Category Archives: Boat Engines

Panto Postcard 1, 2019

58 hours

On Sunday Mick helped me with all my things to Avoncliff Station.

This used to be a request stop

I had quite a lot and a quick change at Westbury Station so he decided to come with me that far to help get me onto the next train. After another change I got a taxi to Admirals Hard where I caught the Cremyll Ferry across to the Rame Peninsula. Only an eight minute crossing but just long enough for those of us sat outside to get sprayed by the waves.

A woofer passenger on the Cremyll Ferry

Lou was there to pick me up, we dropped my work things off at the workshop where Ade was busy and then she gave me a lift down to the village of Kingsand. With keys to my flat I made myself comfortable, stocked up on some things to eat and drink from the shop, possibly getting ripped off and then went for an explore. This was likely to be the only time I’d get in daylight to look round.

The old border

Kingsand and Cawsand are twin villages in Cornwall, however until 1844 Kingsand was in Devon and Cawsand Cornwall. A house still marks the boundary, about 100 ft away from my flat.

Cawsand

Several small beaches link the houses together, all very characterful, smugglers hiding in the corner of your eye. Narrow roads with no parking make for a tranquil place, well until the tide comes in! It did however feel as though nobody actually lives there, it’s just for the tourists now.

My groundfloor bedroom window and the sea!

My flat was about as long as Oleanna but wider. Have to say that our bathroom layout is better designed despite being half the size. Everything was very comfortable, but the kitchen lacked a few basics that would have made cooking a touch more flavoursome.

Last bit left to prime

Monday morning I was picked up from outside one of the pubs and was at work for 8.30. First thing was to lay out the back drop. Normally this would have been stretched on a frame, but as my design needed me to be able to draw lots of circles we laid it out on the floor. By 10am I’d primed the cloth and gained a couple of blisters in the process. Ade and Lou’s workshop has been having a new roof fitted, the central ridge still needed replacing and in parts it was open to the sky. So as the day progressed and the weather outside became damp, buckets were deployed around the place.

Drawn up ready to paint

By the end of the day just about every bit of set that was ready had been primed and my backdrop was marked out. A pencil and string being my compass, I could have done with Frank’s trammel heads (ends of a compass that you can attach to a length of wood), but I managed in the end.

Wednesday the sun came out, only one thing for the canine assistants to do, sunbath

Tuesday and I started to lay blocks of colour onto the backdrop. Three shades of blue paint, a straight edge and a steady hand were needed. Occasionally a helping paw would appear, Bo and Shine two collies spend their days over seeing what happens in the workshop and hoping to be able to gain access to the bins from next door.

Pasty powered painting

The workshop is next door to CornishPod, winner of the World Pasty Championship in 2016. The smells wafting through from them were too much for me, on Monday I’d put in an order for a couple of gluten free pasties. Fresh and warm I enjoyed one for my lunch, keeping the second one for Wednesday. The day was wet again, water flooded in through a hole that had been made for new electrics, a blocked drain was found and sorted by the landlord.

Wednesday thankfully a dry day but water had seeped under the wooden floor where my cloth was pinned out , it had crept up between the sheets and was creating quite a stain. In parts the cloth was wetter than when I’d first painted it. Action was taken and we relaid it on sheets of plastic, a fan heater deployed to drive off the worst of the moisture and I concentrated on painting the portals. The roofers were back in for the day, covering up sections of the ridge.

Tellytubbies

Each morning I woke to wonderful sunrises, some from Tellytubbies,

A new day

others more moody and grown up. Not a bad view to have from your bedroom window. The local sea swimmers would all walk down for their morning dip shortly after dawn. They’d bob away in the swell as the tide came in, Kingsand only seems to have high tide!

Oops I might have bought some cheese!

Thursday was the start of the next storm. We hoped the worst would miss us. The team grew by two, Ade’s nephew Frank and a scenic artist Debs. Debs had come to paint another set they have been building for The Drum in Plymouth. Nothing quite so time consuming as my backdrop and portals, just lots of washes and rust. Lu and Frank lent a hand where needed, basing things in for me and painting black for Debs. As the day progressed the winds got stronger and stronger, necessitating brushing more bits of decaying roof off my backdrop.

The view whilst waiting for my lift

By the time I got back to my flat the tide was being aided by the wind. On other evenings towards high tide the waves had been making it onto the road outside my front door, but the direction of the wind having changed and the tides not being so high the waves just crashed against my bedroom wall instead. Their bumping giving the sofa a slight nudge. I hoped I’d be able to get some sleep, but thankfully things calmed down and I managed to get some shut eye.

Tides

Friday, Debs and I were left to it in the workshop, the others on apple duty back at the house. Ade and Lou have around 250 apple trees from which they press apple juice. This years crop has been plentiful, so whilst painting brushes were working hard at the workshop, Lou and Frank picked up the latest windfalls and Ade worked his way through the first of 40 crates of apples.

Finished!

By the end of the day the other set was finished and Panto had a completed backdrop and two portals. Plenty more for me to do, but at least the main aim of the week was completed. I celebrated by having a halloumi and roasted pepper pasty for lunch, very tasty it was too.

Saturday my last day. A quick tidy up of the flat before I got a lift up to the workshop to see what I could achieve before heading home. I made a good start on two large flats, but I’d hoped to get them almost completed but the paint just wasn’t drying quickly enough. There was also the matter of packing paint and mixing colours so Lou can carry on basing things in,hopefully saving me hours of work.

Mixing grey

The last job was to mix a huge vat of grey. I hate mixing grey, you think you’ve nearly reached the right shade, just a bit more black, a bit more, a bit more, maybe just a touch more. Damn! Now a bit more white!!

Frank and Lou, my cloth was raised and stretched out shortly after this

The other set was loaded onto a wagon. The pieces I’d finished were stacked away and the backdrop was hung to help it continue drying. The water stain is fading but I doubt it will go completely.

Plymouth

Back in my civvies it was time to head for the train. A lift down to the ferry which was just coming in, then an awaiting cab to the station. I had 4 minutes to get to the right platform, my luggage a touch lighter as my brushes will go to Chipping Norton with the set. Two trains and I arrived back in Bradford on Avon where Mick was there to meet me.

A hard weeks work in the company of the lovely Lou and Ade in such a wonderful setting. It’s just a shame I never really got to see the village at low tide in day light.

Meanwhile back on Oleanna.

Mick and Tilly have not been idle. On Sunday afternoon Mick moved the boat a little towards Bradford joining the local boats. On Monday he took the toilet to bits. We have a Separett Villa, the urine gets separated into a tank under the floor from which we can pump it out into another container for disposal. Gradually when rinsing through the system I have noticed it taking longer and longer for the water to drain to the tank, so I’d raised a chitty with the maintenance department.

It was quite sometime ago that Finesse showed us how everything had gone together but Mick managed quite easily to remove the toilet and then the floor above the tank. From the separator one pipe leads to another which then does two 90 degree turns to enter the underfloor tank. Here was where the blockage was gradually getting worse and when Mick poured vinegar into the top it stayed put, the pipe finally having blocked.

Our yellow water tank, the blocked bend on the left

With some drain unblocking cabley thing and more vinegar he eventually managed to shift the blockage. No need to cross our legs, we can go to the loo again. But maybe we need to add more vinegar to the bottle we spray the separator with, or even add it neat every now and again, or maybe we should just drink it so that the pipe doesn’t block again.

On Tuesday morning I made a request that Tom should move the outside. This outside was okay, but another would be better, so he moved it to a Mrs Tilly stamp award winning mooring, Dundas. Here I busied myself outside, returning to check on Tom only to find he’d lost his legs! I found them for him down in the big box at the back of Oleanna. It was quite soggy down there so Tom was trying to get rid of all the Aunty freeze that had leaked there a month or so ago. He was very careful to keep me away from this Aunty, apparently it can be deadly to cats.

Purring paws

Thursday they filled with water winded and headed back towards Avoncliff. All the sink U bends and shower traps were given a good clean and then on Friday they moved up to Bradford and managed to get a spot on the 48hr moorings below the lock. Here was good, plenty to keep me occupied, but then Tom decided to nudge the outside a touch. This touch to the outside meant there were far more woofers, in fact a constant stream of them. It really wasn’t worth stepping off the boat!

0 locks, 7.24 miles by boat, 5 different moorings, 1 calcified lump added to the yellow water tank, 10 litres anti-freeze, 2 winds, 5 trains, 2 taxis, 2 ferries, 13 lifts, 2 pretty villages, 0 beach to be seen, 6m plus high tide, £51!!! 2nd shop at the co-op, 1 flat almost on the beach, 1 thumping sea, 4 bottles wine, 1 bottle oil and some garlic required, 58 hours, 1 fat knee, 1 pastie powered painter, 1 back cloth, 2 portals complete, 1 well used straight edge, 2 woofer assistants, 1 slightly blue ball, all three crew back on board, 1 purring cat.

https://goo.gl/maps/g76UMQkKL8AR1G9FA

PS The last three posts all have photos now.

Taking Our Time Getting Ready. 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th January

Crick Marina to Cracks Hill to Crick Wharf to Crick Marina

As you can see we’ve spent the last few days moving, well a bit! We’ve been getting ourselves ready for cruising.

Cracks Hill

On Wednesday we moved out to Cracks Hill, here Tilly could have a bit more carefree time ashore and we could send emails to the now post festive period working world that was waking up again. With these things done we booked delivery slots with both Ocado and Sainsburys and then started to fill our baskets with supplies.

Upside down re-numbering

Thursday we winded after a slow start and headed into Crick Marina late morning. We’d been hoping to see a coal boat to stock up, but only NB Callisto had passed and despite having been sent a text message, he didn’t seem interested in selling anything as the boats sheets were up and he passed the moored boats with his back to us all. So Crick Marina got our trade instead. The diesel tank was filled up and 5 bags of Excel were loaded onto Oleanna’s roof before we headed back out onto the cut.

No chilled medication as they were closed

Crick Wharf was empty so we pulled in tying Oleanna as close to the bridge in front of The Moorings as the rings and bollards would allow. This left plenty of space at the water point for any passing boats. The Moorings has been closed for a festive break and not due to reopen until next week, so we wouldn’t be in their way. Patchy internet was worked round and we added and amended our shopping until the last minute. The washing machine was set to work to try to empty the dirty linen drawer whilst close to a water point.

Michael's vanThe nicest GF bread I've found

Friday morning came and we were ready for our first delivery. We’d decided to use both Ocado and Sainsburys this time. Jaq from NB Valerie had pointed me in the direction of a different brand of gluten free all purpose flour, more expensive than the regularly available Doves Farm, but better for baking, so I thought I’d give it a try. Ocado stock it but Sainsburys doesn’t. So most of our shopping arrived with Michael in his Green Apple van shortly before 10am. This took some stowing, filling up much of the cupboards, fridge and space under the back steps. The freezer needed a bit of sorting out so that I could fit a chicken into it once it had been jointed. Most things were now stocked up, apart from the wine cellar!

More washing was done, Tilly had her pooh box refreshed, we had our pooh bucket refreshed and even some of the cupboards had a freshen up with a touch of polish before my head suggested I should have a sit down. Mick managed to make a phone call, using the wi-fi at The Moorings, following up an email we’d sent. This was received positively, our purpose for cruising northwards now confirmed. We’ve been in winter mode since part way through the summer due to my work, so we’re both quite excited about moving again and travelling some distances. Here’s hoping the weather plays ball!

The wine van

Part way through the afternoon a green pepper van arrived from Sainsburys. A much smaller shop, mostly consisting of boxes of wine strangely enough. Even though we had to pay £4 for the delivery this was saved on one box of wine compared to the price at Ocado and Mick got some cheese twists too, so he’s a happy man.

New year, new socksGirl socksBoy socksDuring the afternoon my new socks were modelled by the two of us for photos. Father Christmas had commissioned me to knit these for our stockings with different wool than I’ve been using. A touch more expensive, but that can be felt in their softness. Even Mick unprovoked said how nice they were. So once the internet signal is improved I’ll be adding them to my Etsy shop, bespoke socks knitted to order.

Saturday and Tilly had cabin fever. After a cooked breakfast we emptied the yellow water tank, topped up the fresh water tank, disposed of the last bits of rubbish and then winded. Back up to near the marina entrance to moor for the day, there was still one thing we wanted to do before setting off.

MY towpath! NO woofers allowed

Tilly spent much of the day coming and going, standing up against the woofers out for a nice walk on the towpath. Mick climbed down into the engine bay to give Oleanna some TLC with an oil change and a new filter. I walked into the village for the first time since we arrived to find some lighter gas for our kerchunk kerchunks that we use to light candles and the fire with. Today is the first day since my migraine that I have felt normal again. So I wanted to stretch my legs and get some fresh air. Thank you for the suggestion from Don regarding red wine helping to combat migraines. Sadly it’s been a few years since I could drink wine of the red variety as it didn’t agree with me about four years ago. But the same active ingredient is present in blueberries and chocolate. We tend to have blueberries most days at breakfast, but had run out, I just can’t have been consuming enough chocolate to make up for it!

Christmas HamperAll contained until next DecemberDuring the afternoon we de-christmassed the boat. All the lights wrapped back up and boxed, baubles and silver ribbon put back in the Christmas Hamper for another year. The top shelf in the front cupboard lowered so as to store the hamper again. I was commended for my good behaviour with the deaf things. I’d managed to leave them all alone, not one of them managed to reach the floor. I got special Christmas stocking Dreamies for my achievement. She put them all away in a big box, that wasn’t right, I needed to sit in the big box not those deaf little balls!

The last thing for us to do in Crick was to catch up with our friend Lizzie. We’d missed out on a New Years meal at The Red Lion with her, so this evening we met up and had a belated New Years meal. All three of us enjoyed one of their steaks with proper chips followed by puddings and accompanied by a couple of glasses of wine. We toasted in the new year and caught up on each others news a lovely way to spend our last evening in Crick for a while.

0 locks, 1.54 miles, 2 winds, 1 big headache, 3 moorings, 4 loads washing, 2 vans, 5th season of Luther, 4 woofers seen off, 0 Roger still, 3 ribeyes, 6 glasses of wine, 5 days late New Year, 1 clean pooh bucket, 1 clean pooh box, 1 empty wee tank, 1 full water tank, 1 full diesel tank, 8.5 bags coal, 6 boxes, 500g Jaq flour, 9 litres oil, 1 filter, 1 boat ready and chomping at the bit to cruise.

That Autumn Feeling. 2nd, 3rd October

Dashwood Lock to Pigeon Bridge 213

Oleanna was due her next service and I wanted to do a bit of work for panto, so we decided to stay put for the day.

Normally when Mick is in the engine bay Tilly is confined to quarters, the thought of oil on her white paws not appealing, also she might just get in the way rather than help. But today we decided to risk it so with the front doors open for her to come and go Mick set to with the oil and filters. He also had a go at adjusting the thermostats on the hot water as he’s felt the water was a touch too hot. This though is a bit of trial and error until he gets it right. Tilly came and went at the bow instead of the stern, luckily showing no interest in the engine bay.

Leaf kicking time of year

Meanwhile inside I at last had the peace and quiet with no distractions to write a reference for an old work colleague who is applying for a post as a Senior Lecturer in an American University. Then I settled down to do some panto work, sourcing bunting and fabrics and trying to make contact with the props maker.

The first boat to go past us in the morning was the chap who had been so pleased at his ‘win win situation’ at the lock the day before. Strange how he’d been made to wait due to someone travelling through a lock with their fenders down, yet as he passed us his were down. They may of course have fallen off his gunnels as he left the lock, but I doubt it! His newly won fender will soon be someone else’s, around their prop!

During the day the wind had got up, we were quite glad we’d decided not to move. But it did mean that boats were passing us a little bit faster than tick over for them to stay in control. One boat didn’t bother slowing at all and one of our nappy pins managed to pull along, not having been put behind a bolt, so we clattered along and needed retying.

Oops!

Mick went out to sort us out before the next boat went past. I’d omitted to tell him that by the bow the towpath looked a touch unsolid (my excuse for not having put the nappy pin in properly!). Unfortunately he found out for himself, stepping near to the armco and plunging deep into a very wet muddy hole. No harm done to him thank goodness, but a very muddy mess made of his sheepskin slippers.

The parcels of socks all arrived with their new owners who all seemed happy. I got notification that my digs in Chipping Norton had been booked, tea and coffee making facilities in my room, free wifi and a bathroom of my own. Here’s hoping it has a bath!

Ivy cut off in its prime

Today we decided to move that bit closer to Oxford. Mick had identified another possible mooring for our boat builders to come out to so we pushed off shortly after 10am. Much of our journey today has been surrounded by high trees which were once covered with ivy. The trunks of the ivy have been cut away on many trees leaving a gap so that the ivy dies, giving the poor tree chance to live.

I've caught a fishIt doesn't want to play muchThe River Cherwell clings to the side of the canal creating a narrow slice of land between the two. When we came through here last time we stopped along this stretch, Tilly had hours of fun after being cooped up for a week on the Thames. She even returned to show off a fish she’d somehow caught!

Quarry mooring with little to tie up to

A short distance on there was an offside mooring in the old quarry. Here would give us the closest mooring to the village of Kirtlington for a bread and milk shop. We pulled in, beer cans and half burnt scaff planks strewn around the place. We spotted one ring in the concrete and evidence that there used to be more, which have been angle ground off. A pole and the ring might have been okay for a longer boat, but we didn’t fancy it so carried on to check out the moorings at Pigeon Lock.

Fishing

The big house by the lock was having work done to it, a bath having just been delivered and a new Cotswold stone roof showing itself off. There was space above the lock, but it was dark and noisy so we decided to see what it was like below.

Idea!Footpath to the stationThe lock was empty so a quick check below and I could see a boat heading towards us, there was space to moor too. I pushed the gate open for the on coming boat and waited. Mick joined me and asked how far the boat had been, they had just come round the bend. Well they were still there, I could hear people saying that we were at the lock. It took forever for them to arrive! A lady wearing a jaunty angled beret appeared first, chatting away. They hadn’t realised that we were waiting for them with the lock gate wide open. Message was sent back to the boat to come in, which they did after trying to readjust the bridge profile. Four Americans on holiday who were learning the ropes. It all took quite a bit of time before the lock was in our favour.

The village shop

Our new mooring had sun, tv, occasional phone signal and internet so we were happy. A walk up into the village along the dusty track brought us into a pleasant village, a mix of modern housing and chocolate box thatched Cotswold cottages. At the far side of the village is the Post Office which has a shop. Fresh fruit and veg sat outside, newspapers, fresh pies, cheeses, all sorts. They even have a small selection of gluten free products, I was tempted by the frozen pastry, but the freezer is just about at capacity at the moment. Mick spotted the last loaf of real bread as the man serving chatted away to us. I think he could have gone on all day. A good find.

Jane's Enchanted Tea GardenMy favouritePart way along the track is the entrance to Jane’s Enchanted Tea Garden. On the gate are next years opening dates, she only opens twice a month through the summer and has taken this year off. Maybe one day we’ll pass by just on the right day as the site is full of interesting things, especially Morris Minors.

Before

Back at Oleanna, Tilly was given free reign and I got my painting dungarees out. The towpath was a little bit too high to work on the gunnels, but with the weather being fine for the next few days I decided to sand back the cratch board and get it ready for a couple of coats of woodskin. The original coats were wearing thin and the wood starting to grey, a second winter and it would all go dull. The cover was fully removed, the glass masked out and I set at it with sand paper, knocking back the old woodskin and trying to rub away the grey wood. Not sure I’ve quite managed on the second front but it will do. Lots of dust to get ride of, after a wash down it was obvious that it wouldn’t be dry enough for me to get a coat on today so instead the well deck had a good sort and clean.

All sanded and washed down

2 locks, 2.5 miles, 4 fenders down, 9 litres oil, 1 filter, 2 thermostats adjusted, 1 hot tank of water, 1 reference written, 1st props maker contact, 2 cosy feet in Aberdeen, 2 cosy feet in Reading, 1 muddy foot on the Oxford Canal, 1 big hole, 1 Fazil needing more thought, 1 door big enough, 0 tea today, 1 very slow boat, 1 new bath, 1 handy shop, 1 cratch rubbed back, 1 clean well deck, 2 many people to get together, 0 boat builders this week, 0.2 of a snake.

https://goo.gl/maps/pK4CZAVQLpC2

Too Busy For A Cat Day. 6th March

Mickley Bridge 84 to Moss Hall Aqueduct

The plan today was to let Tilly have free run of the towpath. After her being cooped up during the ‘Beast’ we had found ourselves at a mooring with very little footfall, so she could play to her hearts content all day.

Miles of Tilly Towpath

Another three benches were claimed including the one outside of NB Beefur. Mid morning they pulled away and left us on our own.

The stuff of life, as my dad used to call it

Mick was low on bread, so I set about baking him a loaf so that he could have lunch today. Even though I don’t eat normal bread anymore I quite enjoy making it, but as it takes time I need advance warning. The dough was left to rise before breakfast, then knocked back and left to prove, out of the oven after an extra 5 minutes upside down (that’s cooking on a boat for you) and cool enough for a slice or two at lunchtime. The top went a bit darker than I’d have liked, so next time I’ll reduce the gas mark a touch in the top oven.

The gunnel was washed down yesterdayOnce whiteTilly had spent the morning coming and going. Stopping off for a few Dreamies and a  quick wash and brush up before getting muddy again. Her freshly laundered towels are no longer white!

Just as we were finishing our lunch Mick’s phone rang. RCR. With our gold membership we get a free engine check each year and we had arranged this for last Friday. But because of the ‘Beast’ all their engineers had been sent home for a couple of days so as not to get stranded by the feet of snow we’ve just had. The call was from the office asking where we were and would it be possible to fit us in today. A quick look in Nicholsons and there was a road bridge a couple of bridges ahead. Being on the Shroppie, with it’s shelf, doesn’t mean that we’d be guaranteed to be able to moor, but we’d give it a try. Luckily Tilly was in so we pushed off and travelled the great distance of 0.45 miles. We managed to get pulled in and moored on armco to wait for the engineer.

What's he doing in the box underneath?Checklist GOODThe chap who arrived had been the second engineer who’d come out to us last year when we had our fuel filter leak. A very jolly chappie with the gift of the gab, which actually means you tend not to take too much notice of him! Oleanna’s engine not quite being a year old meant we didn’t really expect him to find anything, it’s just for peace of mind for Mick as he does all our servicing. Everything was as expected in ‘Good’ order and the check list was quickly gone through enabling the engineer to head up the way to a breakdown in Audlem.

The next boat out of Finesses workshop after OleannaOverwater Marina

Not the prettiest of moorings we knew we could do better. So we pushed off again, passing Overwater Marina where we spotted the boat that followed Oleanna out of the Finesse workshop.

Not a bad view

At the bottom of the Audlem flight a large gap between boats greeted us and we pulled up with a great view over the rolling fields and small lake surrounded by sheep. Tilly was a little bit more cautious but still had a couple of hours to enjoy herself before feline curfew. The evening was a very quiet one, Tilly being fast asleep for most of it!

A snuggle up in Tom's coat after a towpath explore

0 locks, 0.45 miles, 1.3 miles, 2 journeys, 8 hours cut to down 5! 20 checks, 15 ‘Good’, 3 moorings, 1 loaf, 1 project nearly finished, 1 great view, 330+ channels.