White House Winding Hole to between bridges 6 and 8, Ashby Canal

You’ll be glad to hear that Tilly was back to her normal self this morning, desperately wanting to go out, most probably to get another fix of ants! We kept the doors firmly shut so that she could go cold turkey, hoping that we can avoid her having to go into rehab!

Whilst still in the shade this morning Mick lifted Oleanna’s engine board and went in to do a service. Well an oil change and oil filter, he’ll do the air and fuel filter another morning soon, when we have shade again.

I got the buckets and cloths out and gave the port side roof and cabin side a much needed wash. She’d needed a clean before she got covered in tree stickyness, then that had just attracted any dust in a mile vicinity. Boy she was filthy! The starboard side isn’t as bad, but now needs doing too. That will have to wait for the towpath to change sides towards the end of the Ashby or when we’ve winded and are coming back.

Numerous boats came past us and many seemed to be stopping for the day as we were pushing off. Yesterday we’d checked the price of diesel at Springwood Haven 92p domestic. We knew that was 10p more than down the way at Star Line Boats, so we cruised on into Nuneaton passing NB Grace we’d breasted up to in Worcester earlier in the year.

Here the locals seem to have progressed over the last couple of years in picking up after their dogs (and possibly themselves). The evidence is very visible with all the knotted black plastic bags that have been thrown across the cut, now covering the offside banks of the bridges! At least it did mean that we were safer than in the past to step off and moor.

A boat was having a pump out, water fill and diesel when we arrived at Star Line, so we pulled up opposite and made sure they knew we were waiting before we sought shade. When it was our turn we pushed over and watched as the diesel pump clicked up the units on the almost illegible screen. The pump clicked off at 100 litres which made the calculation very easy (domestic rate 82p).

Then we were off again dipping in and out of shade as we made our way to Marston Junction where the Ashby branches off to the north east. A tight turn in through the narrow bridge hole, a chap sat above signalled that there was a boat  coming. Luckily it was deemed that the bridge was ours just as we completed our turn and a Black Prince hire boat held back for us. We were now, at last on the Ashby Canal!

Within the first couple of miles we passed another three hire boats (one of each of the major companies) and a few private boats. A Viking Afloat boat made us glad that we hadn’t chosen a shady patch on a wide bend to moor as he misjudged it with quite a bump and scrape. The canal is known for being shallow and this was very evident to us when ever we passed moving boats, Oleanna leaning over towards them as the water got sucked out from under her. Hope our galley drawer runners last our visit here.

A cool wooded cutting sadly had no suitable mooring places, so we ended up pulling in further on and waiting for a hedge to give us some shade.

They had taken their time today. This outside was good, a few too many walkers on the towpath, but plenty of sideways trees and some extra catwalk to strut along, ‘That’s not your boat Tilly!’

Earlier in the day we’d wondered if we’d come across a coal boat now that we had a full tank of diesel. Sure enough we’d settled down when we heard the putput of NB Callisto come past. Sitting very low in the water with a full load of coal, he must be doing summer rates to be carrying that much. Oh well, if you don’t know where they are you can’t always use them.

0 locks, 7.52 miles, 1 left, 9 litres oil, 1 filter, 1 loose battery terminal, 1 chat with Ricky, 0.5 clean boat, 1 grounded junkie cat, 100.07 litres, 1 kamikaze branch, 7 none existant, 11 months to wait, 4 hire boats, 3 drawers, 1 trespassing cat.

https://goo.gl/maps/vfhAJzPRqVD2

Taveners Bridge to White House Winding Hole

No early start for us today, we got to enjoy our Saturday paper with a cuppa in bed and watch the early risers heading for the locks. After breakfast Mick headed off for the station to make his way back into Birmingham. We’d decided that at £12 return each, one of us should go with ID for us both to see if the Post Office would hand over all the post. If they wouldn’t then another £12 would have to be handed over for me to make the journey too.

With all the curtains shut to keep the warming rays out I decided to use some of the charge coming in from the solar panel and watch anther Indiana Jones film. The Last Crusade sees the return of the Germans and has Sean Connery in it so far far better than The Temple of Doom. I got a message through from Mick that his trip had been successful and that he was on the next trains back. He returned just after Harrison Ford had successfully crossed the leap of faith and come across the ancient knight who guards the Holy Grail.

After lunch we pushed off, the next week at least all on the flat, no locks. Not far today, Springwood Haven was our destination.

Between bridges 34 and 35 we were warned by a couple on the towpath of a large chunk of tarmac that had been dumped in the canal near a newly laid road and their boat. Several boats have got stuck on it, one this morning had required a tow to get free. C&RT had been informed. We kept a wide berth and were fine.

We passed NB Ferrous chugging along, large windows showing off it’s shiny engine, I believe she is a stainless steel boat, but a google search didn’t bring up much about her. The Anchor pub looks in better order than four years ago when we’d hoped to leave our car there but it was all shut up. A large awning over part of the garden helping to give some much needed shelter to drinkers.

As Mount Jud came into view a very shady spot showed itself shortly before our normal mooring at Springwood Haven. You remember places with lots of trees and assume that there will be plenty of shade, but the sun seems to be the other way round than in our minds so all places we’ve thought of have been in full sun. So we grabbed our Oleanna sized patch and tied up. We walked over to the marina, bought some filters, a new Pearson’s guide for the Ashby, a correctly sized plug for the tunnel light and some chilled medication. The latter was of the Magnum variety which was nice but mass produced compared to what we’ve been spoilt with recently.

Back at Oleanna Tilly was chomping at the bit to get out and explore the area. We mentioned to our nearest neighbours that we had a cat and they kindly said they’d keep their dog on a lead. Off Tilly went disappearing into the trees to have fun.

After a couple of hours she ran inside, low, scatty, not her normal self. Someone was coming along the towpath, this explained her coming indoors, but not how she was behaving. She wouldn’t listen and shied away from me touching her, then ran back outside to continue to be bonkers out there. In and out, frantically licking herself, just what was going on?! Had she been bitten by something? Rolled in nettles? What? All I got back was ‘buf thi twees crwling si ways, thay sig on fer san sid, bt smel far meeeeow!!! ‘

Next time she came in the doors were closed. What ever it was causing her to be like this could stay outside. Nothing was visible in her fur, we just hoped she’d calm down. After an hour or so she’d let me touch her and after another hour I was allowed to check for any lumps or bumps, but there was nothing. Mick did a bit of reading and discovered that ants when they die give off Oleic Acid, (intersting article) this is to alert other ants to their demise, they are then collected and taken back to the nest. Oleic Acid is present in cats facial pheromones, it’s used in Feliway spray to help calm them down. Large doses of it have a similar effect to cat nip. Tilly was off her face on ants! Well that’s what we hope was wrong. As the evening progressed she returned to normal. We’ll see what she’s like in the morning if there’s a problem we know of a vet an hours cruise away, but hopefully she’ll have come off her high by then.

0 locks, 3.41 miles, 4 trains, 3 items of post, 1 more forgotten about and not picked up, 1 on it’s way to Scarborough, 3rd Indie film, X marks the spot, 1 shaded mooring grabbed, 2 filters, 1 plug, 1 guide, 2 chilled medications, 54784ruigrfufjb, 584993y55e4hfdjbvacb, 1 ant junkie cat, 1 quiet evening, 1 football score checked, 7 penalties watched, 0 martinis for Tilly.

https://goo.gl/maps/xDQTG73y3rB2

Alvecote Priory ish to Taveners Bridge 40

With over four miles to reach the bottom of the Atherston flight this morning we set off just gone 6am with our usual mugs of tea in hand at the helm instead of in bed. It took us around two chilly hours slowing past the numerous moored boats. We’d thought of stopping to deal with rubbish and top up with water at Bradley Green but a boat was just pulling in, right into the middle of the bollards. No point in asking them to move up as we could do what we wanted further along.

Approaching the bottom lock it was obvious we’d be joining a queue, third in line. It now being 8am we’d missed the advantage of setting off early, it was guaranteed to be busy here, always is except in  winter.

The front boat headed into the lock, we pulled in and I strolled up to the lock to help with gates and have a morning chat, getting to know the people on the boat ahead. Plenty of hands to keep us all moving. The bottom of the flight is made up of three pairs of locks which have gaps between them. Everyone keen to get moving meant that we ended up with two boats in the short pounds between the pairs often, luckily the water levels could cope with this.

The lady from two boats ahead thought that there were eight boats ahead of them going up, so we were eleventh not third! They were out for a couple of months and had wanted to cruise in the north, but with stoppages they had decided to head southwards instead. With the Cheshire Ring, Four Counties and Liverpool out of action at the moment it was most probably a wise move.

In front of us was a freshly painted share boat, it was only it’s second trip out since it’s new lick of paint. Sadly yesterday they had caught a branch somewhere on the offside which had left a mark down the cabin side. This would be bad if it was totally your own boat, but with five other couples to explain it to! The lady was going to try her best to polish it out, but she had noticed that the bow looked like it had been touched up with a near but not quite matching cream. As her boat moved up the locks we were left on our own to open and close gates for the first couple of locks until another boat appeared from behind.

Their crew were very keen and they soon caught us up. No point in rushing as there was nowhere to rush to, just join in at the pace the lead boat was moving at along with a couple of boats that were coming down. On this boat there were two couples hoping to reach Calcutt by the end of tomorrow. One lady was very chatty and I did get to know almost all of her life history. With a caravan currently near Whitby she and her husband were astounded at the beauty of the countryside, we had lots we could chat about which made the ever increasing heat more bearable.

After lock 6 there is a longish pound with 48hr visitor moorings, we pulled in for breakfast in the shade of the big trees as a boat pulled out taking our place in the long line of ascending boats. It was 10:30 by now we thought we’d have been at the top, but you can’t rush these things. Breakfast seemed odd, maybe we should have had lunch instead!

It’s the first time we’ve walked into Atherstone for some shopping. Everyone tells you about Aldi and how handy it is. As their head office is close by I’d wondered if this store would be the best we’d been to, or would it be tired and old. It was neither, just the same as most we’ve visited. I knew I wouldn’t get a few things that I wanted, but there was far less than I’d imagined, so we crossed over the road to the Co-op to finish off.

With need of access to Birmingham to get our post we decided to not venture too much further, but we did need bins and water and this mooring was a touch too close to the railway for a peaceful afternoon. After Lock 5 we pulled in and topped up the water. We were following someone so the pause meant we wouldn’t be on their heals and a boat might come down in the mean time to set the locks. No boat came down.

There are normally volunteer Lockies on the flight and we’d seen a couple of them this morning collecting rubbish. One of them had stopped and asked if we’d been to Glasson last year as he recognised Oleanna.

They tend to man the top three locks, especially as there is a bend between 2 and 3, so you can’t see if anyone is coming (they have radios). There was nobody there, I set the lock as Mick exited the one below and closed the gates. In the pound above was the boat we’d been following, a Lockie was investigating this chaps weedhatch for him. I could make out movement in the water, was it the lock being emptied or just the wind? Around the bend came a boat and a Lockie who signalled to the helm to pull in. It was too late for Mick to leave the gate below open.

The Lockie stood by the top gate, I closed one bottom gate and walked round to close the other, suggesting that they should have a mirror so that you can see round the bend. He commented on our efficient locking method, even though he still just stood there and watched me walk all the way round!

Up the last two locks and it looked like we’d ended up being the 18th boat up today, well since the Lockies started in the morning, there may have been others earlier. We pulled in at the services to deal with rubbish and empty our yellow water as two boats arrived to go down. The next stretch of moorings had gaps and looked like they would soon be in shade. Not such a nice mooring as yesterday, quieter than further down, but it would keep us near the railway.

11 locks, 6.33 miles, 3rd, 8th, 11th, 18th inline, 3 passed, 2 hours pause, 1 nice town, 3 poohs posted, 1 albino pineapple, 1 empty wee tank, 0 recycling, 1 pooh bucket, 1 pooh box cleaned, 6 volunteers, 1 cat in a building site.

https://goo.gl/maps/BWxyZEh4zu52

Curdworth Lock 8 to Alvecote Priory ish Coventry Canal

Last night as we laid reading in bed I could hear someone outside, shoes on gravel. Nothing unusual about this people walk past on the towpath at all times, but this person wasn’t passing, they had stopped. Mick thought they had moved on several times and that I was just fretting. But I’d not heard footsteps leaving, just the occasional scuff of the gravel outside our bedroom window. In the end  Mick got up and dressed and armed with a torch went out the back to ‘check the ropes!’ A chap was leaning against the fence outside our bedroom and asked if Mick was okay and Mick asked if he was alright. There was a story of just having heard that his wife had just been diagnosed with breast cancer and he’d come out to help clear his head. This may have been plausible, but you never know. They chatted for a short while then Mick came back in, the chap then moved away.

The alarm was set for early, we wanted to try to beat the sun today. At 6:15am both ropes were untied, engine started and we pushed off through the low lying mist on the canal, creeping past our neighbours to the lock.

Outside the Dog and Doublet was very quiet compared to last night. Just after Bodymoor Heath Bridge we pulled in on the offside. There is a slightly confusing sign here that suggests that there are no bins until Fazeley, these no longer exist, but in the corner of the car park there is a bin compound including recycling. At last we cleared all the plastic, glass and cardboard, space again.

Down the last two locks of the Curdworth flight, back into the land of double bottom gates. The canal now runs alongside a nature reserve, the birds were being very noisy. Two winters ago we’d last been here, a stoppage on the locks meaning we were on a dead end.

The views then were better the hedges neatly trimmed and no leaves to block our view as today. Tilly, still only about five months old, could only look out from Houdini’s shelf at the view, shore leave not yet granted.

Drayton Turret Bridge today was surround by fat green trees and there was no big bump under the water as we cruised under Coleshill Road Bridge. For those who miss the services at Fazeley, you can now use those at Fazeley Mill Marina when it is open. We didn’t need to stop and carried on past Tolson’s Mill which has been a gym for the last two years, the fantastic wool shop now sadly a thing of the past.

At the junction we turned right onto the Coventry Canal, not many boats about and the cruising club looked quite empty too.

Glascote Locks were to start our ascent again. It turned out that what at first looked like a boat about to come down was just walkers stopping for an early morning chat. You quite often have to queue here, but our arrival at just gone 9am was before everyone got going.

I started to set the bottom lock, only to discover a huge leak on the top gate, a torrent of water was forging it’s way around a trapped branch. I quickly lowered the paddles and refilled the lock, hoping this would waste less water than if I fought to open the bottom gates then the time it would take to get Oleanna into the lock. By that time the small connecting pound would have been well down. As the levels equalised the branch just popped out of the gate, only a small thing can cause quite a leak.

Above the locks we made our way to the far end of the visitor moorings and tied up for breakfast. Then a top up shop from the very handy Co-op, including charcoal and quite a few items from their sad gits section. By the time we pushed off again it was 11:30 and starting to get quite hot. The canal was far busier than we’ve seen since Lapworth, mainly because we’d now joined a very popular route up and down the country where you can avoid going into Birmingham.

We wound our way around the outskirts of Tamworth. This is where Tilly had her first set of vaccinations so we got to know the gardens quite well. We were heartened to see that the immaculate lawn that gets swept was still very tidy. No one was sweeping it today, but the brush lay waiting should anyone see a rogue leaf.

Alvecote Marina was busy and the Samuel Barlow pub looked like they were in for a good afternoons trade. We carried on hoping that a tree would oblige a short distance further on, with sufficient distance from the railway line to have a peaceful afternoon in the shade. Having moored along this stretch before we knew roughly where we wanted to be, just one more slight bend would do. There in front of us was a shadow of a tree 59ft long, 6 inches spare. On the opposite side of the cut were more tall trees, maybe we’d get sun for an hour,  but then the shade would return. This mooring also had a bonus a wide footpath leading into the woods where we’d be able to set up our chairs and have a barbecue without infringing on the towpath.

They thought it was good! It was blooin bl**y brilliant!!!! I had a good sniff round to see what there was, then headed down the path to the far side. So much to keep me busy you would not believe it. At the current rate that the outsides get changed I reckon I’ll be fine here for a week. She said I had six hours and then maybe more as she and Tom were going to sit out this evening, so a whole lifetime! Pouncing commenced, followed by climbing. Even though there was lots of shade it was still quite warm so flopping to the ground was necessary at times.

She kept saying I should climb the biggest tree, ‘don’t leave it for tomorrow’. So I went part way up leaving loads more of it to conquer tomorrow, I didn’t want to use it all up at once.

Lump wood charcoal tends to burn hotter and quicker than the briquettes we normally get. I stupidly took a couple of photos and delayed turning over the veg and haloumi kebabs, they became veg haloumi and carbon kebabs. Oh well it’s meant to be good for you and it was only on one side.

6 locks, 7.93 miles, 1 right, 6am start, 1 creepingly quiet boat, 9:30am breakfast, 3 keys back in the drawer, 1 small stock up, 1 box of wine, 0 visit to the vets, 1 broom, 2 gnomes going for silver, 1 more hot day, 1 perfectly shaded mooring, 2 stamps of approval, 2 pork chops, 2 salmon fillets with sauce, 4 half yummy kebabs, 4 half blackened, 2 chocolate bananas, 1 gluten free IPA, 2 glasses of wine, 1 fox that stopped play a bit early, 2 Mrs Tilly stamps.

https://goo.gl/maps/VStaAi5btPE2

Minworth Arm to Curdworth Lock 8

Tea in bed was allowed today, but it wasn’t followed by breakfast straight away, we had a newspaper to find. We pushed off and cruised about a mile further on to just before Curdworth Tunnel. Here there was shade in abundance, maybe we should have pushed on to here yesterday, but the only view was of trees so no sunset.

With the thought that the Post office might run out of our chosen paper before we got there we walked straight into the village crossing the big main road. As we approached there was a lady leaning against a skip by the front door, she asked if we’d come from the canal. The Post Office closed on the 24th June for refurbishment, so no newspapers or milk available for a while, in fact there was very little inside the shop at all. She gave us directions to the nearest paper shop, back to the main road, turn left and walk for about half an hour. We went back to the boat to check on it’s location.

Over breakfast, google maps and street view were checked, no sign on street view of a shop, but there was an Asda on the other side of the canal a bit further on, a bike ride away. We’d stocked up on a few things before leaving Birmingham but had totally forgotten about breakfast things. So off Mick went on a Brompton, returning with a newspaper and enough to keep us going for a couple of days.

We could now push on, all of the 3 miles we had planned. Notes were made of possible sheltered moorings so that we didn’t pass them.

Through Curdworth Tunnel all 57 yards of it, good job Mick had bodged the tunnel light together yesterday even though we didn’t use it! Another half mile and we were at the first lock of the Curdworth flight. This is a modern lock as it had to be moved when the M6 Toll was built.

A short distance on we pulled over to top up with water just as a large group of lads cycled past us. They all stopped at the lock and then spent quite a bit of time trying to work out how to fill the lock, presumably to swim in it. They had no luck in filling it so after some time carried on cycling along the towpath. Glad we hadn’t come across them, ten teenage lads in lock.

We’d missed the cool hours by now and the heat was building up again. We came through here in October 2014 on a day with a different extreme of weather. It started to rain at the second lock, we managed to put on waterproof coats but no trousers, Mick sheltered under the pram cover and bridge holes, but I got wetter than if I’d fallen in! No chance of that today, although Mick took the opportunity to shelter under the bridges again, I had very little shade to wait in as the locks filled or emptied. All the locks have flower beds by them and are well tended with neatly cut grass. Having said that there was very little green grass around, most of it now parched and brittle to walk on.

After Lock 7 we started to look for shade, the spot I’d got my eyes on already had a couple of boats moored there, tall trees on both sides of the cut. We pulled in behind them but were soon going to be in full sunlight for the remainder of the day. Below Lock 8 on the 48hr moorings for the Dog and Doublet there was only one boat, but the trees on the off side didn’t look like they would give us much shelter, so we stayed put as the sun heated up our port side making the interior of the cabin like an oven.

I watched most of the second Indiana Jones film Temple of Doom, which suffered from having a 1980’s female character who screams a lot for comedy effect. Not a patch on Raiders of the Lost Ark! Mick sat reading his paper in the shade of some trees in the garden of Brook Marston Farm Hotel, which looked a touch closed, whilst Tilly had a good explore without a green mesh fence getting in the way.

In the evening we walked down to the Dog and Doublet for some food and a drink. It was tenth in the ten UK’s best waterside pubs in the Guardian this week. We especially like the quote in the article from the landlady. This didn’t seem to have put anybody off as all the outside tables were chocka and it was quite busy inside too. We stopped here before and had a pleasant meal. Tonight we both opted for a Sirloin Steak and chips each. If only the chef had seasoned our meat before cooking it, they would have been good steaks. As we headed back to the boat for some chilled medication Mick noticed a paddle had been left up at the lock, so he kindly returned with a windlass and closed it for the last boat that had come through. We really didn’t want to have to fill pounds again tomorrow.

7 locks, 2.93 miles, 2 moorings, 1 shaded, 1 very well heated, 1 refurbishing Post Office, 0 newspaper, 1 bike ride, 1 newspaper, 10 lads on bikes, 1 empty lock, 1 full water tank, 2nd Indie film pants, grade 3 hair cut, 2 steaks, 1 pint, 1 glass of wine, 1 happier cat.

https://goo.gl/maps/7BziPdmJq1M2