Category Archives: Friends

Appointment With A Stranger. 19th June

Rowington Embankment to Cape of Good Hope Visitor Moorings

Up early again! Breakfasted and on our way just gone 7:30, we had about an hours cruise before we’d reach the top of the Hatton flight. Shrewley Tunnel was really quite wet, Mick had remembered his waterproof, I’d forgotten and got quite damp and chilly. Yesterdays rain had helped reduce the temperature so I soon popped on a fleece, knowing full well it wouldn’t stay on long.

Two people climbed off a hire boat at the end of the moorings above the flight. Were they just going to have a look at what lay ahead or were they about to set off? Would they have already picked up a boat to partner with? When they reached the lock they started to fill it, no sign of their boat following them, maybe they were just generous souls!

We checked to see if they were willing to share the flight with us, they were, but not sure when their boat would be arriving, the men were being tardy at pushing off, we could go ahead if we wanted to. Many hands make light work of the Hatton flight so waiting a few minutes would save many more minutes further on.

Philippa, Helen, Keith and Steve (?) were experienced hirers, out for two weeks. They’d already done the Avon Ring so had decided to use up their remaining days by descending Hatton, winding and returning tomorrow. The hire company had said that Birmingham was a bit grotty, so not to bother!

With three of us on the lock side I walked ahead to open up the next lock which was already full. I was also keeping an eye out for volunteers and a stranger. A volunteer was spied watching us from the bridge down the flight, then the blue and red vanished, maybe we looked as though we’d got everything sorted, we would do soon.

There was someone walking up the flight with purpose, could this be someone heading for a bacon butty at the cafe or might it just be the stranger I was looking for? She looked across at the boats in the lock, Oleanna tucked behind the ABC hire boat. We’d been a little bit early for our rendez vous and had jumped at the chance to share the flight. I called across, ‘Hello are you Jane?’ ‘Yes’, came the reply, ‘You must be Pip!’.

Jane is a colleague of my old college friend Emma who lives in Warwick. I’d messaged ahead a few days ago with the hope that we’d be able to meet up. Plans were put together and could they bring along their friend Jane who is wanting to buy a boat to live on. This then morphed into us having an extra pair of hands for the flight if we could do it on Monday morning. Never turn down the offer for assistance when faced with 21 broad locks!

Us ladies soon split up into two teams that would leapfrog each other down the flight. Philippa and Helen walked on down to the next lock to set it whilst Jane and I got chatting. I knew next to nothing about Jane other than she was keen to help today. She’d been on several holidays and earlier this year she’d done a helmsman course in Braunston where she learnt the normal things along with single handing and how to break ice! Therefore I didn’t have a novice on my hands.

On our way down we met two boats coming up, one with a couple of boys in blue assisting them, another had been helped up the first three but they were now on their own.

**Philippa and Helen waiting to open the lock**

Thankfully the sky was a touch cloudy, not too much to give concern, but enough to help keep the temperature down. Jane and I had a good old chat about all things boat, crafts, etc as we walked between locks and as we waited for Mick and Keith to bring the boats into our lock. We didn’t get chance to chat to Philippa or Helen as we were leapfrogging each other.

Mick checked to see if we required refreshments at the halfway point, but we were fine. Working every other lock with someone to chat away to makes for a less gruelling trip down the flight, certainly far far better than it just being the two of us, which we have done before.

Jane and I got to work the last lock of the flight, we maybe should have waited a touch longer before winding up our paddles so that Philippa and Helen could climb back on board with ease, instead they had to climb down a ladder, maybe they didn’t know about the steps down below the lock which would have been far easier.

There had been conversations at the helm of the hire boat that maybe Keith should swap with one of the ladies. This was turned down. The ladies were working the locks today, he and Steve were going to do them tomorrow, that’s if Steve has finished reading his book at the dinette by then.

We pulled over onto some armco and popped the kettle on. Some choc chip cookies had been freshly baked this morning, time for a well earned sit down for all of us.

Thank you so much Jane for joining us today, your enthusiasm for boats and the canals shone out, it was a pleasure having you as crew. I hope your house sale speeds up and then you can start in earnest to look for your boat and home. I hope our paths cross again soon.

The flight had taken us 2hours 22 minutes. Time to look back on previous passages. Back in 2013 (our first descent) we’d teamed up with another hire boat with six crew, today we’d beaten the 2 hours 30 minutes, in fact today was the fastest we’ve descended the flight. May 2016 was 3 hours 15 mins and February 2017 Mick managed the flight in 46 hours 34 mins due to my broken ankle and a storm holding us up for a day.

Todays time however didn’t beat our record which was when we teamed up with Nb Cygnet and had my brother and nephew as extra crew, when we managed to head up the locks in 2 hours 15 minutes. Maybe today if we’d not had to wait for the two up hill boats we’d have just beaten it.

We poolted on to around the corner almost opposite The Cape of Good Hope to moor for the day. Only one other boat when we arrived, but by the end of the day the moorings had filled up, including our locking partners from today, now ready to face the flight again tomorrow.

A jot of work this afternoon saw me go back through all the scenes of Panto, a few more notes taken and some of them worked through before it was time to freshen up and head to the pub.

Emma and her husband David had just arrived. It’s a couple of years since we last saw Emma and longer since we met David. Lots to catch up on and a lot of cat talk, they currently have seven in their house!

Normally I have a Kiwi Burger with a gluten free bun, but today I decided to try their gluten free option of fish and chips. Mick went to order our food, only to be told that the gluten free batter was made with beer. This isn’t that unusual as it’s normally made with gluten free beer, but today it sounded as if the gluten free batter would be made with normal beer, hence making it NOT gluten free! Maybe something was lost in translation, but it really didn’t make sense and as some of the first things I gave up because they weren’t agreeing with me were beer and fish and chips I really didn’t want to risk it. So instead I had one of their lovely burgers. At least I knew what I’d be getting.

A lovely evening with friends to end a good day at the locks.

21 locks, 6 miles, 1 hire boat with 4 crew, 1 inside, 1 valiant volunteer Jane, 0 volunteers to assist us, 1 super speedy descent, 3 cookies, 1 left, 4 hours shore leave, 1 model just about complete, 3 burgers, 1 fish fillet, 4 rustic chips, 7 beers, 2 glasses wine, 1 very lovely evening.

https://goo.gl/maps/mP6y1gKqNvkNi1VXA

Margee Bargee. 12th June

Pendford Bridge 4 to Wolverhampton off side mooring, BCN

Today we allowed ourselves to have breakfast before pushing off, other boats that had moored near us had already moved on by the time we’d got ourselves ready. A pause in the long grass by bridge 2 for me to walk to Morrisons to pick up a bag of salad (we’d forgotten to buy yesterday!) and some blueberries.

**Last of the Shropie locks for this year**

The hire boats were in at base by Autherley Stop Lock, the staff working hard to do the turn arounds. This made it hard to get off Oleanna, crossing the stern of a boat and then managing to get round a cart of equipment required for engine services. Four inches higher and we’d finished our time on the Shropie.

Right please!

Then left! Onto the Wolverhampton flight.

The bottom lock is always a photo opportunity. 21 carved into the two bottom beams. Up Oleanna came, on to the second lock, here only a single bottom gate, the only one on the flight.

By the time Oleanna was coming into Lock 19, our third of the flight, two figures could be seen walking down the towpath. Our altered schedule meant that we could give some more ex-boaters a canal fix, we like to do our bit for boaters mental health. Today we were being joined by Alison and Laura from NB Large Marge.

We first met The Margees on the Chesterfield Canal when we couldn’t exit a lock just below Shireoaks Marina, we ended up cruising with them and their parrot Jaffa for quite a few weeks before our routes headed off in different directions. We’ve met up a few times since and when we’d been in touch a few days ago Alison had expressed an interest in helping us up Wolverhampton.

The last time we’d seen them we kept our distance, elbow bumps the new way of greeting each other in early 2020, today there were hugs all round before windlasses and hand cuff keys were handed out. A hire boat was hot on our tail, so we’d best get a move on!

Leapfrogging of crew started quickly, two working the current lock, one heading upwards to set the next chamber, nobody having to go back and forth or walk round a lock several times.

The hardest bit of today was trying to remember the two conversations you were having as you leapfrogged locks and people. There was plenty of news to catch up on, more than the annual Christmas round robin we share. Old hands make for easy locking just as had happened at Audlem with Carol and George.

We met a boat coming down, apparently there had been a problem yesterday, a boat getting stuck in a lock, front button. They’d had to wait for C&RT to top up some pounds, so had had a delayed start to their descent. A while later we came across a second boat coming down.

All the way up the flight there had been wild flowers, but by lock 12 (possibly) the shear number of Oxeye Daisies was amazing. Wonderful, you’d hardly know you were heading into Wolverhampton.

A pause at the half way mark for drinks before carrying on. Hydration important on a day like today.

**Think we know where that water went!**

Then a flooded pound, thankfully there was an alternative higher path so we didn’t all have to wade to the next lock. Two locks up we could see where the water had possibly come from, the next pound decidedly low. Someone had possibly been letting water run through the lock without realising. Laura headed up to the next lock to let water down, Mick bringing Oleanna along at a crawl. Once we were up that lock we dropped the water to help the hire boat behind us.

Another low pound towards the top of the flight had us running more water down. The level was so low that Mick had to back into the lock so as not to be sat on the cill. The pound above had dropped so warranted a top up too, Laura was concerned that would just push the problem up hill, the next lock happened to be the top lock, so not a problem.

We pulled out of the top lock 2 hours 42 minutes after we’d pulled in at the bottom lock, a job well done on a hot muggy day. The moorings above the lock were all free so we pulled onto one for lunch. A cold collation was enjoyed by all with plenty of drinks.

It was gone 3pm by the time we said our farewells, not enough time to really get anywhere so we pulled along to the offside moorings for the night. Tilly wasn’t impressed with this as she’s not allowed out here. She spent sometime working out a route up the plant covered wall. I could easily make it up there! But it’s the getting down again that would be the problem Tilly!

Another lovely day working locks in the company of friends.

Now who can we find for the next few flights?

***If I get up to that bit, nudge across then it’s straight to the top!***

22 locks, 4 miles, 1 right, 1 left, 2 margees, 0 jaffa, 3 downhill boats, 2 low pounds, 4 volunteers litter picking, 1 bag of salad, 3 cheeses, 2 meats, 1 pate, 4 chocolate chip cookies, 1 bored cat, 1 drizzly moment, 1 downpour again!

https://goo.gl/maps/kc3cLGSdCeKmbbkm8

Talking Of Palins. 8th June

Burrow’s Bridge 85 to Coxbank Visitor Moorings

On the move just before 10am another chilly start but the potential to be a lovely day. As we pootled along the rest of the pound towards the bottom of Audlem I gave the inside of Oleanna a bit of a tidy up. My work things tend to get sprawled out over a few days of work, they needed to be confined back in their boxes. With this done I was back up top shortly before we arrived at the bottom of the locks.

The bottom lock was just being emptied as two figures both holding windlasses walked beneath the bridge. A wave from us received a wave back, perfect timing all round.

Today we were being joined by two very experienced boaters, Carol and George. The Palins owned and lived on NB Rock ‘n Roll for seven years, then they upgraded to WB Still Rockin’ both built to their spec. WB Still Rockin’ was sold two and a half years ago when they decided to retire from the waterways, buying a house close to Audlem, so they could still get a regular canal fix. It would have been very rude not to get in touch with them.

I have only briefly met them both in passing, but Mick spent a couple of days in their company when the Thames was on red boards in October 2019 at Goring. Both boats eventually got to their destinations that year, battling up and downstream.

The original plan had been to climb the first few locks, fill with water and then head for an early lunch at the Shopie Fly. But with such efficient crew we were very quickly up the first three locks and breasting up against a hire boat to await the water point.

It didn’t take long for the hire boat to fill, the chaps had headed into the pub to get a half of Landlord each. So we helped the lady pull the hire boat out from the inside so that we’d be able to reach the tap easier. The elder of the chaps was on two walking sticks and was a bit concerned at getting back on board the boat, the crew had managed to help him on board so far but the bank was that bit lower, making the step up too high for the man to be confident.

We held the boat steady then someone came up with the idea of standing on the gunnel to dip the side of the boat lower. This almost worked, some rockin’ was required along with good timing and the chap was soon back on board safely.

**That bywash can get fiercer than that**

Our tank took that bit longer to fill, but we were soon heading up to the next lock behind another boat. Plenty of boats to help up and down. The one in front of us had obviously never been up Audlem before. Their approach was very candid, the lady hopping off the gunnel as the chap slowed the boat right down for her to do so as the bywash thundered down pushing them hard against the bank. Planks have been positioned so that boats don’t get totally stuck and not be able to pull out towards the lock. The lady pushed the bow out all the time her boat getting further away from the bank. All I could think was that if she fell in right now I hoped she’d be behind the plank. Thankfully she didn’t fall in and all was well in the end.

Next up was Mick who gave Oleanna some wellie, a couple of bumps heading in, but no chance of getting pinned to the bank, just a big burst of reverse to bring Oleanna to a stop before meeting with the top of the lock.

**Very experienced crew, Carol and George**

As it was still quite early we decided to carry on up the flight, boats were coming down and it was worth making use of empty lock chambers. George or I would walk up to the next lock to open gates (if they hadn’t been left by a downhill boat) and Carol would open a paddle at the top to start the fill. We were a well oiled machine working up the locks, a bit slow at opening the gates at times because we were too busy chatting.

**Walking ahead you get a good view back down the flight**

We were soon up the main flight of locks and decided to leave the last two for tomorrow.

Carol and George invited us back to their house for a late lunch, their car was parked just by the last bridge. So much to Tilly’s disgust we headed off for the afternoon for more chatting. Having read each others blogs for years we already felt like we knew each other. Then there was news of other bloggers, who don’t post so much anymore. There was so much to talk about my camera didn’t come out again.

Their house has all that they need. Plenty of garden with fields stretching out behind and a hut where we sat to have lunch. Views and the equivalent of the stern deck with pram cover of WB Still Rockin’.

George gave us a lift back to Oleanna late afternoon and Tilly was allowed ninety minutes of shore leave, meaning we could leave all the doors and hatches open to get a nice breeze through the boat.

***Hmm, today’s outside went that way!***

What a lovely day. Thank you for your lock wheeling and your hospitality, if there’s any chance of the recipe for the sticky pork Carol, that was yum.

13 locks, 3.9 miles, 2 extra windlasses, 1 full water tank, 1 immaculate bin compound, 1 lovely house, 1 lovely day.

https://goo.gl/maps/yaXPdLphdsHjvECm8

Pushing The Pin. 22nd May

Skipton

Frank was up and eating breakfast before we were, he was keen to get himself over to Leeds to see a mate on his way back to Scarborough. Soon the boat was empty and the fridge looked depleted again.

Time for us to do a stock up shop. I wrote quite a long list whilst Mick had yet another phone call, I’m beginning to think he’s having a bit of a fling with someone at Royal London!

He headed off with the bike to do a big shop, leaving me with complaining Tilly, I think she’s forgotten that she’d rejected our mooring as being rubbish the other day. We’d considered moving on through Brewery Swing Bridge, but the sun felt like it would do a better job with the solar where we were.

Time to get the panto sketch book out and start doing a few scribbles for ideas. The basic shape of Chipping Norton was traced from a previous years sketch book and then I used a pin to push through several pages marking the corners, speeding up drawing it out time and time again for a story board.

I came up with four ideas of a basic setting. Some maybe better than others. I’ll see what else comes to mind in the next couple of days before I start working my way through the whole show adding in the different scenes.

Another covid test done, both negative, we were safe to make a visit to our friends.

Margie and Robert live by the canal, we last visited them late summer 2020. It was lovely to see them both, plus there was an added bonus of their niece Alison having just arrived for a visit. I’d not seen Alison since we were most probably in our twenties, so it was lovely to have a catch up with her as well.

An exchange of parcels was made, some post for us and the very last pair of Dementia socks to be handed over. Robert immediately popped them on followed by his sandals, to which Margie said ‘I could fancy you wearing those!’ Sadly I didn’t get a photo, maybe Alison can get him to pop them back on before she leaves.

We headed out to Wildwood for a meal. The youngsters walked via the canal so that Alison could meet Oleanna whilst the elders drove. The restaurant is in part of the Town Hall and apart from it not having any level access and the toilets being on the second floor it was very nice.

Mick and Robert opted for starters, Mick’s garlic bread arrived the size of a main course so had to be shared out. The goats cheese and mushroom penne was very tasty, plenty of choices for gluten free.

**Pip, Alison, Margie, Mick and Robert**

We were so busy chatting away that the restaurant had to turn the big lights on to help persuade us it was time to leave. On our return walk Tilly popped her head through the curtains to meet Alison, she then sat in the window puzzled as to why we’d carried on walking past!

A lovely evening, followed by more birthday presents sent from London which included a heater for our engine bay, very exciting.

**Birthday presents from the London Leckenbys**

0 locks, 0 miles, 1 empty fridge, 1 big shop, 1 full fridge, 4 versions, 1 pair socks, 2 octogenarians, 2 parcels full of presents, 5 bowls pasta, 1 giant garlic bread, 1 puzzled Tilly.

A Slowly Birthday. 20th May

Keighley Golf Club to Skipton 3 day Visitor Moorings

Another early start, but time to have tea in bed along with some birthday surprises. Presents and cards were opened. A new pair of jeans, a Boot Buddy and a limited edition print by Ant Savage. The boot buddy was from Tilly to assist when one treads in woofer deposits. If you haven’t come across Ant Savages work then they are worth a look, lino prints of bendy narrowboats among other subjects.

A bacon butty then we were on our way, pushing off just after a boat that had been moored behind us on the bridge landing for the night. Well that would have been the case except we very quickly made scraping noises, we were stuck on something. Reverse didn’t work, forwards neither, trying to push the stern out, nope! Persevering worked in the end.

The pound to Skipton keeps you busy, lots of wonderful green views, with plenty of swing bridges. The chap on the boat ahead of us handed over the tiller to his wife and went ahead to open the bridge. Brilliant we’d got a boat to leapfrog the bridges with. Well that’s what we thought!

The bridge opened, the boat ahead gradually made it’s way through. We weren’t sure if the lady on board had seen us. She tried to pull over to the side, but it didn’t really work. The bridge closed behind us and the chap walked along the towpath to where his boat finally touched the bank for a second. We were still behind. Hmm not a leapfrog.

At the next bridge the chap hopped off again, but had serious problems moving the bridge, so I joined him, extra bum power required. Both boats came through. He explained that his wife has MS so her balance isn’t so good, possibly also her spacial awareness. This explained why she was finding it hard to pull into the side to let us leapfrog.

We pootled on behind, they clung to the towpath which we thought was a suggestion for us to pass, so Mick cranked Oleanna up a gear as we got closer to Silsden. The back gardens immaculate as ever. Here hire boats waited for the next set of guests to arrive, this is where we’d hired our first boat from together, the start of our journey to living afloat.

Paul from Waterways Routes had asked us to make note if the towpath here had had an upgrade. His maps not only show moorings and services but also what type of towpath runs alongside the navigation. The next stretch had not been upgraded to cyclable, rough and bumpy, it would remain purple on the Waterway Routes maps, also no new moorings to report.

The next few swing bridges were opened, either by myself walking between them or we were now starting to meet other boats coming the other way and one heading towards Skipton. Maybe we’d now got a three boat leapfrog, even if one boat couldn’t leap over the others.

It turned out that the other boat we’d caught up with was a hire boat from Skipton and their handling skills were still being developed. Warehouse Swing Bridge was operated stopping and starting for us, then I hopped off to swing the little footbridge after I’d taken a photo of Oleanna going through Parson’s Bridge 186 to add to our collection.

Milking Hill Swing Bridge was being held open by a day boat. Just how many passengers are these little boats allowed? We counted fifteen!

The woods here would have been spectacular a few weeks ago with a sea of bluebells. Shame we missed it.

**How many to operate a swing bridge?!**

At Bradley Swing Bridge we managed to become lead boat, others dropping behind or pulling in for lunch. The day boats from Skipton were now coming thick and fast along with the trip boats. Assistance was required at Snaygill Swing Bridge to get it moving. Maybe I’ve lost some umph, or have the bridges just become harder to move?

Now the uninterrupted length in to Skipton. We pulled in on the water point and filled up the tank very quickly as the pressure was so good. Where to moor up? Along this stretch where a high wall and a carpark are the view? Round past the Springs Branch where the footfall is heavy? Or further on? We opted for the more central position as it would be handier for a visitor to find us.

A late lunch was followed by Birthday Cake. Maybe the omitted milk would have made it slightly more moist, we’ll see the next time I make it. A message was sent of out location to Frank. This was soon followed by him calling. When were we meeting up? Today? NOt Thursday?!!! Blimey, good job I’d sent him the message when I did as he had a two hour drive from Scarborough on busy roads.

A few items were needed, mallet and spikes mostly, so we headed out to see what we could find. Boyes came up trumps with a mallet and Pennine Cruisers sold us two new shiny spikes. No suitable container for sawdust though or high ball glasses. We’ll carry on looking.

At 6pm Frank arrived, a hunt for a free parking space was successful and then we headed over to Bizzie Lizzie’s for fish and chips, followed by a drink in one of the many pubs.

**Ooo! Skipton, why can’t we skip it!?!**

0 locks, 8.9 miles, 12 bridges, 1 left open, 6 maybe held up, 1 brother positive, 1 very slow boat to Skipton, 2 boaters who’d forgotten how busy it can get, 5o many day boats, 2 many sailors hats, 1 rejected mooring, 1 Frank stirred into action, 1 full cooler box, 2 spikes, 1 mallet, 3 of each, 3 beers, 1 boy turned 65.

https://goo.gl/maps/5AL7wZDEyG7YMRKH8

Harry And Betty. 13th May

Clarence Dock or New Dock, Leeds

**How many names for a dock can there be?!**

A morning doing some research for panto, general Columbian scenes, rainforest. There’s a lot of colour about which is a good thing. I now need to concentrate on interiors and where some of the scenes could be set, John (writer and director) has left some locations blank so I have free reign!

**It’s been a while since we last did one of these!**

Mick did a touch of shopping, Saturday newspaper mainly, then we had some lunch before leaving Tilly grumpily in charge for the rest of the day.

A walk across the River Aire then round to the bus station. Today with the trains on strike we had no choice but to catch the bus, but what a pleasant ride it was.

The 36 goes between Leeds bus station and Harrogate, occasionally on to Ripon. It worked it’s way through areas of Leeds like Chapeltown and then out into the countryside. The bluebells within the perimeter wall of Harwood House were stunning, we sped past too quickly to get a photo.

All the time the recorded announcements told us which stop was next and where we could visit should we alight at certain stops. I suddenly realised who the voice was, now a voice from his grave, Harry Gratian, he used to present BBC Look North and became quite a celebrity in North Yorkshire through the decades, even appearing in York Theatre Royals Panto! At times we almost felt as though we should take him up on his suggestions of alighting at certain stops.

The road surface turned for the worse as we came into Harrogate a very bumpy ride, we’d reached our destination. A walk through the centre of the town, past the theatre heading downhill all the time. Then past the Crown Hotel where Alan Bennet sat in 1988 making observations about the people around him and reflecting on his own upbringing (Dinner at Noon).

A modern staircase attached to the back of a typical Harrogate building, we pressed the button of the flat required and a chirpy voice invited us inside. Here lives my Godmother Betty. She has never looked after my religious needs as I don’t really have any, but she has always been there in the back ground, sending me cards and more recently emails whilst we’ve been on the boat.

Betty was one of my Mum’s best friend at Leeds School of Architecture. Mum six foot, Betty around five foot. Her 92 years of age have naturally decreased her height, but most certainly not her personality. Today we’d timed a visit with what was to be one of her Grandsons 21st birthdays, but sadly Alfred had tested positive for Covid two days ago, so the London contingency had postponed their visit for a few weeks. However there was still quite a crowd. Matthew, Jules and Rose, along with Louise their cousin.

Way back when I was the youngest of the kids on holidays to France where all three families shared gites. They were fantastic times sat on beaches building sandcastles and paddling canoes.

Cups of tea and slices of cake to mark Alfred’s birthday were consumed as we caught up on everyone’s lives. People looking that bit older from the last time we’d all been together about ten years ago. Back then I was concerned about Houdini moving to live on a boat, taking advice from Rose a veterinarian nurse. Back then Betty’s comment on our boating plans were ‘Now my dear, why on earth do you want to do that ?!’ Now she is quite happy with our chosen life and looks forward to the occasional postcards I send of places we’ve visited and food we’ve eaten.

A glass of wine was enjoyed before we headed off to catch the next bus back to Oleanna. What a lovely afternoon, so glad we’d arranged it, just a shame not to have seen Anna and her tribe, maybe next time.

The bus back was busy, the bus station busier.

Time to order ourselves pizzas. We both opted for the same topping, one gluten free. When Mick went to pick them up (cheaper to drink our own wine on board) our pizzas had been rejected as being over cooked, so he had to wait for them to be done again.

I think mine didn’t have quite as much topping as Mick’s, he certainly had more cheese and chicken! But they were very tasty. We sat up to watch the final score come in at Eurovision in Liverpool, having not seen or heard any of the songs.

0 locks, 0 miles, 2 hours research, 1 newspaper, 2 buses, 92 years soon to be 93, 1 Godmother as bright as a button, 1 son, 1 daughter, 1 niece, 1 daughter in law, 2 bus passes, 1 lovely afternoon, 2 pizzas, 2 boaters snoozing through Eurovision.

It’s Mooo not Meow! 9th May

Viking Marina, Goole to Viking Marina, Goole

Change around laundry and ironing completed. The Shed reclaimed as a bedroom with organised storage. Upstairs upstairs tidied. Windows washed. A sister-out-law to visit. Food eaten. Outfits remarked on. Who stole the youngest Prince? Beds made up. Clothes and food all packed. One on loan sewing machine returned and the last pair of socks delivered.

It was time to load a van and return to Oleanna.

Tilly’s pooh box and scratch post were the last items to be added to the van. I knew what had been happening, they normally keep me locked inside when they load up everything, but today I was allowed to supervise. I may have been distracted by the elaborate bird feeder though. Maybe I’d be allowed to supervise in the big white box, but no chance of that as I was bundled up into the cat caravan! I know I wouldn’t get under Toms feet, but She says that Tom isn’t so sure. Hopefully the scratches on my chest from the tussle with Tilly will fade without leaving scars. This morning we’d decided not to add any extra stress to her day by trying to give her a travel sickness pill. If only she’d lie down the motion wouldn’t be half as bad!

I’d refrained from saying how well Tilly was doing as we passed our usual stopping place on Staxton Hill, she then showed signs that we’d soon need to stop to refresh the puppy pad in the caravan. Thankfully there were only two stops today then she calmed down, sat with her back to the door of the caravan where I could sort of stroke her.

On our route we somehow got talking about cows. Tilly tried joining in, but her mooing fell short!

On arrival at Viking Marina, Tilly was the first thing off the van and inside. There was time to appreciate the nice clean floor before it was filled with bags and boxes that all needed emptying and places found to stow it all. Tilly checked everywhere over, peeked out the back and then settled down, It’s good to be back home.

Alastair chatted with Mick. Two new engine mounts had been fitted. The stern nav light attached. Leak on the skin tank had required a 46mm spanner to tighten the pipe and all was good.

With everything for the galley, saloon loaded onto Oleanna it was time to make a move. Well just reverse back, wind and come in for the bow to be nearest the bank. This would make filling the water tank easier. The bags of clothes would come straight into the bedroom, plants could go on the bow straight away and Mick would be able to reach to replace a steel cable tie on the bow fender that had broken in Bramwith Lock three months ago.

Whilst knitting socks my back has improved, but sadly moving things around, stoopid stooping has encouraged it to ache again. A few hours sitting down helps. Today though to be able to sit down lots of things needed to be stowed, moved here and there. Yes Mick could have done it all, but it was just easier to get on with it, someone needs to remember where things have been stashed after all! Tilly didn’t help with any of this, she was far more interested in the secret passage and refusing to come back out when I wanted to put the sofa back into sofa mode!

Once we’d remembered we’d put the duvet and pillows in vacuum bags Mick made the bed up whilst I adjusted the Sainsburys delivery for the morning. Diner was some left over gammon we’d shared with Kath (Mick’s sister) and Bill one of our lodgers, with some carrot and parsnip hash. Thank you Mick for being on cooking duty.

0 locks, 180ft, 1 wind, 27 cheese scones, 1 painted wall, 1 van full, 2 puppy pads, 1 proud She, 1 last pair of socks delivered, 1 determined Duncan, 1 more painting hung, 1 slot filling booking, 1 chocka boat, 1 empty water tank, 1 full water tank, 2 new engine mounts, 1 stern light, 1 secret passageway, 1 cat on the shelf, 2 happy boaters, 1 happy cat.

Firmware and Footwear. 5th April

Goole/Scarborough

Last Fridays post was filled with woolly goodies. Two more Independent dyers had sent me some yarn for my sockathon. What kindness! The two parcels together most probably had enough yarn for 14 pairs of socks. Thank you so much to Jem (Under The Olive Tree) and Beth (Beehive Yarns) for your generous and wonderful support.

I had a day out to Leeds to visit the Hello Stranger Yorkshire exhibition. Lots of photos from shows over the last four years and how the pandemic was coped with and how the industry has changed since. Designers were invited to add their details to a map of Yorkshire. One colour string showed where Yorkshire designers lived, the other where people from outside Yorkshire have worked. As I fitted into both categories and neither I decided to have both colours of string on my label.

I made sure my return to the station included the wonderful markets and the Exchange. Must remember all that fish when we pass through Leeds in a few weeks time!

Saturday morning started with me casting on the first pair of socks. These were to be knitted in yarn that I had bought for the challenge, matching the logo colours of @dementia-uk. In the post that morning I received a card from their Fundraising Officer wishing me luck, what a lovely touch, especially hand written, my sister-in-law would approve.

So far I’ve managed to knit a sock a day, that’s an average of 8 hours clicking a day. I go to stretch my legs each day so that my natural posture doesn’t take to being a seated one. The occasional move from one chair to another also helps. Podcasts are listened to when I’m going round in circles and we’ve taken to watching an episode of Downton Abbey each day, starting from the very beginning. We may have to up to two episodes a day as there are 50 in total. Blimey some of those servants are really really horrible!

Mick has been seeking out new insurance quotes for Oleanna. For some reason our renewal quote from GJW had gone up whilst reports on social media suggest other peoples have gone down. Craftinsure are by far the cheapest for both contents and the boat, however some things are not covered such as laptops. Why are they so much cheaper? How are they so much cheaper? Do they pay out without hassle if you need to claim? All questions Mick is seeking the answers to before we commit ourselves to a new policy.

The days, weeks and months are ticking away. Time to visit Oleanna and give her engine a run, check her over and now that we have a date we need to be back on the boat for, give notice on our mooring. Mick took the train down to Goole an easy and familiar ride now, whilst I sat on the sofa knitting.

The daffodils at Oleanna’s stern are long past their best and the scraped paintwork turning orange on the gunnels shows that she hasn’t moved anywhere for sometime. Hopefully there will be time to give things a good rub down and repaint before too long.

Mick sent me a photo looking out through the new window in the pram cover. A vast improvement from the old one which not only had holes in it but had become a touch white making the view a bit foggy. The boat opposite our bow has had a change of name, a very wise change by Lisa.

Mick ran the engine and went to see Laird and also had a catch up with Alastair. Sadly Viking Marina are out of diesel at the moment, so the tank still hasn’t had a fill. Then it was time for Mick to plug the laptop into Oleanna’s brain and give the inverter a firmware update. This new version means we can control the charging of the lithium batteries more, especially when the temperatures are really low which lithium’s do not appreciate.

**Daffodils and gunnels past their best!**

With everything locked up, Mick headed back to the station with the intention of being back in Scarborough to eat with me before I headed out for the evening. Sadly there were problems on the tracks. A vehicle had run through both barriers of a level crossing at Gilberdyke. This meant all trains had to run slowly and that Mick’s train which normally would have continued on to Scarborough stopped in Hull.

The next train northwards followed a slow train and by the time it had reached Bridlington it itself had been cancelled as the train behind had just about caught it up! In all it took Mick four hours to return to Scarborough by which time I’d cast on the toe of sock 5 and decided to give myself an evening off. Spent at the Bike and Boot with old female friends I used to work with at the SJT. It was very nice to see every one in the flesh, many I’ve only seen on zoom get togethers over the last few years and those have gradually petered out.

**The Chippy model box waiting for me to be creative**

Another parcel has arrived at the house. The empty model box for Chippy Panto, all ready for me to start designing. It made sense for it to come here, rather than us trying to guess where to get it sent to in a months time.

For those wanting to know what panto will be this year, I can now confirm it will be ‘Cinderella’. But not just any old Cinderella, this one will be set in Latin America! So the music will most certainly be toe tapping. Sadly the budget won’t stretch to a visit to South America for research purposes, the internet will have to do!

The Sockothan continues and if I continue at the current rate then I should manage to beat last years pairs by several! Thank you so much to those near and far (Hello Canada!) who have sponsored me. Thank you also to those who’ve requested socks. All socks on my list are guaranteed to be knitted in April so make sure you’ve made your donation on the JustGiving website. I may be opening the challenge up for more sock requests in a weeks time, so if you feel you missed out first time around you’d best keep an eye on the blog.

https://www.justgiving.com/page/pip-leckenby-1677835197682?utm_source=copyLink&utm_medium=one_page&utm_content=page/pip-leckenby-1677835197682&utm_campaign=pfp-share&utm_term=24d4cbd0b51e43b6b706a2a67292be11

So much yarn, 5 socks, 5 days, £100 cheaper, 2 barriers, 1 notice given, 1 inverter updated, 8 hours each, 67% of target, 1 evening off, 6 old friends, 1 slightly numb bum, 2 circular needles, 9 years of boat ownership!

2022 Back To Exploring

Time for the annual round, a long post so sit back, put your feet up and enjoy.

The New Year kicked off with winter maintenance in the house. Having two hallways proved time consuming refreshing the woodwork and patching up the worst of the wallpaper. But this was broken up with weekly walks to see the sea. I resumed work on the development showing of #unit21 for Dark Horse and a Christmas present of a cheese making kit proved very tasty in creating my first ever Yorkshire Curd Cheese Cake from scratch. I plan on having a second go at this soon!

In February work progressed in Huddersfield towards opening night, the floor painted, final costume fittings and then the set and lighting added. All while Mick serviced our life jackets and Tilly grew more and more bored of life in the house.

Once the show was opened we had a trip down to London to catch up with the London Leckenbys for a belated Christmas, on our way back we visited Oleanna. When ever we could we visited Blue Water Marina to do jobs and have a pack up lunch. The stove was reblacked, walls washed down and cupboards sorted through.

Then at the end of February, Mick and I left Tilly in charge of the house, we packed enough clothes and food for a couple of days boating and headed to Thorne to move Oleanna through Thorne Lock before a winter stoppage began. Blimey it was chilly out there, but wonderful to be back afloat and moving Oleanna to Goole. Now we were all set to move back onboard and have a few weeks of pootling about in Yorkshire.

Back at the house we made it ready for the first of this years lodgers. Our boat Christmas tree was retired into the back garden where we hoped it would thrive, this of course was before we knew a drought was on it’s way! Tilly said goodbye to the dragon that lives up the chimney, left Seville and Valencia to look after the house before having to endure the car trip back to boat life.

After a few days sorting ourselves, including having one of Joan’s gluten free Chinese takeaways, we unplugged Oleanna and backed out from our mooring at Goole Marina (Boat House). We spent the next three weeks bobbing about between Pollington Lock, Doncaster and Goole. Maintenance jobs were ticked off the list.

Alistair did engine and weedhatch jobs, Frank joined us a couple of times to do carpentry jobs, our galley drawers no longer have a life of their own, the covers had a good scrub and a spray of Wet and Forget to help them keep clean.

In March I’d set myself a charity challenge, to knit as many pairs of socks in the month as I could. Nine pairs knitted for people in return for sponsorship, I also got a very generous donation of yarn from Lisa on NB Summer Wind.

Our plans had had to change as Thorne Lock still hadn’t closed, but was about to! Plans to visit York and West Yorkshire were abandoned, we’d bought ourselves a Gold Licence for the year so wanted to make the most of it. So on March 24th with all the jobs done we turned our backs on Goole and set off into the sunset to see where 2022 would take us, all three of us grinning from ear to ear.

We made our way to Keadby ready for our booked passage on the tidal River Trent, the fast route south. A phone call from a boating friend in need of support meant we’d be doing our best to make use of the spring tide to reach Cromwell in one go despite the weather forecast. We spent a couple of days doing what we could to help in Newark before we needed to be on the move again.

On upstream to The Trent and Mersey keeping up our cruising hours and Tilly hoping we’d stop with enough time for her to explore each day before cat curfew.

Up to Fradley then onto the Coventry Canal, we played leapfrog with NB Free Spirit for a couple of days.

Birmingham and Fazeley Canal, up the Curdworth Flight then a turn left onto a section of the Grand Union we’d not been on before at Star City. Up Garrison Locks, Typhoo Basin and then the Ashted Locks where we now have the measure of that Tunnel! A mooring space at the top of Farmers Bridge had our name on it. This was handy for a road trip to swap lodgers and for visits to the dentist. It also meant we were in shot when a group came to jump the top lock!

Fast forward to 6:15

Our route out of Bumingham saw us through Edgbaston Tunnel, down Lapworth followed by Hatton. A pause was needed for Tilly’s annual visit to a new vet, the one here the closest to the canal we’ve visited so far, also handy for The Cape of Good Hope!

At Napton we joined the Oxford Canal and headed for Braunston, pausing to stock up on goodies from the butcher. On the Grand Union we made our way up over the hill and started our descent down The Long Buckby flight back towards tidal waters.

On the 1st of May we turned left at Gayton Junction onto the Northampton Arm dropping down the flight to the River Nene. We’d only been this way once before and that was when we’d just bought Lillian (NB Lillyanne) back in 2014. We bought ourselves a second Abloy key, showed our Gold Licence to the chap at Northampton Marina and started our journey down stream, time to explore.

A decision was made to head down to Peterborough taking note of places we’d want to visit on our return journey. We worked our way through the guillotine locks, many button operated and others with the wheel of cardiovascular overload.

Tilly loved many of the moorings apart from those in Peterborough where crowds surrounded the boat and meant returning from shore leave was impossible for several hours.

In two weeks we reached the end of the river at the Dog in a Doublet Lock. Here the river becomes tidal, we’d save that trip for another time and turned back upstream to head for the Middle Level.

Here we wanted to explore all the drainage channels, but decided we’d do that on our return too. So we took the direct route and crossed the low lying waters in three days arriving at Salters Lode on Mick’s birthday. The levels out on the tidal stretch of the Great Ouse needing to be just right to get through the lock, turn and head upstream to Denver Sluice.

A lovely GOBA mooring was found on the River Wissey and eventually the sun came out for a birthday barbeque, we’d made it to the Great Ouse.

The remainder of May was spent exploring the River Wissey, Ely and The Little Ouse. Brandon Lock sits at the most easterly point on the connected navigable network for boats Oleanna’s size. Sadly a build up of silt stopped us from getting her bow into the lock, but we did get her as far east as was possible, ticking off the fourth point of the compass.

There was a trip to Hull Truck to meet old friends at a gala evening followed by a meet up with Micks family back in the Fens. At the end of the month we got to know Neil the seal at Ten Mile Bank moorings as he basked in the sun and took sunset dips in the river.

The Jubilee was seen in at Denver, we lit our guiding lights as a Lancaster Bomber flew overhead heading to see the Queen. The Relief Channel gave us a good mooring to be able to have a trip away to celebrate Dawn and Lee’s 50th Birthdays in Scarborough, we went as Wallace and Gromit and won an Oscar!

Another visit to Ely to see the Cathedral, Farmers market and meet up with Heather from NB Bleasdale, the first of many this summer. The River Lark was explored, the end of navigation reached with a handy mooring outside a pub.

We headed for the Cam, our paths crossing for the first time with Ken and Sue from NB Cleddau. Then onwards in to Cambridge where we visited colleges, ate chilled medication and had a day trip to Duxford so that Mick could sit in the pilots seat of a Trident 2, a seat his Dad had sat in on many a flight.

Oleanna squeezed along each of the three Lodes, Wicken, Burwell and Reach. Wicken Lode a magical place and a day visit to Anglesey Abbey with it’s wonderful gardens.

Then we headed onto the Old West a river with a very different feel than the Ely Ouse. A pause was needed when we reached Earith for us to have a tour of Heathers new to her boat GT. Once off the tidal water we were on a different Great Ouse again. Here St Ives, St Neots and Hemingford gave us sunsets, D shaped locks, huge meadows and wonderful towns and villages to explore.

As the temperatures started to rise I needed to do some work. Cruising happened in the mornings, my Panto script and sketches were done in the shade of what trees we could find. White sheets were bought and we hoped for a mooring with shade for the really hot days that were to come. Tilly took to lying on the floor and we took to wearing wet t-shirts to help us to keep cool. Thankfully the hot blast only lasted a couple of days then the temperature dropped and we could continue to head upstream.

July 21st we reached the navigable limit of the River Great Ouse, having to reverse some distance to be able to turn round and return to Bedford for the River Festival.

Here we met up with Ken and Sue, Jennie and Chris from NB Tentatrice and Heather again. Plenty of things to see, do and hear. The boat parades, raft races, vintage cars, all sorts kept us busy for the two days.

Now at the end of July we alternated the days between cruising and my work. More beautiful days cruising and more wonderful sunsets, one day off to visit Cambridge for some more chilled medication and to see the Hockney exhibition.

August saw more hot days. Trips to London to celebrate birthdays, panto meetings, catch up with best friends and travellers over from Australia.

On the 15th August we crossed back from Denver Sluice to the Middle Level having really enjoyed our three months on the Great Ouse. Now water levels were a worry along with having enough time to reach Oxford for me to go to work in October. We made the decision to come back and explore the Middle Level another year, maybe we’ll cross The Wash to get there!

By the end of August our progress up stream on the River Nene slowed to a halt. First one lock broke then another two ahead of us. We’d recently been accepted to join the Reflections Flotilla on the Thames to mark the Queens Jubilee in a few weeks time, now that time was ticking away.

When we did get moving again we had to make up our cruising hours. With the news of the passing of the Queen we didn’t know if the flotilla would still be going ahead, we carried on at pace waiting for news. Back up the River Nene, turning onto the Grand Union, working our way southwards. The news came through that the flotilla would go ahead, but now in remembrance of the Queen.

With a couple of days to spare we squeezed into the Eco-Moorings by Islington Tunnel. Two days of catching up with family and more friends over from Australia before we joined boats heading along the Regents Canal towards Limehouse Basin. An afternoon of activity saw numerous narrowboats festooned with white lights.

On the 24th of September the Thames barrier was closed and we all headed out of Limehouse Lock up stream to Chelsea where we clung onto buoys until the early evening when the flotilla started to muster.

Getting on for 150 boats all displaying white lights got into formation and headed down stream. Crowds stood on the illuminated bridges and Tower Bridge opened up in a royal salute as we passed underneath. What a truly amazing day.

Now we had to head towards Banbury, back round the Regents Canal as a leak in the engine bay needed testing on the calm waters of the canal rather than the tideway. By the time we reached Brentford we were confident with Oleanna’s engine again. On the Thames Tilly got a birthday present of a night on a Cliveden Island. Sadly we got an unexpected present on our arrival in Oxford, a second red line on a covid test! Panto painting couldn’t be put off so we made our way gradually up the Oxford Canal keeping our distance from people at locks and taking maximum doses of paracetamol.

A week of painting in Banbury before I moved to Chipping Norton to stack up the hours over the next four weeks getting the 50th anniversary panto ready. Rendez Vousing with Oleanna at weekends in Banbury and Coventry kept me sane. Mick had to single hand across the summit of the Oxford Canal to avoid the first of the winter stoppages.

All three of us were back onboard by mid November, covid free and vaccinated. We took things slowly now, time to rest up, meet friends, gather family and pootle towards Christmas. Our 20th Anniversary was celebrated with a Chinese takeaway at Alvecote Marina, a planned stop which ended up being extended due to plummeting temperatures. The canal froze, there’d be no moving the outside for Tilly!

Temperatures lifted dramatically and the ice just about vanished in a couple of days, we could now be on our way to Christmas. Alrewas was a good place to spend the festive days, a very good butchers and a village with lots of character and humour.

Bookings in the New Year had been made for passage on the tidal River Trent for us to reach Yorkshire, but this would not be. The Trent had risen before Christmas, Cranfleet Flood Gates were shut ahead of us, so no New Year at Hazelford Lock. Instead our alternator played up and we sought out a mooring to hook up to and see in 2023.

This year we’d been wanting to explore again. This year we cruised miles of new water, made new friends, got too hot, got iced in, got stuck, got to be in the first illuminated flotilla on the Thames for 300 years. What a great year it has been.

So our vital statistics for 2022 according to Canalplan are

Total distance is 1249 miles, 6½ furlong and 555 locks . There were 88 moveable bridges of which 29 are usually left open; 156 small aqueducts or underbridges and 18 tunnels, a total of 7 miles 2 ¼ furlongs underground and 8 major aqueducts.

This was made up of 227 miles, 1 1/2 furlongs of narrow canals; 363 miles, 2 furlongs of broad canals; 85 miles, 5 furlongs of commercial waterways; 269 miles, 1 furlong of small rivers; 234 miles, 7 1/4 furlongs of large rivers; 69 miles, 6 furlongs of tidal rivers; 176 narrow locks; 232 broad locks; 54 large locks; 2 locks on major waterways.

731.7 engine hours

1156.1 litres diesel, 5 (although we’ve got 1 empty now) gas bottles (used for central heating as well as cooking), 28.5 litres oil, 3 oil filters, 1 fuel filter, 2 air filters, 1 water pump, 2 new belts, 690kg coal, 1 overnight guest twice, 6 packs Dreamies (not enough!), 56 friends, a record breaking 41 Mrs Tilly stamps of approval (4 in one day!), 15 pairs socks, 2 shows designed, 9 lodgers, 2 lots gluten free puff pastry, 9 supermarket deliveries, 30 boxes of wine delivered, 2 lost unicorns.

Thank you all for joining us on our journey. Wonder where we’ll get to in 2023?

Skin ‘Ed! 2nd January

Shardlow

Tilly came and went most of the day. The sun was out and what a lovely day it would have been to cruise. Instead Mick did a couple of loads of washing, introduced himself and Tilly to our bow neighbours. They have quite a few bird feeders and a dog, so it was good to let them know of Tilly’s existance.

Maybe it was the cat nip Dreamies or maybe its the two donkeys in the field next to our moorings, but Tilly rarely ventured further than the gunnel and the hatch. Any suggestion that it might be open was used. Dreamies are rationed now to one each time she comes home! She comes home frequently!!

Mick’s hair was over his ears, time for a trim. A stool was taken outside and the clippers came out. Grade 3 all over and no need to sweep up. Just a shame it’s a little bit early for the birds to collect the hair to line their nests. I always think Mick looks a little younger after a hair cut, even if he turns into a Skin ‘Ed.

Catching up with friends always happens at this time of year. As yesterday had been my college friend Kathy’s birthday it was way past time to have a good chin wag. Good phone signal required being outside so I took my coat with me and stood on the stern. We really did have a lot to catch up on, Kathy has moved back onto her boat on the Thames by Tower Bridge for a while. A shame she hadn’t been there for the flotilla, although I suspect it was a very noisy evening.

I heard about the next Society of British Theatre Designers exhibition, which this year Kathy is curating. There will be 13 regional exhibitions, instead of the usual one, under the collective title ‘Hello Stranger’. The exhibition happens every four years and is normally filled with costumes, model boxes from designers and students. Many of the models are remade specifically to be exhibited costing people a lot of money. This year the designers are being encouraged to only use what already exists for display and there will be more workshops and conversations than before. The work on display will chart what has happened in the performance design world over the last four years, how the pandemic changed the way designers worked and what they produced. Hopefully we’ll be near one of the exhibitions to be able to visit.

After an hour and a half it was time to warm up again in front of the stove. That is when I realised I should have called Kathy via Whatsap. Numpty! But then I’d have missed the mist collecting in the field opposite and Tilly exploring the roof of the boat at our stern!! Rule 4, NO going on other boats! Being flouted in front of my eyes.

My #unit21 knitting came out. Time to stuff the head of the rabbit. Sew on some features and it’s ears. I still need to knit the second leg and both arms. I just hope it’s big enough, otherwise there will be some doubling up of yarn and bigger needles needed.

By the time we went to bed the River Trent had managed to drop by 11cm. There’s still a long way to go and more rain forecast.

0 locks, 0 miles, grade 3, 1st ever Tilly return to the boat using Dreamies packet rustle, 90 minutes catch up, 1 very chilly arm and shoulder, 2 ears, 1 nose, 2 french knot eyes, 1 stuffed head, 11cm.

Narrowboat Oleanna

Travels of Narrowboat Oleanna