Well we don’t really know where to go now!

Whilst work is ongoing at the house, and I’m beavering away designing Panto, it suits for us to be roughly where we are. But once the final model is painted and working drawings are scanned and with the set builders and the house full of lodgers again, we will be free for a few months.

We’ve been along this stretch of the Aire and Calder for the last three weeks, I’m sure the local boats that shuffle up and down are starting to wonder if we’ve joined their numbers. I know how long certain boats have been moored in several places. Our current mooring I suspect is one that is used frequently as Oleanna gets stared at as boats go past, often winding a little further on from us. I’m hoping our last two moorings are far enough apart for the number checkers, we’ll find out if not. Anyhow we’ll be moving on in a few days and not just to the services!

So our current options.

Leeds Liverpool. The Leeds end of the canal is currently open, but on restricted hours. We could head up to Skipton, but that would be chancing it with the dry weather. If the canal is shallow it would be a tedious cruise rather than pleasureable.

Calder Hebble. Currently open. River levels fairly normal at the moment although the flood lock at Ferrybridge was closed the other day. Of course we did the Calder Hebble last year to reach the Rochdale, then back from the Huddersfield Narrow.

The Rochdale is currently closed between Lock 1 and 4 Tuel Lane. There is a leak somewhere around Lock 2 and water levels are poor. The rest of the canal is open. But to go that way would likely mean opting to do the Macclesfield to get around the Bridgewater breach. Or maybe the Manchester Ship Canal, an option we’d like to do one day, but not this year.

The Huddersfield Narrow is out of action due to the bank being washed away by Lock 11W in floods last winter. That route is likely to be closed for some time.

We plan on a return visit to York in a few weeks time. On one of Mick’s train journeys this week, going over Scarborough Railway Bridge he noted that the River Ouse had responded to the recent rain fall in the Dales. The level was up, almost level with the bank at the Museum Gardens moorings.

Sheffield. There’s an option open to us, we’ve been by boat twice now and brought Oleanna away from there when we moved onboard. So that’s two and a half visits.

Our preferred route southwards is the Tidal River Trent, turning right out of Keadby Lock. Currently the Chesterfield Canal is open. We’d love to cruise that way. The going is slow as we were reminded earlier this year on the short stretch we managed. However, dry weather could mean the canal closes at the top end.

Fossdyke and Witham. Open and always an option. We could head to Boston, maybe see if the navigable drains are worth ticking off the list. Some boats from the Fund Britain’s Waterways Flotilla are headed that way to cross the Wash. Sadly we don’t have enough time due to commitments to tag along with them, we’ve seriously looked at this.

Then once further south and out the other side of Nottingham, which way should we head then?!

I suspect some of our decisions will be made for us. What will be will be, just so long as we manage to get onto the South Oxford for me to go to work in October.