NB Billy had booked the mooring here for a couple of nights so it was time for them to move onwards to their next booked mooring in Paddington Basin. Shortly before midday they walked down to check it was available. There was plenty of space waiting for them so they moved down.
Bye Bye Clare and Pete
Saturdays are busy round here. The popular Go Boats are constantly coming and going from Paddington Basin. Paddle boaders, canoists, then boats looking for a mooring. Add to that the trip and restaurant boats. Billy joined the masses going through the bridge.
Slotting in down the arm
Their space only remained empty for about 5 minutes, another boat pulling in who’d tried to book a mooring here but hadn’t succeeded. They stopped for a couple of hours for lunch, then pushed off again. An hour later our new neighbours arrived, so thankfully nobody was already on their mooring.
You shouldn’t be there!
Today I had set aside for work. Costume designs to finish off for #unit 21, a budget breakdown, an updated storyboard of the coloured model for panto, alterations to the props list and a gentle nudge to the director as there is a props maker chomping at the bit to make a start on things over the summer.
Costumes
Mick headed off to stock up on supplies and furnish himself with a new polo top or two, most of his tops are starting to disintegrate so need replacing. This meant that Tilly and I could take over much of the boat. Drawing board out, printer scanner, bits of model, laptop etc.
Cosy with the Scouts
As I worked away a Scout narrowboat arrived wanting to moor on the Community Boat mooring in front of us. This should have been easy, but there was already a boat tied to the rings. They tapped on the roof of the boat, but no-one was home. So they breasted up alongside us whilst they made space for themselves.
Boats everywhere!
The community mooring must be quite long as the Scouts managed to pull the other boat to one end and get themselves moored up in front of us. The restaurant boat however wasn’t too pleased as they wind and then reverse down the arm to their mooring and the other boat was just in the way for where they wanted to put their stern.
How many neighbours in one day?!
Mick returned with some sad gits Cajun chicken from Waitrose for our evening meal meaning I had longer to work. Sadly not quite long enough there is still a list of things I need to do before work can sit on the back burner for a while. The budget for #unit 21 is extreamly tight and spending £350 on two large sheets of perspex to make a lift is simply too much, I may have to use Twinwall instead which comes in at a quarter of the price and hopefully will still back light once painted to create nice shadows.
0 locks, 0 miles, 5 neighbours in 1 day, 34 Go Boats, 5 paddleboards, 2 canoes, 9 costumes designed, 1/7 on Perspex! 1 storyboard, 1 props list, 1 gentle nudge, 2 sad gits chicken breasts, 1 boat in the way, 4 old scouts, 1 new top.
A chilly start but there was some sun about every now and again.
Just not quite far enough
With not quite being fully into the bank it was hard for me to give the bow a big enough push off to get past the widebeam in front without leaving my legs behind! A blast of bow thruster assisted and we were soon on our way.
At the Cassiobury Park Locks we met a boat coming up them. The chap was on quite a mission aiming for Lichfield as quickly as he could. His estimates were Braunston in two or three days then another couple up to Lichfield! Not sure if he’ll be getting any sleep, slowing for moored boats or closing locks after himself to achieve those times especially as he was single handing! Good luck to him and I hope his family problems get sorted.
Well trodden paths
We took our time going down, leaving the bottom lock empty, well it half empties all by itself anyway. At Iron Bridge Lock we swapped over with an Aqua narrowboat who were pleased to see another moving boat, down here there appear to be few of us. Here the wooded sections of Cassiobury Park show signs of hefty use. By the little weir there is little if any friendly cover left the paths having been widened by many feet over the last year.
Then as we made our way past the lines of boats below the locks we could see numerous seating areas in the woods, all circled around burnt out camp fires. A nice spot to have been locked down in maybe, well until someone decides to do a touch of engine maintenance, leaving it in the middle of the towpath for everyone to wonder how long it will stay there without a vessel to call home! Lack of respect for nature.
Tube
Approaching Cassio Bridge Lock we got to see our first tube train on the bridge high above. We’re still quite a long way out but dropping down this lock does feel like we are crossing a line in towards London.
Maybe these were meant for the monkey later in the day
For some reason bananas sat on the lock beam, were they there for anyone to take? Or just sat out hoping for sunshine to ripen them from their green state?
We pulled onto the diesel point at Bridgewater Basin as we’d spied a full cage of gas bottles. Would they be full or empty though? Oleanna carries three 13kg bottles. We’d replaced one in Goole, another we knew was full but the third one had leaked somewhat after our boat safety, so we had no idea how much remained in that bottle. Since being back on board we’d used a full one and the dubious one ran out a couple of days ago. We’ve been hearing of LPG shortages around the system, it’s thought that staycations, people caravanning etc has meant there is a shortage of bottles to refill. Luckily for us the chap here said he had plenty and at £38.50 they seemed reasonable, as up ahead they were quoting over £40. Diesel here was 84p, shame it wasn’t the price painted onto the board originally 48p! We’ll hold out for Uxbridge though.
Common Moor Lock had just brought a wide beam up, the chap apologised to us for there being two widebeams breasted up towards the lock. There was plenty of width here, but as they were the last boats before the lock landing it made pulling in very awkward indeed. The outer boat brand new, the spray foam insulation visible through the windows, well you’ve got to have a nosy especially when someone is in the way!
Two narrowboats were rising slowly in the lock, two young couples taking their boats up to Tring for the week. One of their dogs really wasn’t enjoying the experience so they were hoping someone would take it off their hands so they could have a peaceful week.
Underlined
Now we got chance to look and see what damage had been done below the last lock where we passed numerous moored boats, which pushed our line of travel over towards numerous branches sticking out into the canal. Mick got Oleanna just a touch too close to them and sadly this now means we have a scratched line all the way down the port side. ‘Well it’s about time someone gave her a good polish!’ I said to Mick. He knew what I was meaning, but I also know who will end up trying to do something about it!
Above Lot Mead Lock several chaps were fishing another crossed the lock gates just before we arrived. He brought out his phone and started to film us , doing close ups of the paddle gear, then long shots of Oleanna entering the lock all the time he was talking, not sure if this was as a running commentary to a friend on the other end of the phone or just to accompany the filming. He didn’t say anything to us, maybe because his first language wasn’t English, but he helped close the offside gate getting a thumbs up from Mick.
Filming on his phone
Living on a narrowboat you get used to having your photo taken, you are asked questions, you are a tourist attraction whether you like it or not and if you choose to be polite you help promote the waterways. But sometimes, just sometimes someone crosses over the line. This was one of those occasions.
More gongoozlers
Mick went to close the paddles on the offside, I was trying to take a photo of the cuddly toys all gongoozling through a window at the lock cottage. Then I heard Mick with raised voice shouting at the chap, who was stepping onto Oleanna! ‘You don’t walk on anyone’s boat!’ He stepped off and carried on filming, we’re not sure if he understood he’d pissed us off, but he had. Our boat is our home, I’m sure he wouldn’t like us turning up and walking into his hallway! This was the first time I’ve ever not said thank you to someone who helped me with a gate, even if I didn’t want their help.
Sorry house
Onwards to Batchworth Lock, the house here had been for sale a while ago and we wondered if any improvements had been made to it. Sadly it doesn’t seem so, dead hanging baskets curtains pinned across the windows, it all felt really quite sad. It’s not the most attractive house and left to decay it is even less so.
More troublesome swans
We worked our way down through the lock, then managed to persuade the local swans not to stay in the lock so I could close the gates. No need to stop at Tescos today so we carried on to Stokers Lock.
Stokers Lock
As we cruised the next pound we waited to see if he was still there, the monkey who’s been clinging on for years to a ruin of a building.
That really must hurt
He was, his arm must ache so much after all this time! But at the other end of the building there was someone new. Hanging high above the cut was a bear in a superman costume, sat in a canoe, fishing for hearts. How do people get these things in such places, these bears and monkeys are way up high?
Superbear
We made our way down to near to Black Jack’s Lock where there was plenty of space for us. We pulled in and let Tilly off to explore, not seeing her for quite a few hours, I think she found quite a bit to be busy with!
Fishing for hearts
The afternoon turned quite frustrating as I tried to place an order for overalls. Sadly despite Amazon saying the smallest size would be delivered in 2 to 3 days they were lying! The delivery date was going to be at least a week after I needed them. I spent too much time hunting round the internet for somewhere else, but in the end I’ve opted to do more sewing and bought the next size up.
Ordering our shopping online meant someone else got the pleasure of walking round the store in the early hours of the morning saving us time. However there were certain items not available for Click and Collect, the right sized bin bags and odour control cat litter! Our experience whilst in the house is that for some reason some things don’t show online, but are actually in the shops. So after breakfast we both headed over to Sainsburys, Mick headed to the Click and Collect area whilst I went into the store finding the items we were missing. Thankfully they had the cat litter, bags and some highlighter pens I was after to finish my #unit 21 costume designs. Sadly our trolley wheel locked as we left the car park, so we weren’t able to get it back to the boat as we’ve done before, good job it wasn’t too far to carry everything.
When everything was stowed we put on our waterproofs as today we would be cruising in rain no matter what. At Apsley Bottom Lock a chap was walking round taking notes and photos of the paddle gear. His behaviour was that of someone who worked for C&RT, but nothing else suggested that, no logo or life jacket. Maybe he was going to complain to C&RT about the poor state of the lock. He’d be right as both top ground paddles are only just holding it together with metal ties through them and at some point some expanding foam has been added to the post, all quite rotten.
Obligatory photo. Which arch?
NB Candi had headed off before us so we were on our own today. Woody’s Vegetarian Café is for sale, we bobbed under the left hand arch of bridge 154 and didn’t spot any Kingfishers as we made our way to Nash Mills Lock and the water point there. We topped up the tank whilst the washing machine cleaned a load of clothes and then started to fill the lock, with only one paddle actually there (the other two missing) it took forever to fill.
The mile long pound between Red Lion Lock and Kings Langley Lock gave us a rare opportunity to come out of tick over as at last there were lengths with no moored boats. But what had replaced them was school kids, not a hand full, but what felt like thousands of them. It looked like the whole school was out on a walk. Some kids said it was six miles, others said they’d already done six miles and still they kept coming.
Hundreds and thousands of kids
At the road bridge below Kings Langley Lock the towpath changes sides and so did the kids. A chap came up in the lock, going in the same direction as the wave of youth, he’d been asked numerous times if he could give them a lift, Mick was almost gloating that we were going in the wrong direction for them.
A new coat of paint
The Cottage alongside Home Park Lock has just sold, it’s had a new lick of paint and looks very neat and tidy LINK.
This was where the school kids were crossing over the canal and joining the towpath. Most just followed the flow, we got a surprising number of waves and comments about how nice Oleanna looked. Then once we dipped under Bridge 159 the world quietened down again, well until the M25 came closer!
Most of the scaffolding has gone from the viaduct, but there is still plenty about. The underside of the concrete looks to have been painted if nothing else. Now we were within the M25, not much further until we reach our destination.
Us within the M25
Due to the rain, Mick had been trying out some protection for the phone we run Waterway Routes on. Quite a good idea, except the whiteness of the tupperware restricted the view of the screen somewhat, if you could see where it was at all! We’ll have a better hunt through the cupboards for something hopefully clearer.
A boat was coming up the top lock at Hunton Bridge, everyone a little bit damp to be overly chatty. This lock always reminds me of my friend David who passed away some years ago. The arched trellis on the cottage walls is the same as I made for an opera he was overall designer for at Stowe in my secondment year from college.
Hello David
After we’d passed down Lady Capel’s Lock 74 we were starting to have had enough of being damp. Our aim had been to drop down the two Cassiobury Park Locks and find a space there, but when a gap just Oleanna’s size showed itself in front of the golf course at Grove Park we decided to pull in early. We’d been aiming for trees and here certainly had plenty, but none overhanging our mooring which was a bonus.
Lady Capel’s Bridge
At first Tilly had second thoughts about heading off to explore, but that soon went and she was off in the friendly cover and climbing trees under their shelter. She did however come back in time to help me inspect and measure the overalls I’d got the other day. With enough information now I can order the right sizes, along with a few the next size up just in case.
By the time we’d eaten our stuffed peppers it was time to join a zoom meeting on hot composting, held by the Composting Toilets group on facebook. A very interesting hour and a half talking about polystyrene versus polypropylene boxes, Audrey’s, thermometers, bark, cardboard and the virtues of adding nettles.
Hunton Bridge Lock cottage on the off side
9 locks, 4.5 miles, 1 damp day, 2 boats passed, 45723 school kids, well maybe that’s a slight exaggeration,M25, 1 nod to DIT, 60ft, 4!3 months rather than 12.
A boat came past as we were finishing breakfast, no point in rushing to get ready to join them as it would take at least quarter of an hour to get ourselves sorted. So about half an hour later we pushed off, light weight rainy clothes required as the air was full of drizzle.
The bridges in Berko have had a make over, paint and statistics to brighten a grey gloomy day. As we came towards Ravens Lane Lock we were admiring the hanging baskets on the interesting house with coloured bottles in it’s windows, I’d love to see inside one day, a lady walked out onto her balcony.
I now want to know even more bout the lady who lives here
We made a comment about her hanging baskets, not in bloom yet but so many they will be spectacular when they are. The lady then asked if our boat was named after the play. Well, Oleanna is and the lady was correct, the first person ever to make the connection. There was just time to chat a little, we both agreed that Oleanna (by David Mamet) is an extreamly good play, my favourite and that it was about time it was put on in the West End. I vote for Malcolm Hebden to direct it as the production I saw in Scarborough in 1995 is most certainly the best I’ve seen.
We descended four more locks on our own, at Sewer Lock we just about caught up with the narrowboat in front of us, they had been slowed by a widebeam that was weaving across the navigation. We did catch up with them at the next lock and then shared the rest of the days locks.
The Hemel Crew
Stood at Winkwell Swing Bridge was my old college friend Jen who lives in Hemel Hempstead. Two years ago she joined us for a few hours of boating, last night she’d noticed on Social Media that we were near and had volunteered to come and join us again.
Jen winding a windlass again
Using the key of power I got the bridge moving quickly, only holding up a few cars, one of which disappeared whilst I was chatting away to Jen. Both boats came through, there was just enough time to pop Jen’s bike on Oleanna before it was our turn to work down Winkwell Bottom Lock. The widebeam thankfully had reached it’s destination at the marina below so the way ahead was clear.
Nearly there
We worked down the next five locks with NB Candi or is it NB CandI? Jen soon remembered what to do at the locks and we chatted away the hours until we reached the 24hr mooring by Sainsburys. Here we moored up, enough space for both boats, then had a very late lunch.
It was so lovely to see Jen and have a catch up. She’d decided to take a sabbatical from working at the National Theatre in January last year to do some scenic art tutoring amongst other things. This of course didn’t go too well and meant that when all the staff were furloughed from the theatre she missed out. So when October came along and there were shows that needed painting again Jen went back to working three days a week on the South Bank. Lockdown had been hard for her and her family, her son very much missing out on the social interaction with his friends at school.
We all had a lovely afternoon and if only she’d work for free and come and help me paint panto that would be wonderful. The thought of a weeks painting in Cornwall in a workshop with fresh Cornish Pasties being made next door nearly swung it.
By the time we said our goodbyes it was too late to do a big shop at Sainsburys. So instead we did ourselves a Click and Collect for the morning, which would only delay our departure by a little bit.
Last lock of the day
Because our mooring is right by an access road into the retail units for wagons we don’t allow Tilly out here, much to her distain. How ridiculous! Then She gets all annoyed with me for something that She hadn’t done. In fact dear readers I got shouted at! I’d been trying to tell her that my pooh box needed refreshing, but She’d been distracted all day long. So she didn’t take too kindly to my making use of the fresh litter whilst it was still in it’s bag!
Please let this be finished
14 locks, 8 shared, 5.1 miles, 1 swing bridge, 4 held up, 1st person to make the connection, 1 extra crew member, 4 hours of constant chattering, 1 hunt for eco glitter, 1 click and collect sorted, 1 protest wee, 1 hour cleaning the bathroom! 50 panto model photos, 1 email sent, 0 regrets, 1 fish, 1 obligatory photo.
With the possibility of more rain today we popped on our waterproofs, trousers at hand should the need arise. The going was slow back along the arm and just when we’d given up hope of company from our fishing friend it reappeared.
Tern
Another 50 odd photos trying to get one really good one, but terns swoop and dip and dive so quickly it was really hard to keep up with it. One failed dive brought a loud skwark! Bit a few moments later the dip into the water was far more fruitful as it came back out with it’s mouth full of silver fish. This morning we’d seen a much bigger fish swimming past the moored boats, getting on for 18inches long, too much of a mouthful for a tern.
This is the towpath side
Newish signs warn of a submerged ledge. The one on the way out doesn’t give any indication of where the shelf might be, at least the one on the way back does mention the offside!
I walked up to the bow to act as look out at Bulbourne Junction, nobody coming so we could swing out and return to our route southwards a couple of groups of trainee canoeists slowing our progress.
The development at Bulbourne Wharf has come on in the last couple of years. A new house stands elevated at the end of the plot followed by the old warehouse and workshop buildings all now with new upvc windows that mimic the original metal frames. A block of new builds stands at the back of the plot, still some way to go before they are inhabitable.
The road and towpath are closed by Bulbourne Bridge 133, a new footbridge is being built alongside the road bridge. The bank is being reinforced and so is the edge of the road, a diversion whilst the work is ongoing is through the pub garden.
Trees!
As we made our way along the tree filled cutting to Cowroast we joined the weekly Geraghty Zoom. Birthday cakes, armless tennis players and flamingos were todays topics, hope Penelope’s 2nd Birthday party went well.
Life raft
At Cowroast we took advantage of the towpath being on the portside and emptied the yellow water for disposal at the elsan. Another boat had just finished filling with water so we could share the lock. The chap was a single hander who’s knees had known better days so he preferred to pull his boat out of the locks rather than climb back down.
Cowroast
We shared Cowroast and the two Dudswell Locks with him, he was gradually making his way to Berko in time to see the two Mikron shows in a few weeks time at the Rising Sun. So he would pull up somewhere in the pound to Northchurch Lock. He must have found space as we took our time setting the lock and he didn’t show.
All locks so far down from the summit are to be left empty, whether this is to stop water leaking through the walls into nearby properties, or the top gates seal better than the bottom ones who knows, but it does mean that the locks are set against you, all requiring to be filled.
Look how clear that water is
A pump pumped out clean clean water just above the lock, here the greenery on the canal bottom could be seen clearly. As we set the lock Mum and Dad brought their teenage offspring over to say hello, eight cygnets all now with necks long enough to feed from well below the waters surface.
They then stopped pulling at the weed and sat waiting patiently for the gates to open. Oh blimey, they were here for a free ride down the lock! Mick tried throwing fake bread which distracted them towards the stern of Oleanna. I opened the gate, hoping we’d managed to get them far enough away, but no such luck they easily beat Oleanna into the lock. Thankfully the locks are long enough to accommodate ten swans and a narrowboat!
The gate was closed behind everyone and I slowly opened the bottom gate paddles, taking our time keeping everyone safe. Our passengers became impatient as the last foot of water dropped. As soon as the gate opened they were straight out, a quick head count, ten, all were accounted for before I let the gate go into the recess. Swan noises came from below, were they ‘Thank you‘ s or ‘About Bloomin time!’ ?
Guard Dragon
The house with the garden gate made of branches has a friendly dragon keeping an eye on the towpath and a bunny sits high up for safety.
With all the locks being left empty it means paddles are left up at the bottom end which need closing before you can start to fill a lock. At the two Gas Locks they were both empty, I could see people at the second one so I pushed the bottom gate open at our lock and let Mick know a boat was coming up. I then walked down to see if I could lend a hand.
Bow hauling into the lock
A cruiser was being pulled into the lock, the chamber was then filled as the lightweight boat bobbed about. The chap then started to pull the boat out from the lock. ‘You’ve got a quiet engine there’, a comment we quite often receive, but this chaps engine was so quiet, it was absent and currently in Rickmansworth being mended. So he was bow hauling his boat up the two locks to the next mooring, to get away from the park and most probably make his 14 day move. He said he’d be back for his other boat a 70fter he’d just bought, also without an engine!
In the top lock, cruiser being pulled along the side of a widebeam
At the second lock there was extra crew, a young lad eager to help open gates. We all let him push the gate on his own, the other being opened by two, blimey he was strong and beat the others to have his gate fully open.
Our turn now, Mick moved Oleanna out of the way for the chap to pull the cruiser out of the lock. As we started our descent the chap could be seen walking along peoples gunnels pulling his boat to get to the next available space.
A narrowed bridge hole
Footbridge 140A is covered in scaffolding. The towpath has been built out over the canal using temporary pontoon sections. The astro turf on the surface squelched as I walked on it after yesterdays rain. There was plenty of space on the 4hr shopping mooring, so we made use of it for lunch and a top up shop from Waitrose. We managed to time our visit well to coincide with the next round of reductions of the ‘Sad Git’ items. When we were in Newark one winter we got to know the best time to shop at Waitrose and ended up having bargain shops along with free newspapers quite frequently.
This must be the chaps
There was a space towards the next lock, so we pushed off and claimed our space. This end of the moorings has less footfall and is sheltered somewhat from the trains whizzing through Berko station.
new 70fter!
Tilly headed out to explore the narrow strip of friendly cover, although the local birdies weren’t too impressed with her presence! She spent most of her time sitting on the stern watching the world go by. That was until we heard a lot of SHOUTING from a lady who obviously had a dog. The dog had spotted Tilly and thought she looked tasty! Tilly started to puff herself up to be threatening back. But that SHOUTING She kept SHOUTING and SCREAMING at her woofer, so noisy! I decided to protect my precious hearing and retire inside at speed. One needs to keep one’s hearing in good order for hearing friends in the friendly cover.
Propy bits for the model
7 locks, 7.01 miles, 1 tern turning, 1 empty wee tank, 1 Mikron fan, 11 in a lock, 2 engineless boats, 1 handy pole, 4hr shopping spot, 2 wrens, 1 big ginger disobedient woofer, 1 very loud She, 2 hours model making the last bits, I hope.
We’d had intentions to move today, not far but at least across the summit pound to Cowroast. However when we woke and checked the forecast we decided that we’d rather not get totally and utterly soaked. There wasn’t even a window in the rainfall that we could see, so instead we decided to stay put for the day.
Mid June!
The temperature had dropped overnight, at first this was a lovely relief as it had become so muggy. Long trousers were needed followed by jumpers, in fact by the afternoon Mick had lit the stove to drive off the chill that torrential rain brings.
Mick did us a small cooked breakfast with what was to hand. The last two eggs were poached in our poach pods, a little bit of rapeseed oil in them to stop the eggs from sticking. Mushrooms, tomatoes, my last slice of Gf bread from the freezer. I also insisted on hash browns, just because Karen had asked about them the other day.
Eggs, mushrooms, tomatoes and hash brown
Hash Browns for 2
Wash a medium sized potato, don’t bother peeling it but grate it into a t-towel using the big holes on your grater. Grate about a third of a small onion (if you are called Joa you should omit the onion) into the t-towel too. Wring out as much moisture as you can. Add about a third of a beaten egg, just enough to help things stick together without getting too eggy. A good grind of salt and pepper. Mix well, then cook in a frying pan with a little rapeseed oil (other oils are available). Mick tends to make one big cake cooking it for about 7 mins on each side so that it has a good colour to it and is cooked through. Then it is my job to eat it. Yum.
Make it stop
Tilly was given 9.5 hours, but she wasn’t interested, I think all day she only just managed to step off the boat for a couple of minutes. But she did sit out the back under the shelter of the pram cover watching the steam rising off the canal. In Scarborough we’d call this Fret. The canal has obviously warmed up and the drop in temperature made it steam all day long. It’s the kind of steam you can put your hand out and touch.
Frey drifting by
The other day I’d had a modified idea for the Town Square for panto, today I was determined to see if it was a good idea and bring a touch more green into the opening scene. I liked the shape of the buildings and know that the build will have been priced up on the drawings I’ve already submitted, so I did my best to keep the existing shapes, changing the roof for foliage and the timber into plant stems giving them a touch more of an organic feel. Tomorrow I’ll put them in the model box with everything else to see if they work, but I’m liking the look of them so far.
Mick sat listening to the Women’s Test Match for much of the morning until rain stopped play. He should really have been out with the soft brush giving the cabin sides a good clean down. The port side will have had an extra rinse today. I suspect that the starboard side will now look even worse than it did before despite the almost continuous downpours all day.
Maybe it’s a bit better now
In the C&RT update email this evening they have covered the stoppages around Selby. Tankards Bridge on the Selby Canal is still closed to boats over 7ft high, a road closure will be needed for them to mend the bridge and as yet the Council has not granted one due to work on going on the A19 nearby and the road being used as an alternative root.
Then there is Selby Swing Bridge. From the update it still looks like C&RT are seeking a road closure here too after an over weight lorry crossed the bridge doing no good to the bearings. There may be more news locally from Nigel the Lock Keeper.
With regard to the Aire and Calder breach, there wasn’t anything new in the update. However the local MP has been to the site. The second layer of piling is now complete and the area above the drain has recently had new concrete has been added where the wooden shuttering is behind Andrew Percy. Gradually over the next month tests will be done increasing the water level in the cofferdam. Fingers crossed the big hole is now fixed and there are no more set backs. He does also mention the sections of collapsed bank caused by the low water levels since the breach. C&RT have told him they are not immediately serious and will need addressing over the next year or so.
In other news, there is now the second part of Heather’s trip taking her up to Beverley on the Scholar Gypsy blog here’s a LINK
Last of the quiche
0 locks, 0 miles, 1 very wet day, 1 inch extra of water, 1 stove lit, 1 work day, 3 town houses rethought, 2 minutes shore leave taken, 0 quiche left.
Seabrook Lock 35 to Little Tring Winding Hole, Wendover Arm
Back to the alarm being set at the new normal time this morning. As we had breakfast we could hear water cascading over the lock gates this meant a boat was heading down the lock above, brilliant the next two locks would be set for us.
Seabrook Lock 35
Well that’s what we thought the last time we moored here, two years ago when we were waiting to accompany NB Tyseley up to the summit pound! Several boats beat us to the lock that day, but today no one came past. Brilliant.
I walked up to open the gates, hang on! It’s full, very full!?! Nobody had come past us, so how had that happened? Oh well, I emptied the lock and then we brought Oleanna up. Lock 36 was also full. This puzzled us as the lock had remained empty overnight, the only explanation I could think of was that the towpath grass cutters were out, two strimmers and a lawn mower. The grass had been cut on the off side of the second lock, maybe for safety the chaps fill the lock before trimming the grass. It’s not as far to fall when full.
Does all that grass need to be cut?
The large expanse of grass alongside lock 36 was getting a very good trim. I thought the chap would stop once he’d gone behind the bench, then carry on down the towpath to lock 35. New cutting regimes have been put into practice along certain stretches of the canal. Some places now only the towpath, lock and bridge landings and moorings get cut, leaving stretches of wild flowers to grow to their hearts content.
Wading through long damp grass isn’t that pleasant, but surely on such a large expanse by this lock they could have cut by the lock and bench, then a wide strip for the path, leaving the rest to nature. Sadly no, it all had to be cut.
Is that the tip of the cat’s tail or just bird poo?
In the past there have been a couple of boats along here, but today just about every spot was taken. Is this down to more boats on the waterways? More boats having moved out from London over the last 18 months? Who knows but there is a marked increase.
Seabrook Swing Bridge
The swing bridge swung without too much bother, then we dipped under the railway past Pitstone Wharf. Mick had collected together our rubbish on the back deck so I got ready to hop off at the next bridge to dispose of it. We quite often see photos of bins overflowing with rubbish on social media and people complaining about them.
Moutainous
Today we were confronted with not just a mountain of rubbish but a whole mountain range! There was more rubbish on the floor surrounding the bins than they could hold twice over! Don’t people realise that Biffa are very unlikely to empty these bins in this state. Usually this means that a C&RT employee, who could be out working on navigational things, will have to come and remove the excess rubbish. Yes these bins are situated where none boaters can add to the mountain, they most probably do, but there is no need for more to be added to the pile. A tweet with photo was sent to C&RT saying we hoped we’d find emptier bins ahead of us. Later in the day I got a reply saying the local team would deal with it, they also gave me a link to a map showing all their facilities across the network, useful if you don’t have Waterway Routes.
Hello!
We waved to the people who now own the Margees house on the bend and carried on to the two Marsworth Lower Locks. We came up the first one to see a boat entering the lock above, so we opened the gates and waited for them to descend, I walked up to lend a hand as one of the top gates just wants to stay open.
Waiting for the next lock to empty
The chap up the top lifted a paddle and their boat started to descend, their engine wasn’t on and someone was reaching down into the weedhatch. The paddle was closed and we waited for the prop to have been cleared before emptying the lock.
The pretty cottage
By Bridge 130 the bins were in a much better state, so we hovered and disposed of our small mountain of rubbish before stopping at the wharf to top up the water tank and dispose of the yellow water at the elsan.
Left at the junction and we were soon at the bottom of the Marsworth flight. Volunteers were apparently on duty up the locks today, so we’d have help.
Lock 39 the bottom of the flight
No sign of anyone until we were rising in the second lock, I could see blue t-shirts and red life jackets ahead, great they’d set the next lock for us. They waited quite sometime to do this, but eventually the gates opened.
NO blue skies today, just heavy skies
The two chaps were chatty, worked the locks their way one offering to give me a break. I suspect he needed a break more than I did, I wonder how many locks they get to work on their average day?
Lock 42
With walkie talkies you would have thought they would be quite organised, but the conversations just seemed to confuse matters. Should we wait for a boat two locks behind us? One was coming down, would we meet in the next pound, at the next lock? No the lockie above would make the down hill boat wait and empty the full lock in front of him for us. There must have been a reason for this, but none we could think of.
Passing by
A chap above was just starting to fill lock 44, saw us and closed the paddles, we could fill the lock for him. It turns out it was a boat we’d shared some of the Leicester Section locks with a few years ago NB Old Tom North. The volunteers left us to do the top lock on our own and shifted their assistance to the chap heading down the flight.
Lock 45 the top and summit
We’d thought of heading to Cowroast today, still ahead of schedule. But would there be any moorings free. Instead we both had the same idea, we’d turn right and go down the Wendover Arm for the night.
Blimey considering we’d come from the huge expense of the Ouse at Goole we were now finding our way along the narrow shallow channel.
Breath in!
A Sandwich Tern took advantage of us churning the water up.
It’s following us
It followed us closely, hovering by our stern. The when a glint of a possible fish appeared it swooped down to the waters surface.
Has it spied something?
I tried to film it, but it moved far too quickly and my camera had no idea what it should focus on.
DIVE!
Fortunately I did manage to get several photos of it just about in focus.
Back for more
Boats were moored before the bridge and then at the winding hole, but the short straight length of bank was still free. Spikes were hammered into the dried out towpath and Tilly was set free to explore, although she wasn’t too enamoured.Well it was boring the last time you tied this outside up!
An afternoon of making model dressing bits. Working out how to make a wheelbarrow took some doing, a trestle table was much easier although I had to convince it to stay in one piece before I could chat to the Scarborough Chums on zoom.
Better look as though I’m enjoying myself!
In other news, there is now the first part of Heather’s trip to Hull on the Scholar Gypsy blog here’s a LINK
The weather forecast for high temperatures looked more accurate for today. The lead we’d made on our schedule had been slightly eroded so we wanted to move, also the amount of shade wasn’t that good where we had moored.
Dew on the cabin sides, also a few more ants!
The alarm was set for 05:15, yawn o’clock! Cuppas were made, covers rolled back, nappy pins removed from the armco as quietly as we could. The engine turned on at the last minute, we pushed off a little before 06:00, I had a mooring in mind which hopefully would give us some shade.
Oleanna crept slowly past the moored boats. The boatyard on the bend seems to have increased the number of boats out on the hard, whilst others sit in the water having had surveys or waiting for some tlc. One had a very rusty cabin, almost looked like it had suffered a fire yet below the gunnel the blacking was pristine and new anodes sat just above the water.
Cruising on mornings like this is wonderful. It feels like you share the world with nature, enjoying the coolness of the morning, doing our best not to break the quiet too much for those still asleep.
Fullers! We’re about to enter the south
We rounded the bend towards Grove Lock, where the pub is the first sign that we have reached the south. The next sign was that the bottom gates were open. Ah, but hang on was that a boat going into the lock? It was! Well who’d have thought we’d find a locking partner at 6 in the morning!
Grove Lock
Two young chaps were on a Chiltern Hire Boat, they’d left Winkwell on Monday and were due back on Friday. With the weather forecast not so good tomorrow they’d decided to start early this morning. They were both nice chaps, plenty to chat about, except one of them said he was a touch deaf, so couldn’t hear a word I was saying. They both made up for his deafness by shouting to each other, jumping around which always makes you a touch nervous at big locks, one wrong footing!
Look at that sky!
It sounded like they had moored above the lock last night, then come down to wind. They had both christened themselves by falling in, one of them twice! Mick and I kept an extra eye out for paddles not closed properly, our ascent went well.
The pound between Grove and Church Lock looked quite down, an obvious wet line suggesting this had happened fairly recently. A wide beam sat very jauntily on the bottom and as we approached Church Lock Oleanna skidded over the bottom whilst we were still quite central, thankfully the depth increased so I could step off at the stern.
Maybe not the best place to be as the lock empties
Up at lock level I could see it was full so lifted a paddle. Below at canal level Mick thought it was empty, so had brought Oleanna in towards the gates. Ah those pesky none leaky gates! So deceiving! Oleanna buffeted around below.
Hire boat sorting out their sounds
I was glad of assistance in closing the gates, from memory they want to swing back open. Apologies now to the residents around Church Lock as our partners on leaving turned their music up to a level that suited their sound system!
That’s more like it
We lead the way, managing to return some idyllicness (yes I know it’s not really a word, but you hopefully get what I mean) to our morning. Slapton Lock sat empty, so was easy to set for both boats. Sounds were turned down as the hire boat came into the lock alongside Oleanna, one chap jumping off, thankfully making land, the other bobbing inside to finish making their tea.
That awning needs some attention
I waited for him to return, through the side hatch and along the gunnels, their preferred route. Then the paddles could be wound up, only for him to walk back down between the boats to get the tea which had now brewed. Mick kept an eye on things in the lock, whilst I watched from above. Two mugs of tea came out, one in each hand and he walked down between the boats once again, not batting an eyelid!
Another boat on the move
Up ahead a boat was pulling out. Should we swap partners and go ahead, or should we let the lads overtake us as they were on a mission. The lady tied up below Horton Lock, walked up to where the lock was just being emptied then came back to ask if we’d like to share. She was a single hander, so we decided to partner up with her and leave the lads behind. This was conveyed back to them, they were quite happy with the thought of maybe a twenty minute wait, time for breakfast. The deaf chap started cutting up a big mushroom with an even bigger knife whilst balancing in the side hatch.
Our world became peaceful once more, as we worked our way up with the lady on NB Angelwood, sadly we never got her name. She has been living on board for about three weeks and has had a steep learning curve. Her boat was bought in Gloucester and she’d employed a boat mover to get it to Warwick. She joined for the last day of the move and helped work her boat through Lapworth and Hatton, so a full on first ever day on a narrowboat.
The lock cottages shone out in the morning sunshine, bright blue skies behind them, all boasting their dates above the front doors. Off in the distance we looked for the white lion but as so often heading south we couldn’t see it, it was of course really quite hazy this morning. I bet when we come back it will be so obvious!
Shame about the pylon
We worked our way up the next three locks with NB Angelwood then hoped we’d find a shady spot. But sure enough there was no shade so we climbed up Seabrook Bottom Lock too. Now we just had to hope that the mooring we had in mind would be free. Round the bend boats were moored, one with a rather good improvised canopy at the stern. They had pegged a sheet over the top of their whirligig, making a big parasol.
Time to lend a hand
Fingers crossed our space would be free. There it was empty apart from shadows. We pulled in to stake our claim. Mick finished mooring Oleanna up as I went up to help at the lock. Our paths may cross again with NB Angelwood as we are generally heading in the same direction.
Time for breakfast, it was only 10am. Cereal wasn’t quite going to make up for such an early start so I requested some toast and peanut butter for second course.
Peanut butter
Today the temperature did do as promised. Our shady mooring did it’s job all day apart from a couple of hours when the sun managed to align itself directly over the cut.
The afternoon was filled with work for me. Adding extra greenery to my panto model, then removing some of it. Painting a new backcloth. I’d opted for just a plain one this year, but it was leaving things a touch flat, so some colour washes to match the front cloth were applied to some water colour paper. That did the job , but then needed blending in to the floor. I just hope we can afford to have it printed along with the front cloth. I could paint it, but it would never quite match, plus it would be another thing for me to paint!
Mum and teenagers adamant to be in the lock
Mick pottered and Tilly kept herself busy outside for most of the afternoon, returning for the occasional drink. I suggested she should try out the pet cooling mat I’d bought for her a few months ago. Sadly she wasn’t taken with it, Mick thinks it’s the fabric that she’s not keen on, a bit like lying in a bed with a plastic sheet over the mattress.
Beautiful roses
7 locks, 5.1 miles, 6am start, 2 locking partners, 1 noisy boat, 1 quiet, 3 of them things, 1 lovely morning, 10am breakfast, 1 work day, 1 hot day, 2 dates in the diary, 7pm showers, 9 hours! 2 Mrs Tilly stamps.
Mill Lane Bridge 102 to Tiddenlake Footbridge 115C
Stoke Hammond
Alarm set again today, not a too early start, just one to get us going, we pushed off about 8:40 soon arriving at the double arched bridge of Stoke Hammond Lock.
Coming up
This is the proper start of the climb up to the summit pound of the Grand Union, the lock at Fenny Stratford doesn’t really count in my mind.
Pretty
From here locks are accompanied by lock cottages and quite often a pumping station. Stoke Hammond has both along with a rather wonderful dog rose bush which has a white clematis growing through it.
Soulbury Three
Another mile on and we reached the Soulbury Three. We pulled in below to fill the water tank whilst waiting to see if anyone else was on the move in our direction so that we could share the locks. But nobody showed themselves. A volunteer came down and asked if we were heading up, which we were, so he set the first lock for us and helped on our ascent.
In the middle lock
Ground paddle same side, gate paddle opposite, ground paddle opposite then gate paddle same side. This works well to keep your boat into the side if you are on your own on this stretch of the Grand Union.
Top lock
We were the first boat of the day through the locks, above someone arrived and then a while later just as we finished someone pulled up below, we had a straight run up and then meandered around the bends which lead to Leighton Buzzard.
The globe all rickety and inviting
The Globe Inn was getting itself ready for lunchtime trade, looks like they’ve invested in more picnic benches since we saw Alarum perform in the garden. Back then the tables gradually sank into the earth as it was so sodden.
Leighton Lock
Up Leighton Lock where there is always a Mum with a pushchair watching. Ten boats were in at Wyvern Hire Base, they all looked like they were being turned around for the next lot of holiday makers who would arrive later in the day.
A space was available at the 2hour Tesco mooring, so we slotted in there, wrote a list and went shopping. We’d considered doing a click and collect as the collection point is just on the other side of the hedge from the moorings, but we only needed a few bits so it hadn’t been worth it.
A quick visit to Homebase for a trough for the wild strawberries which are coming on a treat. I suspect the crop from them will only add flavour to our cereal in the mornings, but that’s fine.
More lovely gardens
By now my Amazon order was out for delivery, we had lunch and hoped it would arrive at the Post Office before we had to move on, no such luck though! We pootled out of town in the hope of a shady mooring, the towpath was pretty full most of the way along, but we found one space that would do.
As we tied up I got notification that there were 8 stops before my order would be dropped off. I’d just gathered myself together to walk back into town when my phone rang. It was the delivery driver saying he was at the Post Office and he couldn’t drop the parcels off with them. But it was a Local Collect address on their website! If he couldn’t deliver them there for me to collect, what would happen?
He went back inside to try again, still they refused! By now I was already walking in towards town, I asked where his next drop off would be, not that I know Leighton Buzzard but maybe I’d be able to find him somewhere. In the end he said he’d come back to the Post Office in twenty minutes by which time I hoped I’d be standing there with my bright yellow Sainsburys bags.
Leighton Buzzard Market
Twenty minutes had been a guess on my part so I picked my speed up, I wanted my orders and didn’t want to hold the driver up too much. I got there with a couple of minutes to spare and soon a van arrived the chap pulling up next to me to hand over my orders. The boxes were huge for the contents and biffed and broken. I checked everything was there, they were then thanked the chap for being so helpful.
The big box was stupid, so I unpacked it on the street decanting the contents into my smaller bags, a bottle of booze a present for my brother was also checked over, still in tact. Phew!
Some highlighter pens were on my shopping list but when I reached WHSmith I discovered I’d come out without a mask. My costume designs will have to wait a while longer before I can finish them. I walked back a different way through a park where a little man sat on a very big pencil and kids splashed away in a water park. My route brought me to an old railway track which I then followed back to the canal and Oleanna.
Much of the remainder of the afternoon was taken up trying to ascertain why the Post Office had refused to take my two orders. One of overalls the other some Vermouth my brother had asked for. Using the Amazon chat facility I supposedly got passed onto a human instead of the bot. But the human wasn’t able to type English very well so I suspected they were a bot too. Then another, then another.
They seemed fixated on the alcohol I’d ordered, this was a separate order completely to the overalls. Apparently alcohol is not available with Local Collect, my point was then you shouldn’t be able to select that method of delivery. But more to the point the Post Office had also refused my other order which was far more important. They would only accept it if I worked there!
I must have been online for a good couple of hours explaining to four humans (?) that I’d chosen LOCAL COLLECT so that I could collect it at a convenient time, not have to rush into town and chase after the delivery driver. Someone tried ringing me to explain about alcohol and LOCAL COLLECT. I understood that bit and the requirement for ID on delivery so I sent them to answerphone.
Big or small
Then a fifth person joined my chat. She was most certainly a human being as she was astounded that I’d been on line for so long. So was I and by now I’d had enough and was possibly turning into a troll, whiskers were starting to grow out of my chin! I thanked the last lady, I’d received an apology even though people hadn’t understood my point, but now I was going to do something else with what remained of the day.
We do our best to avoid Amazon normally but the overalls were only available through them. Have to say I will be avoiding them even more from now on, just a shame I’ll be needing more overalls!
In other news today was the day Heather Bleasdale along with another boat were making their way to the River Hull. They left Keadby at 08:00 punched the tide down the Trent. At the Apex Light it was more or less hightide, no training wall visible and no need to stick to the main channel. Here they turned right onto the Humber where the tide took them down under the Humber Bridge to Hull. The last photo she sent was of Bleasdale and Lily May tied up to a barge on the River Hull waiting for the tide to come back in to push them up to Beverley Brook. What an exciting day and what a shame we couldn’t be with them, maybe next year!
5 locks, 6.2 miles, 2 boxes wine, 1 loaf bread, 1 trough, £5.25 for a hose connector! 1 car park empty, 1 generator, 1 life raft, 2 parcels, 1 helpful driver, 1 bot, 4 human bots, 1 helpful person too late.
A day to sit in the shadows as the temperature was forecast to rise. So we just about managed a lie in, then enjoyed our Saturday newspaper with a cuppa in bed.
Tilly checking out the shade
Tilly was given 9.5 hours which she used pretty much all of, just returning for the occasional ‘thank you for coming home’ Dreamie and to check we hadn’t moved the outside with her in it.
Mick filled the stern gland greaser and tightened the stern gland, a job to do when the engine is cold.
Not quite so shady now
I set about hunting for hooded zip front overalls on the internet. Overalls tend not to have too many measurements, height, chest and sometimes waist or across the back. These of course are helpful. But when the majority of your actors have a body shape that does not conform to the average trying to find the right size can be a touch of a mine field. One of the actors would fit a Small height an shoulder wise, a Large chest wise, but a XXXL waist wise.
Keeping an eye on the world
I worked through one brand hoping I was making the correct decisions on sizes, then found the same overalls elsewhere £5 cheaper with different sizes and measurements! In the end there was only one way to go forward, order one of every other size and get them delivered to me to be measured. This unfortunately meant signing up for Amazon Prime, a service I know a lot of people can’t live without, but it pains me not being able to support smaller companies. At least it’s a free months trial so it’s not costing me or Dark Horse anything and I have already put a reminder in the diary to cancel it before it starts to cost.
A long awaited for chat with David the Director of Chippy Panto regarding the coloured model. One or two small adjustments needed and a few extra bits of dressing are required such as a wheel barrow and a tea urn. He’s considering cutting a whole scene, one that doesn’t progress the plot and would save a lot of puppet making and UV paint.
A touch more green required
Then it was back to putting some paint on the costume designs for #unit 21 whilst listening to the Prime Minister delaying the lifting of restrictions for four weeks. Later on the local news we realised just how far down the country we’ve come. Jo from Chippy Theatre was being interviewed with regard to the delay and how panto has been on sale for two years now. Looking at a map, we are currently level in north/southness with Chipping Norton which lies just an hours drive away to our west.
Loads of asparagus
A towpath barbecue was enjoyed with an abundance of asparagus followed by salmon and veg kebabs. The day hadn’t turned out to be that hot, in fact it was a little bit disappointing in the heat department.
Veg kebabs and Salmon
0 locks, 0 miles, 1 stern gland greased, 1 stern gland tightened, 9.5 hours of towpath frolics, 1 speedy hire boat, 2 many measurements and not enough, 4 overalls ordered, 1 float, 9 costumes half painted, 3 highlight pens required, 1 hour chatting panto, 1 urn, 1 wheelbarrow and a few flowers, 4 more weeks, 2 London Leckenby chats, 1 Fatso windfall, 21 C Max.
