Category Archives: Boat Electrics

What’s In The Box? 20th January

Deliveries have been arriving along with snow.

Tillys occasional check on her estate has become even shorter, I can see everything I need from the back door just fine, Thanks! Although an intruder did cause her to forget about there being a window in the way. Once a door was opened she shot up the road and just about into the park, the furthest she’s been in months!

Measurements have been taken for the dinette cushion covers, prices worked out for the samples I already have, a visit to Dewsbury is on the cards incase Fabworks comes up trumps with anything better. I’ve got calculations for several widths of fabric so that should save time.

More donated yarns have arrived. A wonderous red yarn from Trudie at Posh Yarns in Pembroke and a Green Goddess of Bionic yarn from Steph at Perran Yarn in Truro. I have several other pledges of yarn to come including from people who are raiding their own yarn stashes at home. Thank you all for your wooly donations and your monetary ones. The first pair of socks will be in the post very soon heading to a boat in Thorne and as soon as my needles have finished the third pair the second one will be wending their way to Crick.

At the end of the year I’m hoping you’ll see why I’m hanging onto socks for a little while. An updated certificate arrived from Dementia Uk so I can properly boast about my fund raising last year.

Lots of cooking, trying out new recipes. Gluten free Focaccia and this morning my first attempt at gf crumpets. Verdict they needed a little bit more heat to start off with, but tasty all the same, especially with some Frank made jam.

Painty Pip has been busy too touching up paint around the house. There’ll be more to do in a week or two in a bathroom that we have plans for, just to accomodate a mirror!

**Boat on it’s side just about blocking the bridge hole**

We’ve watched our friend Chris on NB Elektra squeeze past the sunk boat in Barrow-upon-Soar. Then onwards to south of Leicester where he had a booked passage between Kings Lock and Blue Bank Lock where the floods before Christmas had affected the bank. We couldn’t make out any damage to the bank as he crunched his way through the ice, passing a boat coming the other way and a C&RT chap hopping between boats.

Tilly decided to hitch a virtual ride on NB Elektra’s bow for a while. Well She and Tom have only changed the outside a couple of times since we’ve been in the house. They don’t fool me, all they did was turn it white each time! Our planned route for when we leave Goole may have to change due to substantial subsidence at Lock 67 on the Rochdale. We’d rather head over the Pennines than use the Trent to head south this year. Time to keep a very watchful eye on the stoppage notices.

Yesterday a UPS delivery van arrived. The driver braved our snowy front steps to deliver two pretty heavy boxes. We’ve checked their contents and Mick has even been found stood in the dark hallway supposidly talking to what’s inside the boxes. There’s nowt so queer as folk!

0 locks, 0 miles, only virtual ones, 2 skeins, 2 more pledges, 1 hobbly leg slowly improving, 2.5 coats not enough, 1 ceiling and loo touched up, 2 big boxes, 1 hire car arranged, 1 trespasser seen off, 2 x 6m not 4 x 3m, 1 nutty man in the dark, 1 cat changing the outside by herself!

2.5 pairs knitted

22 Pairs spoken for

49.5 Pairs to go

£540 raised

Three Months. 10th January

Viking Marina, Goole

They don’t normally get up in the dark! What’s going on?!

It’s been just over three months since we moved off Oleanna back to the house. Mick has had several visits to check on her, turn the engine over etc, but I’ve not stepped onboard in three months. Northern Railways had a flash sale of train tickets for three days a week ago, some single fares down to £1. So we booked ourselves a trip to Goole, slightly slower than normal, a half hour wait in Hull for a slower train to Goole, but not bad for £12 for the two of us, I think it’s normally around £17 for Mick with his Old Git’s Card.

The 9:01am train took us to Hull stopping at all the familiar towns, but they always seem to be in the wrong order to me, surely Driffield is nearer to Scarborough than Brid! We had a chilly half hour wait for the slow train to arrive and take us to Goole. We’d brought a Brompton with us incase the puddle of doom near the marina entrance was still there, Mick could ride through get a pair of wellies and return for me. Thankfully the road was just about dry, no puddle of any concern. Apparently a ditch behind the road has been cleared, the puddle had become so deep that even 4 x 4’s were nervous about going through it, far deeper than any wellies would allow!

There she was behind the mesh fence of the marina. More splashes up the cabin side from the nearest puddle in the parking area. Would it be worth washing her down? It’ll only happen again and anyway we’d more important things that needed doing today and a limited time before our train back.

Three months with minimum heating means things tend to stick a little. The front door being the first thing that needed some brute force. The side hatch was the next thing, the swivels that hold the glazed doors closed were very stiff, we may need to add a washer to them until she’s dried out.

I was pleased to see no sign of water coming in through the bathroom mushroom vent, there’s still a coat of paint to go on the outside when the temperature improves. However, somehow water has got in through our double skinned flue! Tracing the faint water marks up the flue brought me to the elbow joint, there were no marks above it and it looks like the joint has moved by maybe a couple of millimeters! Hmm. Mick likes to leave the chimney on for extra ventilation whilst we’re not on board, has this been the cause with all the heavy rain that’s happened in the last month? One thing it does mean is that the top of the stove will want cleaning and a coat of stove paint applying, an extra job before we’re back on board.

Mick lifted the engine boards. I stuck my head in ‘The Shed’ cupboard. This is on the port side, the same side as where the leisure batteries are in the engine bay. Our new batteries will have a bigger footprint than the existing ones, the battery tray was made to fit these and won’t be big enough for the two new ones.

I got the tape measure out to see how much room we had in the bottom of ‘The Shed’. The swim of Oleanna comes round in this cupboard so the bottom is narrower. Only one battery would fit. Above the swim there would be enough space for two side by side. But this would leave us with a funny gap below, only accessible when you take the stern steps out and would eat into the useful space above for life jackets, hats scarves, tool kit and hanging rail that is only actually used to store coat hangers!

A spare cable was passed through from the engine bay into the cupboard, there’s an inch gap behind a panel of wood where I could just feel cables wiggling around. This will be the route in from the engine bay. 3m cables will be required to connect the new batteries.

Decision is to have one battery in the engine bay, the other in the bottom of ‘The Shed’. These would both need battens adding around them so they can’t move more than 10mm to meet BSS requirements. We also need to add a shelf above the one in ‘The Shed’. There will be a gap above the battery so we can fix battens to the sides of the cupboard to rest the shelf on. Then the rest of the cupboard can be used as storage again. We may swap out the full width hanging rail for two hanging rods, meaning we’d be able to hang our life jackets up and have somewhere to store hangers (these only get used to hang washing in the pram cover). We will also need to find means of hanging the handheld and window vacuums, then the tool kit and other bits can sit on the shelf.

I got busy removing all the curtains, so that they could be washed. It’s been a few years now since they last came down, having a rod at both top and bottom of them makes them a slightly time consuming job. Last time they were down I relined them. I know the curtain fabric is okay to wash, but was the thermal lining? The place I got it from recommends dry cleaning, but we’re going to risk a hand wash and then rehang them whilst they are wet. Back at the house they have been de spider pooed, de Tilly furred with a lint roller. They’ll head back to the boat for a wash and rehanging.

Time for a bowl of Heinz Tomato and a cuppa. Not in front of the hatch today as the dinette is currently without cushions, so we didn’t have such a good view from the sofa. With the heating on Oleanna, had warmed up quite well. We’d aimed to fill the water tank just enough to do some washing up, but forgot the hose was connected and ended up with a three quarter full tank. I suspect we’ll be able to use much of this for cleaning, so that we can disinfect the water tank before moving back on board.

We plan on a week of visits once we have the batteries. Hopefully with the heating on each day, possibly the stove lit we can get Oleanna warm and dry enough for me to re-oil the floor and window surrounds. This job needs to be done when Tilly isn’t in residence. It’s also quite smelly, so we’d rather not be around either.

I checked to see how the corner galley cupboard had been put together, a couple of screws hold the pull out pan drawer in position and then I believe the cupboard is mounted on a couple of rails which will just need removing from the back of the dinette. I’m wanting to give the wheels of the cupboard a good clean and oil the floor beneath it.

Quite a few jobs to be done on board. Then there’s the dinette cushions to recover too along with a bit of painting in the house before lodgers arrive again!

With our train due to leave at 15:31, I needed a while to get to the station, I have a hobbly leg at the moment. Thankfully the chap from NB Bruce was just leaving in his car and he offered me a lift into town, Mick would close up Oleanna and cycle to meet me. Mr NB Bruce plans on heading off on his travels soon, he’d checked for stoppages over the Pennines, I mentioned about Goole Caison being closed for works for a few weeks. In my head they’d already started the work, but it doesn’t start until Monday, so I hope his planned departure was going to be this weekend.

**Yummy donated yarn arrived in the post, thank you Naomi!**

The journey back was uneventful, one ship heading upstream on the Humber to Goole in the fading light. Another change of train in Hull but thankfully not a long wait as it was chilly. The knitting needles came out and I managed to get up to a heel of a sock before we arrived back in Scarborough.

About time too! I’ve been shouting at nobody since I woke up at 3, it’s way past my DingDing!

Hang on, She smells of BOAT!!!

0 locks, 0 miles, 4 trains, 1 bike, 1 hobbly leg, 4m cables, 9 curtains, 2 blinds, 1 shelf measured, 2 bowls Heinz finest, 2 cuppas, 3.5 hours on board.

1.25 Pairs knitted

18 Pairs spoken for

50.75 Pairs to go

£455 raised

Busbars, Bridges And Bits And Bobs

Things are being ordered.

First things to arrive were some waterproof cases for our mobile phones. These won a Herbie Award, not these actual ones, but having waterproof cases to save having to replace a drowned phone. This is a common hazard living on a boat. I’ve lost two phones and Mick has dropped one phone and a tablet into the drink.

At Christmas Mick got me a new phone as my old one was looking a tad cracked after nearly becoming phone number three heading for the depths of Nether Lock last January. I’d like to try to keep hold of this one a touch longer if possible. So I’ve been looking round for cases.

Most of the cases I found are intended for swimming, keeping the water out is one thing. But being able to turn your phone on to take that photo of a Kingfisher is another, especially when your power switch is now fingerprint operated and on the side! One case I found has the outside area inflated, so it would act like water wings should your phone go for a swim. I suspect this would make it even harder to turn on.

I’ve tried taking photos through the case to see what effect it has. Reflections are one downside. I suspect our cheap waterproof cases will end up being used for the phone we run Waterway Routes on at the helm. The phone stays powered whilst we cruise so the power button won’t be a problem. Just need to try to find a case that will allow me to take photos and turn the phone on whilst keeping it dry. Yes Mick could have bought me a waterproof phone, but his bank account isn’t that buoyant!

Next a box came from 12 Volt Planet. This contained busbars and fuses to be used in our battery upgrade. I’ll let Mick write about the battery upgrade when he does it. The fuses are also because Oleanna seems to have been built without a main fuse! Well Mick hasn’t ever been able to find one, so he’s going to fit one when putting in the new batteries.

Another box came from Bimble Solar. A voltage sensitive relay for our Nebolink. This will save us having to turn the Nebolink on and off manually when we are cruising, it will do it automatically when the engine is turned on and off. Yes it is likely to turn on should we want to run the engine whilst stationary, but the trip will show 0 miles and may not be recorded by Nebo. It is a touch larger than Mick had thought it would be and have to say I’ll miss flicking the switch on as we push off each day.

Mick has also treated himself to some rechargeable motion sensitive strip lights. These have appeared on his Christmas list for the last three years. Twice they have been ordered and twice they have not arrived! So this year they were given up on as a bad thing. Of course he has now managed to get some straight away with no hassle! These are to go inside cupboards on Oleanna and will light up as the door is opened, saving getting a torch out to check for things at the back of cupboards etc.

Whilst Mick has been reveling in electrical things I managed to find some Pan Flour. Since working on Chippy Panto I’ve been wanting to have a go at making some Arepas, corn cakes. A little after Christmas I followed the instructions on the pack of flour and maybe was a touch impatient on leaving the flour to absorb the water. My first go were tasty filled with the last of the roast duck and red cabbage from Christmas, A little reminiscent of popcorn! I’ll follow an online recipe next time though.

The remainder mince pie pastry in the freezer and mince meat required using up, so I came up with the idea of a hybrid mince pie and Yorkshire Curd Tart. I made some curds then used the pastry and mince meat a touch like a bakewell tart, adding the curd custard on top. The outcome was nice, a little strange, but nice. At least the pastry has been used up.

I’ve also finished my painting. Which is now hung in the not quite smallest room in the house. It’s positioning may be a slight problem for two reasons. 1, when sat down it isn’t quite in eye line of the mirror. 2, those who stand to use the facilities may get distracted!

**The finished painting, Wolverhampton Flight, Lock 21. Emulsion on canvas.**

However I’m very pleased with it and am considering doing a series of paintings in the same style based on places we visit on the network. We’ve come up with a few locations we should be visiting this year. I may even get some prints or cards made from them.

Anyhow, there’s jobs need doing.

0 locks, 0 miles, 2 busbars, 2 gauges, 3 fuses, 2 cases, 4 lights, 1 switch, 4 arepas, 1 Yorkshire Mince Pie, or 1 Mince Yorkshire Tart, Lock 21.

0.75 Pairs knitted

51.25 Pairs to go

2023 A Sociable Year

A long post, it’s the annual round up.

January, we sat waiting. Waiting for a new alternator to arrive, for the River Trent to come out of flood and then for the canal to defrost sufficiently for us move. This meant Pip doing work on the boat instead of in the house, this made for smelly days and a very cold workshop under the pram cover.

After almost three weeks we were on the move again having to navigate through thick fog, navigational aids helping us not to bump into the banks! Ahead of us in Yorkshire was a troublesome swing bridge, closed to boat traffic. Our plans had to change, we arranged to moor up in Newark and head back to Scarborough by van. Chin rubs nearly made the longer journey better, but I really don’t like the outside moving SO fast!

Four days later we were back on board, the bridge ahead was now open. Tides were checked, locks booked, cupboards stocked for a few days cruising. Winter cruising can be so so pretty, yet so so chilly. A display by the Red Arrows as we left Torksey kept us amused and a defrost was very welcome when we arrived at Keadby. After four days cruising we were moored up in Goole and walking to catch the train back to Scarborough.

#unit21 in Huddersfield kept Pip occupied for much of February. Then it was time to give the house some TLC in between lodgers. A back bedroom got a makeover just in time. Mick had trips to see Oleanna, a jobs list left with Alastair and the covers headed off for some much needed mending. Tilly was kept busy checking out the neighbours, they stay inside so I get free reign of their outside!

April arrived along with two lodgers, it was not possible to do more work on the house, Pip chose to knit socks instead. Dementia UK her chosen charity this year. Donations of yarn came from dyers and Pip’s needles started to click away, keeping up with requests. 15 pairs knitted and her target met.

May, visits were made to Oleanna preparing her for cruising, these were interspersed with visits from family, delivering socks, getting the house ready and starting work on the design for panto. On the 9th of May we loaded a van and returned to life afloat. Tilly the happiest cat once she was back onboard! A day later we set off heading west. Leeds for a few days for Pip to head to Matlock for work and then a wonderful visit to see 93 year old Betty in Harrogate.

Working our way up the Leeds Liverpool Canal, locks and the new stupid swing bridge much lighter work with two boats. Our favourite canal with wonders of the waterways, friends on route, Mick’s birthday and a trip to Bowness to see the latest Ayckbourn play. We managed a night on our favourite mooring on the network sadly it was too windy to enjoy the view with a barbecue.

Up over the top, we teamed up with NB That’s It, thankfully descending the Wigan flight in a window between vandalism and blown cills that have hampered the flight this year. Then along the Bridgewater Canal, panto designing whilst on the flat. Through Preston Brook Tunnel and onto the Trent and Mersey turning right onto the Middlewich Branch.

Back on lockdown ‘Home’ waters we cruised the Nantwich pound, 5 hours 13 minutes including a lunch and shopping stop, back in 2020 we’d spent 80 days here. We cruised southwards on the Shropie joined for a day by Carol and George from WB Still Rockin’. Laura and Alison from NB Large Marge joined us for the ascent up the Wolverhampton 21.

Through Bumingham and on to Lapworth and then Hatton where we had an extra pair of hands from Jane, who hopefully now has her own narrowboat. A well deserved burger at the Cape of Good Hope with Emma and David, then a lovely evening with Lizzie (NB Panda) at The Folly, it was turning out to be quite a sociable June.

Oleanna wiggled her way across the summit of the South Oxford, very familiar water to us. Despite the sunny weather and us cruising most days our batteries were not happy, turning themselves off overnight! Diagnosis was required, we pulled into Cropredy Marina to plug in and run tests. One of our three batteries was dead, bad enough but thankfully nothing more. Once a panto meeting had been attended we could move on, except there was an emergency closure at Banbury Lock. C&RT worked hard to get the canal open as quickly as they could, thankfully our hold up wasn’t too long.

We met up with the crews of NB Azzura (Liz and Mark) and NB Perseus (Julie and Simon) both Finesse boats, had a visit to London for Andrew’s birthday. Then had a rendez vous with Paul and Christine and enjoyed a good catch up onboard NB Waterway Routes.

Down to the River Thames where we turned upstream onto waters we’ve only cruised once before. Such a lovely stretch of river, sadly with fewer moorings now. We sped up to Lechlade where we took up residence for a week so that we could attend a get together at Pip’s cousins which coincided with the Royal International Air Tatoo in Fairford. It was great to be with family on a jolly occasion.

Work took over for Pip as we made our way back down stream to Oxford, Cinderella had to go to the ball and the model needed to be finished. Then we sauntered our way back northwards. One day had us meet up with Frankie NB Discovery, NB Dusty the local coal boat and Graeme on NB Misty Blue, it was good to catch up with Graeme and hear of his adventures since we’d seen him last year.

A trip for us both back to Scarborough to do a turn around of lodgers, see a show and pick up post. Mick would have to return the following weekend to swap bedlinen over again, this time by train from Rugby. Stand still budgets and inflation required Pip to do more work on panto so her days were kept busy reducing Cinderella’s carriage from £2000 to £400.

Stoppages around the network meant we had only one real route we could take to head back north. We winded and climbed our way up to the Leicester Section. Here we met up with Ken and Sue NB Cleddau at Houdini’s Field sitting out till way after dark. Then a small detour to Welford to meet up with NB Panda and Lizzie for an evening before we continued our way north.

Another detour to Market Harborough before Leicester where North Lock had a badly leaking cill which required a crew of C&RT chaps to force the bottom gates open, booked passage was required, this meant we got a few days to enjoy the city whilst we awaited our turn.

Sadly by now the lack of water on the Chesterfield Canal meant the top end of the canal was closed, no point in rushing up the River Trent for a return visit. In Nottingham Pip’s little toe had a kerfuffle with a cupboard necessitating a visit to the drop in centre for her little pinkie to be realigned. This meant Pip had to hand the windlass and key of power over to Mick for the last locks of the year.

Downstream on the River Trent, stopping at all our favourite moorings. Pip’s knitting needles came out again to knit more socks for Dementia UK. We had a trip into Lincoln along the Fossdyke Canal, we actually managed to finally visit the Cathedral this time!

Tides were not helpful for the rest of our trip north so a couple of days at West Stockwith was needed, but that did mean we’d be sharing the tidal waters back to Yorkshire with NB That’s It whom we’d met earlier in the year.

There was time for a catch up with David as we passed through Bramwith, a jaunt up to Doncaster and then finally along the New Junction and onto Goole where a space had been found for us in the marina. A train ride to Scarborough to pick up a van and see the latest show before packing up the boat again for the second time this year.

Planned works at the house then went very smoothly. Scaffolding arriving the day after we arrived, new windows later in the day with four carpenters and two days later the decorator who was to give the house a much needed new coat of paint outside.

Mid October Pip moved to Chipping Norton for a month to work on panto, Mick and Tilly left to welcome a new lodger for the Christmas show in Scarborough. Panto was as much work as normal with the addition of Pip getting covid after the first week of rehearsals. The show opened to toe tapping audiences and many many bananas, getting great reviews. Mick had a days trip to London to support boaters who had gathered outside the Houses of Parliament for a Fund Britain’s Waterways rally.

Back in Scarborough Christmas came early with a visit from the London Leckenbys at the beginning of December, they hadn’t been to Scarborough for ten years. A few more house jobs have been done but a list has been compiled for the new year along with those on Oleanna. We’ve had a lovely Christmas, catching up with Scarborough friends, Tilly has slept lots, we’re lucky to see her before 2pm most days! I’m just resting for when the outsides start changing again.

Don’t worry Tilly the count down has started.

This year our plans changed all because of an invite from Pip’s cousins. We travelled our favourite canal, cruised many familiar waters , visited ‘Home’, climbed trees and pounced, caught up with many boating friends and made many new ones along the way. One very sociable year.

So our vital statistics for 2023 according to Canalplan are

Total distance of 805miles, 2.25furlongs and 436 locks.

There were 121 moveable bridges, of which 33 are usually left open; 151 small aqueducts or underbridges and 16 tunnels – a total of 6 miles, 5 furlongs under ground and 7 major aqueducts.

This is made up of 244 miles, 1.25 furlongs of narrow canals; 251 miles, 5.5 furlongs of broad canals; 69 miles, 1.5 furlongs of commercial waterways; 95 miles, 4.75 furlongs of small rivers; 57 miles, 3.75 furlongs of large rivers; 87 miles, 1.5 furlongs of tidal rivers; 185 narrow locks; 223 broad locks; 28 large locks.

Although according to Nebo we did

815.09 miles and 431 locks! Hmm maybe my maths isn’t so good. But then we only started using Nebolink in August, tracking our every move rather than just on our phones.

470 engine hours, 789.8 litres diesel! Ouch, having to run the engine to top the batteries up on an evening didn’t help with this, 150amp hours down to 100, 3 gas bottles, 120kg coal, 19.5 litres oil, 2 oil filters, 2 fuel filters, 1 shower mixer, 1 domestic alternator, 1 set new engine mounts, 1 overnight guest, 3 packs Dreamies, 1.5 packs Bonkers, 39 friends, 6 brought in, 34 Mrs Tilly stamps of approval, 34 pairs of socks, £1132 for Dementia UK, 2 shows, 9 lodgers, 10 supermarket deliveries, 33 boxes wine, 1 toe, 6 months cruising, 3 boat mover sightings, 209 posts, 184 likes, 9,503 visitors, 31,309 views!

Thank you for following our journey during 2023. We have a plan for 2024, but there are several invites and a rendez vous with some New Zealanders. Will we stick to our plan? Have to alter course to fit everything in? Wait and see, we’re already counting down the weeks to being afloat again.

Renewed

We’ve waited patiently for our credit card statement to come through for December (ouch!), before renewing our Canal and River Trust Licence. Just a standard Canal and River licence for us again this year even though we plan to spend an amount of time on EA waters. But that won’t be enough to justify a gold licence.

With a rise of 9% from last year we obviously wanted to leave it as long as possible, but still be able to get an online prompt payment discount.

Mick has been talking to a man about new batteries and if we can get a super cheap train ticket next week we’ll pop down to see Oleanna and check measurements in the ‘Shed’ cupboard so we can see what options we have and if we’ll require any wood work doing.

So Oleanna is all ready for the New Year, we’ll print out her licence to pop in the window on our next visit.

Comments

Thank you to those who have been making comments on the blog recently, we really like hearing from people. However since sometime in November we seem to be getting mostly anonymous comments. Only one or two have come from specific people via wordpress and all we have to work from is an IP address. I’ve worked out a few people from previous comments, but not many. We don’t mind getting anonymous comments, but it would great if you could pop your name at the end. Thank you.

Hope everyone enjoys the New Year festivities however you celebrate or not. We’ll be enjoying a nice bottle of wine at home with Tilly and a Salmon en croute (need to start emptying the freezer!). Depending on our colds we may not manage to reach midnight.

Thank you for following our travels through 2023 and we look forward to sharing more with you in 2024.

Turning Her Over. 11th December

Oleanna is never far from our thoughts, she’s always on mine!

I think Mick last visited Goole on his way to pick me up from Chippy so it was time to say hello and give her engine a run. He headed off on the train on a bright sunny day, these are few and far between at the moment, we seem to live with lights on in the house from when we get up to when we go to bed at the moment.

One of the webcam’s Mick has set up onboard had a faulty SD card, so the SD cards were swapped between cameras enabling us to see when cars come and go, or people open up the gate and walk past in the middle of the night. The cameras would be very obvious should you want to steal Oleanna, they are more for our interest especially when it snows and to check she’s okay. Shame the camera wasn’t running to be able to see how the scratch happened on the cabin side.

Mick ran the engine, had his lunch courtesy of Greggs, checked the kettle worked and had a coffee. The router sim card was swapped over. In the past we have swapped it for the one at the house when we’ve moved ashore, taking the better one with us. But about two weeks ago we finally got fibre broadband installed at the house, so the better sim card can now stay on Oleanna, the contract for the poorer one runs out soon.

The other job to do whilst there, was to measure the bottom section of a cupboard. This is a cupboard partly known as The Shed as it’s where tools etc are kept, but it was designed to hold a second Brompton bike and has a hanging rail for coats etc. The bike is no longer onboard as one bike is enough for our needs. The hanging rail doesn’t really get used as life jackets hats and scarfs fill up the bottom of the cupboard.

**At least the lake on the entrance road to the marina has shrunk a touch**

The plan when we upgrade our batteries is that we’ll hopefully move them inside into this cupboard. As they will be lithium this should be fine for the Boat Safety as they don’t gas, it will also mean they are less likely to get cold (Lithium doesn’t like charging when it gets cold). Mick took measurements of the lowest part of the cupboard which is affected by the swim. Unfortunately he didn’t measure how high the swim comes and how much more depth there is above it. The current batteries he is planning won’t both fit in the lower part of The Shed, who knows they might fit above. More measurements are required or a serious dig through boat information from when Oleanna was built. Work in progress.

I mentioned Chippy earlier on in this post. The company have just performed their 38th show out of 99(?). In the audience were the crew from NB Cleddau and NB Tentatrice. I hear the little chap at the back didn’t have an illuminated ball for the Carnival and that a few things got knocked over by the actors! Thank goodness though that the clock struck midnight!

Here are links to a few reviews if you are interested.

Muddy Stilettoes , Red Kite Days , Ox in a Box , Theatre Weekly ,

Daily Info , Banbury Guardian , The Stage which I think is behind a paywall, here is a quote incase you can’t get to see it all

‘The production has a bold look, courtesy of designers Pip Leckenby and Sophie Molyneux; the former’s set places the action behind a proscenium of painted jungle foliage, with a curtain of leaves pulled aside to reveal a quaint pueblo of coral-pink and dusty-yellow buildings. Molyneux’s costumes mash-up influences from flamenco and carnival, all ruffled sleeves and fringed mantles decorated with tropical fruit motifs.’

I had to put that one in as Designers don’t often get a mention!

I have donned my dungerees again and have started to repaint some window frames in my work room so that I can put everything back where it should be, then I’ll be able to do some painting of a different sort and draw up a new lean-to to get quotes.

The first batch of pastry for Mince Pies is resting in the fridge ready for rolling out in a couple of days. Last year I made frangipane topped pies with Adam’s added ingredient, I felt the topping required a bit of tweaking as it seemed to melt rather than rise. So we’ll see how this lot turn out. *Just realised I’ve omitted to add an egg to the pastry, no wonder it took a LOT of liquid to bring it together! I’ll have to double up the amount of everything, what a shame I’ll have to make at least two batches of mince pies! Suspect we might be needing your help to eat them Frank.

There’s a LOT of water about! Most rivers are full to overflowing, The Went Aqueduct on the New Junction Canal looks like the river and canal are not far off becoming one, all of the surrounding fields are lakes. The River Soar is starting to come down, some people are very aware of how high it got.

PS today 13th the Don Doors have reopened, so levels are dropping.

In knitting news the November Knitting Challenge for Dementia Uk managed to raise £171,867.96 which is fantastic.

0 locks, 0 miles, 2 trains, 1 very muddy puddle, 1 engine run, 2 windows, 1 BORED cat, 1 extricated designer, 1 reverse to safety, 2nd Christmas show, 460!

Panto Postcard 3, 2023

101.25 hours in 8 days

Saturday, first day back. Glad I was aware that the front door to the theatre doesn’t get opened until nearer 9am. Just walking in to work felt like I’d done enough for the day!

A walk round to see how my stand-in painters had done whilst I’d been away for five days. They’d most certainly helped to keep things moving in the right direction and the trickiest piece of furniture and the time consuming pattern on the rostra had been drawn out and was awaiting colour. Thank you Tim and Imogen for your help.

In the morning the cast with the Pippins did a stagger through of the show, scene changes happened and mostly were achieved in the time there was. It may have just been me post covid but it felt a little under energy. I strongly suspect other members of the company had had covid, as I was the only person to have taken a test I was the only official case.

The afternoon I spent starting to colour in the rostra whilst lighting happened on stage. The lights needed focusing, Nathan the Lighting Designer ( who normally works at the National Theatre) was speedy and not concerned at leaving a few lights till Monday. The advantage of him wanting to see a show in Stratford meant that the stage was actually cleared for the first time in five years at 6pm and was mine to start painting the floor.

In previous years I have worked until the floor was painted and had two coats of glaze before heading home in the early hours. Originally I’d planned on getting ahead over the previous few nights , but being ill this hadn’t happened. I drew out the design, then quickly realised that doing everything would take me far far longer than the time and energy I had. So for the first time ever I altered my design, simplifying it. A tidy up of the base coat was needed and I laid in the base colour for leaves before calling it a day.

Sunday. I don’t normally do Sundays, but needs must. I’d painted the model back in June/July time and luckily remembered how I’d painted the big leaves, I needed to recreate them for the floor. I did a try out on an area which would be hardly seen and soon got the hang of it. It took 6 hours to paint the leaves in, glad I’d amended my design!

Poor Paul had to be called in to get the heating going so that the paint would dry quicker, the office staff who were in keeping me company sadly didn’t know where the controls were. Abby by the evening brought her work from her chilly office to sit in the now warming auditorium. A coat of glaze then time to add more colour to the rostra before I gave the floor a second protective coat.

By 8pm I’d achieved the days mission the floor was finished and I’d cracked on with the rostra, sadly not finished, but getting close. During the day I’d received the news that my brother was in hospital with a lung infection. Quite a worry, but the hope was that once his oxygen levels were improved he’d be allowed home.

Monday. Today a week after testing positive I had a negative test result for covid. I still felt very weary. Gemma joined us today, The drummer who’d arrived on Sunday started to learn the songs, kicking more life into them. The rostra was finished, I dabbled some flowers onto a town flat finishing that also. Lighting states were plotted, flashing lights and blackouts not helpful to my wobbly brain, but thankfully Nathan was considerate and left me with some light most of the time.

Tuesday, the musical director and drummer moved into their area on stage. Microphones were set up around them and then a sitzprobe was started. This years panto has two composers, today it was Becky Applin’s turn to hear her songs with full musical accompaniment, some wonderful ballards. The Pippins joined later in the day and added their voices to the songs.

Wednesday and it was now the turn of Eliane Correa the second composer. Her numbers are full on big numbers, a saxophone and trumpet being added. Wow what a sound! The MD needed reigning in a touch as he was adding a few twiddly bits to the songs which didn’t appear on the dots in front of him. At one point as I was trying to work in the wings I had to close a door on the brass section so that I could hear myself think!

In the afternoon we started on the technical rehearsal. This is when the lights, sound, set, costumes, props and actors all come together to create the show. Tech’s can take some time, today we only had the adult cast and managed to get through the big opening scene and into the next one. Time for a few jobs to be done on stage afterwards and then some of us headed to the pub, my first glass of wine in over a week. Maybe I shouldn’t have had so much as it set my recovery from covid back by a few days.

Thursday. More technical rehearsals. Time to find jobs to do in the dark. The carnival clock was painted up, Jo the props maker joined us and rattled through the props notes, still plenty more jobs to be done. We just about reached the end of the first act before the Pippins joined us for a late afternoon session. This meant going back to the very beginning and working through all their scenes three times, so that each team of kids got a go at everything. The evening was spent sorting problems out and drilling holes for fairy lights.

**Andrew in hospital a couple of days ago**

News came through that my brother had returned home, unfortunately whatever he’d originally had Jac and Josh now were suffering from. The medics opinion though was that they’d be really unlucky to end up with a lung infection like Andrew.

Friday. For the last three days I’d been coming in early to get some paint on the archways that make up the main part of the set after the portals. An hour and a half with few people about was used well and soon the archways looked how I intended them to and no longer just white. Gemma and I spent time adding greenery to the town and then the archways, this still needed flowers adding, but that would gradually happen.

More teching, grabbing meals quickly at the ends of the actors sessions so as to be able to work through their breaks. Food and paracetamol keeping me going. Mechanisms for the second clock were worked on, extra dancers tried out, adjustments required to their feet. More jobs found that could be done in the dark of the auditorium.

Saturday. Time to finish off the technical rehearsal with the full company in the building. Mission accomplished, final number teched admittedly without costumes and my extra bits. Even when the actors had left, the songs, now more bright and lively still echoed around the theatre.

Lanterns the office staff have been making were flown. White blobs were added to greenery. a few problems solved before the theatre went very quiet. Time for the technicians and crew to head home and leave me to get on with catching up on the painting front. Glenn the Front of House Manager stayed to make sure I was alright. Crates were painted, flowers blobbed, but there are still more to colour up.

By 10pm Glenn offered to stay later if I wanted to, but by now I’d had enough. There will still be time to get other jobs done next week between dress rehearsals and notes. Still plenty to do but now it was time for a rest.

**Tom’s legs will have to do as SHE has deserted us!**

In Scarborough Mick considered putting outdoor lights up on the gable end, he bought a string long enough. But sadly there were no cable ties in the house to fix them with and the following day the chaps arrived to remove the scaffolding.

Mick has been working on plans for some electrical upgrades to Oleanna, but is also planning a trip to London this coming Tuesday. At 14:11 there is to be a rally of boats on the Thames outside the Houses of Parliament where they will blast their horns to raise awareness about the funding cuts to Canal and River Trust. Mick will be joining a group standing on West Minister Bridge supporting the boats below. If you haven’t already please sign the Fund Britain’s Waterways petition. I hope the weather is good for the event and that there is a good show of boats.

https://www.change.org/p/fundbritainswaterways?source_location=search

Finally a big Thank you for the donations to my sock knitting. Progress is much slower this week than last, but I am managing to do at least 30 minutes a day, just £60 short of my new target for the year.

https://www.justgiving.com/page/pip-leckenby-1677835197682?utm_medium=fundraising&utm_content=page%2Fpip-leckenby-1677835197682&utm_source=copyLink&utm_campaign=pfp-share

Ten Days 17th October

Viking Marina

The last ten days have been very VERY busy! Monday morning started off with four scaffolding chaps arriving, by early afternoon the front of the house was accessible, right up to the top of the gable end. Mick has been all the way to the top and we can now boast that you can see the sea in two directions.

The same day we had four joiners arrive to fit new sashes into our wooden windows. After four and a half days they had replaced all the single glazing in the house for double, rebuilt a dormer window and scarfed in new timber where the original 1883 timber had rotten away.

Wednesday the joiners were joined by a decorator to follow them round. The frames of the windows needing repainting along with the rest of the woodwork. He had a false start as rain arrived, but has cracked on on dry days. Today he’s finished painting the front and has moved round to the back.

**Gavin finishing off the bay under the watch of Tilly**

So far we’ve only really had one day when we’ve been able to feel the benefit of the new windows as every other day Gavin the painter has had windows and doors open for painting. So far Tilly has managed to keep all four paws white!

Last week I spent much of my time tidying up the artwork for panto. It took forever erasing small hairs that would be blown up to a foot long and eradicating marks I’d made to help position leaves. Today Peter at Prompt Side has been on the phone with questions, so hopefully the giant printer will be printing away all things panto ready for the fit up next week.

**I’m saving the cordial for after panto**

A mysterious leak had developed in the kitchen ceiling whilst we had lodgers, we think we’ve now solved this. The other shower is currently on de-sealant mode as it was still leaking after all our efforts earlier in the year. I think I have sourced the problem and will be battling away with sealant tomorrow hoping that everything has dried out enough.

A one off veg box arrived last week and we’ve been gradually working our way through the contents. A new recipe to me Pumpkin, Lime and Ginger cake, tasty but may have required a bit longer in the oven. There was also far too much cream cheese icing for my two cakes and this was really quite thin. Plenty left for a couple of days Frank if you happen to be passing.

On Sunday we managed to head down to see the sea. What a beautiful day! Scarborough was stunning. We are so fortunate to be able to walk down and enjoy the coast. This was the furthest I’ve walked since breaking my toe five weeks ago. I’m hoping to transition from crocks into trainers before heading to Chippy.

Yesterday Tilly and I played the dinette game. Putting the dinette cushions together how they are on the boat, without the boat!

***It’s still silly that one in the corner!***

Thank you Adam for the lead on foam, I have an order sat waiting to go just measurements of the mattress on board needed as we’d like to replace that too.

Today Mick headed back to Oleanna by train. The fridge and freezer needed cleaning out and she needed winterising before the temperature drops any more. A full hoovering was done. Things on the roof got a good tidy and tie down. Batteries were removed from heat/smoke/CO alarms and the clock. The water system was winterised, taps left open, pump off, shower head in the shower tray, valve from the water tank turned off.

Andromeda, a cruiser which had sunk on the Trent a month or so ago had been out on the hard at the marina. She’s now back in the water. Her sinking a bit of a mystery. Her owner had become ill, managed to moor up on the pontoon in Gainsborough before heading to hospital where he sadly passed away. Andromeda somehow slipped her moorings. Possibly some youths untied her, possibly a group of men took her to Knaith where a photo was taken of her in gear. This is where she ended up sunk, anchor out and a large boulder on the deck.

We’d also thought we’d forgotten a few things. My scratch pole! But Tom bought me a new one a touch taller than the floating one. The hair clippers being one of them, but they were nowhere to be seen on the boat. Tidying our things away in the house from the lodgers side I found them tucked away with my yarn. Mick can have a trim before I go away.

**It needs a bit more wobble, then it’ll be perfect!**

0 locks, 0 miles, 14 new windows, 1 cosy house when the windows are closed! ’23 panto getting close, 1 Sunday walk, 1 clerk of works, 4 new cushions, 1 mattress, 1 shower! 1 Oleanna winterised, 1 veg box, 0.5 of a house painted, 1 cancelled train.

Hanging On For Green. 10th September

Kiln Pontoon to Cromwell Lock Pontoon

The Geraghty zoom included topics such as Department stores, Post Holes and just what they might be, Soprano frocks and the E3 bus route. During the zoom we got a wiff of whatever from outside that we’ve smelt the last two evenings. Mick decided that he should check our lead acid batteries just incase one had started gasing. We have a starter battery, which was fine, and two bow thruster batteries, which were also fine. The pong had to be coming from elsewhere.

Next was a trip to stock up on more essential food stuff to cover us for the next few days. Waitrose was visited and we managed to come away with two bags for under £30, a far more considered shop than yesterday!

With everything stowed it was time to move on downstream. A phone call had been made to Kings Marina to see if we could top up the diesel tank, but a message suggested that the lady who runs the marina was away, we’d not be calling in. Instead we carried on past the entrance. Mick radioed ahead to Nether Lock, there was a boat going down and one to come up, we were to come in on the green.

However the green was quite a wait. Whilst holding onto the centre line we had time to watch the people working on the railway tracks that cross just above the lock. I spent quite a bit of time admiring the size of each spider that inhabited each recess of the big piling we were clinging to. The biggest spider was around the size of a 50p piece.

Eventually a boat appeared and the lock lights turned green. Nether Lock the last couple of times we’ve been through on self serve has taken forever! Hopefully with a Lock Keeper present it wouldn’t take as long. The bottom paddles were whipped up in one go, rather than incrementally on self serve, we were down in a jiffy.

Fishermen lined the banks, just how do they get their cars by the fishing pegs? The pub at North Muskham was popular with people sat at the tables, only one cruiser moored up.

I glanced to the side of Oleanna, hanging in the air as if it was a Hummingbird was a Kingfisher. I grabbed my camera, not the best photo, but it looked straight at me before glancing back at the river. Then it darted ahead and dived catching a fish, then zoomed back to a perch to enjoy it’s fishy snack.

Soon the pontoon mooring at Cromwell came into sight. Two boats on the outside, definitely one on the inside, would the other inside be free. Thankfully it was, meaning we’d be by a tap and possibly have electric for the night. We winded and then made our way onto the inside, across the pontoon from us NB Preaux, we’d be heading onto the Tidal Trent with them in the morning.

**The pontoon, easier to moor on than the wall**

Mick called the Lockie Neil to check there were copies of the new Trent charts available, there were but he’d have to be quick as he was only on duty for another hour. The new version (18) was checked over. A few noticeable changes, one in our opinion not as good as our old version 13. The first page from Cromwell looks to have been copied and shrunk slightly from a previous version. I checked the red line, the line to keep to, it didn’t look to have changed, I added the old page into the new book.

Other details missing were at Dunham Dubbs. Here is where boats have had problems as they turn the bend. Just keeping to underneath the pylon wires at certain times of the tide isn’t enough so extra markers have been added on the banks. These haven’t made it to the latest version of the charts. We printed the chart off from facebook and added that in too.

A delve into the cat proof cupboard came up trumps with three CRT electric cards, Mick tried one in the post by Oleanna. 19 credits left, bingo we had power! A couple of loads of washing and the use of the electric kettle, all paid for years ago.

We’d just said hello to our Trent buddies when the skies opened, thunder rolling around above us. We’d hopefully have chance to chat more in the morning. Originally when Mick had booked our passage he’d been told that high tide would be around 9:24, we were booked for 8:00 but may not get away before 8:30. This might mean the tide would be too low by the time we reached Torksey to get over the cill. However Neil the Lockie today said he’d be around from 7:30 the green light would likely to go on around 7:45, the sooner we got going the better chance of getting in at Torksey.

Early night for us then.

1 lock, 5 miles, 3 batteries fine, 1 suspect boat, 1 hobble shopping trip, 2nd very hot day, 1 long wait, 1 space on the inside, 1 bored cat, 1 alarm set.

https://goo.gl/maps/9btNZ7r1zWvApVtU9

All Just For A Load Of S**t. 24th August

Friars Mill

Mid morning Mick got a phone call from the archway garage saying that our alternator was ready to be collected. Blimey that was quick, we’ve heard tales of people sending them off to be mended and not hearing back for months, this had taken a couple of days. On collection the chap said it was the regulator that had gone. The chap also said he used to make the steelwork for narrowboats somewhere outside Leicester.

Our nearest neighbours had moved off upstream this morning leaving a gap at the end of the pontoon. Mick pulled us along so as to be further away from the resident cruisers who enjoy listening to their music loud. Not long afterwards a downstream narrowboat tucked into where we’d been, the pigeons made themselves at home on their roof pretty quickly, sorting out the teams for their next five aside match.

As we tucked into an early lunch the next boat arrived, the chap at the helm was obviously deciding on where to go. We called out, would he like to come alongside. Of course he would, Castle Gardens pontoon was now full. We chatted away and helped with his ropes agreeing on a time when we’d be wanting to head towards North Lock in the morning.

My head was still not good, but a walk would help, I hoped. So we headed off to find the cut at North Lock and walked northwards, crossing over Wolsey Island. The Space Centre building was worth a look at. The tower is clad in pillows made from ETFE, the same material used at the Eden Project. Dots cover the surface, but from a distance you can just see through it, rockets lurk inside.

We walked that little bit further to the Abbey Pumphouse, we fancied some Victoria engineering instead of space today.

There was lots to read again. The first part of the exhibition all to do with water, bathing through the ages especially around Leicester. As the population grew so did the amount of sewage, Leicester had to do something about the quality of it’s water. So sewers were directed towards Abbey Pumping Station which was built in 1890. From here the cities waste was pumped up to a treatment works at Beaumont Leys, now a shopping centre.

Mixed in amongst the water and sewage, not literally, there are also collections of industrial, technological and scientific items relating to Leicester. A phone box filled with toys, mechano, Kermit. Cinema cameras, Happy and Sad trams. Knitting machines for both stockings and jumpers. Soap. All quite interesting, but the layout a little dated as you tend to find in free museums.

Then up some stairs you enter the room where all the action used to take place. Just walking into the hall you can tell this is where the Victorians meant business. The staircase says this alone!

Four steam engines fill the space. Built in Leicester by Gimson and Company these are rare examples of Woolfe compound rotative beam engines. We think they are still in working order, but sadly not today.

Cream, brown and gold paint decorates the huge wheels, brass polished more than a Braidbar narrowboat’s mushroom vents. Huge pillars decorated with flowers and capitals hold up the structure. Decorative tile work. 130 years worth of ingrained oil, now caught in trays filled with cat litter.

Wow! All just for a load of Shit. The Victorians really couldn’t help themselves could they! Well worth a visit if you are in the area.

The route back to Oleanna took a slightly different route, walking alongside Leicester Abbey and the River Soar, looking up at Cardinal Wolsey who died here.

Back on board Mick carried on working his way through the laundry drawer, topped us up with water, hung things out to dry. Then went to sit and wait for our Sainsburys delivery. He was looking forward to a sit down. He can now confirm that the gates into Friars Mill are locked on an evening as he had to come back for our C&RT key to be able to bring our shopping to the boat.

Tomorrow we’ll wait in line for our turn through North Lock.

0 locks, 0 miles, 4 miles walked, 4 compound rotative beam engines, 1 floating spaceman, 1 cream tardis, 0 chilled medication, 4 pills, 1 bad head, 4 boxes wine, 1 whining cat, 1 full pontoon.

Narrowboat Oleanna

Travels of Narrowboat Oleanna