Blue Water Marina to Bramwith Junction, Stainforth and Keadby / New Junction Canals
During the week house reclaiming jobs have been completed, for this winter. All the hallway wallpaper has been patched up, some places better than others. Daily covid test have been taken as half of the Dark Horse Company tested positive the weekend after the show, thankfully everyone seems to have only had mild symptoms and thankfully I seem to have managed to avoid it.
Tree looking not so happy
We’ve made the sensible but hard decision to retire our boat Christmas tree. It has served us well for the last 7 Christmases. Coming into the house has confused it the last two years, sprouting and then getting chilly again even with us trying to move it gradually back to outside. It was also getting a touch too big for the boat and was pot bound. A space in the back garden was made ready with a touch of our own compost, which we hope will give it a much needed boost. If it survives I’ll buy it some solar powered lights so that it can be a Christmas tree all year round.
During the winter C&RT do maintenance on the canal system, taking advantage of the quieter time on the canals. For boaters wanting to cruise it means a touch more planning to avoid getting stuck. Our route south is currently blocked at Newark Town Lock which will be closed until 18th March. Then Thorne Lock was due to close between 1st and 31st March for lock gate replacement, the dates of this stoppage are under review as the gate manufacturing has been delayed. All the same should we stay put at Blue Water Marina for a few more weeks we could possibly end up only being able to cruise out towards Keadby, the furthest south we’d get being Torksey until Newark Town Lock reopens.
Add into the mix the fact that we are surrounded by rivers. The River Trent to our east, River Don the south, River Aire to the north and west and the River Ouse. The recent storms have had all the rivers go into flood. Flood gates and locks have been closed helping to protect properties. So understandably during the last week we’ve been watching the weather forecasts and river levels closely.
Putting everything away
On Wednesday a C&RT notice came through saying that the Don Doors had reopened. The Doors are two guillotine gates that close at either side of the Don Aqueduct on the New Junction Canal, this is to stop flood water from the Don backing up along the New Junction Canal. Whilst they had been closed we’d tried contacting Staniland Marina to see if they could put us up for a little while, they are just above Thorne Lock. But there had been no space for us, so we’d been relieved to hear the New Junction Canal was open again.
I’m sure I’ll fit too
With the weather looking promising for the weekend, our plan started to slot together. A phone call to Sarah at Blue Water Marina meant we had a new gas bottle delivered to Oleanna and our spare keys were returned too as nobody would be in the office when we arrived.
A hire car was picked up on Friday evening and we started to pack. The aim of this trip was to move as much back onto Oleanna as possible, leaving the minimum amount for our last trip when we’d be moving Tilly.
By 9am Saturday morning the car was very full. Tilly’s magic food bowl was set to spring open at evening Ding Ding time and we left a sulking feline basking in the sunshine.
Go on then, go without me!
They just don’t care about me anymore! She says it’s all about me, to make my life easier and less stressful. Well being left in a chilly house with Boggy Face Alan, Stumpy Betty and Boss Eyed Shoes glaring in at me is very stressful! Think I’d prefer a car journey.
It was sunny at the marina, the grass no longer squelching under foot, I just hoped Oleanna would be drier inside than last week. Thankfully she was. First job light the stove. Mick failed first time, kindling and matches just a little bit too damp still. The heating went on and the fire was re-laid and was soon blazing away.
Water tank was emptied, not much left, then refilled. We’d wanted to sterilize the tank but with the water pressure in the marina being a touch dodgy we decided that could wait. Fresh water in our tank would most probably be fine to drink, but after months I’d rather any possible bugs were killed, we’d brought a couple of bottles of drinking water with us anyway.
The back steps came out, the dinette opened up and all the things we’d brought down last were stowed giving us room to empty the car again. Then all that stuff had to be stowed away too. Lunch by the hatch, the weather was suitable for it to be open today.
The trip computer always gets sat up like this to stop Tilly from sitting on it
Mick moved the hire car out of the marina, just in case he got back to collect it after the gates had been closed. The covers were rolled and folded out of the way. The trip computer set to record our journey. We were ready!
Time to say goodbye to Blue Water Marina
Thankfully the wind was kind to us and allowed Mick to reverse us out of our mooring, gradually we turned and headed for the entrance. Two chaps came over to talk to Mick, saying they’d just had difficulty, two of them trying to open it, they’d given up and returned to the marina. We assumed they meant Princess Royal Swing Footbridge which can be awkward. Oh well, we’d see how we did with it.
What a beautiful day
Blue sky, a chilly breeze. Perfect winter cruising weather, we’d chosen our departure day well.
On arrival I opened the control panel where a new sheet of instructions has been added. I made sure I read it fully, turned the key and headed over to close the far barriers. One barrier clicked, the other despite a wiggle or three didn’t, Hmmm! Back over the other side I closed those, click, click and tried to set the bridge in motion. It wasn’t having it. I started to squeeze my way through to wiggle the far gate, but Mick came and did it for me. Still nothing! I’d nudged a near side gate which needed a wiggle now. Hooray the bridge swung!
Thorne Lock ahead
Water bubbled below Thorne Lock, did the gates need replacing that much? It turned out that paddles were open at both ends of the lock letting water flow through to reduce the level above the lock after the recent flooding. Putting the key of power into the control panel immediately closed all the paddles and I had control.
Control panel
Just above the lock is a swing bridge with manual barriers, which is tied into the lock mechanism. The barriers and bridge will only move once the top gates of the lock are open. Up came Oleanna in her first lock of the year, she smiled from horn to horn.
First lock of the year!
With the gates open I headed up to close the barriers to the road. With one closed I was coming back to close the second one when an Amazon Prime van sped up past me and onto the bridge. I shouted about the barrier, he stopped but stayed put on the bridge. It was me who would have to give way to him, no stopping Amazon Prime!
Clear of the stoppage when ever it happens
With him out of the way and barriers closed I lifted the handle on the bridge and pushed it open to let Oleanna out of the lock. All easy. We were now clear of the possible stoppage on Monday.
Staniland Marina with a sunk boat in front of the dry dock!
As we pootled away we wondered what the two chaps at the marina had had difficulty with. Two of them not able to open it? Maybe they had been referring to the bridge at the lock, perhaps they hadn’t lifted the handle, or maybe they hadn’t read the instructions and hadn’t opened the top gates before they tried the bridge. Oh well, we’d got through and that’s all that mattered, no stopping us!
We pootled along, under the M18 and past the scrubby bits where motorbikes must race each other. A breasted up pair came towards us, the canals up here so wide and deep there’d be no problem getting past each other. A batch of new houses have met up with the canal at Stainforth.
Bramwith Lock
Time was getting on and the sun was getting low in the sky. We considered stopping short of Bramwith Swing Bridge but decided we’d prefer to have the view at Bramwith Junction. Through the swing bridge and on to the lock.
Coming up
Bramwith lock feels so diddy, the extended lock (chained open and not often used) makes it seem so small. Time for a windlass and to manually lock Oleanna up.
Of course as soon as we reached the junction, where we wanted to moor the wind picked up, blowing Oleanna out from the bank, so it took us a while to moor her up as the sun set opposite us. The effort was worth it for the view.
Cwor!
More unpacking, the bed made up and a touch of encouragement to defrost the frozen bolognaise sauce we’d brought with us, we then settled down for the evening back on board Oleanna.
2 locks, 5.85 miles, 1 hire car, 1 left behind cat, 2 car loads to stow, 3 swing bridges, 4 held up, 1 big gulp, 1 chilly blue skied day, 1 boat gradually warming up, 2 happy boaters, 1 smiling Oleanna.
It feels an absolute age since I’ve written anything, well it’s nearly three weeks since my last post! When writing a daily blog I get into a routine, when I stop it takes a while for me to come down as it were and not have to take photos constantly, think of a title to sum up the days events etc.
Instead I fill the day with decorating or doing a bit of work for #unit21 which will be here very soon. Full on rehearsals start next week , with there only being two shows it will all be done and dusted by mid Feb. Then we’ll be on the final push to finish things in the house before moving back on board.
This morning we’ve discussed our cruising plans for the year. Despite Mr Johnson starting to relax covid restrictions and suggesting that even self isolation may be removed by the end of March I have decided that the party I was planning for the summer will be delayed by a year. So it won’t be quite the half century, half decade, half year birthday that I’d planned, instead it will be 55.5 +1. There are other reasons too.
Look at the size of that pipe fender!
Last year we wanted to see family and catch up with a few friends. This was important to us and dictated where we should cruise, we also managed to fit in some adventures too. Then panto came along, then we waited for Christmas followed by the New Year. Times, restrictions and things to be waited for. Now we busy ourselves with jobs around the house whilst we wait for our first lodger of the year to arrive. So instead of waiting for July and a party we will be heading off to cruise and explore new places and waterways. Hopefully covid will have receded a touch more by summer 2023 and we will feel more relaxed about gathering friends and family together for a big weekend, it will also give us more time to plan it!
So, where will we be going?
Well you’ll just have to be patient and wait and see!
I’m being very patient!
Have to say, now we know what our plan is, we can start to look forward that bit more. There are various jobs that need doing on Oleanna before we head off. We could do with the weather being a touch warmer so that our bubble carpenter can pay her a visit and Mick might finally get round to giving her an oil change!
There’s that lighthouse again!
News from Towpath Talk is that C&RT have temporarily suspended commercial craft on the Aire and Calder to investigate harm being caused to wildlife. On a stretch of the canal in Knottingley there have been significant numbers of dead fish. Reduced loads and slower speeds had been adopted by the gravel barges but still the fish are dying without explanation.
The title of todays blog doesn’t actually refer to us, as setting off is still a little while away. But this morning Mick received a phone call from an old friend. Chris was obviously excited, as finally after a couple of months of living on his narrowboat whilst the boat builders have been finishing things off, today was the day he’d be leaving Debdale Marina and heading off to continuously cruise the system.
Which way?
At midday he untied NB Elektra, got himself to the entrance of the marina where he was going to toss a coin, left or right? Right it was. He has just over a month to reach Watford Locks which are currently closed for maintenance, then he will most probably have to toss a coin again at Norton Junction to see which way he will then head. It reminded us of our excitement when we pushed out from Crick Marina in 2014 and headed towards Braunston with NB Blackbird.
Next painting in progress
So if you are in need of a boating fix you can glide along the canals with Chris as he has a webcam mounted in the bow. A week or so ago he cruised to Leicester, we watched occasionally and were surprised at how well we recognised where he was despite there being few major landmarks to help us. If you are out walking the towpaths you won’t be able to miss him and NB Elektra as she is painted black and magenta and when the weather warms up a bit he’ll no doubt be wearing his pink hat.
Us and the North Sea
Right that’s my excuse for writing a blog post used up. Mick when are you going to change the oil so I can have another fix?!
Time for the annual round up. Put the kettle on or pour yourself a glass of something stonger, put your feet up, this is a long post.
Looking out into a cold world!
As midnight turned from 2020 to 2021 we saw the old year out and new one in at the house in Scarborough, a quiet affair with just the three of us.
January and February brought ups and downs with them. Oleanna rose and fell with the water level at Viking Marina due to the breach at New Bridge whilst the country locked down. Despite the restrictions on travelling we made use of having a hire car for a few days at the beginning of the year to keep an eye on Oleanna.
Jobs around the house continued, our bedroom was redecorated and reclaimed from troublesome tenants. Tilly and I ventured out into the nearby park for the occasional walk, dependant on the number of woofers and the weather of course.
We walked, we ate, we drank, did our best to stay well and I started on the design for Chipping Norton’s panto in my reclaimed work room.
The spare living room was used as a workshop doing some work for Animated Objects, scrimming giant sci-fi guns and then painting model buildings all for The Odyssey. Beetroot burgers were made and pancakes consumed.
Then March came along and some easing of restrictions. Colour came back in nature with the daffodils popping up and my panto model started to get coloured in. A design for some origami paper arrived ready to be folded up to be part of 1000 ships display that would happen a couple of months later along the Yorkshire coast.
With new freedoms we had a couple of trips to Goole to check on Oleanna. First one was to swing her round and finally put fire extinguishers on walls all ready for her Boat Safety Inspection which she passed with flying colours and a comment that we seemed to like CO and smoke detectors, well I’d rather have too many than not enough!
The cofferdam at the breach site was completed and an access ramp created. My posts about the breach put us in touch with several people in Goole and at the beginning of April The Goole Escape Facebook group was formed. Due to the breach and lack of water in Goole Docks no leisure boats were allowed to use Ocean Lock out onto the Tidal Ouse. A joint calm voice was needed to try to find a way out for those boats wanting to leave, including us.
Of course March was also when Mick and I got our first vaccinations. Who’d have thought having a jab would put a smile on peoples faces! Not that you could really see them behind all the masks. A bathroom got a make over and we discovered parts of Scarborough we’d never been to before.
April was a very busy month. With lodgers on the horizon house jobs needed finishing. The roof needed attention along with a wall in my work room, both jobs were for the professionals. Pictures went up on walls, finally. The bathroom needed finishing with Frank fitting us a new bath surround.
Mid month out attention moved back to Oleanna. Way back when, we’d booked her in at Goole Boathouse to be blacked. We had a night on board before moving her from one marina to the other to come out of the water. She was jet washed down and the chaps began applying layers of 2 pack to her hull. We visited most days with jobs to do ourselves. Mick busied himself inside whilst I ground back rusty bits on the gunnels, repainted them and the tunnel bands. Inside the oak floor had a good clean and then was treated to two coats of oil. The weather had been perfect for it and she went back in the water a week after she’d come out, enough time for the 2 pack to cure. She looked smart again, well the cabin sides still needed a good wash!
Whilst in Goole we met up with David, Karl, Wendy and Martin, four members of The Goole Escape group. David had managed to negotiate with ABP passage for leisure boats through Ocean Lock at Goole Docks, this was limited to specific times of the tide. So escape was now possible but everything would have to come together to make a sensible plan. We wouldn’t be ready for a few weeks and hoped that there wouldn’t be a mass exodus before we could join people.
As I carried on trying to finish my panto model Mick made good use of his time doing a VHF radio course, we’d need to be able to use the radio to meet the criteria for going through Goole Docks and out onto the Tidal Ouse. Tilly visited the vet and got a years worth of flea and wormer treatments, we were all set to move back on board.
The first of May was that day. We’d hoped that Tilly would remember the boat after seven months on shore, within about two seconds of being back it was obvious she knew where she was. News that Goole caisson gates were now open and cruising up towards the breach site was possible we headed off to give Oleanna a good run and so that Tilly could venture back onto dry land. It was very good to be back on the move again. On our second such trip Tilly remembered how to swim!
Whilst in Goole Mick took his Short Range VHF Radio exam and passed. I carried on painting my panto model. We both had our second vaccinations. Heather Bleasdale came to visit joining us for an outdoor lunch. We got to know the Goole Escape Committee and discussed plans. We watched work going on at the breach site. Mick had a birthday and Joan’s Home Kitchen provided us with a celebratory meal a couple of days before we hoped to escape.
On 21st May an escape committee meeting was had early on, the weather looked hopeful for the tide in the afternoon, we were booked in at Ocean Lock. Our escape was to be via Selby, the Lock keeper was called there and our plan confirmed. At lunchtime we moved up to fill the diesel tank and await the other escapees, Sea Maiden and Lullabelle. Given the go ahead by the docks to proceed we were soon passing through to Ocean Lock where there was plenty of space for the three of us. At around 14:30 the large lock gates opened to reveal our way out of Goole onto the Tidal Ouse.
All three boats arrived safe and sound
We headed upstream following Sea Maiden being pushed along with the tide. Would we make it to Selby before the tide turned. Each boat arrived individually and was locked up into Selby Basin. We’d made it, now all we had to do was escape Selby as the swing bridge out of the basin there was broken.
We waited. Tides, times, weather and the amount of fresh coming down stream all had to fit together. Bridget and Storm came to visit. We twiddled our thumbs. The Environment Agency came and closed the flood barrier. We twiddled our thumbs. Daily escape committee meetings were held. By the 27th everything was looking to fit together apart from one thing, Keadby Lock would not be manned at a suitable time for us to get off the river. Sea Maiden and Lullabelle decided to stay put in Selby. Heather Bleasdale was joining us for the trip but Oleanna would be out on the river on her own heading to Trent Falls.
What a day that was! David’s advice was spot on. Leaving Selby just before 10am Oleanna zoomed downstream with the out going tide. We followed our charts keeping to the channel. At the Apex light Mick swung Oleanna round to head upstream onto the Trent our progress slowing instantly.
We then crawled our way to find where we should wait for the tide to turn. Two hours of very little, drifting on our anchor. We’d picked the day well, it was wonderful out there.
When Oleanna started to move round a touch more we managed to pull the anchor up and found our way back into the main channel to head upstream with the incoming tide. One plan had been to moor up in Gainsborough, but we decided to carry on and arrived at Torksey just as the last light was fading at just gone 22:00, 64 miles in a day, I doubt we’ll ever beat that.
Over the next few days we made our way up the Trent, dug out our windlasses to work locks in Nottingham. Once we rose up Derwent Mouth Lock onto the Trent and Mersey we had completed our escape. The going would now be much slower along shallow canals and plenty more moored boats to slow down past.
Now we should make our booked mooring at Rembrandt Gardens, every day would be a boating day unless the weather was either too hot or far too wet to cruise. Along the Trent and Mersey, pausing to stock up in Alrewas. At Fradley we turned onto the Coventry Canal to head southwards. We gave a tow to NB Burghley Girl to the bottom of Atherstone.
At Hawkesbury Junction we did the 180 degree turn onto the North Oxford Canal, through Rugby and up Hillmorton. NB Kamili with Andy and Irene passed as we arrived in Braunston where we paused for another butchers, then up the flight and through the tunnel.
Straight on along the Grand Union. On route we stopped for a drink with Lizzie at Bugbrooke. Paused for a hot day under some trees near Milton Keynes. Had a diversion along the Wendover Arm for a night. Picked up extra crew, my old college friend Jen, for a day through Hemel Hempstead. Came across our first sightings of HS2 cutting it’s way across the landscape.
At Bulls Bridge we turned left onto the Paddington Arm. On our trip into London we came across our friends Pete and Clare on NB Billy, it turned out we’d be neighbours at Rembrandt Gardens for a few days. We arrived on time and the next day headed across London by bus to Hackney to see the London Leckenbys for the first time since Christmas 2019.
Plenty more family to catch up with. Kath came for lunch, we had a trip to Eastbourne to see Marion and John, a lovely lunch with Christine and Paul. So good to see everyone again and not just on a computer screen every Saturday.
Happy Birthday Big Brother
Andrew’s 60th Birthday was celebrated, nothing fancy just good to be able to be together for it, we’d achieved our second goal of the year.
We heard there was a space at St Pancras Cruising Club for a long boat like Oleanna, so we took advantage of a more secure mooring close to Kings Cross whilst we had a visit back to Scarborough. Checking on the house, lodgers changing over and seeing the latest Ayckbourn play with Bridget and Storm, it all made for a good weekend away. I then headed off to Huddersfield for a couple of days work with Dark Horse, fitting costumes for a photo shoot.
There was to be a Tideway cruise from St Pancras Cruising Club and with one space left we jumped at the opportunity. Ten boats made their way to Limehouse, we breasted up with NB Misty Blue, Graham turned out to be another Goole Escapee. Three lock-fulls of boats headed out onto the Tideway on the morning of 10th July, special permission had been sought to go under Hammersmith Bridge which was closed to all forms of traffic at the time.
Tilly thought we were mad taking her onto such rough water, I was a little perplexed too! Very glad that I was the official photographer, clinging on as we did more than bob up and down! Tower Bridge, The National Theatre, Christine, Adam, The Houses of Parliament, Battersea Power Station. So many sights, what an experience!
The further west we got the calmer the water got. We were glad when Hammersmith Bridge was passed as there had always been a chance that it might close to boat traffic at anytime due to safety reasons. We turned off at Brentford along with several other boats and continued up to Hanwell where we had a very sociable evening at The Fox with everyone. Thank you Simon for mentioning the cruise to us.
Sadly our washing machine hadn’t liked the lumpy water so for the next month we cruised meeting up with engineers on route hoping it could be mended. Back through London, pausing at St Pancras again. Then down to the Herford Union to cut across to the Lee and Stort. We had another mooring booked on the Lee awaiting our arrival, alongside NB Billy.
Then up the Lee and onto the River Stort. We’d only ventured so far up the Stort during our first winter on Lillian, this time we headed all the way to Bishop Stortford. Our return journey was held up slightly due to the river going into flood overnight so we had to wait for it to lower to get under the bridge at Roydon.
Back through London we made use of the new Eco-moorings near Islington Tunnel, a handy stop off with electricity. Here we met up with Nick an old friend from York and Adam called in for a catch up after working the breakfast shift at Radio 2.
Goodbye Christine!
At the end of July we pushed on and left London behind us, returning to Bulls Bridge.
We headed up to Uxbridge for cheap diesel and finally got our washing machine mended. We turned around and headed back to the Hanwell flight, stowed the garden back in the shower and headed out onto the Thames again where we turned right towards Oxford.
With a weeks license we couldn’t dawdle, although a broken lock gate at Boveney Lock did hold us up overnight so our license would be extended. A space was spotted below Cliveden so we treated ourselves to a night moored in the grounds of the big house. We paused for a socially distanced chat with Sue on No Problem XL, good to see her looking so well. Henley Regatta was almost ready as we passed through and our favourite mooring above Days Lock did not disappoint. All too soon we turned up Sheepwash Channel and ascended Isis Lock back onto the Oxford Canal.
Whilst in Oxford I managed an actual face to face meeting with Dash the Director for Chippy Panto. He seemed happy! Then we made our way up to Thrupp where we’d booked ourselves in at the cruising club for a few days whilst the London Leckenbys came to visit and we had a trip back to Scarborough and we got to see the show at Esk Valley for the first time since we’ve been living afloat.
I had a day trip to Chippy where I did a final model meeting over zoom from a dressing room, but also had chance to measure things up. Then we were off up the Oxford Canal, mooring in our favourite spots, it was a touch busier than it normally is in the winter.
A pause to visit Village Meats in Braunston and we spotted our old share boat NB Winding Down so we stopped to say hello. On up the flight sharing with a boat full of actors, then left up to Crick for the first time in ages.
A prearranged boaters meeting at Houdini’s Field worked brilliantly, NB Panda and NB Kamili convened and we all enjoyed each others company over a fantastic barbeque outside so everyone could feel safe and Tilly could roam about. Oleanna was treated to a very good wash and brush up before we were on our way again. We now needed to get her north before I started on Panto.
News came through that the breach on the Aire and Calder had been mended and nine months after the canal had sprung a leek it was mended and open again. Boats could now move through the area, mooring however is still restricted.
Following the Grand Union we headed down the Stockton Flight to Leamington Spa. Tilly and I had a few hot days on our own moored at Radford Smelly then we were on our way again. An obligatory burger at The Cape of Good Hope the night before we teamed up with NB Mad Hatter to ascend the Hatton flight. One day my old college friend Emma will not have an excuse to helping us up the flight, this time we met for a cuppa and a catch up the following day.
On up Knowle to Catherine de Barnes, then Camp Hill Locks, the Ashted flight and Tunnel (!) followed by Farmers Bridge into Birmingham. The city centre is still full of building and tram works but with the sun out it looked stunning. We also caught up with Paul Balmer from Waterway Routes before carrying on with our journey.
A night at Hawne Basin filled the diesel tank up. A night at Dudley Port Basin got the cupboards filled. A pause at Urban Moorings meant we could donate our deposits and the next day we descended from the Birmingham plateau down the Wolverhampton 21.
Along the Staffordshire and Worcester we managed to have a mid stream catch up with Barbara from NB Bessie Surtees. At Great Haywood I managed a catch up with Kay from NB Pea Green as she set up to trade for the day and Mick filled Oleanna’s water tank.
Heading north on the Trent and Mersey we pulled in for lunch and a surprise hello to Barry and Sandra from NB AreandAre whom we’d got to know last year in the first lockdown. In the afternoon we were joined by Bill and Lisa for a trip through Harecastle Tunnel. Now we swung off the Trent and Mersey and onto the Macclesfield with it’s wonderful bridges.
It would have been nice to take our time but we had a rendez vous to make. The end mooring at Marple was free and from here we headed into Manchester by train to join the London Leckenbys for a meal of big red fish. The following day my old school friend Morag joined us for a night on board with some serious catching up to be done.
Our next deadline loomed, Standedge Tunnel. We dropped down the Marple flight, crossed the aqueduct and turned right at Dukinfield Junction onto the Huddersfield Narrow Canal. We knew we were in for some hard work to climb our way over the Pennines, last time we’d enlisted crew to help as I was one handed. This time we’d be going solo. Apart from the very first lock it wasn’t too troublesome. The work is rewarded with stunning views.
Standedge Tunnel did not disappoint. Because of social distancing Mick got ride ride up front in the cratch leaving the helm to a C&RT volunteer. Bumps and scrapes made Oleanna wince along with us, but we all got through in one piece with no damage. Tilly wasn’t too happy about the trip, but at least I can now boast to the local cats in Scarboreugh that I’ve been through the longest deepest highest tunnel on the canal network whilst they just lazed around on their shed roofs!
On our way down the other side Oleanna had a belt that went taking out quite a few wires in the engine bay. RCR were sent for, the engineer suggested we’d need to remove a pulley on the alternator to be able to remove trapped wires, this could not happen where we were. We could move but the batteries would not charge. The only way to top up our electric was with the solar panels. Emergency power conservation went into operation, blogs were hand written, the freezer turned off and we gradually ate our way through our defrosting supplies. Every day Mick managed to pull more wire from the alternator and soon there was no need for an engineer again, just a new belt needed fitting.
We made our way down to Huddersfield and arrived the day before I had a production meeting at Dark Horse. After walking to my meeting I handed over the model and we stocked up on supplies before heading off east along the Huddersfield Broad Canal.
The Board locks are just that, but they are short. On Lillian we’d nearly got stuck here, but Oleanna was built a foot shorter so we knew we were fine, we still had to take great care in descending the locks diagonally. This continued on to the Calder and Hebble, taking our time and using our Hebble spike. The rebuilding work done at the Figure of Three locks, after flooding washed huge parts of the structure away, are only noticeable due to the new stonework.
Bigger locks were welcome, using the key of power once past Wakefield. The sun shone wonderfully for my last full days boating this year as we made our way to Castleford. Here we hired a car to get me down to Chipping Norton to start work on Panto whilst Mick and Tilly stayed on board with the plan to move Oleanna to a winter mooring in Thorne.
Whilst I painted the set working all the hours I could, Mick and Tilly gradually made their way eastwards. They passed through the breach site and headed to Goole to top up on diesel. On their way back towards the New Junction Canal the engine started to over heat, a problem that had happened a couple of years ago on the Thames.
The following day he winded and slowly made his way to Rawcliffe Bridge for easier access for RCR. Little could be done there and then, so Mick and Alastair (engineer) arranged to meet at Viking Marina in Goole. Oleanna managed the two and a half miles in three stages. After her cooling system had been flushed through the problem hadn’t gone away. The water pump was removed and was obviously the problem. A week later with a new pump Mick moved back out onto the cut and joined Lullabelle (a fellow Goole Escapee).
Taking a long weekend off panto, I headed up to join Mick and Tilly to help move them back to Scarborough. Wendy and Martin kept an eye on Oleanna for us whilst we settled Tilly back into the house, I knew where I was! Pah!!
Several days later with the weather on his side, Mick returned as early as he could, pushed off and single handed Oleanna back along the Aire and Calder to Sykehouse Junction where he turned onto the New Junction Canal. With swing and lift bridges to work he was glad of the assistance of a volunteer at Sykehouse Lock. Then the sharp turn at Bramwith onto the Sheffield and South Yorkshire Navigations. A few more bridges and two more locks before he arrived at Blue Water Marina, Oleanna’s winter mooring.
Tucked up for a rest
On our way back from Chippy a week or so later we called in to check on her. A boat in winter isn’t too friendly without the stove lit. We’ll have visits every now and then to check on her and do the odd job. The weeks are already flying by before we move back on board.
For a year that we’d decided would purely be about seeing our family and friends we ended up having quite an adventurous time. Trent Falls, the Tideway through London and Standedge Tunnel made it quite a year.
So our vital statistics for the year 2021 according to canal plan are
Total distance was 932 miles, ½ furlong and 627 locks . There were 42 moveable bridges of which 16 are usually left open; 169 small aqueducts or underbridges and 30 tunnels – a total of 19 miles 3 ¼ furlongs underground and 3 major aqueducts.
This was made up of 277 miles, 1 ¾furlongs of narrow canals; 270 miles, 4 furlongs of broad canals; 89 miles, 4 ¼ furlongs of commercial waterways; 59 miles, 7 ¼ furlongs of small rivers; 121 miles, 5 furlongs of large rivers; 105 miles, 2 ¼ furlongs of tidal rivers; 8 miles of seaways; 263 narrow locks; 302 broad locks; 61 large locks; 1 lock on major waterways.
Sadly with Oleanna’s log book where it should be, onboard, I’m not able to offer up the engine hours, litres of diesel, gas bottle or bags of coal. Maybe I’ll update this once we are back on board.
The Thames, 2021
This year we’ve done more miles than last, not bad considering we were on land for so much of it. We’ve done far more tidal miles than ever before and for the first time we’ve been on a Seaway! If someone can tell me what the difference is between Tidal waters and Seaways please do. Maybe it was around Trent Falls, or was it downstream of Tower Bridge?
As last year I hope the pandemic doesn’t throw a spanner in the works for us or anyone else. We need the theatrical world to still function with an income for me designing shows and lodgers paying to stay in our house.
I want to say ‘Keep well friends’, but I feel I need to add, ‘Get well soon friends’, as so many have tested positive recently. Thank you for following us and hope to see you soon x
A bit of a tradition for us (when in Scarborough with a car) is to visit Thornton-le-Dale to see the Christmas lights. In days gone by we used to drive back from my Dad’s in York via one of the scenic routes so that we could see them.
Thornton-le-Dale
They are not a huge spectacle like Regents Street and pretty much remain the same year in year out but they are still very pretty to us. Multi-coloured festoons swag up the street and along Thornton Beck, which runs along side Maltongate. I especially like the group of swans, one all puffed up and head down.
Whilst in the village we also popped along to have a look at the old cars at Mathewsons Auctions, made famous in Bangers and Cash. The showroom is now full of merchandise and the cars out of the forecourt weren’t anything special. We did however bump into Derek Mathewson, as well as running the vintage garage and museum Derek owns The Moorcock Inn, Langdale End where Mick used to drink. The next vintage car auction is in February and there are several very pretty cars going under the hammer LINK
We then headed back to the coast to see more lights. Scarborough Harbour for the last year or so has put on a display of it’s own. The boats bobbing on the low turning tide are festooned with lights up their masts and rigging.
The wonderful Lighthouse
There were plenty of people out taking photos despite the chilly breeze. Centre stage is the lighthouse, one of my favourite buildings. Big pea bulbs decorate the building which glows in the dark. Wonderful.
Christmas Cheese selection, Smoked Brie, Harrogate Blue, Kit Calvert Wensleydale and Keens Traditional Cheddar
Last week we’d been considering moving Oleanna to Huddersfield, making use of the break in the winter maintenance over Christmas and the New Year, so that I could have her to stay on whilst working for Dark Horse. We are now quite glad that we didn’t set out on the trip as with all the recent rainfall the flood locks on the Aire and Calder have been shut, Doncaster lock (not that we’d have been going that way) is closed due to high water and the Don Doors are closed protecting the New Junction Canal from rising waters on the River Don. Oleanna can stay put and I’ll stay in a hotel instead.
Janet, what a fab costume. Photo Tony Bartholomew
The last couple of evenings we’ve been to the theatre whilst sitting on our sofa. We had booked tickets to see Jack and the Beanstalk at the SJT, but sadly the night we were going coincided with some of the company having positive covid tests. Instead we decided to watch the show from home. Adapted by Nick Lane we knew we’d be in for a silly time and it was designed by Helen Coyston (costume designer for panto at Chippy). We really enjoyed it especially Janet and The Paella of love, from heaven above.
The Railway Children, Hull Truck
Last night we sat down to watch Hull Truck’s production of The Railway Children. This was originally filmed for a live stream so it included 15 minutes of nothing before it actually started, a full interval break and no credits which we thought was a big shame. The show has been getting great reviews, although we really enjoyed it I think quite a lot was lost in the filming. Well live theatre is magical and not being in the room with an audience let it down somewhat. The camera angles at times, although capturing the full set meant that the actors were smaller than they would have been even if we’d sat on the back row of the theatre. Have to say I felt a little bit short changed even if Sian Thomas’s costumes were lovely.
Tilly preferred Paddington 2
Back to the title of the blog. Going for Gold!
This isn’t that I’ve beaten Tim Larmour to the top of a mountain (Fulford School joke) therefore depriving him of Gold! No we actually got round to making a decision, we’ve bought Oleanna a Gold license for the coming year. Mick had looked on line, found where to buy a Gold License on the C&RT site but not where you could apply for a refund on a standard license.
They’re not as fancy as they used to be. Just a black G not a gold one!
Our license ran till the end of May, but a Gold License runs from January to the end of December, so to make the most of it we needed to trade in our old license this month to get a maximum refund. Mick rang C&RT and was assisted by a very helpful lady. Within minutes we had an email confirming our purchase, then a little while later another saying that they had refunded us £300 plus from our old license. Really easy.
For those readers who don’t know what the difference is. The Environment Agency is the navigation authority for the River Thames, Anglian Waterways plus a few more. With a standard C&RT license you need to pay for a visitors license to cruise EA waters. We’ve done this several times on the Thames. A Gold license however means you are covered for both C&RT and Environment Agency waters, it costs around about £300 more than our previous license but now we can come and go as we like onto the Thames or on the River Nene.
Will it be the Thames again?
Our cruising plans for next year are still dependant on a few things, but we thought it best to invest in a Gold license now as they only run from January to December and we could get a refund for what remained of our existing one.
Who knows we may spend a couple of months exploring the Thames in greater detail than we did a few years ago along with other rivers in the south. Or we may head eastwards to the Nene, Great Ouse etc. Time and commitments will tell.
Red napkins in a hot wash, Paddington!
0 locks, 0 miles, 2 Christmas shows, 2 Christmas lights, 3 red napkins, 4 pink t-towels,1 painting, 1 of several rivers closed due to flooding, £338.04 refund, 1 Gold license, access all areas, 1 cat licensed to kill!
I’ve successfully been managing to avoid doing any house decorating over the last few weeks, well there’s just been so much to do!
Preparations for Christmas have been eating up a lot of time. Frank came round to sample this years biscuit recipe, a new one, gluten free Lebkuchen. This seemed to be a bit sturdier than my old recipe and would withhold being posted through letter boxes better and still be very tasty. Frank awarded them five stars, so I stocked up on ingredients to make a big batch to go out with local Christmas cards.
Cards
The image for our Christmas card had to be chosen. This takes quite a bit of time as I whiz through all the photos I’ve taken during the year, making a short list which then gradually gets whittled away, the final choice made between Mick and myself. From a shortlist of about ten we both very quickly agreed on which image it had to be. Oleanna approaching Tower Bridge. I don’t really know why I’d bothered auditioning photos this year as this was always going to be the image.
It had to be really
In Chipping Norton decisions were made to try to keep the show and the cast safe from any further cases of Covid. Sadly this meant the Pippins, three teams of local kids being cut from the show. They couldn’t be cut from some scenes as they played knights, so for these scenes they were replaced by puppets. The understudies went on for a few days after a full week of no shows and now the original company are performing two shows a day. Here’s hoping this can continue to the end of the run.
Christmas decorations went up around the house. Stars in the windows, a homemade wreath on the front door and our £4 Christmas Tree from Newark Market in 2015 came indoors to be decorated. I’m not sure it will ever fit in the boat for Christmas again, but it will return to the cratch when we move back onboard so that it gets looked after for another year.
One thing that didn’t happen last Christmas was my annual haircut. I was glad when I managed to get hold of Giselle who used to cut my hair in Scarborough, she understands me and my hate of products and blow drying. The last couple of times my hair has been cut it has taken around about half an hour from washing to me walking out of the shop in Banbury feeling like I want to wash my hair immediately. My visit to Giselle took 1hour 45 minutes for a wash and cut. We did have six or seven years to catch up on and a major debate on politics was had along with having my hair cut.
My day trip to Huddersfield for #unit21 costume fittings coincided with the reintroduction of mandatory masks on public transport. The trains now run from Scarborough through to Manchester again and thankfully they weren’t too busy, I had chosen trains outside rush hour on purpose. It was good to see all the ensemble of actors again. A few people were a bit confused about everyone having to wear masks again, but we all abided by the rules. All costumes were fitted only a few alterations needed which I packed up to bring home with me.
We’ve been having some glorious sunrises
The show is scheduled for February. I’ll need a few days accommodation, but with the current Covid situation I’m hesitating to book a hotel as with nine actors who are all vulnerable the show may get postponed again. Mick had another look at C&RT winter stoppages to see if we could move Oleanna to Huddersfield. Maintenance works mostly open up over Christmas and New Year which means that it would be possible to move her. The trip is around 26 hours, so five days cruise at this time of year. Sadly not a suitable trip for Tilly so we’d need to break the journey with visits back to the house. But as nobody has been answering the phone at Aspley Basin we don’t know if there would be space for us there. A nice idea to be able to be at home whilst working, but I think we’ve decided Oleanna would be better off where she is now and I’ll just have to fork out for a hotel if the need arises.
Sunday selfie in the South Bay
We’ve been for a few walks. On one we got distracted by a laundry airer and I found a new international supermarket, one that stocks all sorts of flours so I may not need to go to Doncaster to replenish my stocks in future.
What a view!
On another walk we stayed high along the south bay and through the old town. We had a nosy around Castle Crescent, a few houses with only pedestrian access but with fantastic views over the south bay. Maybe if we won the lottery!
Then we dipped under the Castle walls and headed down to Marine Drive to the north bay to say hello to Freddie who has weathered the recent storms well. Then back to the house via Peasholm Park and the cemetery.
At last a friend!
Tilly woke us the other night scurrying around the bedroom. This wasn’t normal behaviour so I suspected she’d found a friend. She had and had brought it to meet us. Luckily for us and the mouse it managed to hide in a bag on the floor which made for an easy extrication. Not sure where Tilly had found it but it does appear to have had a little munch on a bag of Sorghum flour before hand!
Just a few Lebkuchen
With five star approval for my biscuits, I made a big batch to deliver to friends around Scarborough. They were all iced and left to fully dry before being packaged up the following morning. The sun was out, just the prefect day for wishing friends a Merry Christmas. I did a lateral flow test in the morning just in case, all fine. Then whilst having a bite to eat before setting off my phone pinged! At some point when I was on my trip to Huddersfield a few days earlier I had been a close contact of someone who had now tested positive for Covid!
Blimey!
Thankfully as I’ve had my booster it said I didn’t have to self isolate, but I was offered a PCR test which was taken within two hours of being pinged. The biscuit delivery would have to wait for the result which arrived the following morning. Negative! Phew!!
We’d originally planned on heading over to the Lake District on Boxing Day to join the London Leckenbys for a night, then visit an aunt of Micks. Covid put paid to visiting care homes a week or so ago. We’ve also decided to stay close to home and not head across country, it just didn’t feel right. Hopefully we’ll be able to meet up with Andrew Jac and Josh in the not too distant future when Omicron has passed through the country. Well it’s always good to spread Christmas out and it’ll give me chance to have another go at the pudding I’d been planning which hadn’t been too successful the first time. We may be being over cautious, but after my near miss and several friends coming down with it, we’d rather be that way.
We picked up our festive veg box and duck from Tree Top Press a couple of days ago. The red cabbage has already been braised, cider stock made for the gravy, bread sauce and stuffing made today. Tomorrow I’ll bake my birthday cake as I’ve chosen one that should be served warm, the bananas have been ripening for a week or so. It’s a bit of extra fuss on Christmas Day but hopefully it will be worth it.
Frank will be joining us again this year, a couple of days ago he delivered some booze including some bubbly and today he arrived with enough sprouts for the whole street! He miss timed his arrival and had to wait for the Christmas Eve sausage rolls to be made and baked, but his patience paid off. A new puff pastry recipe came up trumps, they got a Frank 9/10, ‘Well they can’t be perfect!’ Cheeky sod!
Even I’ve been getting post!
Our stockings have been found and are already in front of the fire. Here’s hoping we’ve been good enough for them to be filled overnight. We’ll see in the morning.
Well it’s been two weeks now since I returned to Scarborough. From rushing around on panto for five weeks calm has now been restored.
Different sticker this time
The day after I got back we both had our Covid boosters. Mine was at the Rugby Club where I joined another 1399 people being jabbed from my doctors surgery. Mick headed to a nearby church to get his and was offered a flu vaccine at the same time, so he had one in each arm. Five days later I got my flu jab at Boots. Mick ached a bit and we both had sore arms for a while, but nothing to complain about really.
Normally after opening Chippy panto we have a few days relaxing in Oxford before heading northwards dodging stoppages. The first year we got to see quite a bit of a festival of light around the city and two years ago we watched the Thames rise and rush past moored boats on East Street, we were glad to have been on the canal!
This year being in Scarborough didn’t stop us from what now has become a bit of a tradition, sitting on the sofa recuperating and watching a few episodes of Morse. I think two years ago we started the box set at the very beginning, the first episode and first murder having taken place opposite our mooring in Jericho. We decided to carry on where we left off, this years first episode being ‘The Last Bus to Woodstock’ Quite apt as I’d avoided that situation the other week when returning from visiting the London Leckenbys. There had been an old lady on my bus, but I doubt she was as nosy as the one in Morse.
The valley in the spring
Then ‘The Last Enemy’. This started with a narrowboat pootling along in the sunshine, quite badly steered, which ended up in the off side vegetation. Immediately our brains started to whirr, where was this? Short pontoons on the off side, slight bends, a building in the background. Hang on, the body was found just about opposite to where we’d moored at Thrupp a few months ago! Thankfully the inaccuracies of the canal system quickly struck (as they do in Morse) with talk of divers searching at the next lock. This would either be Shipton Weir Lock which is upstream or Roundham Lock which is quite a long way for body parts to have drifted to. It was nice to see Thrupp back in the 80’s, I wonder if any of the boats on the moorings are still the same? The Boat Inn certainly has changed a touch.
By the seaside
Our first Sunday walk in Scarborough had us waving to Jaye and Duncan on the way down to the South Bay to have a look at the sea. Not the longest of walks, but good to see that Scarborough was still there and have a few cobwebs blown away.
Reviews of the panto have been coming in. So far everyone seems to love having panto back on stage. Chippy is a favourite with many, I even get a mention or two! Sadly a week after I left a Pippin tested positive, the companies PCR tests all came back negative so the show could go on after a days cancellation.
But at the beginning of this week one of the main cast had two lines show on their lateral flow test, everyone was sent back to Banbury for another PCR. Unfortunately a second positive was found in the company. The shows have been cancelled this week and so long as no-one else gets two lines the understudies will go on next week, I bet they are busy in their living rooms rehearsing. JJ who plays the Dame seems to be catering for those affected and leaving tuperware food parcels on door steps, I so hope they all stay well.
Hello! It’s me!!!
I have a shadow where ever I go, Tilly occasionally goes out to explore, but more of her time is spent moaning and complaining. I ask her every day when we’ll be back on the boat and moving the outsides again, so far She hasn’t given me a reasonable answer!
What are they doing to that TREE!?!
Thank you for the messages from people regarding the weather last weekend, I believe Scarborough was on the news. It was very windy and we had snow in town, plenty more up on the moors and wolds. Footage of wave dodgers filled social media as always.
Our street ended up being closed to traffic as there was a tree happily rocking away in the storm on Saturday. The council came to check it over, but it was too windy to do anything about it. They returned on Sunday to start to chop it down and on Monday afternoon it was ‘Timber!’ So much boaters gold!
Red Onion and Feta Quiche
Mornings have been spent doing a bit of work for #unit21 which will be here before I know it. Plenty of costume shopping and rearranging the build budget. The green light for the build was pressed this week so it’s all systems go, well for my friend Graham. I’ll do a days costume fitting before Christmas and then that should be it for me for a while.
We’ve had deliveries, smokeless coal, 2 veg boxes (so far) and the milk lady is back delivering three times a week. Our Christmas food order is in, just needs a final tweak. Now present deliveries are starting to arrive.
I keep making a mental list of which jobs need doing in the house this winter. One corner of the kitchen needs attention from where the leaking roof has left it’s mark. We’re not convinced all is sorted in that corner yet, the guttering hasn’t been clipped down fully so waved around in the storm and some roofing felt now encourages drips down onto the window sill below! We’re waiting for the roofer to call us back! The cosmetic side of the repair will wait a while longer.
That experiment turned out to be a bit messy!
I decided to give my knees another week off before getting on with some decorating. Sanding all the woodwork in the hallways is going to take some doing before I can give it a fresh coat of paint and some of the wallpaper needs replacing. One pair of curtains also need lining , if this is all I manage to get done this winter it will be fine as right now we don’t have the money to do more major decorating jobs. A plumber has been to check the two boilers over, the old one needs some work which hadn’t been picked up during gas safety checks when the house was rented out. So money is better spent there this year.
Just a bit of extra ventilation!
A couple of days ago Mick caught a train down to Thorne to visit Oleanna. A final oil change before winter hadn’t happened, so he was wanting to get it done sooner rather than later. He was prompted to visit as Sarah at the marina had called saying that there was a kitchen window open. Had we left this open on our brief visit? Or had someone else opened it?!
Train timings meant he had time to pick up some oil from Boyes in Goole on his way. Sure enough the window was open, thankfully the weather last weekend must have been blowing from the port side so had avoided coming in. It certainly looks like it was us who left it open. Unfortunately in amongst the new filters onboard there wasn’t the one needed for the oil. So other than running the engine for an hour and closing the window Mick had had a bit of a wasted journey.
I’ve been trying to go for walks everyday to keep my knees working. Walking in the footsteps of the local yeti and seeing the sea is a good thing. My left knee seems to be behaving other than feeling a bit stiff. Hopefully this will pass and I’ll do my best not to kneel when I start decorating.
Hello Frank
After being back for ten days I dropped Frank a message and sure enough he was round for a cuppa the following day. There were slight complaints about the lack of biscuits on offer! If he times his visit well this week he’ll be able to try out the sample batch for this years Christmas biscuits. It was very good to see him and hopefully Mick has planted a seed or two about some carpentry jobs we’d like him to do on Oleanna this winter.
We now have two bookings for our house next year from the SJT, which is great. If anyone fancies a few days relaxing by the sea in Scarborough we can highly recommend our friends house, Friths. Fleur and Ruth have worked their socks off over the last year making their house cosy, quirky and very welcoming, it has just recently opened for bookings.
Mike from Alchemy has spotted Oleanna on Google Street view, when she was out for blacking earlier this year at Goole Boathouse. That means that both our boats have appeared at one time or another. A shame we weren’t in shot this time, we were certainly around as the stern doors are open.
Mushroom and cabbage risotto
The latest news on the towpath grapevine regarding the breach on the Leeds Liverpool Canal is that it will reopen hopefully March next year. The latest C&RT notice says they are installing more secure dams either side of the breach. Designs for the repair are well developed and structural works are in the detailed design stage so that materials can be ordered ready for the new year. We’re not as yet sure which way we’ll be heading when we set off, but having the Leeds Liverpool as an option would be good. In the meantime we need to decide on whether we should be buying a Gold Licence for the coming year. These run from January to December, we’d trade in our standard licence for the few months remaining on it and then we’d be able to spend more time on EA waters during the year. We just have to decided where we’ll be going.
Candlelit Chinese take away to celebrate our 19th year together
0 locks, 0 miles, 1 failed oil change, 1 closed window, 2 weeks of resting, 9 costumes bought, 1 budget rejigged, 2 veg boxes, 1 emergency rug, 2 tax returns submitted, grade 3, 1 box of filters, 4 jabs, 1 bored cat, 1 street view, 3 Morse’s, 1 new variant, 1st waterways painting, 2 go Gold or not? 1 Pip glad to be cooking again, 19 years with my fella.
Sunday. What a lovely day off spent with family. Finn the feline version of a silver back was first to say good morning to me, I was honoured as he rarely makes his way upstairs. Then Ziggy made sure I had enough feline attention by sitting on me and demanding I leave the crochet blanket alone to give her plenty of chin rubs.
Family!
The day was spent chatting with Andrew and Jac followed by an early lunch. A joint of lamb with plenty of vegetables and masses of cauliflower cheese. All was very very yummy and just what was needed to refuel me for the journey back to Chippy. I even got to take a generous doggy bag back with me!
Google had been good on the way to Hackney with it’s timings, I aimed for an earlier bus than suggested, just missing it. Then with the volume of people at Paddington it was slow going getting up into the station, I was there a minute before my train departed, but there was no mention of which platform, so I missed it! A change of route however got me back to Oxford in time for a bus back to Chippy before they became hourly.
Just a bit of prop veg
Monday. Jo returned with a mass of giant prop veg. Those turnips nearly looked good enough to eat and her leeks made from yoga mats were a triumph! We were joined by Tim for a second day helping to work the way through the remainder of the prop makes.
The Cotswold Thunderbolt
The local BBC reporters came to film us getting ready to open the show. A few interviews were recorded and then Ash and Gav got to wheel the cannons across stage at speed, which of course was the bit that was used.
I know how to live!
The dress rehearsal from Saturday was finished off, followed by a full dress with another set of Pippins. This then left the evening to do work. I decamped into the bar and spent several hours sewing velcro onto ribbons, sadly the bar wasn’t open!
Tuesday. More fairy lights went up in the auditorium and we were joined by the ushers for the final dress rehearsal when photos were taken. There were still notes to work on and the show was running a touch too long for days with two school shows. Whilst cuts were discussed long into the evening glittering happened in the auditorium, adding that bit of eco sparkle to the show.
Drying leaves
Wednesday. I spent all morning in the land of latex glue. The auditorium needed a good leafing. I got into my stride with three plastic bags where leaves could be glued and left to dry as I stuck the driest onto the balcony fronts. The morning soon disappeared and it was time to clear everything away as we had two previews.
Audience!
The first preview was filled with a school and a group of about 30 adults. Sadly after a couple of songs a fault developed with the sound so the show had to be stopped as nobody could hear the music. People ran round to find the fault and ended up replacing a faulty cable which seemed to do the trick. But by the time we were ready to start again there was a very long line of kids waiting for the toilet! The delay of around twenty minutes meant that the schools bus would arrive before the end of the show, so it was decided to get to the song sheet and then say farewell to the kids, the adults then more than made up for the lack of bums on seats whilst the show finished.
Rudi and Rapunzel with the portrait
The second preview went much better, even the cannons did their best to impress and soak! The old Producer Will was in to watch, which was lovely as he put together the team and contracted us all before he left to go freelance.
Still my favourite set
During the show I realised what was missing from one of my sets. The interior of the tower had been bothering me, it was because it didn’t have any panto shadows. So the set was put on stage ready for some attention first thing in the morning.
Almost finished England on the Wold
Thursday, I was just about first in. Shadows painted before the cast arrived to work through the cuts that would be put in today. I had a few more notes to do before having a really good tidy up. Paints were labelled and stored back in the shed. The model was removed from the model box of the theatre, I keep a few bits as mementos but the rest has served its purpose so just ends up in the bin. All my possessions were collected together and piled up in the shower, the only place left in the building with space!
Just a few more leaves were added and the very last one recorded for posterity. I used a few leaves and added strawberries for my first night cards, the remaining ones were all packed up and put in the attic for someone to find in years to come. Out of the 3588 leaves I’d cut for the show I think I had about 900 left and if I’d had one more day I’d have used them all up.
In fact it’s loads of scaf clamps
At bang on 4pm I got a message, Mick had arrived in Chippy! A hire car had been picked up this morning in Scarborough. The car was loaded and the shower made available to the cast again.
Notes
The evenings performance was a socially distanced one, only 65 in the audience, but they all seemed to enjoy it. Maybe it was because there were lots of the team in as it was our last evening. Mick enjoyed the show and I was especially pleased that the Pippin team on tonight included my favourite, she tends to steal the show when she’s on stage.
Time to say Goodbye to panto
After the show I joined the rest of the team in the stalls for notes. This actually was more of a goodbye to many of us who’d be leaving tomorrow. Tiredness and emotion took over a touch for me. After spending almost 18 months talking about the show and the design having been worked on for a year, there it was on the stage in front of an audience. We were all back doing what we love and sharing it with an audience. I’d avoided going to the pub for four weeks and kept my distance, worn my mask for eleven hours a day (sometimes more) but now hugs could not be refused.
Yum!
Time to eat. Only one thing I could eat, and that was fish and chips at the Blue Boar.
Chipping Norton is where Bagpuss resides of course
Friday. No time to sleep in, there was more to pack in the car and time to say goodbye to Suzanne. Thank you once again for my Chippy Panto home.
Festive breakfast/lunch
Then we were on our way heading northwards. We paused to pick up some breakfast at Leicester Forest East Services. Last time we’d stopped here was when we moved NB Winding Down from Elton Moss, on that occasion we’d had three weeks of boat life and were deafened by the chairs in the dining area being scraped on the floor. Sandwiches would do us today.
There she is!
We turned off the M18 at junction 6 and wove our way through Thorne to reach Blue Water Marina. There sat Oleanna tucked in with her new friends, a few with familiar names about the place.
It’s been strange not being able to go home to the boat whilst working on panto this year, my life having developed a north south divide! So it was good to see her in her winter home. Time to collect a few things I would want before it was time to say Toodle Pip to her for the time being.
Drax
The rest of our journey back to the house was filled with autumnal scenes up over the Wolds. Drax the only power station in the area still with it’s full compliment of cooling towers was busy working hard.
Yes it is me, I’m home now!
Sat in the bay window on our return was Tilly. I got a bit of a telling off to start off with but she soon remembered that I give better head nudges than Mick. Well first you’d gone and left me, then Tom did too! He’d even left me with the magic food bowl which had only popped once! I’d got bored of waiting for it to pop again. I was soon pinned down to the sofa by Tilly, Mick gave me a glass of wine and I caught up on Bake Off again.
Pinned down
Three weeks ago on the day we moved Tilly back to Scarborough, we were contacted by the SJT regarding a lodger for 6 weeks next spring, hopefully our first of several. So this year we know when we’ll be back on Oleanna, well hopefully if the plague doesn’t get out of control!
Protecting the bench
This does now mean that unless there is something boaty to write about, the blog will be going into hibernation again, hopefully not for as long as last winter as we’ll be back on board before C&RT’s winter maintenance is finished. In the meantime we’re working on a few new things to be included on the blog.
Now where’s that stoppage list gone?
for now
0 locks, 0 miles, 1 missed train, 1 huge leg of lamb, 2 feline cuddles, 4 last days, 2667 leaves stuck, 21 leaf cards, 6 ribbons, 1 last night visit to the pub, 1 Oleanna visit, 1 ikea bag of stuff, 1 shouting cat, 1 warm lap, 1 designer pinned to the sofa, 1 panto opened, 1 Pip taking it easy for a while.
Monday morning I was in the theatre early. Time to hunt out my paint orders and old paint I would be needing this week. The dressing room that we normally use for a props office (until the Dame takes it over) was piled high with Panto Post. I found most of my things tucked under a pram in the wings of the stage.
I then met up with the new Producer Suzette who gave me a lift out of town to Alfred Groves and Sons in Milton-in-Wychwood where I would be working this week. A while later Gemma arrived with the advance pieces of set for me to paint. These are the pieces that will be needed early on in the fit up or will end up being high up.
Ready to prime
We collected more things from the theatre, like a table chair and ladder. All pieces of scenery were laid out and by the end of the day everything had a prime coat of paint on them. Taxis were booked for the rest of the week to get me back and forth.
Meanwhile up in Yorkshire. Mick did a few things whilst still having use of the car, he’d hoped to be able to buy a new part for the kitchen tap which is dripping again, but one will have to be ordered on line. Once he’d returned the car he and Tilly made ready for the off. Because Bulholme Lock was still being operated by a Lockie he wanted to take advantage of not having to single hand it. He was beaten to it by the gravel barge Farndale, heading back to Hull sitting high in the water. With big beasts of boats now using the waterway it’s wise to find secure moorings as mooring spikes are unlikely to withstand the movement.
Being dismantled
Mick descended the lock and headed downstream towards Ferrybridge. More buildings have been demolished around the power station and the old coal wharf is gradually being dismantled. I’m kind of glad I wasn’t there to see it, although jealous at the same time.
Oak assisted drawing
Tuesday. My taxi arrived and whisked me out to Groves, the driver I would see several more times this week. Despite it being unseasonably warm I had paint that wasn’t drying! So I spent the day drawing everything out. To aid this I hunted around some skips in the yard outside, nearby carpentry workshops supplied me with offcuts I could use as a yard stick. Fixing a pencil to the end means you can draw from a distance and supposedly get better curves. The only sticks I could find had been oak, a touch heavier than I’m used to, along with the lack of practice my curves were not so good, but that could be sorted with paint.
1 kettle and a glass of wine
A short day today as I had a ticket to see The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde at the theatre. Blackeyed Theatre are touring the production for which I have several connections. It was adapted and directed by Nick Lane, the Company Stage Manager Jay and one of the actors Zack are all people I have worked with, they are part of my Hull Truck family. It was great to see the show, but better to see Jay and Zack. We headed to the pub where they were staying for a couple of drinks after the show. I of course took a kettle with me, now I could have hot drinks at the paint shop.
Only three towers left at Ferrybridge
Back in Yorkshire. Mick had moored overnight in Knottingley allowing Tilly to have a bit of shore leave. The river level had risen and the flood lock was closed behind him. Good job he’d come through the day before as it’s a very long lock to single hand in.
Next stop was just below Whitley Lock. He’d arrived as someone else had below, the lock got a touch confused so even though it was almost in his favour it was emptied to bring the other boat up which seemed to sort the problem out. The crew from the other boat helped Mick down. He then pulled up on the visitor moorings and let Tilly out.
Wednesday. At last I had dry paint! I could start to add more. I spent a lot of the day either bending over or on my knees laying in and blending the yellow stonework on Rapunzels tower, both inside and out. It took forever and my knees were not my friend by the end of the day. I did treat myself by starting to add some colour to the Cotswold Thunderbolt pieces. Being able to stand up to do this was a joy, I needed to move the other pieces up off the floor and also get some heat as it was starting to get chilly. The weather had been fooling me and I’d not even thought about heating until then.
Gravel barge in Whitley Lock
It was raining at Whitley. Mick decided that he would leave when they moved up to Tilly, so she got busy outside. Just as well he’d managed to tie up to rings as Farndale came past with a full load of gravel. One of our fender hooks broke and sadly a rope fender dropped into the deep Yorkshire water.
A full Fusedale
Half an hour later Fusedale the other gravel barge came past fully laden. I suspect Mick knew they were on their way as he’ll have had the VHF radio on. The gravel barges don’t have to drop crew off with the key of power, there are Lock Keepers on duty for them.
Around about midday Mick and Tilly pushed off although they didn’t go very far, just to Heck Bridge as it started to rain. A strange noise from the domestic water pump made him investigate, it had sprung a small leak. He called Laird at Viking Marine to see if they had a 24 volt one in stock and he did. So later in the afternoon they pushed off again mooring above Pollington Lock.
Up against the walls
Thursday. A chilly start, I was glad I’d taken my thermals with me to work today. I thought I’d be getting a work placement to help me for a couple of days this week and had planned on standing all the set pieces up with their assistance, but because of all the paperwork and regulations they won’t join me until next week.
Cafes, carpenters, bakeries, chilled medication, all sorts at Groves
The big gas heater above my head sadly doesn’t work, so I put in a request back to the theatre for assistance moving things and some heat. The flats are not that heavy and maybe I could have done them on my own, but one wrong twist and I’d be out of action, so not worth it. John the Artistic Director arrived to help move things about, so much easier with two and now my knees could take a break. Another two colours were added to Rapunzel’s tower and I started to base in one of the houses for the town square.
Below Pollington Lock
Mick single handed down Pollington Lock. There is still no mooring along this stretch of water following the breach last December.
Slipping banks
Lengths of the piling holding the bank up slipped when the water level was low and parts of the bank have followed the piling splitting away from the bank.
Buoys on the way to Drax
Buoys mark the areas to give a wide berth of up to the New Junction Canal and around the bend where Drax Power Station comes into view (the only power station in the area still with all it’s cooling towers).
Breach site
Then the right hand bend and past the breach site.
All new
New piling over the big culvert and concrete now have a big rubber strip along the top edge. Two small manholes sit where there were ones before the breach.
Rubber edging
A new wooden fence is in place and grass seed is just starting to take hold around the area.
All the big machines, pipes, generators have long since gone.
New roof for a new life
Past New Bridge 21 you can moor again and further on the almost ruin of a house is in the process of getting a new roof. It’ll be watertight before they remove the bricks and breeze blocks in the windows. Mick carried on past Rawcliffe and through Goole caisson. Both diesel points in Goole had boats moored on them so he winded and returned to moor at the far end. He walked back to Viking Marina to get a water pump. Laird had quite a few and was selling them at a discount price, without a guarantee as several of them had proved to be faulty. If they didn’t work at all he’d either replace it or give you your money back. Mick bought two in case and soon found one didn’t work. Maybe they were a batch lot that dropped off the back of Del Boy’s cruiser!
Not a bad view when I looked up from my work
Friday. A heater was meant to have been left for me to pick up at the theatre this morning, but was annoyingly absent. John would sort it later in the morning. I based in more of the town flat and then started to add extra bits to the ship.
John visited me twice, once with a heater that didn’t work, then with one that did, Hooray!
I then spent the remainder of the day lining in the tower pieces. By the end of the day I had finished several pieces of set, a few just need a few finishing touches which would be better done when they are upright.
I’ll do anything for your kebab!
I requested to the taxi driver to take me to Sainsburys, I’ve been to most supermarkets this week, so that I could get something in stock for tomorrow. But Sainsburys seriously let me down with very few things I could eat without buying a mass of veg, I tried the Co-Op too and gave up, rewarding myself for a good days work with a chicken doner and chips. These I find are best eaten on a bench, they taste better in the open air! The aroma attracted some company from a local beggar who just missed me putting the box in the bin. Even a very big head nudge didn’t work.
Exol Pride’s new home?
Mick returned the none working water pump, got another, but doesn’t hold out much hope. He stocked up with food spotting that Exol Pride seems to have a new mooring near the coal tipper. We wonder if this is because it was all getting a touch too busy with the gravel barges also using the same moorings. He topped up with diesel at Goole Boat House and headed back out of Goole to just before New Bridge. Tilly prefers it out there. The unfortunate thing is that just as he was about to pull in he noticed that the engine temperature was rising, it kept on rising. Mick moored up.
The skin tank wasn’t hot, there was little hot water, but the engine was most certainly hot. Was this a recurrence of what happened on the Thames two years ago? Or had the water pump on the engine gone? A phone call to RCR in the morning when he might be able to get a touch closer to a road.
Finished, Rapunzel’s window when it’s cut out
Saturday. Somehow my taxi this morning had been cancelled, I got it sorted and got out to Groves for a bit after 10. I managed to join the Geraghty zoom for a short time whilst I opened up tins of paint. Lovely to see everyone even if briefly.
Going a bit gingerbread
Time today was precious as it was my last day here and the set pieces would be collected tomorrow. I ended up finishing several other pieces but by the end of the day I had no idea if the roofs for the towers were right or not as I had to leave then drying. Paint was all packed away, my possessions collected together and hopefully I left the place in a reasonable state as I ran hobbled to catch my taxi. My left knee is very much looking forward to doing next to nothing tomorrow.
I could do no more, before my taxi turns up
Mick decided to move to Rawcliffe this morning where there are bollards to moor to and an easier place for an engineer to get to the boat. Oleanna managed to hobble the distance but was getting very hot and bothered as she arrived.
A nice local engineer came out, listened to Oleanna’s woes and history. He doesn’t think it is the pump on the engine, but thinks the system is gunked up again as it did on the Thames. He feels that the system needs a good flush through with a power hose. He thinks that maybe the level of anti-freeze wasn’t correct in Oleanna’s early days and that a flushing out means that we can start from scratch again. We’ll see, Oleanna now has an appointment with a jet wash on Monday, if she can get there!
3 locks, 27.65miles, 1 straight on, 4 winds, 3 water pumps, 1 too hot engine, 11 taxis, 1/3 of the set, 3 heaters, 1 working, 1 lovely space to work in, 3 supermarkets visited, 0 digs cat, 1 scrounging cat, 1 friendly landlady, 2 ex truckers, 1 show, 31 pots of paint, 1 fat knee!
No need to rush today, we are on schedule and having pushed on a touch yesterday to get somewhere suitable for Tilly, we were a touch ahead of ourselves.
New gates for somewhere
As we had breakfast a tug came past pushing a skip piled high with brand new lock gates. Stanley Ferry is one of two places in the UK where lock gates are manufactured and refurbished. In an average year around 100 gates are made here, that is a lot of oak! Between November and the end of March sections of the network will close for maintenance, an extensive stoppage list is put together every year with chance to make comments before it is finally published in August. Cruising in winter can take some planning.
Crane too
Soon followed a crane boat, most probably heading to the same site to off load the gates. We pondered where they were heading and if the skip boat was short enough with the tug to go up the Calder Hebble Locks together, we suspected not, there’ll be some bow hauling out of locks.
The sun was out, clear blue skies and plenty of them now that we are out of the hills. We pushed off pausing for me to work Ramsdens Swing Bridge, I only managed to hold up one cyclist! A chimney sweep sat having a fag break on a roof sunning himself.
Stanley Ferry Aqueduct, one of them
Then on over Stanley Ferry Aqueduct and past the workshop.
The big doors were open so we could see inside. Hoists were about to move more gates about inside. Out side piles of gates lay on the concrete, one pile had a constant stream of water running over it, the oak all dark. Presumably this is to keep gates from shrinking as during their working life they will hold back tonnes of water on a daily basis. New baulks of oak sat close by.
No squeezing into locks today, no need for handcuff keys or windlasses. The Aire and Calder requires the Key of Power. Birkwood Lock however never looks like it should be key operated as it’s gate beams of oak have relaxed through the years, it looks like they’d need a good old shove, but no the Key works wonders.
Written in blood!
On the lock landing below there were pots of flowers that were past their best, then hand scrawled signs that could have been painted in blood were a big contrast.
How blue can one world get?
Sky sky sky. 180 degrees of it. Chilly but so very sunny.
It’ll cut across those fields
A short distance above Kings Road Lock is where the proposed route of HS2 crosses on our map, I’m no longer sure if the northern sections of HS2 will happen. Thankfully today there were no huge mounds of earth to spoil the views.
Out for the weekend
We pulled into the lock landing to empty the yellow water into a container for disposal later. This meant the lock was emptied by a wide beam heading up. We were ready before the lady moved to the top gates to start filling the lock, so I offered to use my key at that end, the console traps your key until the gates are closed. She was quite happy for me to press the button for two seconds to commence the filling, so was I!
Down we dropped in the huge lock, it’s as if those short locks were a figment of our imagination now!
Pink Panther keeps an eye on where Foxholes Lock used to drop down onto the River Calder. Ahead we could see that traffic on the M62 was stationary on the eastbound carriage way, we however were cruising along quite happily in the deep wide water.
Last lock for me
A top up of water above Woodnook Lock before we pulled in to descend. This was to be my last lock for a while, the last before I head off to Panto land.
Now back on the river we passed familiar sights Woodnook Viaduct, Fairies Hill Lock, no yellow wide beam moored below it today. At Methley Bridge Boat Yard the boats were still three deep. Welding going on and a great named tug, Chugger-lugs-the-tug.
Just how sad do they look
Towards Castleford Junction, where the Aire and Calder Wakefield Branch meets the Aire and Calder from Leeds and Goole, there is a housing estate going up. I’m fairly sure we’ve been past and seen the Marvin the paranoid android houses before, but now there are even more going up.
Each and everyone of them has the sad furrowed brow, what a sad estate. Did the architect never see how sad they looked?
Left to Leeds, Right to a weir, or straight on to Castleford and Goole.
Straight on for us and through the flood lock. Now where to moor? We need to be here for three days, so longer than the 48hr moorings. We carried on towards Bulholme Lock and pulled in on the south bank just before the edge becomes high.
A red light?
Was that a ‘Red’ light at the lock? A cruiser pottered about in front of the light. Yes it looked red. Normally the lights on the Aire and Calder are on Amber, self operation. Maybe a gravel barge was on it’s way up? Once we’d moored up the reason arrived in our Inbox.
One of the lower sluices has an object jammed in the gate preventing the sluice paddle from fully closing. This impacts lower lock operation. The upper lock is operational but only operates via the desk in the lock tower and not via the lock side customer operated pedestals which only operate the lower lock.
Actions to investigate and make repairs are in hand but the lock will not be operational via the customer operated lock side pedestals until these are undertaken and completed. To facilitate lockage’s and until repairs have been completed the lock will be operated by a lock keeper on the following dates and during the time periods indicated below. Outside these times the lock will be closed:
Saturday 16th, Sunday 17th and Monday 18th October 2021: lock open from 10am, last lockage 3pm
The lock will be closed on Tuesday 19th October to allow access for divers to investigate and undertake repairs.
Bulholme Lock is big, but it also has, like many others around here, an extra section to make it even longer. These stem back to when Tom Puddings transported coal around the area. So even though the bottom gates of the lock cannot be made water tight, the middle gates (in normal operation the top gates) are, so they can be used as the bottom gates instead. The extra gates which are rarely used can only be operated by a lock keeper in the tower, hence reduced working hours.
Tilly was given four hours! There was a bit of coming and going at first, but then she vanished out of sight for a couple of hours.That’s more like it!
Sunset
As the sunset, planes flew over and boats lit their stoves, sending up plumes of smoke. Just a shame someone had got their genny going. Even more so when it didn’t stop until around midnight!
3 locks, 1 flood lock, 6.21 miles, 1 straight on, 1 swing bridge, 1 cyclist, 1 boat helped up, M62 stationary, 14 day mooring, 0.5 half broken lock, 2 many sad houses, 1 happy cat, 1 annoying boater somewhere over the other side who needs new batteries!
Aspley Basin to Wheatley Bridge 20, Calder and Hebble Navigation
Not the quietest of moorings
Up early for us, breakfasted whilst the final load of washing was making the most of the electric hookup, then we pushed over to the service block. Someone already had a hose linked up to the tap, but that didn’t matter we could wait. Our main reason for being there was to make it easier to pick up our Click and Collect from Sainsburys. Mick headed off with the bike to collect it across the car park and was back very quickly.
That way please!
The tap was now free so we topped up with water, disposed of any rubbish as the shopping was stowed away. Time to push off and say Goodbye to Huddersfield the largest Town in the country. I’ll be back in February, but sadly not by boat.
Chains and wheels
The Turnbridge Loco Lift Bridge was opened in 1865 replacing a swing bridge. A combination of chains, wheels and counter weights lifts the bridge deck vertically. Originally it was operated with a windlass, but since 2002 it has been electrically powered. I got my Key of Power out and waited for a gap in the traffic before turning it to release the barriers. Once they had been moved I pressed the button to lift the bridge. What look like big counter weights actually house all the chain required for the bridge to rise and fall. Today I managed to stop 8 vehicles.
The pootle out of Huddersfield isn’t the most picturesque, light and not so light industry sit alongside the canal. Gas Street Bridge always has a strong aroma around it. Then we passed my second choice hotel in Huddersfield the Travelodge. From here you get good views of the railway viaduct before the recycling plant, I prefer the view of boats from the Premier Inn at Aspley.
Red Doles Lock 9
Then the first lock of the Huddersfield Broad Canal. Opened in 1776 it linked the Calder Hebble to the centre of Huddersfield and later to the Narrow in 1811 creating a trans-pennine route. The long narrowboats that could climb over the Pennines could not use the shorter locks of the Broad canal. Goods were transhipped at Aspley Basin but the canal was overshadowed by the Rochdale Canal, which had broad locks that could hold two narrowboats.
Mind that cill
Today the Broad canal is listed as being 57ft 6″ long by 14ft 2″ wide, but C&RT also say that narrowboats of 60ft can navigate it by going diagonally. Six years ago we managed the trip in Lillian (NB Lillyanne). Going downhill in an over long boat you have to take great care to position your boat in the right spot. Last time lock 8 proved to be a touch tight for Lillian and we had difficulty positioning her so as to be able to get her bow past the closed bottom gate and out. This is why we had Oleanna built a foot shorter and with the aid of a bow thruster to help her clear the bottom gate without use of a rope or pole. So today we knew we’d be alright, yet we still had to take care.
For each lock we did the same. Oleanna was brought in, her bow brought as far forward as the small walkway allows and she tucks into a corner. Then the stern is taken over to the other side, this works on Oleanna. With Lillian ( a foot longer) we had to have her stern more towards the centre of the lock this giving a few more inches as the cill is curved.
On a diagonal
I then stand above the bow and gradually lift the paddle whilst Mick keeps an eye on the stern and the cill. With Lillian we took this very slowly as any chance of the stern sitting on the cill could mean she would sink. As the boat lowers you can move her forward under the walkway a touch. Then once Oleanna’s stern had safely passed the cill I walk round to the other side and lift the paddle there.
Nudging her way past the bottom gate
Once the water is level with below I then open this gate. Now Mick moves Oleanna’s bow past the still closed gate and can escape. Just to do it all over again at the next lock.
No visible brake on the gear
The paddle gear is different to most as there is no visible brake on them. You wind the paddle up and just stop where you want to. Then when you want to lower it you just need to give it a little bit of extra umph to get it moving and the brake comes off.
The gate paddles can be fierce and send a jet of water down the lock. But then several of the locks had quite a few leaky top gates, so much so Mick had to shelter behind the back doors to keep himself dry.
Getting ready to jet wash
Two chaps from C&RT were getting ready to jet wash around some of the locks, they said they were slippy and with winter maintenance happening soon they were giving the stone work a good clean.
Poorly lock
The next lock is currently closed to widebeams as the off side gate has been damaged. The face of it now covered with a sheet of timber and the gate is tied with a cable to prevent anyone from opening it.
Colne Bridge Lock dropped us down into the final pound of the Broad Canal. This is the pound that has been loosing water over the last few weeks. We’ve seen photographs of it just about empty, but thankfully today there was water, it was still low but enough for us to head to Lock 1.
The last of the Huddersfield locks, Cooper Bridge Lock 1
Here we would leave the Huddersfield Canals behind. Lock 1 and Bridge 1.Time to join the river, checking the level board first.
We came from the right through 180 degrees
After a hand brake turn onto the Calder Hebble we pulled in for lunch, then got ready for another short lock, a second Cooper Bridge Lock, this one number 16 not 1.
Give me a lever ….
Time to use our Hebble Spike to help fill the lock. The spike is made from hard wood and is used to gradually wind up the paddles. There are windlass operated paddles too, but more water was needed to help level the lock to open it.
Now we had stretches of river followed by lock cuts. The next lock being Battye Ford Lock, here we knew we’d be able to breath and have a four course meal and still fit.
Through Ledgard Flood Lock it was time to find somewhere suitable to stop, hopefully where Tilly could go out. The first mooring by Lidl has a road running alongside. We carried on to just after an old railway bridge and pulled in, we almost go into the side.
Here there was bracken and some friendly cover before three layers of fencing designed to keep animals out. Well Tilly was soon seen on the other side, it was hardly taxing!
A few angles needed checking for the panto set builders then it was time to put the Wednesday roast in the oven, a medium chicken which turned out to a large in disguise. We’ll be eating a lot of chicken for the next few days.
