May Bank Holiday Weekend: Day 2

We woke to another day with not a cloud in the sky.  We had breakfast and set off at 8.15 for the rest of the long lock-free section through Milton Keynes.  It really is very attractive, particularly on a nice day.

There were a number of changes to interest us along the way.  The former railway bridge that’s now a footpath by the Black Horse pub is under scaffolding.  There’s a huge building site just last Bridge 82, with a new little mooring basin.  And there are lots of new houses just past Fenny Stratford Lock.

We’d been following another boat for the few miles to Fenny, so had hopes of sharing the lock.  However, it turned out there was a boat in front of them, so they went through together.

It’s such a small rise that it didn’t take long before it was our turn, and the first boat had gone onto the water point, so they swung the bridge back for us.  We caught up with the other boat at Stoke Hammond lock, where a boat was just coming out so we could both go straight in.  Then we also did the Soulbury Three Locks together.  The pub was very busy, and there was a barbecue and hog roast under way out on the side of the bottom lock.

There was a single boat going up ahead of us, and the pounds between the locks were very short of water.  I ran a bit down from the top while that lock was emptying.  We continued along to the Old Linslade winding hole, having lunch on the way, and turned around.  We returned to a favourite spot just south of Bridge 109; it was around 2pm.  It’s very warm; Adrian has had a little nap, and when it’s a little cooler we need to put some sealant round the rear porthole that’s now on the towpath side, as it’s clearly letting in water.

13 miles, 5 locks.  (18 miles, 6 locks)

May Bank Holiday Weekend: Day 1

I had to work today, so we were up at the crack of dawn to drive to London.  Adrian dropped me off in time for my shift at 7.30, then carried on up to the marina.  He stopped at Tesco on the way to stock up with food, and then topped up the water tank before setting off.  He shared Cosgrove Lock with another boat from our marina, and while there Mark from Mochyn Du appeared to help.  He and Sian were moored below the lock.  Adrian moored at Wolverton, and spent a couple of hours in the afternoon at the micro pub at Wolverton Mill, as Mark and Sian had walked along to try it out.

I got away from work at about 4 and got the train to Wolverton.  It was about 5.30 when I arrived, so we decided to head out of the built up area as it was lovely and sunny and warm.  At the Grafton Street Aqueduct, all the wooden edges, many of which were missing, has been replaced with something that looks like motorway crash barriers.

There were crowds of people at the New Inn at New Bradwell enjoying the sunshine, and the towpath has also been busy.  I thought it might be full at Stantonbury Bridge, but there was plenty of room on the piling, so we moored on the end.

5 miles, 1 lock.

Caress of Steel on test, and Gaspard the Fox

The June issue of Canal Boat is out, and includes my boat test of the Finesse tug, Caress of Steel.

I’ve also written a feature about a new children’s book, Gaspard the Fox, written by a colleague, Zeb Soanes.

Annual Report

Here are the figures for this year.  Neither the miles, locks, or nights on board are particularly high or low.

And the waterways travelled on:

• Birmingham and Fazeley Canal
• Birmingham Canal Navigations Digbeth Branch
• Birmingham Canal Navigations New Mainline
• Birmingham Canal Navigations Old Mainline
• Bridgewater Canal
• Caldon Canal
• Caldon Canal Leek Arm
• Coventry Canal
• Grand Union Canal Leicester Section
• Grand Union Canal Mainline
• Manchester Ship Canal
• North Oxford Canal
• River Irwell
• River Weaver
• Shropshire Union Canal
• Shropshire Union Canal Middlewich Branch
• Staffs and Worcs Canal
• Trent and Mersey Canal

Cheese scones and sunshine

We slept pretty well and were in no particular rush to get going this morning.  We set off in rather dull cool conditions at about 9am, and headed for Blisworth Tunnel.  Inside it was, if anything, wetter than last week (which takes some doing).  Once out the other end, we phoned Kathryn to check she was in, and then moored up.  We went to have a look at the latest work Kathryn has had done on her house, and then had tea and some of her famous cheese scones.  When we set off again, the sun was beginning to come out and a couple of boats were just coming up the top lock.

We swapped with another uphill boat at the second lock, then at the next one the lock was empty, with a boat having just gone down and one about to come up the lock below.  LThe downhill boat waited for us, which meant we teamed up with a very nice family out for a long weekend on a Gayton here boat.  There was a bit of synchronised boating between locks.

We stopped below the bottom lock for lunch in the increasingly pleasant sunshine, then did the last hair and a half back to the marine.  We arrived back at about 3, and went to pick up the other car from Heyford Fields.  We’ll stay here tonight; I have to go to work for an early shift in the morning, and Adrian will head home.

8 miles, 7 locks.  (13 miles, 7 locks)

New stove

Adrian left home slightly before me this morning as I had a village task to do, and then I set off a few minutes behind.  En route, Adrian stopped at Tesco at Bicester for some food for the weekend — and miraculously when we phoned each other just as I was approaching the marina, it turned out he was two cars behind me.  We left one car there, and drove up to Heyford Fields.  As expected, the old stove had fallen apart when moved, so it’s been replaced by a new Morso Squirrel.  We went like for like, as going for a cheaper option would undoubtedly have meant that the flue no longer fitted.  The old stove had some extra sloping metal pieces inside, to reduce the size of the fire box, and I’d kept them and re-installed them in the new one.

The BLS guys have also taken off the roof collar of the flue and reseated and resealed it, so hopefully we’ll no longer have a leak.  A speaking of leaks, we’ve also had the shower room towel rail swapped back to a radiator.  The towel rail was put in a few years ago when the original radiator developed a hole, but hasn’t been the improvement we expected, as it was small and took only one towel.  I’ve re-installed a rail above the rad, which can take two towels.

As might be expected, the bill was substantial. The boat had been put on a mooring near the diesel point, and getting out from there turned out to be a lot easier than the space by the slipway.  It was about 1pm when we left, having grabbed some lunch, and it was grey and chilly — although at least we could now light the stove.  We went to Blisworth, to a mooring just through Bridge 49 where we slotted into a space on the piling, rather than having to continue to the bit where pins are needed.

5 miles, 0 locks.

Heyford Fields

We had a good evening with Catherine, Nigel, and the kids last night — although service at The Wharf was shambolic to say the least.  It wasn’t just our table, either, as other people also had to keep asking where their drink/food/bill was.

This morning we set off at around 9 and did the half mile into Heyford Fields marina, leaving the boat by the slipway.  It’s not coming out of the water, they’re just going to sort out the stove (by which we assume we mean, get a new one).  We were away by 10, and back home by lunchtime.

0.5 miles, 0 locks.  (13 miles, 7 locks)