show.

We're tied up outside Farne, just like we were at Higher Poynton last September.

We had a quick lunch, then Adrian headed off to meet a taxi to take him to Rugby railway station.  He's got meetings in London this afternoon and tomorrow.

Since then it's mostly rained, with a few rumbles of thunder.  I'm going with the rest of the Braidbar bunch into Crick later, for a meal at the pub.

6 miles, 8 locks.  (28 miles, 21 locks)