So, over the last few months, I’ve been wondering if I should come clean about something. Would anyone notice? Would anyone care? I have felt guilty about this, I have felt stupid to have done this. So now is the time to confess and get this off my chest.
Smile
Last year I smashed Oleanna’s smile!
There I’ve said it, it’s out in the open.
It was on the Huddersfield Narrow Canal and we’d been warned about the pipe bridge just below Lock 42E. C&RT had suggested opening a paddle at Lock 41E to drop the level to make it easier to get under the pipebridge after emptying the lock above. Was it that we’d just said hello to Pete from Mikron? Was it that it was a damp day? Was it that we were pleased to see Paul who’d come to assist us down to Slaithwaite? Or was it that we just thought we were invincible? What ever it was we should have listened and taken action accordingly.
Bastard!!!
We dropped down Lock 42E and I popped Oleanna into gear to bring her out of the lock. I looked ahead to the pipe bridge, it looked tight, but we should manage it. Mick and Paul chatted, one about to walk on ahead to set the next lock, the other loitering to close the gates behind me.
Forwards she came out from the lock. Maybe it was going to be just a touch too tight? I popped her into reverse. I SLAMMED her into reverse, just when it was too late!
Not even a wink
Oleanna’s pair of horns that have seen seven/eight good years of service, been dropped from there support to go through low tunnels and limbo under low bridges, that smile that has shone back at us when at the helm, pleased to be on the move, were now crumpled like Quality Street wrappers as they’d hit the seam of the pipe bridge! She couldn’t even winking back at me!!
Paul went ahead to drop the pound. We waited, then Mick stood on the gunnel to help get us under and away from the protrudance. I was mortified at what I’d done. I loved her smile.
Coming down the locks without a smile
Paul said that no-one would ever know if I kept quiet about it. Oleanna certainly would stay quiet about it as now she had no voice along with no smile. Thankfully we didn’t have too far to go to get back to Goole, although turning out onto river sections it would have been nice to give the horn a blast, instead we did our best to shout BEEEEP! as Oleanna’s bow peeked out from the locks.
Ripped apart
The bracket the horns were attached to was in desperate need of de-rusting, I’m not sure it was ever prepared properly, it may just have had a coat of blue paint sprayed on it when she was built, certainly no prime or undercoat is visible under the bubbling blue paint. The plan had been to bring the bracket back to the house anyway to be sorted this winter, now the need was even greater.
We deliberated on whether to get the same two identical horns, or should we get two with different tones? Many people think Oleanna had a two tone beep, they’ve asked us to beep them and then have been disappointed when the two horns just make the same tone. The horns are 12volt and we had to have two as she is a 24volt boat. What had to be the same, identical even, was Oleanna’s smile. She would have to smile back at us as she’s done for eight years, that was none negotiable.
Mangled to death
One of the first jobs we did on returning to the house was find new horns. Mick ordered them and they arrived quickly, one shorter than the other. This was also an opportunity to replace the mightily rusted head lamp too. This has been rusty since Oleanna was about a year old. I’ve had a go at it a couple of times, but the chrome really wasn’t up to much, so I just gave up with it.
Cables were cut and the bracket was removed from the cratch. Next job was to remove the brackets that had supported her smile for so long. We knew this wouldn’t be an easy job as we’d tried to remove them before going through Froghall Tunnel. Penetrating oil was sprayed onto the screws and left to soak, several times.
Stubborn screws
Mick spent an afternoon trying to undo the hex screws that held everything together. All but four came out. These four were seriously going to stay put. Mick tried drilling one of them out breaking four drill bits in the process. More penetrating oil was added. Would an angle grinder be of use? Maybe, but would that only take the tops off the screws and leave the rest rusted in the bracket?
Time to call in the man, the one man I knew who would be able to undo them. Frank! Always at the SJT if there was a screw with a mashed up head you’d call Frank in to help. There were boxes of Frank screws in the workshop, he was the only one with the perseverance and magnetism to shift these screws.
Sparks flying
Frank arrived with an angle grinder and a different approach to ours. The hex heads were now nicely rounded so no chance of any grip from them. The grinder was put to work flattening off two sides of the heads, something to get a grip on with mole grips. The grips were tightened, Frank tried to turn them. No chance. Then by adding first a hammer which was soon replaced by a long allen key he gradually managed to get the screw turning having extended his leaver.‘Give me a leaver and a fulcrum and I’ll move the world‘ Frank was winning. The process was repeated three more times, sparks flying around the back garden. Then the bracket was free of all the now redundant screws. Time to hand it to the preparation department. Time for a well earned cuppa in the warm. THANK YOU FRANK!!!
Doom got rid of the rust
A few days later the rust was scraped off with a wallpaper scraper, the really good scraper having been left on the boat. Then the attachment of doom was attached to a drill and used to remove as much rust and paint as was possible. This took some time and a revisit the following day. Areas of shiny bright metal, next to pitted brown areas, next to areas the attachment of doom couldn’t reach no matter what.
One of my Mum’s old catering trays was covered with a layer of thick plastic. A liberal coat of Fertan was applied all over, then every other hour I would give the whole bracket a misting of water. It was left overnight.
The following day I washed the fertan off, black areas now next to the bright steel. The hard to reach parts were given a vague sanding, my sanding block only just fitting in the gap.
Two coats of primer undercoat
Once it was all dry I then opened a tin of One Up. This is a primer/undercoat. One layer went on quite well, it would certainly require more than one coat. When removing the failed paint I had noticed under the blue there had been a layer of white, undercoat or primer, but the layers of paint very very thin, where they still existed. Hopefully my attempt to paint this will last us until the repaint when a pro can do a much better job.
From white to Oleanna blue
Left in the utility room to dry off a second coat was applied before breakfast the following day. A little sand where things looked a bit too painty then a third coat. A day or two sat under the boiler before the tin of blue paint was stirred up. Screw holes and access holes first then a full coat. Second coat the following day. Ooh all shiny now!
Glad it’s not the cabin side
With a visit to Oleanna in a few days time, Mick used a tap to clean out the screw holes. Horn brackets were attached where the previous ones had been, no need for new holes thankfully.
Taps from Lidl
I returned from a walk to see the two horns sat proud on top of the bracket. But was the none negotiable smile there? One horn seemed to be sitting a little bit differently, did something need adjusting or was I just being a seriously picky Theatre Designer? Had the old horns been slightly off before? Most probably as the brackets had been fixed in the same place. Could one bracket be bent slightly to line them up better? This was tried, but the end result not noticeable, I was being too picky.
New horns in position
The new tunnel light has a smaller profile then the previous one. Hopefully the chrome will last longer.
A slimmer light, still with its cover on
With lights and horns attached we discussed Oleanna’s smile. Previously both horns, as I’ve mentioned were 12 volt, they needed a cable between the two of them which created her smile. These new horns are both 24 volt, so they don’t need connecting in the same way. But they do need connecting to return Oleanna’s smile, remember it’s none negotiable.
Two tones!
This will get done when the main bracket is back on the cratch, all cables that supply power have been attached, then we can give her an even better smile then she had before. But for now we’ll have to make do with Mick’s cheesy grin reflecting back at us.
For those who scan narrowboat blog blog rolls, you’ll have noticed a new one has appeared on the right.
NB Kingley Vale is actually from old hands at blog writing. Very experienced hands at writing about narrowboats in fact. Adam and Adrian from NB Briar Rose are having a new boat built by Braidbar Boats.
Adam and Adrian back at the start of lockdown in 2020
You’ll be able to follow the boat build process over the coming months, always a very interesting read. NB KV will be a hybrid, gas free boat.
Huge congratulations to Adam and Adrian, such exciting times. We look forward to your updates and your move onto the water on Briar Rose until KV is ready. Hopefully our bows will cross sometime this year for longer than just a wave and hello.
The estimate for grit blasting and blacking came through last Saturday from Danny, I suspect Sally had given him a prod or two.
There wasn’t much need for discussion between the two of us. Tilly hadn’t met these people, so her opinion didn’t really count for much Well I wouldn’t have liked them anyway, unless they had Dreamies for me!
Not a bad view of Goole
We’d already weighed up the pros and cons between painters. Quotes were pretty similar to each other, a couple of grand here or there different. The painters themselves were a main factor. Would they give us what we were after? Offer advice, but listen to us too? They are all skilled painters and very friendly souls.
Hello Firecrest over there!
Timing, a slot in winter preferable for us so we don’t miss out on summer cruising. A heated paintshop an important factor during winter. Also knowing when the house may be full of lodgers had an influence on dates, as we didn’t really want to be homeless or miss out on income. Which winter/year had they available slots? Not many painters we had contacted had slots available this year.
Then the Tilly factor. The shortest distance possible back to the house PLEEEEEASE!!!! Two journeys not an option, a stay in a cattery would be required PRISON!!!!
Noses
Would we be able to arrive early and over winter at the marina where they are based? Would we be able to come out of the water to wait for our slot, therefore saving money on our licence for a few months? Would this tie in with other things that may or may not happen?
A couple of final questions were asked on Monday, a swift reply came back. A phone call from Tom on Tuesday checking on some of the extras that could be added into a formal quote. The quote was received on Wednesday, 10% deposit paid and received this morning, Thursday.
So Oleanna is booked in for a repaint in 2026!
Cwoor!
0 locks, 0 miles, 4 painters down to 1, 10% deposit paid, 14 months, 1 winter mooring to sort, 1 sign writer to sort, 125.4 mile cat journey, 1 decision had nothing to do with cooling towers, honestly!
On leaving Swanley Bridge Marina, we chatted through the painters we’d seen and the boats that they’d painted as we started to head northwards to join the M6. We’ve seen lots painted by The Paintshed, several from Willow Boats, but none finished by Gibson and Kenwright. Before Christmas Tom had two boats in his shed, one primed, the other a little further on, we wondered if they might be finished and still in his shed.
As Mick pulled into the car park of Middlewich Morrisions, a drink required and somewhere to sit to eat our lunch I gave Tom a call. The two boats we’d seen were now very nearly finished, could we call in on or way back to Scarborough today to have a look? ‘The door is always open’.
Kings Lock, Middlewich
Walking into Morrisons ahead of us was a recognisable voice. If you’ve watched any of Taylors Aboard vlogs about the Bridgewater breach you’ll no doubt have seen Joe, more commonly known on the vlog at Johnny Vegas. Once the boats were re-floated and the stop planks removed, Joe headed back towards the Trent and Mersey.
With lunch eaten we recalculated our route across country to Redhill Marina, an hour and a half. The sun was out beside the giant cooling towers as we let ourselves into the shed.
Cwoor!
Tom still had some final details to paint on the longer of the narrowboats, gas locker hinges, anti slip would then follow. Certainly the finish looked very good on the powder blue boat. You don’t often look up at a narrowboat, Tom assured us the finish was even better from the usual angle of viewing. Coach lines were razor sharp crisp. This boat was being painted for Aqua Narrowboats, Tom has the contract to paint their boats, it would be collected early next week and head off for its fit out. It was nice and cosy in his shed, maybe he’d stood us by the heater on purpose!
A touch dark for my walk
We were only there about ten minutes, having seen what we wanted to see and asked a few more questions. Then we were soon back enroute to Scarborough, returning up the M1, M18, a little wave to Oleanna in Goole then over the Wolds to arrive back in Scarborough in the dark. I got Mick to drop me off at Masham Bank petrol station so that I could have a brisk walk home. This gave me time to think a few things over. By the time I was back at the house I had come up with an ideal plan for this year I wanted to talk it over with Mick a slight adjustment to our cruising year might be required. Tilly had a few things to say about it all too!
Thursdays walk was far jollier
So we wait for a price from Danny at Swanley Bridge, our decision on boat painter nearly made.
0 locks, 0 miles, 2nd revisited, 2 shiny boats, 3 power stations, 1 Johnny Vegas, 1 boat moving on the Aire and Calder, 1 wave to Oleanna, 31 minutes dark walking, 1 offer, 1 estimate to wait for, 1 decision to make soon, 1 cat not impressed with the menu for the last two days.
Not a bad nights sleep, the cat kept quiet! Time for some breakfast. The Travelodge only offers a grab and go breakfast, not suitable for me, so we headed into Northwich, surely Waitrose cafe would have something I could eat, surely!
We stood in line then I asked if there was anything on their menu I could eat, did they have any gf bread? The lady serving said she was embarrassed to say that the only thing she had to offer me was flapjack. How disappointing. I ended up opting for some porridge, if I was coeliac I wouldn’t have touched that.
One solitary sandwich
A sandwich for lunch maybe. One, just one gf sandwich and I didn’t like the filling so Waitrose were disappointing again. They tried to make up for it as we left as a lady thrust two bunches of flowers into my hand, sad gits flowers that had already been reduced a few times but now were free! Mick posed with them pretending he was being ever so loving getting me flowers.
Just after 10:30 we pulled up having followed google directions to Swanley Bridge Marina, at the wrong side of the marina! Round a big stinky block, a farmer was spreading muck, and we found the entrance along with big signs for Willow Boat Painting. Sally was here to meet us and show us what she had in her shed right now.
Such an old romantic, when things are free!
Sally and I had a long chat before Christmas and it was here that had a slot become available in the next couple of weeks time. This would have been really quite well timed meaning we’d be able to move back on board a freshly painted boat and sail away more or less when planned this year. However it would have meant dropping everything a couple of weeks ago and cruising long days, hoping the Trent didn’t go into flood and then waiting for C&RT stoppages to open ahead of us. It was all a bit too quick.
It would be possible to get Oleanna grit blasted by D and J Engineering next door, Danny would be able to weld the extra T studs on for us and do anything structural we wanted. He would also do the 2 pack blacking before Oleanna would move into Sally’s shed for painting.
Sally’s process is pretty much the same as other painters, the number of coats of primer, undercoat and top coat. Sign writing would either be done by Martin her partner or a lady who used to work for them, this would be at an extra cost (as it is with most painters). Wood working could be done by a carpenter who also works at Swanley Bridge, so everything close together. Getting your boat in and out of the water is charged for by the marina, so on top of Sally’s price. Other extras would be things like having the gas locker repainted, other lockers, woodwork varnishing, such as doors or hatch linings.
In the shed were two boats gleaming with their top coats. One was still taped and masked up for coachlines, the other nearing completion. Both looked lovely, we’ve seen a couple of her boats recently out and about NB Alchemy being one of them.
Blasting
We went to meet Danny next door and remind him that we would rather like a price/estimate for grit blasting and blacking. I’d chatted to him before Christmas about this on the phone, but he’d not sent me one. He’s a man that does his work, emails and paperwork are not his specialty, however when you want to compare painters and their prices, even if you are looking into the future it would be handy to have a price. He said we’d have one before the weekend.
Noses in waiting
It had been good to meet Sally and see her work. As we pulled away we chatted over our impressions and what we thought. Willow Boats has a very good reputation, we liked Sally. It would be good to have a price from Danny, Sally would kick him if he didn’t get one to us soon. Downside is they are a long way from Scarborough for Tilly. We’d be realistically looking at October 2026 as we’d not really want a slot in the middle of summer when we could be cruising. There are also all the extras, like gas locker, woodwork, so it’s hard to put an overall price on the repaint. The jury is out until we get a price back from Danny, which will hopefully be soon.
0 locks, 0 miles, 2 times round the inner ring road, 1 disappointing Waitrose, 2 bunches flowers, 4th painter, 1 chatty Sally, 1 even chattier Danny, 1 absent Martin, 1 chippy, 1 waited for price.
With a window between house jobs and appointments we booked ourselves a hire car for two days so that we could cross the Pennines to visit another couple of boat painters.
Mick headed off early to pick up the car and I got on with my exercises followed by my daily walk, today before breakfast. I’m doing my best to get fitter, loose some weight and get ready for boating again, so I’ve downloaded the NHS Active 10 app. This measures how many minutes of brisk walking you do in a day. I aim for 30 minutes, on some days I’m managing far more which just shows how much better my knees are now.
Earlier than normal morning walk
The magic food bowl was set for Tilly. I thought She was starting to pack to go back on the boat, exciting! But no, I’d be home alone with Thomas Tom and Singing She next door to keep an eye on. Our car journeys normally take us over the top of the Yorkshire Wolds, but today we were back on the A64 heading towards York, then the M62 across over the top of the Pennines in the rain.
I’m helping put together a community mosaic
We were headed for the top of the Trent and Mersey Canal. Once off the main roads place names started to become familiar, a few more wiggles and we were crossing the canal, Anderton Marina to our left and the boat lift to the right. A pit stop at the services was required, we pulled up by the rubbish skip a white van parked next to it. A chap inside asked if we were wanting to use the elsan, no just the loo. He was there to mend the elsan and it should be up and running again in half an hour.
Whoever cleans the service block manages to mop the floor, but the black mould around the sink and on the door frame was horrible, plus the smell was pretty bad too, maybe something to do with the elsan. I made sure I washed my hands knowing I’d be able to get out of the block without touching anything!
We had our lunch over looking the marina. Long pontoons stretching off into the distance, much bigger than we’d imagined it to be. There was one familiar boat moored up by the slipway. NB Firecrest, Eric and Cheryl whom we’d met shortly before the Thames flotilla and then afterwards whilst in Paddington Basin.
Hello Firecrest over there!
Time to see if we could find Nick from The Paint Shed. We’d been warned that the boat they’d be working on today was quite a rusty old boat and they would just be starting to strip it back. The covered dock was very noisy, but someone spotted us and Nick came over to say hello, he just needed to finish something so maybe we’d want to wait in the office.
I’ve been doing a touch of painting
As a scenic artist I’ve had several spray guns in my life, several giving up the ghost on me getting clogged, that’s when I yearned to have more than one. Here they had at least four and several spare needles for them too, I was jealous.
Nick came to chat, then we had a walk around the marina. As with most boat painters the nearest marina tends to have several boats that they’ve painted, so as we walked he pointed out boat after boat and told us roughly how long ago it was that he painted them. Of course today was a good day for him to show off his work, rain makes everything shiny and bright, he admitted they all looked top notch when wet.
Four or more guns
Over the years we’ve seen quite a few boats painted by Nick, the last one we shared Big Lock in Middlewich with, it looked immaculate and when we asked how recently their paint job had been we were surprised when they mentioned years rather than weeks. So we’ve seen quite a bit of his work around the north west, when it hasn’t been raining.
We sought refuge back in the paintshed to have a look round. They certainly had their work cut out on the boat in there. One chap was stripping the paint off in the well deck as another was removing window frames. Here they strip every boat back to bare steel using scabblers, needle guns etc. Then the shell is acid treated, this kills off any rust and gives the shell a layer that acts as a primer. 2 coats of 2 pack epoxy primer are followed by 2 coats of 2 pack base coat, then 2 coats of the desired finish including bow, stern hatch, tiller and anti slip painting all in their heated dock. Their sign writing is done by Robin Wagg.
The Paintshed’s dock is not a dry dock, meaning that they don’t do blacking at Uplands Marina as your boat sits in the water. They can black your boat but they do this at Hesford Marine on the Bridgewater, there the hull could be shot blasted. Nick chooses a day with suitable weather, the chaps at the marina shot blast the hull and then Nick very quickly follows them with the first coat of 2 pack blacking to keep the hull as dry as possible. He also insists on doing the job himself. We chatted over logistics for this. Ideally the hull should be shot blasted and blacked before the cabin is painted. However this does mean that when the cabin is being prepared dust and swarf from the sanding is likely to end up sitting along the water line of the new blacking, not ideal really.
Their next slot for painting would be March 2026, but he suggested that we should get the blacking done in the last warmer months of this year when the weather is better for such things. He’d be able to do it in September then we’d look at mooring at Uplands for the winter so then Oleanna would be sat ready and waiting for her painting.
We chatted through all the other jobs on our list, he made some suggestions and nothing would be a problem. He called Caldwells Windows regarding a delivery he was expecting, but also asked them if they do double glazed sliding windows for us. They don’t, I’d suspected as much just from looking on line.
Nick is a nice cheery chap, we liked him. We worked out an estimate for blacking and shot blasting so that this could be added into the price he’d come up with, so we’d be able to compare painters prices better.
Down side to The Paintshed was the blacking having to be at a different time in warmer months. September was suggested, we already have a lodger booked in the house, so we’d be homeless and more to the point Tilly would be homeless! Not being able to grit blast the cabin sides and get them painted quickly due to a days cruise between Hesford and Uplands Marina is also a negative. The distance back to Scarborough in a vehicle for Tilly also might be too much. So sadly as much as we liked Nick and the boats of his we’ve seen he dropped into second position.
Barnton Tunnel
It was still quiet early in the afternoon when we left. What to do with ourselves for the rest of the afternoon? Cinema? Nothing on we fancied. We ended up driving to find the portals of the tunnels on the Trent and Mersey, one found, no boats waiting to go through. Then headed on up to Midland Chandlers at Preston Brook to see what we could see. Mick was after a few connectors for the tunnel light and horns and some new screws for fixing things back onto the bracket. We had a good look round and gave up, only purchasing a bottle of Marine 16.
Neoprene lined fender hooks, might be worth it once Oleanna’s painted, expensive though
We then wiggled our way back towards Northwich. Sign posts to Lewis Carroll’s birth place and visitor centre caught our eye close to Daresbury, shhhhh! Would these be close enough to the canal to be able to walk there in the future? It was too late in the day now to visit.
Hello Dante
Our accommodation for the night was the Travelodge at Lostock Gralam, just off the A559 to the north west of Northwich. It has recently had an upgrade! I think this means a new lick of paint, a funky covered arm chair and a new painting above the bed. Instead of having Rudolf’s red nose in the painting we now had a stylised landscape with moon and we’d be serenaded by a black cat plucking a fiddle.
Nearby is a La Turka, a Turkish and Mediterranean restaurant. It was big with a very good menu having plenty of gluten free dishes. Mick chose a pizza and I had chicken kebabs with a side salad, twice as much as was need for both of us, maybe we should have got a doggy bag for breakfast. It was very nice and I suspect if we ever moor near Wincham Wharf we’ll be back as it’s only 1km away.
Us in Scarborough
0 locks, 0 miles by boat, 1 yellow car, A64, 3rd painter, 1 blogging boat, 4 spray guns, 1 wet day, 2 complicated sadly, 1 small bottle Marine 16, 1 Dante pat, 1 cat and fiddle, 1 pizza, 2 kebabs, 1 side salad, 1 bottle of wine on a week night, 1 cat home alone!
Ages ago Mick spent quite a while trying to find the fuses on Oleanna, fuses between the batteries and … well, everything really! He couldn’t find any. Had they been tucked away well and truly out of sight? It appeared not, he has never found any fuses that the boat builder may (or may not) have fitted. With the new batteries he wanted to rectify this. When he fitted the new batteries last year he fitted a bus bar for the battery cables to terminate on. The bus bar contained fuses to protect the onward cabling to the inverter and the 24v domestic system. The new battery supplier told him that a fuse at the battery end of the positive cables is not required because the battery management system (BMS) would cut off in the event of a short circuit. So it was probably very safe so he didn’t fit any. But it niggled away in his mind. There were various opinions on facebook groups and internet forums, some saying “Oh! You must have fuses” and others saying “You don’t need to bother, nobody has fuses at the battery end” Anyway, due to their relative cheapness and being fairly simple to fit he decided to do it anyway.
So he obtained two “cube” fuse holders from 12 Volt Planet and 2 x 150 amp fuses.
Today he caught the 10am train down to Goole, taking the Brompton with him to avoid having to paddle once reaching the marina. The usual photos of the sea near Bridlington or the Humber and the bridge didn’t get taken due to thick fog, today the world wasn’t picturesque.
In fact the only photo he did take was of the new wee tank connector that Alastair has made for us and left on the stern lockers. Thank goodness, we won’t have to keep our fingers crossed that the connector connects without spillage, or more likely splurtage as the pump pumps!
We can wee now
When Mick had fitted the new fuses and reconnected the batteries the inverter wouldn’t turn back on. About an hours worth of head scratching ensued but eventually he remembered that back in October when we left Oleanna in the Marina he had remotely switched the inverter to “Charger only”. This must have overridden the physical switch on the front of the inverter. This had the effect of not powering up the inverter if the shore power was disconnected (which it was). Anyway, all sorted in the end. Back in the days when Mick worked as a techie in the telecoms and IT sector he had a saying: “Every fault is easy when you know what it is”. Very true in this case.
Meanwhile back in Scarborough one project I’ve been working on has been completed. All three of our garden benches have been repainted and the slats replaced. Not a cheap job but all three have cost us the same as replacing one. Frank leant us his pillar drill and I made sure the new sapele slats got the full number of coats of protective varnish. Hopefully they will now see the two of us out.
Last week I visited a physio for the second time. The wonderful Meera (self referral NHS physio) had given me a few simple stretching exercises and they seemed to have done the job. She believed my muscles were all far too tight and causing me extra problems and exacerbating my knee pain. If only I’d seen her back in August! I have one more exercise to help strengthen my hips and was given an open appointment should I need it before the end of February. No stick needed and I’m increasing the distance I’m walking every day, I’m determined to be able to push lock beams again this year. Thank you Meera!
Eastfield Medical Centre in the sunshine
My next project was to redecorate a room that hasn’t really ever had much thought put to it. The dining room had only ever been painted white and felt a little bit sterile now that we have people staying on that side of the house more often than not. A couple of years ago I made some curtains, last year I added a print out of the swirly wave that I’d used as a front cloth for Rapunzel at Chippy.
Tilly in the fish tank
Taking colours from the curtains and painting I selected a pale yellow and a turquoise. I’d ordered the paint before Christmas when Dulux were giving 20% off most things, so the colours were a little bit of a surprise when I opened the tins, especially the blue/turquoise.
Blimey, that’s bright!
There are still a few bits to do before it’s fully finished, hopefully before next weekend when our next lodgers arrive.
Yesterday we had a phone call from one of the boat painters on our short list. We’ve not yet managed to visit them. They had had a cancellation for a repaint, sadly someone had passed away, would we be interested in the slot? The slot was in three weeks time. Three weeks at this time of year to get across to the other side of the Pennines, there were bound to be stoppages that we weren’t aware of, tides to consider, weather, possible flooding. Then we’d also need to finish preparing the house for lodgers, leave Tilly with them or heaven forbid she’d have to go into a cattery What’s a CATTERY!?! Best she doesn’t know.
Cattery!!!!
It didn’t take me long to turn down the opportunity, three weeks was just too soon sadly. I hope they managed to find another boat to paint and we’re hoping to be that way in a couple of weeks.
Can you see what it is yet?
0 locks, 0 miles, 2 fuses, 1 wee connector, 3 benches, 1 possible gardener, 1 hibernating cat, 1 dining room far brighter than before, 1 new painting started but put on hold, 2 knees actually working again, 1 cat prison avoided.
Time for the annual round up of travels on Oleanna. So sit back with a glass or mug of something nice, put your feet up and I hope you’ll enjoy the read.
We saw the New Year in in the house. Some canal side painting to hang in the downstairs toilet kept me busy during betwixtmas. I decided to set myself a new knitting challenge for the year, to knit a pair of socks each week for the full year to raise funds for Dementia UK. Emails were sent out to numerous yarn dyers and the parcels of generous donations started to arrive along with my needles starting to knit round and round in circles.
Late January we hired a car. First trip was to Dewsbury to purchase fabric for new dinette cushions, it also gave us chance to catch up with Mick’s old work colleagues Mark and Sarah on our way back. The next day we started to do jobs on Oleanna. Mick set too in the engine bay and The Shed to get ready to install our new lithium batteries, I sanded and cleaned the oak floor inside. Window surrounds with water damage were sanded back, stains removed and then revarnished. The stove top was given a fresh coat of paint and the floor two coats of Danish Oil. Mick fitted the batteries and chunky cables and tested things out, all seemed to be good.
Bowls of soup kept us going whilst on Oleanna and whilst in the house I made gluten free crumpets and focaccia. I just have to make the most of the big kitchen whilst I’ve got it!
February. More and more donated yarn arrived, I was going to have to make space on Oleanna for it, just as well I wouldn’t be making a panto model this year!
New dinette cushions were covered. The Galley tap was replaced, we’d discovered that the tap we had was no longer made, but managed to buy two along with spare cartridges, hopefully these will see our boating days out! The new battery installation was tidied up and hooks were added into The Shed to make better use of the storage in there.
Tilly had her yearly vaccinations and we stocked up on flee and wormer for her. Opticians were seen, improvements to a bathroom in the house were started, we had our first lodgers of the year and a lovely visit from Pip’s old school friend Morag. We then called together our Scarborough friends for a gathering before a final tidy up of the house and our return to Oleanna at the beginning of March.
Shore leave permitted for another year
With just about all the house jobs done in the house we moved back onboard, this pleased Tilly and she found her way into the secret passage as soon as she could If I stayed in there I might never have to return to the house again!
Our first aim for the year had been to join the Fund Britain’s Waterways cruise on the Thames, quite a journey from Goole especially when all routes south were blocked by winter maintenance. Once we’d stocked up the boat we headed straight for the New Junction Canal, pulling in to give Tilly some much needed shore leave. She was happy and so were we to be back out on the cut.
We headed towards the first of the stoppages that would be lifted, got stuck by rising waters on the River Aire, made a dash to Lemonroyd when levels dropped a touch. Here things didn’t go too well, two visits to an emergency dentist and Oleanna’s cooling system developed a fault for which we needed a part. Thank goodness we’d upgraded our batteries, but there was no hot water. Alastair from Goole came out to fix our problem and we had a few days plugged in at the marina before river levels dropped and Woodnook Lock on the Aire and Calder reopened we could now be on our way again.
Making our way up towards the Rochdale Canal we negotiated river sections just coming out of the red and made our final dash to Brighouse before the level rose again. We were now at least two weeks behind our planned schedule to reach London in time for the campaign cruise, yes we could have upped the hours we were cruising, enlisted extra crew in places to speed our journey, but we opted to slow down and enjoy the journey and abandoned joining the cruise.
Through Tuel Lane the deepest lock on the network arriving in Hebden Bridge for Easter weekend. We enjoyed cheese, hot cross buns and a pint with Alex one of our favourite actors. Then an evening with old college friends Alan and Doug up near Todmorden before we carried on climbing over the Pennines.
The Rochdale was how we remembered it, hard work but wonderful scenery. The Great Wall of Tod and ducklings took us up towards the summit where we’d booked our passage across the top, a shame it was an overcast damp day. Two C&RT chaps helped us up the last uphill lock and then down the first few locks on the other side getting us through a section guaranteed to be low in water.
There was a pause in Littleborough meeting up with Mick’s sister Anne and his niece and great nieces, first time I’d met the great nieces and the first time we’d seen Anne and Ruth since lockdowns.
A mystery man arrived near Slattocks on our descent towards Manchester, Paul Balmer (Waterway Routes). He’d offered to help us on the long stretch into Piccadilly but arrived a day earlier to help get us to the Rose of Lancaster, he did return the following day and was rewarded with the first batch of apple flapjack.
Down the Rochdale Nine and onto the Bridgewater Canal where we turned left heading southwards. We pulled in for a couple of days at Little Bollington for Mick to have a couple of days away in Scarborough, leaving Tilly and myself on the embankment where the breach on New Years Day 2025 has now happened.
Through Preston Brook Tunnel and on southwards on the Trent and Mersey. Up the Cheshire Locks for the first time this year we paused and had a night out at the New Vic in Stoke to see One Man Two Guvnors with a cast of so many familiar faces. Then on through Harecastle Tunnel and down to Stone where we were joined by Bill and Lisa who got to work their first locks.
At the beginning of May we turned a right at Great Heywood and onto the Staffordshire and Worcester Canal. Unfortunately one of our new lithium bully boy batteries had gone faulty. This needed sending back which took some packing and planning for a pick up. It was deemed to be faulty and a replacement was made ready to be sent out to us when we’d reached somewhere suitable.
Pretty when the sun’s out
A dentist check up in Birmingham suggested I’d be needing a few appointments so it was just as well I’d been before we arrived in Birmingham. Up the Wolverhampton 21, we like that flight, and an overnight stop at Urban Moorings to donate our deposits from our separating toilet.
We now had a rendezvous. Messages had been sent back and forth and as we arrived in Birmingham we were able to pull in right behind NB Lottie Jane where Clare and Graeme were waiting for us. They were over from New Zealand for a few months and had borrowed their friends boat. Over dinner we arranged to share the broad locks ahead of us, they’d head off in the morning and we’d loiter for my dentist.
A few days later after coinciding with another Graeme on NB Misty Blue, then descending Lapworth Locks we rendezvoused again on the embankment above Rowington on the Grand Union. Here there was a meeting of boats as we managed to also coincide withChris on NB Elektra and have a guided tour and a catch up sat out on the towpath.
Down Hatton, both boats glad to have company to work the locks, we rewarded ourselves with a meal at The Cape of Good Hope. Onwards to share the locks back up the other side with Clare and Graeme. It was very nice to be able to spend some time with them again before our journeys took us in different directions at Napton as we headed onto the South Oxford Canal and they headed towards Crick for the boat show.
Mick’s birthday was seen in on the South Oxford, now a state pensioner! A new battery was delivered and looked after at Aynho Wharf for our arrival, more socks were knitted, one pair hand delivered in Thrupp and we managed to moor at several of our favourite moorings as we headed down to Oxford.
Sally, Andrew, Ian, Mick, Jenny, Pip, Sam, Jac
A big Leckenby get together was arranged at the Kings Arms by Sandford Lock on the Thames. Andrew and Jac drove over from London and Ian and Sally along with Sam and Jenny drove over from near Lechlade and Windsor. We had a very loud Sunday lunch, so good to be able to get us all together at a jolly event.
Now we headed down stream on the Thames, we usually end up going up stream! Perfect timing to meet up with Australian visitors Siobhan and Patrick in Wallingford for lunch.
A perfectly timed arrival at Clivden meant we got to moor on an island for the second time, perfect for Tilly. A warm evening bbq above Boveney Lock, watching the royals in Old Windsor. Then we arrived at Weybridge where we joined the River Wey, with a transit licence we moved up to Pyrford Marina meeting up with Ann-Marie and Dave from NB Legend and then a trip back to Scarborough to do a turn around at the house.
On our return we picked up extra crew member Kath (Mick’s sister) and turned onto the Basingstoke Canal. Kath has lived close by to the canal for several years but never seen a boat on it. The following day we joined forces with NB Olive to continue our climb up the locks, there were now 6 cats in the locks not just 1! We cruised our way up to the end of the navigation only to have a phone call saying that a boat had hit a lock gate behind us and that the Deep Cut flight of locks was now closed. Would we be stuck for days, weeks or months?
Oleanna’s horns were removed for some of the lowest bridges on the network, we’d actually have had plenty of space for them. Lunch was enjoyed with Marion and John, a walk over the top to visit the other end of Greywell Tunnel was enjoyed in the sunshine. We then spent the next few days waiting for news on the broken lock and trying to find moorings for Tilly away from NB Olive as Tilly isn’t too keen on other cats!
We spent time visiting Brookwood Cemetery, walking in the woods near Mytchett Visitors Centre and caught up with Sam Leckenby for a meal. Then we heard that the Canal Rangers would be able to give us assisted passage through the troubled lock. Four boats were bow hauled through, only cats allowed to stay on board. At least we’d managed to cruise The Basingstoke Canal on our second attempt.
Downstream on the Thames again to Teddington and a lovely early evening trip to Brentford ended our journey on the Thames this year. We’d booked a mooring in Paddington Basin for a few days giving us chance to catch up with friends and family in London. Andrews birthday was celebrated in true Leckenby style, meet ups with Christine and Paul for Tapas, brunch with Kathy and a few pints with Nick, Kerry and Harry were all enjoyed even though my left knee was starting to seriously play up.
We pulled out from London as the General Election was looming, we’d done postal votes some days before hand. Back along the Grand Union heading northwards we decided to attempt the Slough arm for a second time. Sadly our depth meant all we achieved was a load of weed around the prop and had to abort our mission.
The Grand Union is a very familiar waterway now to us, we climbed up to the Tring summit and headed off to Lizzie’s 50th birthday party in Crick. Lots of boaters we’ve met through the years were there to have a catch up with. We also took the opportunity to catch up with my college friend Jen who’s joined us for a or two cruise in the past.
The first lock of the Marsworth flight was hard work for my knee, the second impossible. Time for role reversal, I’d be at the helm, Mick wheeling a windlass from now onwards. A turn onto the Aylesbury Arm, water Oleanna hadn’t been on before. Our only sight seeing was at an NHS walk in (more like hobble in) centre in High Wycombe, but we did pop to say hello to Ronnie Baker.
Another turn around in Scarborough before we headed towards Milton Keynes joined for a lovely day by Mike and Chris. Northwards to Braunston and onto the North Oxford Canal passing through the large landslip site which had the canal closed for months earlier in the year. Right onto the Coventry Canal, Atherstone and up to Fradley where we turned left for the first time in years.
Now we met up with our old shareboat NB Winding Down and walked round Shugborough Hall, my knee having improved with exercises. Straight on to Stoke then a right onto the Caldon Canal. There was the opportunity to coincide with Debbie and Dave on NB Bonjour, handing over another pair of socks, before we carried cruising both arms of the canal. Having limboed our way on the Basingstoke we decided to give Froghall Tunnel a go. Horns removed again, we slowly but surely managed our way through and had a very quiet night in the basin one lock down on the Uttoxeter Canal, another first for us.
At the beginning of September we retraced our route back to the Trent and Mersey with perfect timing to meet up with Mike and Christine on NB Alchemy, we had time for a catch up and introduction to Tilly before we headed in different directions. Middleport Pottery was visited for the first time, then it was through Harecastle Tunnel for the second time this year.
Paul joined us again to assist us down the Cheshire Locks getting us a little ahead of schedule which meant we were at the Anderton Boat Lift at a weekend meaning Lizzie could join us for the trip, even though it was an exceedingly wet day. This ticked off Oleanna’s seventh and final wonder of the waterways.
We cruised to both ends of the River Weaver on new waters for all of us. A tour of the Daniel Adamson was offered and taken and the last pairs of socks for my sockathon got sponsors. The monthly market in Northwich caught our attention and we had a very lovely evening in Manchester with the London Leckenbys when Josh moved to the city to study at the University.
Back southwards on the Trent and Mersey we crossed paths with NB On The Fiddle and NB Cobweb meaning I could hand deliver some more socks to an old SJT colleague. We started up the Cheshire Locks on our own, but soon picked up Bridget and Storm who were in need of a canal fix, it was great to have a couple of days with them.
Now we turned over the Trent and Mersey and onto the Macclesfield Canal. The Bosley flight was low on water so I handed the helm back to Mick and reclaimed the windlass, Mick is willing to give Oleanna extra umph when needed.
A belated birthday trip on the PS Waverley for Mick had us moored in Macclesfield for a few days, NB Alton stopping to top us up with diesel and coal. Then we were across the top of the Macc and down the Marple flight ready to turn onto the Huddersfield Narrow Canal.
Rain gave us a day off in Stalybridge. Another pause was taken at Uppermill for a trip to Scarborough to see the latest Ayckbourn play and meet up with our lodgers before they headed homewards.
On our final ascent to the summit of the HNC, we thankfully we swapped roles due to low water levels, a 100 meter dash and quick thinking by Mick averted disaster at Lock 29W where Oleanna had got stuck on the cill as the lock did it’s best to empty itself behind her. Once we’d reached the summit we had a quiet afternoon preparing for Standedge Tunnel the following morning.
Our third time through the tunnel, Tilly resigned to hide tucked away behind Mick’s pillow. In Marsden there was then a wait for a lock bridge to be mended before we could descend through Yorkshire. Paul came to assist again on a very drizzly day getting us to Slaithwaite.
From here we had a trip southwards to help celebrate Kath and Sean’s Civil Partnership, a wonderful day with all the Geraghtys together.
Mick and I worked the rest of our way down to Huddersfield where Paul came to assist again wanting to check data for Waterway Routes which is hard to do without being on a boat. We finally waved goodbye to Paul in Wakefield and did our best to avoid the River Aire going into flood, but ended up having to wait a few days at Castleford.
Back on the Aire and Calder we headed to Sykehouse Junction and tucked ourselves on the moorings at the start of the New Junction where we’d moored on our first night this year. Tilly was given shore leave, I remember it well! whilst I tried to finish off some painting jobs before we returned to Goole.
By the end of October Oleanna was tucked up in Goole and we were back in the house with our next lodger, the baddie from the Christmas show at the SJT. Back in the land of veg boxes, get togethers with friends, lantern parades and walks on the beach. Jobs in the house have been listed, a few ticked off and more to work through next year in between lodgers.
The run up to Christmas also included visiting a couple of potential boat painters. A trip to London for a boat trip on the Thames to mark Marion and John’s Golden Wedding Anniversary and at the same time catch up with my family too.
This year Christmas was just the three of us with lots of food and some sock knitting of course. In fact I knitted right up to the bongs of Big Ben at midnight getting part way through my 55th pair of socks in 2024.
So this year was The Year Of The ……
… SOCK!
Now for our final statistics for 2024
This year is the first full year that we’ve logged our journeys using Nebo, but I’ve also kept a tally as we’ve cruised using Canalplan, I’ve got quite a spread sheet. The two methods of recording distances give different totals so I shall list them both. Nebo calculates distances, has average speeds and maximum speeds. Canalplan doesn’t do speed, but includes locks, tunnels, bridges, etc so I suspect I’ll carry on with both next year.
Canalplan stats.
Total distance of 956miles, 4 furlongs and 846 locks.
There were 56 moveable bridges, of which 11 are usually left open; 205 small aqueducts or underbridges and 28 tunnels – a total of 12 miles, 4 furlongs under ground and 1 major aqueduct.
This is made up of 426 miles, 1 furlongs of narrow canals; 279 miles, 7.5 furlongs of broad canals; 55 miles, 1.75 furlongs of commercial waterways; 44 miles, 1.5 furlongs of small rivers; 137 miles, 5.75 furlongs of large rivers; 5 miles, 0.75 furlongs of tidal rivers; 417 narrow locks; 353 broad locks; 55 large locks; 2 boat lifts.
Nebo stats.
Underway 289.95 hours; end mileage 943.24miles; average speed 2.5mph; maximum speed 27.8mph (the link was doing something odd for the first few months then it became more realistic); maximum speed 6.5mph (I hasten to add this was on the River Aire heading downstream in the amber)
Nebo2024 Cruise Map
Other stats.
58 Vehicles held up at moveable bridges; 1011.03 litres of diesel bought; £0.90 lowest diesel at Viking Marina Oct 2024; £1.24 maximum diesel at Aynho Wharf May 2024; 490kgs coal; 3 x 13 kg bottles of gas; £52 electric at moorings; 2 buckets of compost deposits; £20 donation; 630.4 Engine hours; 4 packs Dreamies; 51 friends; 4 brought in; 2 upset tummies; 40 Mrs Tilly stamps of approval; 51 boxes of wine; £252.45 spent on mooring fees; 1 overnight guest; 0 shows; 12 lodgers; 5 supermarket deliveries; 1 problematical knee; 8 months cruising; 20Litres oil; 0 fuel filters; 2 oil filters; 1 kitchen tap; 3 new batteries; 1 faulty; 150amp hours to 460 amp hours (at 24 volts); 1 boat mover sighting; 1 blue boat sighting; 11 days of guest crew; 54.4 pairs of socks; 1,000,000 plus knitted stitches; £1525 raised for Dementia UK; 271 posts; 268,000 words; 353 likes; 399 comments; 15900 visitors; 41300 views!
Thank you for joining us on our travels in 2024.
The count down to the start of our travels for 2025 has started.
Alastair finally got round to finishing off the engine service, Christmas and the New Year having got in the way a touch. Mick wanted to make a trip down to Goole to wish Oleanna a Happy New Year and turn the engine over. He’d forgotten to put out the portable solar panel he got a couple of years ago which helps to keep the starter battery topped up in winter, so by now it would need a good charge. Decision made and he was on the 10am train to Goole, it being quite frosty he decided against taking a bike with him, he’d just have to negotiate the puddles at the entrance to the marina on foot.
Tilly slept away the day on our bed whilst I busied myself with applying the third coat of varnish to new slats for three garden benches at the house, two had stopped being sitonable! Thank you Frank for the loan of your drill.
That looks a bit soggy!
At Oleanna Mick used the main entrance to the marina, avoiding getting exceedingly soggy feet. He saw Alastair and had a chat, the engine service had gone well along with various other checks. Mick usually does our servicing, but had decided he’d like a professional to give her the once over before we take to tidal waters this year. They also chatted about our wee tank connector, there may be something in the workshop that can be adapted.
Oleanna was cold, the engine was run, both gas and electric heating put on to get the chill off quicker. This resulted in a gas bottle running out, so bottles needed changing over in the gas locker. Mental note, before we leave, we need to replace the empty one.
Hello lovely
Last time Mick was down he’d set up a webcam pointing to the electrics cupboard, with the door open he could see from Scarborough what the temperature was. Well that was the intention, except the cupboard door had been closed, so no view of the heating controller which tells us what the temperature is. He also thinks that the temperature gauge that we have in the cabin is faulty. This was confirmed yesterday by it suggesting it was 11C when he arrived! Well that was a big fat lie!! The thermostat on the heating has been raised to take this false reading into account.
An old phone was repurposed to be able to gain access to the batteries. A Tapo socket added to charge the phone when needed, remotely controlled. This means he can now see the BMS (battery management system) to check things over from anywhere instead of via bluetooth which requires him being on the boat.
Exol Pride heading past the marina
A new licence was printed out and popped in the windows.
Our Boat Safety will be due before we leave the marina this year, so various things will need checking over. Mick gave the fire extinguishers a turn upside down and checked that they were still okay to use. They were. Next he attached the labels for the extinguishers onto the cupboard doors where they live. We know where they live should there be a fire, so don’t feel the need for the signs, but they should be obvious to other people.
There are a few more jobs to do onboard before the Boat Safety happens. Alastair suggested using Hannah who works at the marina, as she is fastidious which is what we want for our own safety rather than someone who passes just about everything.
Engine off and Oleanna locked up, Mick headed back to the station. Four ships in the docks today, Exol Pride had passed the marina too. He was back in Scarborough before 6pm.
We now need to find the time and a gap in weather to visit two more boat painters over in Cheshire. Also sadly it looks like we’ll not make it to Chippy before their panto finishes, a shame there wasn’t a show on the day we had spare when down south before Christmas.
More photos of the River Hull show that the bags of aggregate are being used to shore up the bank behind where it had slipped.
That’s my Boat!
On another note, remember that little boat we saw up on the Macclesfield last year with my name on it? Well, NB Pip is for sale. If we still lived on board full time I’d consider buying her as a floating studio, but right now we need the money for Oleanna’s repaint. Joanna got in touch after seeing NB Pip on the blog, so I said I’d pop a link on here for her as she’s reluctantly having to sell. Link to Gumtree
Josh from NB Olive, Taylors Aboard is helping to keep us and many others informed as to what is happening at the Bridgewater breach. His vlog for the first day of the breach has now had 1million views! Of course once the water is stemmed at both sides of the breach site and things need to happen in the planning of what Peel Holdings will do things will go quiet, but for now Josh and his Mum are being kept very busy.
The Bridgewater isn’t the only canal to have been affected by the recent heavy rain, flooding and swollen rivers. The Huddersfield Narrow is now closed.
Masses of water flowed down the River Tame at the new year, the canal also filled up, so much so that the narrow bank between Lock 11W and the river has mostly been washed away, leaving the lock stonework with not much to support it.
So pretty Just below Lock 10Wlast October, river just out of view to the left
CRT Notice
Lock 11 West has suffered some structural damage to the offside banking that neighbours the lock chamber. The damage has been caused by the severe weather.The structural failure means the lock is inoperable and must be closed for the safety of the canal visitors and boaters. Canal and River Trust are currently waiting for the damage to be assessed by the relevant departments.
Another navigation stoppage that admittedly won’t affect many, but maybe us, is on the River Hull. A section of banking is collapsing and the river has been closed. Thank you to Christopher Fenton at Octovision Media for letting me use his photos.
This of course is nothing like the Bridgewater breach but it is enough to close the river. Within the boundaries of Hull the navigation authority is Hull City Council, further north there appears to be no-one in charge, so it’s just as well it’s happened where it did.
Bags of aggregate neatly piled up
As you can see from the photos bags of most probably aggregate are being put on the bank above the slipped piling. Hopefully these are helping to stabilise the bank not adding weight to encourage it collapsing more.
The sorting site by the bank collapse
The bank is alongside Ashcourt where sand and aggregates are sorted.
Hopefully it isn’t a big job to sort the bank out even though it is on a tidal river. At least access alongside it is possible on the land.
Here’s a couple of articles about it. Thank you to Heather Bleasdale and Canal World Forum for bringing this to our attention.
