Mick rang back a company he’d tried yesterday to see when an engineer might be able to come out to look at our dead washer/dryer. We’d been given several options yesterday regarding payment and we’d decided that £125 to fix it wasn’t too bad, a new one being at least £300, if they couldn’t fix it then £55 would be the call out charge. However when he tried calling the department to see when they would be able to visit the phone just rang and rang and rang. He gave up.
Not much of a view in St Pants
Google suggested several other firms. ‘Sorry we don’t cover that area’ was quite a common response. Others suggested they’d be able to get someone out to us this afternoon. ‘What’s your postcode?’ This was given, handy to be at the Cruising Club and have an address. Then Mick would say we were on a boat. ‘Oh, we don’t do boats. Houses yes, boats no!’
St Pancras Lock
A notice was put on the London Boaters group, but the only suggestion was to buy a new one as they are so cheap now. We’d rather see if it can be mended, but we might just be giving someone some money to look at a totally dead machine.
Eventually a company was found who didn’t have a problem coming out to us on a boat. An appointment made for tomorrow afternoon. Mick called the Harbour Master, Tony to see if we could stay a bit longer in the basin. This was fine and a key holder for the gate into the car park would be found to let the engineer in.
Mick headed off to find a new connecting hose for the washing machine, a longer one would help when pulling it out from it’s cupboard. 2.5m would do and be handy even if we end up having to buy a new machine.
Hello!
Back onboard I, at last, had a chat with Gemma (Production Manager for Panto). We talked painting the set, a quote for more than my design fee had come in from a scenic artist. I know you can earn more money painting than designing, but when I’d already said I’d paint the show for a top up on my fee! Logistics in our pandemic world make things a little more complicated than before, but hopefully with a bit of thought things will work out.
Not being much of an assistant
I decided that as we wouldn’t be moving today that I’d do some work. The drawing board came out and my assistant sat by and watched as I drew up some basic plans for the set of #unit 21. This didn’t take too long, I just need to get them scanned now and sent off for a friend in Leeds to give me a quote.
Mick had another trip to make to Christine’s. A new propmate had arrived for us to replace the one now sat on the bottom of Limehouse Basin. The design has changed a bit since we bought our original one. Now made from pipe with a bent handle and it comes with a wrist strap already attached! Hopefully this one will be with us for longer than the old one.
Being cooped up in the boat all day I had a walk around the Kings Cross development. A meander of a walk took me through the new buildings, many empty. Landscaping and seating is everywhere making for a green environment.
Wish I could look inside
I walked past York Road Station, one of the original stations on the Great Northern, Piccadilly and Brompton Railway. Opened in 1906 it was designed by Leslie Green and connected to the platforms by two lifts. It closed in 1932, discussions have been made about reopening it, but as it’s quite close to Kings Cross the £21million (2005 estimate) needed to bring it up to modern day standards it is unlikely to happen.
Cinema across the water
A cinema screen plays to an audience on the steps across the canal. A couple of films are shown a day along with the Tour De France at lunchtimes. All the restaurants and bars were packed, as much as they can be and the whole area had a hubhub about it.
Art covers walls and expensive shops fill an area which used to be full of railway lines delivering coal.
It being Wednesday night it was club night at the Waterpoint the old water tower that overlooks the basin. A glass of wine and being sociable was on the cards, hopefully with a visit to the roof of the tower.
Looking SW
Our luck was in and we got shown up onto the roof. From here views down to St Pancras Station, BT tower, a bit of the London Eye and the numerous cranes which are on the site of the new Google building.
Looking SSE
Northwards is mostly railways and tower blocks, but all the same with the sun gradually going down it was still quite a sight.
Ballcock
The roof is what used to be the water tank which used to hold 17,000 gallons of water which was used to fill the tanks of the steam locomotives. In one corner is the ballcock, pretty much like a toilet ballcock only far bigger!
St Pancras Station
The tower used to be situated along the lines at St Pancras, however it was in the way of the Channel Tunnel Rail Link HS1 so it had to be moved. The tower was split into three, the top two layers moved to behind the lock cottage. A new bottom third was built and the top two thirds were craned in on top. The Cruising Club are custodians of the water tower, it is currently their club house. You’ll find it open to the public several times a year.
Looking NNE
The whole area around Kings Cross was a huge coal depot. Where the basin is now used to have railtracks running over the top of it. The gas holders have been moved from their original site and new buildings built within them to suggest the old tanks. Using this link you can see how much the area has changed since 1892 by sliding the button on the bottom left.
Today a new C&RT notice came in
Aire & Calder Navigation Main Line Location: Lock 11, Ferrybridge Flood Lock, Aire & Calder Navigation
Navigation Closure
Monday 19 July 2021 08:00 until Friday 13 August 2021 16:00
A stoppage is required to replace the downstream gates and cills. Check and repair downstream sluices.
Here’s hoping the end of this stoppage coincides with the breach site reopening.
0 locks, 0 miles, 0 washing machine, 1 engineer booked, 2 new quotes, 1 conversation, 1 set drawn up, 16 more panto photos, 1 dormant station, 2 glasses up on the roof.
A photo heavy post! If you click on a photo it should enlarge.
Limehouse Basin to Ontario Bridge 205A Grand Union Canal
Not much of view this morning!
Tilly seemed keen to be out this morning despite the not so inviting view from our bedroom window. Today we’d be heading out onto the Tidal Thames so no shore leave for cats, no matter how much they shout!
One of the last jobs to do today was put Tilly’s escape pod back together ready should there be any necessity to abandon ship. She also quite likes to sit in there anyway.
Final briefing
At 10:30 all crews congregated in the car park for our final briefing. An extra sheet of paper was passed round which detailed the distances between bridges on our cruise upstream. We were reminded to keep looking behind us as that is where the danger can lie, make sure our anchors were actually attached to our boats and just to hold our course and not to turn into waves as they can come from any and every direction. VHF radios were handed to crew who didn’t have their own, ship to ship being on channel 8.
Simon watching the lock open up
St Pancras Leader, Simon, would radio VTS (Vessel Traffic Service) when they left the lock and the third lock leader would do the same when the last and final boat entered the tide way, Tail end Charlie would be Oleanna today. There wouldn’t be much commercial traffic on the river, but plenty of Clippers and speed boats. The weather forecast wasn’t so good, everyone prepared for rain which was just trying to start.
Moving into position
The first locking of four boats was at 11:15. Limehouse Lock can hold three narrowboats abreast and as two boats were short they could sit one behind the other. We watched as the boats pulled into the lock, each passing ropes round the risers on the lock walls, these are positioned directly under the bollards above.
Waiting for NB Chance to take her position in the lock
The pull as the lock starts to empty, radial gates not paddles, is strong necessitating ropes needing to be passed round a T stud to help you keep hold.
We watched as the lock emptied and then the boats departed. NB Thermopylae led the way followed by NB Chance, NB Misty Blue and NB Mobius brought up the rear. Each boat motoring out of the lock and turning right onto the Thames keeping a distance between each other.
Next lock full
The next boats were ready and waiting for the lock to be refilled, we headed back to Oleanna for a final briefing with our second mate, move the towline to the bow and untie ourselves from the mooring.
Oleanna looking forward to her trip up the Thames
Tilly was warned that that the outside we’d be moving today was likely to be quite lumpy bumpy for a while, she retired to her escape pod and waited to see what happened.
NB Coracle was lead boat, followed by NB Small World then us at the very back. As the lock gates fully opened Andrew on NB Coracle said ‘Let’s go boating!’ It was 11:48 we were 15 minutes ahead of schedule.
Leaving Limehouse Lock, the river was big but not as big as leaving Goole
I closed the cratch cover up and moved through Oleanna to the stern. I was soon pleased that I’d thought to move bottles from the galley shelves and counter tops as the river was most certainly lumpy. We turned into the flow of the tide heading upstream.
Speed boats zipped past their wakes moving across the river. They were towards the south bank, we were towards the north bank, the waves kept coming and coming, first this way then that.You said it was going to be lumpy! You didn’t say that we would be looping the loop!!!!
Tilly wasn’t happy, she was shouting at the back doors! I have to admit that I wasn’t too happy either as Oleanna rose and fell with the waves. Please excuse the out of focusness of this footage as my camera had no idea what it should focus on! This is by far the lumpiest water we’ve encountered. As a child I used to be seasick every time I even stood near to a boat, so today I did my best to keep calm and looked round at everything to keep my mind off the swell.
We fell in line behind the lead boat and NB Small World, one yellow buoy coming a touch close to us. The river was moving us along, at one point I couldn’t hear the engine, Mick had put Oleanna into tickover as we had been gaining on the boat ahead.
Behind us Canary Wharf, ahead old warehouses, the River Police jetty.
Shard ahead
The Shard came into view, then as we rounded the bend at Wapping the view opened out.
Quite a view!
The Walkie Talkie, St Pauls, BT Tower, City Hall and of course Tower Bridge. Wow!
Dora May just off centre with a blue and cream wheelhouse
At Tower Moorings we tried to spot Dora May that used to belong to my friend Kathy. She is still moored there, wheelhouse positioned with a great view over to Tower Bridge.
Just look at that! Tower Bridge built between 1886 and 1894
We managed to line ourselves up briefly for a photo we’ve been dreaming of for years, under the central span of Tower Bridge.
Then we got back in line with the two boats ahead and headed for span 1 to the north side. It is quite an impressive bridge to walk over, but more so to pass under.
We waved to the south bank of the river where Mick’s sister Christine had positioned herself.
Christine’s over there somewhere!
No chance of spotting her, but thankfully she spotted us.
There we are
Past the clipper terminal
Tower of London
I especially like the one in front of the Tower of London.
HMS Belfast and The Shard
The bridges now come thick and fast as did the swell.
Bridges lining up ahead
Trying to take photos clinging on, trying to stay upright at times was quite hard.
London Bridge Hospital looks like a new coat of white paint has been added, keeping it crisply clean, soon followed by Hays Wharf. This wonderful deco building once a wharf now contains consulting rooms and the cardiology department for the hospital.
Follow my leader under the correct spans of the bridges as waves buffeted themselves against Oleanna.
Tate Modern (opened 2000) and the wibbly wobbly Millennium Bridge (opened 2000, reopened 2002).
The Samuel Pepys pub is where Mick used to drink when he worked almost next door for BT in the red brick building.
More bridges, more sights, more big trip boats.
Pillars where old railway bridges used to be. The Oxo tower (originally a power station supplying the Post Office, built at the end of the 19th Century) more shiny tower blocks.
Waterloo Bridge (opened 1942, fully opened 1945), The National Theatre (opened 1976). Have to say I was a touch disappointed that the National hadn’t brought the horses out from War Horse onto the terrace to see us pass as they did for the Queen!
Not much traffic behind
Frequent glances behind brought different views as well as checking if we were being followed.
Hungerford Bridge (opened 1864) and the Golden Jubilee Bridges (completed 2002)
Then Hungerford Bridge and the Golden Jubilee Bridges. Were we early? We looked up as we came under the bridge.
A pair of shoes, legs, a radio 2 news presenter stood phone in hand ready to capture us as we passed below.
The London Eye (opened 2000), County Hall (1922), Tattershall Castle (a steamer built in 1934 and was used as a Humber Ferry) and onwards to the Houses of Parliament (finished in 1860) and Westminster Bridge (opened 1862).
Heading up stream
Such a shame Big Ben is still swathed in scaffolding, maybe we’ll just have to come and do the trip again in the latter part of 2022!
As we passed the exclusion zone in front of the Houses of Parliament I shouted out a few comments to those who run our country. I so hope they heard and will take heed of my words!
Under Lambeth Bridge ( 1932) with the MI5 offices (1929) with it’s gold roof.
Tamesis Dock
A boat sat out of the water a structure held it upright. I wonder if those eating and drinking at Tamesis Dock knew they weren’t afloat.
Mick tried pointing out another building he used to work in. ‘That one with all the windows’! It turns out Mick used to work next door to the MI6 building on the south bank, well before it was built.
Vauxhall Bridge Built in 1906
By now the river traffic was easing, the swell gone. Under Vauxhall Bridge, the four towers of Battersea Power Station (completed in 1955) rose from the redevelopment below.
Next week will see the return of the open-air cinema and theatre at The Coal Jetty. Apartments are being sold and retail and restaurants are already open. We do wonder what the residents will think of living next door to the Super Sewer though! I’m sure it will all be below ground.
Victoria Railway Bridge rebuilt and widened in the 1960’s
Chelsea, originally Victoria Bridge, rebuilt in 1937
Albert Bridge, built 1873, suspension bridge incorporated in 1884-7 and final alterations made in 1973
Victoria, Chelsea and Albert Bridges. The question is who was Chelsea? Did she have a bit of a fling with Albert getting between them!
Albert Bridge painted in pastel shades has a touch of a Wedgewood feel to it.
Battersea Road Bridge built 1885
Battersea Road Bridge was followed by numerous house boats.
House boats side by side
I wonder what it’s like living on one of those with the tides coming and going.
Lots Road Power Station, built in 1904
Lots Road Power Station which used to produce electricity for the underground is having a makeover. The internal structures have been removed and 800 tonnes of steel have been used to retain the exterior façade. Along with four new buildings the development will provide 420 residential units.
Hanging under Wandsworth Bridge ( built in 1940) is a dishevelled bail of straw. It’s an ancient bylaw of uncertain heritage that if a bridge arch is open to river traffic, but with restricted headroom, then a bundle of straw should be hung from the bridge as a warning. At night time it is replaced by a white light.
Fulham Railway Bridge (1889) and Putney Bridge (1886)
Down stream of Putney Bridge (1886) is where the Oxford Cambridge boat race starts, the course passes under Hammersmith Bridge, Barnes Bridge and finishes just before Chiswick Bridge a distance of four miles.
Fulham Football Club is having major works. The riverside stand at Craven Cottage was demolished and is being redeveloped into more than just a football stand. Floating pontoons are being used in the building work and an exclusion zone around these is in force on the river marked with yellow buoys.
Rowers
Now we started to encounter rowers as we approached Hammersmith Bridge (1887). An area along the southern bank has been marked out for the rowers to use, keeping normal river traffic away from the area.
Hammersmith Bridge currently closed
Hammersmith Bridge has been closed to motor traffic since August 2019 after cracks were discovered in the bridges pedestals. The closure was extended to pedestrians, cyclists and normal boat traffic last year. It is however open for pre-booked transits which are subject to a lot of conditions. One of which is that you have an abort plan should the bridge be closed in front of you. This would entail winding and stemming the tide in a predetermined section of the river, contact with VTS would be made and then we would wait for slack water before returning all the way to Limehouse Lock with the outgoing tide.
All three groups had to pass under the bridge in an hours window. Thankfully no abort signal was given and we as Tail end Charlie passed under the bridge at 13:38, well within the hour. Phew!
Under Barnes Railway Bridge ( built in the 1890’s), more rowers and paddleboarders.
Chiswick Bridge built 1933
We received a phone call from Simon checking our location at 14:00, we could confirm we were under Chiswick Bridge and all was fine at the back of the flotilla.
Boats ahead under Kew Railway Bridge
A zoom in on the camera to Kew Railway Bridge confirmed we were catching up the second group. NB Combs Lass and NB Galatea were just passing under the bridge, it was the first time we’d seen them since Limehouse.
Kew Bridge built in 1903
Kew Bridge a wide span bridge was to be the last we’d pass under, the Tower of Kew Bridge Pumping Station watching our approach towards Brentford Junction.
Liquidity ahead
Passing islands to our starboard side we could see the sculpture Liquidity by Simon Packard. This to boaters helps mark the entrance of Brentford Junction on the Thames, to locals it caused a big hoo-ha when it was first erected as it blocked the view from new flats and a local restaurant to the river.
This was where the flotilla would split. Three boats could be seen continuing on up stream towards Teddington. NB Thermopylae now at the back. The third locks worth of boats veered off at the Junction and headed for Thames Lock. Here NB Albert Victor was joined by NB Coracle our lead boat and we joined NB Small World in the second lock to rise up to the semi tidal stretch at the bottom of the Grand Union Canal.
It wasn’t me!
I had chance to check on everything below, half expecting Tilly to still be in a tizz and maybe for her to have suffered from seasickness. I was greeted by a cat who was trying to be quite cool about everything, even if she was a little bit shouty! There was also a bit of a puddle in the main cabin. Oh dear.
However it didn’t take me long to realise that this was just water and it must have come in through our hatch despite the outer doors being closed. There was water on the surround. In absolute torrential rain with howling gales we’ve had water come in having been forced up under the doors. This must have happened when we were in the really lumpy water.
Thames Lock which takes us onto semi-tidal water
Heading to the bow to open up the cratch I also noticed a very small amount of water had made it’s way up under the front doors. These are raised off the floor of the well deck and have a frame that sits quite a bit higher than the doors. Water will have come in through the well deck drains on the choppy sections of the river and some of that made it’s way inside!
Maybe if we plan to do more rough cruises we should look at adding extra protection to these areas, the amount of water wasn’t alarming, but it would have been better to have come in to a dry boat.
A lock keeper was also on duty at Brentford Gauging Locks bring us up off the tidal water and onto the canal proper. We were now bunched up and a queue had formed at Clitheroe’s Lock. I headed up to help , other crew walking on ahead to set Osterley Lock.
When we reached the final lock of the day NB Albert Victor was waiting for a partner, so NB Small World joined them, leaving us to lock up on our own. The off side bottom gate refused, despite a bit of a waggle back and forth, to open fully, so it was one boat in at a time. On leaving half a tree trunk floated above the lock gates. NB Small World pushed it out of the way, but by the time I’d refilled the lock it had drifted back down to be in the way again!
The first sign of a gap in the moorings we pulled in, close to the community gardens. Tilly’s paw was already clinging onto the bathroom porthole her nose sniffing the fresh air, the trees here already having been given feline approval. As soon as our location had been noted with co-ordinates and what3words the rules were recited to Tilly and she was given 2 hours shore leave.
Tideway Tilly back on dry land
Time for a well deserved cup of tea!
Graeme and David with everyone else behind them
This evening we joined everyone else who’d come off the river at Brentford along with Simon who’d made it over from Teddington for a meal at The Fox. This is a pub Mick knows well as he used to live about 200 yards away. I was famished, but had also forgotten about the portion sizes. A portion of chicken wings arrived as a starter, I’d been expecting 4 or 6, but 12! Mick and I should have shared them. Sadly they had run out of rainbow trout so I chose pork belly with mash, Mick had sausage and mash. All the food was very tasty as expected.
VHF and laminated sheets
A very good evening wrapping up an incredible day. The rain had held off, the planning had been spot on, the waves added extra adrenalin, advice was shared, lead boats knew the river, tail boats were VHF qualified. Thank you very much Simon for offering us the final space on the cruise. Thank you also to St Pancras Cruising Club, from start to finish we felt we were in safe hands.
Waterway Routes under new improved rain shield which wasn’t required today
5 locks, 18.75 miles, 2 rights, 34 bridges, 3rd locking, 10th in line, 1st St Pancras cruising cat, 1 lumpy river, 1 shouty cat, 2 puddles, 1 sister-out-law, 1 fellow blogger, 1 boat in tickover much of the time, 4 rice crispie cakes, 0 flying pigs, 4 power stations, 3 lock keepers, 2 hours shore leave, 1 fox, 807 photos, 1 very nice meal, 1 fantastic day.
https://goo.gl/maps/kU1p4HBtsysYSh7c7
A fab photo of Group 1
For more photos of the trip from the front of the flotilla follow this link to Scholar Gypsy
Adam has also published a post with his photos this morning, showing the second group of boats as they headed for Westminster Bridge. A link to his blog Briar Rose
Our booked seven days at Rembrandt Gardens were up today. After a leisurely start we pushed off at 11am, waving our new neighbours goodbye. The moorings under the trees are not so good for solar, but in warmer weather the shade would be welcome. One thing however that I’m not going to miss is the almost constant smell of weed. It seems as if nobody smokes cigarettes anymore, they just roll joints and find a boat to smoke them by!
Maida Hill Tunnel all of 249m
We rounded the island and turned onto the Regents Canal. NB Muddy Waters a Finesse boat is still moored along the stretch before Maida Hill Tunnel, it looks like their tunnel light is as rusty as ours after four years. The tunnel was clear so no need to wait, popping out the other side where there are permanent moorings.
At the far end work is being done, it looks like new jetties are going in. Mick’s tug being put to work.
The stretch through Regents Park is always interesting. The big expensive houses with immaculate lawns, there will be a good crop of brambles on the other sides of their railings in a few weeks time! The towpath was busier than we’ve seen it before, so was the canal. Paddleboarders, trip boats and narrowboats all managing to be in the same place at once.
The Snowden Aviary at the Zoo is empty of birds, instead scaffolding was being erected and a chap stood on tip toes angle grinding another hole in the mesh. The aviary a Grade 2* listed building is being transformed by the architects Foster + Partners. It will become a walkthrough exhibit with colobus monkeys overhead, red duiker on the forest floor and African grey parrots will fly up to the top of the structure. More information can be found here.
Chocka block
As we rounded the bend by the Chinese floating restaurant we are still amazed that four years ago on Oleanna’s first trip to the capital we managed to get one of the 7 day moorings in Camden. Today it was crammed full, just like every other time we’ve been along this stretch. Good job we weren’t wanting a mooring today.
Just under the railway bridges we could see Christine walking towards us. She’d come to watch us go through Hampstead Road, Hawley and Kentish Town Locks as she only lives a few minutes walk away. Mick slowed Oleanna down and prepared to pick Christine up, however she decided to walk along the towpath.
A few minutes of us pootling along and chatting was brought to a very sudden stop!
How does time know when to slow down? It always manages it on such occasions.
I saw Christine put her right foot down, expecting there to be a solid surface below to meet it. Her foot just clipping the edge of the towpath, then there was nowhere else for it to go but into the canal, very closely followed by the rest of Christine!
Engine out of gear straight away. Oh blimey!!!
We still had momentum going forward getting further away from Christine. Mick shouted to a lady on the bank to help, ‘Please could you just hold her hand’. At least we hoped that would help until we could get off Oleanna to help her out.
The incident already evaporating away
In the meantime other people came running, we didn’t quite see what happened as we tried to get close to the bank without the prop becoming a danger. As soon as we looked again Christine had been helped up onto the towpath and was proceeding to empty her bag of water. Thank you’s all round and the samaritans who’d helped just seemed to vanish.
A sit down on Oleanna to assess any damage and to recover from the shock. Poor Christine, thankfully apart from a wet none functioning mobile she only seemed to have gained a grazed knee, which may have happened when she was pulled out of the water. We offered her a shower, but she decided as she was close to home she’d walk back an have one there. A short rather wet visit.
Canoes
Up at the lock two canoes were coming up, then we were waved in. I hopped off to help the volunteer and take photos.
Camden
With volunteers at the next two locks we were a touch mob handed. The help was welcome, but when one of them commented that I was doing his job, I just carried on doing mine, I at least wait for confirmation from the helm before I start emptying a lock!
Four years ago there were cranes overhead, the general area a big building site. Today the railway arches are being converted into a cinema, a screen for each arch by the sounds of it.
Old and new
I love that these two little blue houses have been allowed to keep an eye on the canal, with a gap between the modern boat like apartments.
Our next stop
Then as we ducked under the railway bridges and the repurposed gasometers came into view we knew we had reached our destination. St Pancras Cruising Club. We slowed and then started to back in towards NB Floradora who was to be our neighbour.
St Pancras Cruising Club
There had already been a discussion onboard as to whether it would be frowned upon to use our bow thruster to assist in mooring, but the amount of weed in the basin prohibited it’s use anyway. Terry from NB Floradora popped out to lend a hand, our centre rope passed over a t stud on the roof, this meant Oleanna could be brought into the gap almost sideways.
The weed made this a slow job, but after a while we were close enough for Mick to be able to catch the bow line and help pull her in to nestle up in the 60ft space below the HS1 line. Terry very kindly gave us a tour round, elsan, bins, garden, toilet etc, during which we met various people who all seemed to know who we were, well Marty did anyway!
Tucked in under the railway
We’d originally booked in for a few more days in Paddington Basin, but had been given the heads up by Heather Bleasdale that one of the longer boats at the cruising club was out at the moment, meaning that we might be able to use their mooring. We got in touch with the Harbour Master and booked our stay here instead, cancelling Paddington Basin as soon as we had confirmation.
Once we’d settled the first thing was to check if Christine was okay. She’d made it home safely, had a shower and was in the mobile phone shop trying to sort a replacement. Thank goodness she was okay.
The basin
Not long after we’d arrived there was a knock on the roof. Heather is down in London for a few days and staying on a boat in the basin. We made plans to meet later in the garden for food and then headed off to explore the area.
The new development around Kings Cross goes on for miles. It is a nice mixture of old warehouses mixed with modern architecture. Retail units, bars, restaurants, Central St Martins art college, plus exhibition spaces and gardens.
The gasometers now have flats built inside them, if you have a spare £825,000 you could buy one too! The old structure surrounds the new and gave a very vocal Blackbird a good perch to sing it’s heart out. Plenty to see and explore, we’ll have to come back to see more.
Once our evening meal was cooked, we loaded a bag with wine, crockery and cutlery and carried our two pans all the way round the basin to the garden. Heather joined us as did others to chat away the evening, a selection of gin and tonics spread across the table. It was dark by the time we decided to call it a day. After three glasses of wine each we made sure we walked carefully back round the basin to Oleanna with our dirty pots.
Gasholders at night
3 locks, 3.25 miles, 1 empty wee tank, 1 wind, 0 birds, 1 true none boating boater, 1 drip dry Christine, 1 reverse, 60ft under the railway lines, 1 visitation, 1 blackbird, 1 Tilly eyeing up the wall! 1 Tilly grounded, 2 spag bols in the garden, 3 glasses of wine, 4 gins, 1 very pleasant evening.
Firstly thank you to Dave Scouts and Kevin Too for suggesting Bingmaps. The National Library of Scotland map images alongside the satellite image is very interesting. I’ve sneakily put an extract here that shows the railway line. We’ve come across this before but had forgotten about it. Have to say though these maps make it very easy to see where an old railway used to be, I quite like trying to work it out for myself from the satellite images, but can then confirm my suspicions using this and OS maps.
Side by side
The actual bank slip along this stretch is about 400ft east of where the railway bridge was. Paul (Waterway Routes) pointed this out from examining my photos, Marks photos and the flag on a map I’d put up the other day. Mick had also spotted this when we’d first seen the comment on Facebook. All interesting stuff to keep you busy on a winter Sunday afternoon.
Rays over the Wolds
Today we kept ourselves busy too. The hire car keys will be handed back tomorrow so one last trip to check on Oleanna before it gets a little bit harder to do so, or impossible when a new lockdown is imposed. So after breakfast we hopped in the car to cross the Wolds and wish Oleanna a Happy New Year.
Todays view
Stepping down onto the stern was a touch easier again. Measurements were taken 34 inches to the top of the pontoon from the water level, this started off at 48 inches, when I first thought of measuring it. Up some more, which is good news despite the breach leaking and some ships coming and going from the port again.
Today I remembered to take the freshly washed blinds for the front door back. Measurements were taken as I’ve not made new ones yet and one of the poppers which has needed replacing for a while definitely needs attention before we sleep on board again.
But I’ll need a die set and spare poppers to do this, hopefully someone in Scarborough might be able to lend me the die set. My next problem will be what size the poppers are, 10mm, 12mm, 11mm heavy duty. I measured everything except the flipping popper size!
Porthole bungs were put back in their covers and hung back on doors, ready to be deployed on those Spring mornings when the sun beats in through the bathroom windows long before anyone wants to be awake.
Brrrr!!
Mick turned Oleanna’s key and started her up. She was a little bit surprised at being woken up from her long sleep, but soon relished her engine whirring, warming up the engine bay.
Icey
Over our packed lunch we had the same discussion as before, whether to tighten the ropes or not. The marina is quite frozen at the moment, certainly between us and our nearest neighbours. Down the side of Oleanna there was a gap, she’s obviously been moving about quite a bit in the wind, carving herself a patch of water. We decided to tighten the ropes a touch, but not fully should the level drop a bit.
Mick chatted with Geoff. Apparently the level has been higher, but dropped again. The caisson gates are still closed and the pumps are still running, even though at one point Geoff thought the level out on the canal was higher than in the docks. We’re glad we’ve left some slack.
Local MP Andrew Percy has commented on the breach today on facebook.
‘I’ve been popping up to check the breach in the canal near East Cowick regularly and did so again this afternoon. I happened to bump into the Canal and Rivers Trust guy who was out doing one of the daily inspections. Whilst water has continued to come out of the breach, the temporary works have held steady and there are no concerns at the moment. He also confirmed that the CRT and their engineers and contractors are due back on site tomorrow all being well to start considering next steps. The future works will also involve works to the damaged banks further along the canal which have been caused by the fluctuating canal levels. Just thought people might like the update. When I hear more I’ll let folks know!’
Before we left I decided to take an educated estimate of where the level normally is, by using the rusted and green marks on the pilling around the marina as a gauge. This was measured to the top of the pontoon. 16.5 inches. So currently the level is 17.5 inches down on the norm. Oleanna’s gunnel at the stern must have been just above the pontoon when we first arrived as that sits 20 inches above the water.
Bum
According to the C&RT notice the navigation was to remain closed until January 4th as a precaution, tomorrow. Exol Pride I’m sure is just chomping at the bit to get her next load up to Rotherham.
We said our farewells to Oleanna, we hope to be able to visit every couple of weeks to check on her, but who knows if this will be possible.
Hope to see you soon.
As we drove back to Scarborough, along the extra scenic route via Wetwang, we remembered our first trip back when the fields were all golden having recently been harvested. Then they went brown with white flecks of chalk as the fields were ploughed over. Now shoots of green are pushing up to find sunlight. I wonder what Tilly’s field is doing at our lockdown ‘Home’ mooring at the bottom of Hurleston?
0 locks, 0 miles, 1 last day of having a car, 17.5 inches to go, 2 blinds, 1 not so blind, 10/ 11/12/15mm? 3 ropes slightly tightened, 1 icy marina, 2 ships, 2 weeks hopefully!
She seemed to be quite pleased with it, it looked a touch boring to me, no good crunchy bits at body temperature. She and Tom decided to have a cooked breakfast and with that I was told I had 8 and a half hours. Woo Hoo!! Brilliant!
Not enough meat for my liking
Blimey it’s squelchy this outside! Last night it had rained and it kept trying to today, but that didn’t matter I was too busy to notice. I decided I’d have a treat dingding too, so went off to see who was around in the sideways trees.
Look at that squelchyness
It took a while but I managed to have a first and second course for morning dingding, a snack late morning too. She wouldn’t let me stock pile though, I’m not allowed to bring friends home and not allowed to leave them on the roof for later, Pah! What happens if we tie up BUMingham again!?
This stretch was particularly good
Tom spent sometime trying to find the lady up our chimney. He took everything out of the stove. Cleaned the glass so much that it disappeared!
Look it’s gone!
Put the in/outy bit back together with the hope that he’d be able to tickle the lady out. He then prodded the big brush down from outside. That didn’t work either, so he tried the vacuum cleaner!
Will she come out of there?
No sign of her yet
Still nothing, he eventually lit the fire again. Either she’d vanished over night or Tom would smoke her out. At least she’s stopped whistling.
How did that happen?
She is very unhappy with my paw hygiene. I was told I had to come home every now and then to show myself, so I did, several times. I get some Dreamies too, which I just managed to squeeze into my tummy. Lets face it there’s always room for Dreamies.
I didn’t do that!
She blamed me for the table getting all dirty. She blamed me for making the cushions all muddy. She blamed me for a filthy floor.
Paw hygiene included between your toes apparently
Then when I sit down to have a good wash I’m instructed to make sure I wash between my toes and to sing a song whilst doing it. I’d rather recite poetry. The first verse is all you need though!
I decided to create a painting. She wasn’t happy with that either! Little does she know I did one on the bathroom window too!
An hour before my curfew we all settled down in front of the stove to see what was to be said today on the TV. More about social distancing and kids not having to go to school anymore. Have to say I’m not doing too well on the social distancing bit, it is so hard as my friends are just far too tasty!
It’s dry under here
Having exhausted my friends and myself, I decided to take it easy for the rest of the day. She finished making a lasagne for their dingding. She was quite proud of it, all made from scratch. She says she doesn’t need pasta from the shops anymore. What she does need is flour that isn’t flour and that apparently is in short supply too.
Totally homemade
As much as my dingding smelt nice I was just a touch too full to enjoy it.
0 locks, 0 miles, 0 aviator shades, 2 boats gone, 3 friends, shhh it was 5 really, 1 long sideways tree, 1 squelchy outside, 0 lady up the chimney, 1 loaf bread, 1 lasagne, 15,000 and something in Ocado queue, 1 well deserved Mrs Tilly Stamp of Approval.
The nearest building to us was the first to be built in the basin regeneration. At first it looks like a Costa, well it is, but if you walk just a little bit round the building you find that it is a whole lot more. The New Art Gallery Walsall with it’s four floors of artworks and activities.
Designed by Peter St John and Adam Caruso the building opened it’s doors in February 2000. Built from concrete with exposed joists, clad with pale terracotta tiles and blocks of stainless steel. Douglas Fir clads many walls inside and leather wraps itself around handrails, a reference to the leather trade of the area, all leads to a very warm welcoming building.
Garman Ryan Collection
It was built to house the Garman Ryan Collection which takes up the first and second floors in small rooms replicating a house. The feel of these rooms reminded me very much of my family home in York, designed and built by my Dad. Wood and large windows, exposed brick and render. I felt at home here. The other exhibition spaces tower above the viewer with much larger rooms in every direction.
Garman and Ryan both by Epstein
The Garman Ryan Collection was put together by Lady Kathleen Epstein (nee Garman), widow of sculptor Jacob Epstein, and her very close friend Sally Ryan a sculpture in her own right. After Epsteins death in 1959 the two ladies collected 365 works of art. Some by friends and family (Lucian Freud, Epstein, Theo Garman) others in the collection by renowned artists such as Constable, Degas, Picasso, Matisse and Monet, which all sit alongside artefacts from around the world. The collection, donated in 1973 to the Borough of Walsall, is laid out thematically in rooms.
Children, Trees, Occupations, each room a selection through art history.
Nathaniel
Many of Epstein’s sculptures sit on wooden plinths and watch you as you peruse the art works, but I have to say I preferred Sally Ryan’s pieces, my favourite of a young lad Nathaniel with his head slightly bowed.
Men with Mice and Birds
Epstein’s Men with Mice and Birds had a somewhat comic feel to it.
Renoir
Elaborate frames twice the size of a Renoir landscape was just as interesting as the painting.
Theo Garman
Thoedore Garman’s flower paintings reminded me somewhat of a certain boater, Kath from NB Herbie, and her watercolours and embroidery.
Guides were on hand to talk to you about the collection and the family connections that hung around the rooms. They were very enthusiastic and knowledgeable.
Epstein Archiev gallery
One room was being a touch noisy in the calm of the collection. This was Bob and Roberta Smith‘s Epstein Archive Gallery. Between 2009 and 2011 the two artists worked their way through the Epstein archive which had laid hidden away in the basement and they breathed new life into it. It holds papers of Epstein’s life, about his two wives and three children, two (Theo and Ester) who both died in their 20’s in 1954. Short films have been made about the stories uncovered in the archive which shout out across the gallery along with visual shouts of painted quotes. A fun room to spend sometime in ad I think Epstein was partial to jam.
On the top floor is an exhibition, Too Rich a Soil bringing three photographers together exploring cultural identity.
Top floor gallery
The other exhibition marks the twentieth anniversary of the gallery with a collection of works from the last two decades. Those that stood out were drawings by Andrew Tift who’s detailed drawings astound in their detail.
Andrew Tift
Jungle Queen II by Hew Locke, made from toys, feather marabou, all sorts.
A fluffy Queen
Then my particular favourite Hole in the Wall by Mark Power. This photograph of a Walsall urban landscape has texture, painting, human interest, nature, decay and a mural which blurs into the building it was painted on. The mural is now hidden behind a new building.
My favourite
Back at the boat for lunch I was looking out charity shops in the area. on the map I came across Hole in the Wall a haberdashery fabric shop. So on my way round town I made a beeline to see what they might have to offer.
What colour would you like?
Walking in through the door there were ribbons, yarn, buttons all sorts, then a room of dress fabrics. Nothing hugely exciting but I did find some fabric that might be useful in my costume for a Jay, as in the bird.
Perfect for a Jay costume
An arrow pointed upstairs to Upholstery fabric. A long corridor of a room where you coud select fabric and have made to measure curtains led to another room. Here plain upholstery fabric rolls stood by the walls along with about 30 different types of leatherette. Another doorway led through to a room filled with tassles and tie backs. Now hang on what was in the next room? Hundreds of rolls all in colour order!
I was asked if I needed any help. Maybe a chair to sit down, I hadn’t expected so much fabric in one place, it’s a long time since I’ve seen so much all in one building, or should I say buildings as it seems to me that they’ve knocked shops together and created a block of a shop.
Blues
The Garden set could most probably do with some of this fabric, but right now without having coloured my model up I’m not sure what I would want.
How much braid?
Linings and braid filled two more rooms and another lady asked if she could help. All she did was add to my astoundedness and point me in the direction of their bargain basement! Here the walls were lined with racks full of fabric. Piles four, five, six foot high filled the floor. Just what did I need? I walked round in a textile daze.
Blimey!
The lady upstairs gave me a card and their website address so that I could look on line. But it may well be worth a return visit when I know what I’m after. All this from going to the art gallery and looking at one photograph, I like it even more now.
One major fabric shop
0 locks, 0 miles, 1 art gallery, 0 time for the museum, 1 homely house, 1 giant fluffy queen, 1 dribbling tattoo, 1 jolly lift, 1 bored cat, 1 photograph, 1 block of textiles, 245673543 fabrics, 1 charity shop visited, 0 costumes as yet.
HOORAY!!! Proper signal again, sorry for the delay. Here at last is a round up of 2018 and our vital statistics, who they are vital to I don’t know!
We started off the year up on the Llangollen having spent Christmas up in the basin, if it hadn’t been for me getting some work I think we’d have headed back there this year as we enjoyed it so much. On our return journey we dropped down onto the Montgomery Canal for a few days. Then we gradually worked our way along the canal stoppage hopping, the last bridge holding us up by a few days whilst work over ran, but we were first through and soon back down on the Shroppie at the end of January.
A pootle up to Chester and then Ellesmere Port where we spent several days looking round the museum, mooring on site made this very easy.
Oleanna had a day in the dry dock at Chester to check out why our bowthruster had stopped working and gave me chance to do a quick touch up of the blacking.
We then made our way back to Nantwich where we sat out the Beast from the East and at last got chance to meet and spend a bit of time with Jaq from NB Valerie.
Then we climbed the Shroppie to Autherley Junction turned right onto the Staffordshire and Worcester Canal and made our way down to Stourport where the river rose on us over night and left us stranded for far too long. This did mean that Tilly had her annual jabs gaining shore leave for another year. A hire car gave us a few days away from the flashing lights of Stourport, a trip to Beverley and to catch up with the John Godber Company in Bromsgrove along with a recky trip to Droitwich.
In the end we got bored of waiting for the river to drop and decided on going the long way round to Droitwich. Of course about two or three days into ‘the long way round’ the levels dropped and we could have done a quick journey down the River Severn.
Oh well we enjoyed all the locks having good weather for the Tardebigge Flight.
Once in Worcester we turned onto the river and made our way down to the Gloucester Sharpness Canal where we pootled down to the end with all the swing bridges being worked for us, met up with Jaye and Duncan (I’d have got into big trouble if I didn’t mention them!), saw the hulks, all sorts of flamingos and got to watch tall ship Kaskelot pass us.
Back up the Severn for Micks 60th birthday weekend where all our siblings joined us to celebrate. We watched cricket at New Road in Worcester, ate in Droitwich, caught steam trains in Kidderminster and ate some more in Bridgenorth, a very good weekend.
By now the summer had already started with wall to wall sunshine and our Sunday roasts became Sunday barbeques. We made our way back to Worcester and turned back down stream to Tewkesbury (I do like a good Tewkesbury!) and the river Avon. The last rain storm for a while slowed our progress upstream, but we stayed safe.
The Avon was a picturesque cruise and we met up with friends from Australia and old work friends of mine in Stratford, taking advantage to see as much theatre as we could.
Whilst in Stratford I heard that I’d got the job designing Panto in Chipping Norton this year. This would now affect the remainder of the year slowing us down somewhat. We headed back into Birmingham up the Lapworth flight (meeting NB Chuffed) to rendez vous with NB Blackbird and crew.
Here we planned to explore all the back waters of the BCN, but the sun was now on permanently and the thought of spending weeks surrounded by brick work and concrete reflecting heat at us was not attractive. So we chose a route out of the city that we’d not done before (via Ryders Green and Perry Barr) and headed for the shade of trees.
Work and heat were the feature of the next few months. On days we wanted to cruise we tried to be up early to make the most of the cool hours before the sun got too high in the sky to avoid. We hopped from mooring to mooring hunting out good places with maximum tree cover, not so good for the solar panels but it meant we didn’t cook inside.
We gradually cruised the Coventry Canal, the Ashby Canal for the first and second times, all the way into Coventry, down the North Oxford onto the Grand Union and on up to the Leicester Section. All our favourite moorings on the summit pound were visited and the London Leckenbys visited us at Foxton. All this slow cruising was interspersed with Panto meetings in London and Chippy, necessitating being near to stations, but this worked out well with a bit of planning.
Leamington Spa was a handy station back on the Grand Union for my final model meeting in mid September, freeing us up until rehearsals started a month later.
We made use of the Heritage weekend visiting places in both Warwick and Leamington. Oleanna got to visit the Saltisford Arm where we worked our way through the dirty washing drawer before heading back towards the Oxford Canal crossing bows with NB Tentatrice on the way.
The South Oxford Canal then became our home for the next three months.
First we cruised all the way to Oxford taking our time to return to Banbury. I then spent four weeks working my socks off in Chippy enjoying being creative again on Panto, returning each weekend to wherever Oleanna was with my head full of song lyrics and dance moves.
Once Aladdin was open and hoards of kids were shouting ‘He’s behind you!’ I could return to my normal life at 3mph, the boat, Tilly’s friends and Mick’s breakfasts.
Due to winter stoppages leaving the south Oxford couldn’t happen until near Christmas so we slowly made our way northwards breaking off to have a pre-Christmas in London and then once Napton Lock 9 was open we headed into the middle of nowhere for Christmas. The year ended with us returning to Crick and sadly missing out on the festivities at The Red Lion with friends.
We’ve had a great year travelling, meeting up with old friends and new. We’re looking forward to where 2019 will take us and who we shall meet along the way.
So our final statistics for the year are.
Total distance is 944 miles, 1 ¼ furlongs and 614 locks. There were 170 moveable bridges of which 77 are usually left open (although three of those weren’t); 131 small aqueducts or underbridges; 39 tunnels and 2 major aqueducts.
This is made up of 669 miles, 1 ¼ furlongs of narrow canals; 118 miles of broad canals; 35 miles, 5 furlongs of commercial waterways; 42miles, 7¼ furlongs of small rivers; 78 miles, 3 ¾ furlongs of large rivers; 476 narrow locks; 129 broad locks 9 large locks.
1084.6 engine hours, 7 hire cars, 1,383.63 litres diesel, 10 gas bottles (we do have gas central heating), 54 bags of coal, 2 waterway museums, 3 big houses, 3 versions of tuperware, 60th birthday, 2nd solar panel fitted, 7 overnight guests, 6 packs of Dreamies, 26 friends, 1 snake,9 Mrs Tilly stamp of approval moorings, 7 pairs socks, 6 pairs gloves, 11 supermarket deliveries, 56 boxes wine delivered!
We’ve not got our winter clothes out from under the bed yet, this morning we wished we had. Blimey it was chilly, lined trouser weather!
Squeezing our way past College Cruisers, with all the boats in it’s a tight fit. They seem to be doing weekend breaks, but come next week the distance you’ll be able to travel will be much shorter as Dukes Lock is closing for three weeks. This means that hirers will only be able to cruise up and down through Oxford, or go out onto the Thames for a couple of locks to do a ring. We’re planning on being through Dukes Lock in the next couple of days.
We only cruised on to Aristotle Bridge, passing a stack of bikes that had been pulled out from the cut at one of the bridges. Very glad we’d not got stuck on top of them! These moorings are not that popular. You are asked to keep the running of engines to a minimum and it is only 2 days mooring, All Year. This means you can’t pull up for two weeks in the winter, but it will serve us just fine, the moorings all to ourselves. Well apart from a Fountains team who were cutting back the hedges along the towpath. One chap had laid his long reach trimmer on the towpath, turned round to help clear what he’d just trimmed. As he did this his trimmer rolled into the cut, two of them had to fish it out with a long stick, suspect it’s petrol engine needed a dry out before it would start again.
Once we’d settled and warmed up we decided to head out to visit some museums. Our friend Bridget had suggested we should visit the Pitt Rivers Museum, so that is where we headed off to.
The Natural History Museum stands proud set back from the road and the Pitt Rivers Museum clings on behind. In 1884 General Pitt Rivers, an influential figure in the development of archaeology and evolutionary anthropology, gave his collection to the University of Oxford. The building was designed to hold the collection of some 26,000 objects from around the world. The museum opened it’s doors to the public in 1887 to show part of the collection. Since then more items have been added reaching over half a million in number.
Walking through the rather chilly Natural History Museum I rather wished we’d done a torch lit tour last week. Built between 1855-60 it is a fine (if chilly today) neo-gothic building. A glass roof supported on cast iron pillars covers a square court divided into three aisles.
Cloistered arcades run around the court, each column made from a different British stone. Each pillar and column are decorated with differing natural forms such as leaves and branches mixing Pre-Raphaelite styles with that of science. What a building, filled with skeletons of various animals including dinosaurs. We had a quick look round, but decided to return at a later date to give it more time as we’d been warned of the quantity of stuff in the Pitt Rivers Museum.
Through an archway we descended into the museum, much warmer, maybe to help keep the stuff at a better ambient temperature, bones not needing much warmth in comparison.
Display cabinets filled the floor surrounded by two balconies running round the full building. In most ethnographic and archaeological museums items are arranged according to their country but here they are grouped by type. Musical instruments, masks, boats, lamps, guns, spears, baskets, the list goes on and on and on.
We took our time walking round the display cabinets, the odd item jumping out from the masses. Egypt had followed me here too, a sarcophagus, oil lamps, amulets, a boat similar to that I’d based Aladdin’s canoe on. Models of houses and boats filled cabinets, shrunken heads and skulls others. The amount of stuff was quite overwhelming. Below the cabinets were drawers filled with stuff, perched high above cabinets were more filled with stuff, slotted in between roof joists was even more stuff. So much stuff! I’m surprised that they haven’t started to add galleries crossing from balcony to balcony, but maybe the foundations wouldn’t be able to cope with the extra weight.
Various masks caught my eye and the way spears were displayed was quite an art form in itself. Each item is labelled with its details. A fantastic place for research.
After a good walk round we had had our fill of stuff. So headed to the Natural History Museums cafe for a bite to eat and a rest. Sadly with only one GF choice (a nice looking cake) we decided to return to Oleanna for lunch instead. The afternoon was spent winding up my receipts for Chipping Norton and keeping warm whilst Tilly explored the surrounding park, until the noisy kids headed home from school!
0 locks, 0.63 miles, 1 chilly morning, 2 museums, 519,897 pieces of stuff, 1 museum stuffed to the brim, 1 cake, £20 forgotten about, 27 reciepts, 4 stars, 3 rows off finishing a sock.
The Ashmolean Museum sits on Beaumont Street almost opposite Oxford Playhouse. It is the world’s first University Museum, originally built in 1678 to house curiosities given to the University by Elias Ashmole. A new building was erected in the 1840’s and in 2009 it had a major redevelopment. Ancient artefacts housed in large Victorian rooms with modern sliding doors and modern staircases.
You could most probably spend all day wandering round the galleries, but we selected what we were interested in and headed straight to the top of the building where Monet, Pissaro, Burne Jones and Sickert paintings hang surrounded by many many more. The collection is quite something with a large room dedicated to the Camden Town Group and Sickert who was one of the most influential and controversial artists of the 20th Century. He lived in Paris for some time mixing with the likes of Degas. When he moved to London this rubbed off on his fellow artists and a trend of painting suburban landscapes and modest interiors began using bold strong colours inspired by the Post Impressionists.
I tend to walk into a room and see which painting catches my eye first, jumping out from the wall and calling me over. The rest of the paintings, sculptures are looked at first, some slowly, others merely passed by leaving the best until last. One such painting by Vilhelm Peter Karl Kyhn entitled From Kolding Fjord caught my eye. The light on the water creating a mist rising in the distance and the shadowy boats and piers, just wonderful and calm (my photo doesn’t do it justice).
Rooms full of plates and figurines. Statues from every period in history. Cellos, violins and violas all with such ornate decorative details. Signet rings. All sorts filling the galleries.
Down in the basement there are galleries covering Greece, the Aegean World and Egypt. I couldn’t help but have a look round the Egyptian carvings, the hieroglyphs and mummies. They fascinate me.
Lunchtime called and we decided to go looking for Morse and Lewis at the Turf Tavern tucked away close to the Bridge of Sighs and the Sheldonian Theatre. Have to say I was very surprised that we could get a table, but the queue was as I’d expected. Mick opted for a sour dough ham and cheese toastie which looked very tasty whilst I struggled to find anything without bread, they had run out of their jacket sweet potatoes. There was only one thing for it but to have some chips and a side of coleslaw to make it a little bit healthy.
We enjoyed sitting out in the sun with the bright blue sky overhead. No sign of the famous Thames Valley detectives. We considered creating a murder scene to see if we could flush them out, but neither of us was willing to die for the cause. We’d not quite realised how big the pub actually was, it stretches back with so many rooms. I’d hate to think what the queue would have been like mid summer! Not only are there connections to Morse, but also Harry Potter and Bill Clinton, as this is where he allegedly ‘did not inhale’ an illegal substance.
A meandering walk around the University brought us to the River Cherwell that we have followed down to Oxford. We decided to walk northwards along the river to then cut across back to the canal. Easier said than done as few paths follow the river and fewer bridges cross it. In the end we stayed on the West bank and followed the river through the University park. Numerous in depth conversations passed us, were these students going to be those who solve modern world problems in the future?
A pause to admire Lady Margaret Hall and take a photo for our friend of the same name and then another at the Dragon School before we cut our way back across to the canal.
The park was full of children when we got back. It took Tilly a couple of hours to pluck up the courage to actually step off the boat. But she soon returned to safety and to watch the squirrels, a cat and two people sitting having drinks in their garden enjoying the last of the sunny days rays, wrapped up warm in coats.
0 locks, 0 miles, 0 bridges, 1 museum, 2 many paintings, 1 Tortoise straining, 1 painting bomber, 3 rooms of plates, 4 mummies, 8 men with beards, 1 pint, 1 glass of wine, 1 toastie, 1 bowl chips, 0 Morse, Lewis or Hathaway, 0 college grounds today, 0 riverside walk, 4 punts, 1 litre milk, 1 dismayed cat.
Still tied up this morning we left Tilly to hold the fort whilst we headed off to catch a bus.
A study of the National Trust website and transport around the area identified two close properties that we could visit. Upton House and Gardens and Farnborough Hall. Farnborough Hall would have been closer at Clattercote, just about walkable, but it’s opening days didn’t coincide with our cruising. Public transport looked into, well we didn’t want to have to stay there for a week before the next bus back to Banbury so we chose to visit Upton instead.
Buses are more frequent, but then one a week isn’t that hard to expand on! We researched websites and ended up discounting the NT website suggestions of how to get there as the times and bus numbers didn’t tally with the bus website. A short walk to the bus station, just by the lock in Banbury, for the number 6 at 10:20. This took us around villages, winding up and down quite steep hills across the Cotswolds on a bright sunny morning. The bus driver stopped for us at a cross roads. To get the bus back we’d have to stand near the house gates and flag the driver down as there is no official stop. If we missed the bus we’d have to hitch or walk back.
With no path to walk along to get to the entrance we waded along the grass verges. Membership cards scanned we were given a map and told to book an entry slot if we wanted to look round the house. Then a grand drive way leads you to the front of the house.
In Medieval times the land here was used by a monastery from Coventry, one of their fish ponds is still in water on the site today. In 1483 Sir Walter Danvers bought the land plus more surrounding it and built a new house, Upton was then passed down through the generations for 150 years until in 1675 John Danvers died heavily in debt and it was sold on. The house and land then passed through many hands, Andrew Motion (the grand father of the poet of the same name) selling it to Walter Samuel, 2nd Viscount of Bearsted in March 1927.
T
he house was run down and in need of modernisation so Walter and his wife employed architect Percy Morley Horder to remodel the house into a country home for them. The house would also house their large art collection. Two towers that had been built by previous owners were knocked down and replaced with new rooms more in keeping with the house. Walls were removed, a squash court became an art gallery, one floor was removed to give a double height room with a balcony. All in keeping with the 20’s and 30’s style, good quality without ostentation.
On Lord Bearsted’s death in 1948 he left the house, gardens and art collection to the National Trust. Most of the house has been left how it was when he died, the entrance hall being the exception. This is where you are given an introductory talk about the house and it’s history. The hall has been dressed in Victorian style with stuffed deer and nicnaks everywhere. Where one of the walls had been removed a large curtain printed with a photograph was hung, showing you what the space looked like before it’s makeover. Our guide told us that the staircase behind had been remodelled and turned to face into the hall for those moments when a grand entrance was required. What a shame we couldn’t see the hall how it had been remodelled. A bigger shame that when we got to eventually see the staircase you descended it into another photograph of the hall. We could see what they were trying to do, but not being able to see the hall in one go, a mistake.
Once through into the long gallery (another room you couldn’t see from one end to the other due to a large photograph) we were left to walk around the house on our own and glean bits of info from the guides in the rooms. Many of the walls are painted with scumble, similar to the process used to scumble back cabins on narrowboats, except the glaze is patted out with a brush, sponge or rag, so no wood graining here. The rooms now have a simpler feel to them a smaller pallet of colours in each room which helps to show off the art works.
The barley twisted balcony looks down from the library into a room where huge portraits are displayed, one by Joshua Reynolds, a cosy sitting area with inglenook fireplace to one side and a billiards room to another. In the centre of the connecting room sits a large dolls house, a replica of Upton House. People have been invited to make items to be added to furnish the house to match the life size one. The scale of 1:12 is a little bit odd to me, although the pieces in the house so far are very well made I can’t help but get uptight about how some things if scaled up would be far far to big. Someone has cross stitched a wonderful rug for one of the rooms, a beautiful object, but scaled up it’s thickness would be getting on for over two inches thick, a trip hazard. But that’s the theatre designer in me.
Bedrooms upstairs are large, many rooms have been made into exhibition areas showing life on the French Riviera. These people had a lot of money, Lord Bearsted’s father having founded The Shell Company. 1930’s advertising posters cover many of the corridor walls and ladies dresses clothe mannequins for you to marvel at their bias cut elegance.
Lady Bearsted’s bathroom is something else. Chinese lacquer red and aluminium leaf with archways. Quite something in it’s day I suspect, now a touch over the top and amateurish.
The leafing of the walls and ceilings must have taken some time to do. The large bath tub with it’s temperature control, cold, tepid and hot.
The mirror and a wonderful electric fire stood out as the most deco items in the house.
The gardens upstage the house in our view. The south facing terrace in the sunshine made the house glow , then flower beds followed by a large lawn with swimming pool. The bees and butterflies were certainly enjoying the sunshine and the blooms. One very fat bodied butterfly/moth zoomed around from bloom to bloom, we wondered what it was.
Beyond the grass is the biggest Ha ha you’ve ever seen. The land drops away at an alarming rate. Terraces of shrubs, asters, the the kitchen garden lead you down the steep hill to the mirror pond below. Here dragon flies bobbed up and down, but no fish were visible, they were too busy enjoying someone’s sandwich in the stew pond half way back up the garden. There is a bog garden and cottage. A yew tree walk.
Large Cedar trees that have straps to try to keep them standing rather than toppling over onto the grass. Rose garden, An orchard full of apples. A wild garden. You could spend all day here just hiking up and down the hills in the garden.
Our walk back to find a suitable place to wait for the bus was accompanied with a tub of chilled medication, we’d worn off enough calories in the garden. We stood on the wide grass verge as cars and lorries sped past at 60 mph. We’d made sure we arrived early as there was only an approximate time for the bus and it could be early. Large conkers kept us amused for a while, but as time went on we both silently wondered if we’d got it wrong and we’d missed the last bus back. About ten minutes later than we’d expected the bus came into view, the driver smiled at us as we waved our arms in a manner that couldn’t be ignored. The bus only runs on school days and it was obvious why as it was full with kids returning to Banbury from Stratford schools.
Back at the boat all was well, Tilly had done a good job. We had new neighbours and before we settled down for the evening Mick added some cable ties around our ropes to make it impossible for a chancer to lift them off the bollards.
0 locks, 0 miles, 2 buses, 1 big house, 1 El Greco, 3 Canaletto’s, 1 Bruegel triptych, 1 Van Gogh, 1 large dolls house, 1 high haha, 1 vast mirror pool, 1 rather rude squash, 2 colours of spinach, 2456 bees, 2 jacket potatoes, 2 teas, 2 tubs chilled medication, 2 cable ties, 1 bored cat.
