Category Archives: Work Boats

Bear Crew. 1st September

Nethercote Bridge 101 to Daventry Road Bridgeish 19, Grand Union Canal

A slower start today, the grey in the sky putting us off pushing off. We watched the gold silver final of Boccia in Tokyo over breakfast, catching a glimpse of Fran, Mick’s niece every now and then. Gold for David Smith! A farmer in the field opposite was trimming the hedges and as we passed we admired the sunflowers in a wide border of wild flowers, just about the only colour we got to see today.

I hopped off at Bridge 108 to walk to the junction. Crab apples are starting to fall from the trees, leaving areas of the towpath a touch treacherous in places. The blackberries around here seem to be a touch later in ripening than those on the South Oxford, there will be so many of them in a week or two.

Just before Napton Junction I spotted a new set of steps leading through the hedge. This leads to Wigrams Camp Site, I was walking so as to have a nosy. The site was empty today, but I could see the service block and the camping field, not as big as I’d imagined, I wonder how many motorcaravans and tents they would accommodate?

I walked round and checked down the Grand Union, no boat in sight so I gave Mick a thumbs up to make the turn.

Next to the camp site there is a holiday cottage for 2 and a B&B with several double rooms and a summer house. All very interesting! Further enquiries are needed.

I walked on down to Calcutt Locks, a couple of boats had just left the top one, so we pulled in. A boat had just been pulling away from a mooring so we waited to see whether they would join us, but they just came towards the lock and winded. We descended on our own as another boat was waiting to come up.

The locks were quite busy, another pair coming up the second lock, one turning in to top up on diesel the other carried on upwards. By now there was another boat waiting to come down so we waited for them to catch us up with their teddy bear captain sat on the roof.

The lady asked how long we’d been out, I said ‘since May and you?’ ‘Since Saturday’, they had been for a jaunt up to Dunchurch Pools and were now heading back to their mooring below the locks. She also asked if there was a winding hole above the Stockton Flight, they’d never been that way. Descending the two locks I almost got her full life history, I managed to keep my urge to open gates at bay despite them being ready for a good five minutes.

As they turned into Ventnor we waved towards NB Herbie and carried on. Passing all the old workboats around Tomlow Road Bridge, Gort looks like it’s had a nice new paint job.

Not much further on we pulled up before Gibraltar Bridge, this would mean that if my delivery arrived with Lizzie today we’d be able to meet her at The Boat a few bridges on, but if not Tilly would have fields to play in for the afternoon.

A load of washing was hung out on the whirligig. I made some scale model actors for my model and took photographs to send to the Director.

Mick climbed into the engine bay to tighten the stern gland and see why we seem to be getting quite a lot of water in the bilge at the moment. He discovered that the greaser (which you turn every day to help keep the stern gland water tight) hadn’t been working. The new bits he’d added and old pipe weren’t working so well. So he rejigged everything and with a different combination of bits he got it working again. This should now help stop so much water from coming in as the prop rotates.

This evening we’ve watched a second programme regarding 9/11. Yesterdays programme had been about several survivors and todays was the day of President Bush. Both programmes had us transfixed to the TV and were very moving. It feels like only yesterday that I was in the paint shop at the SJT chatting to Mick’s sister Kath when Stephen Wood came in and told us that the twin towers had collapsed.

3 locks, 4.88 miles, 1 right, 1 gold medal, 1 bear, 55.5 possible venue, 1 stern gland greased, 9 model people, 30 photos, 1 very slow internet connection, 5.25 hours shore leave, 2 moving transfixing programmes.

https://goo.gl/maps/VMjsrann1c9XnPQM8

Then There Was One. 30th August

Houdini’s Field to Norton Junction

Tilly was still pooped from her freedom yesterday so we had a quiet breakfast without being pestered for some shore leave. Only a couple of boats had come past us before we pushed off, but as always one appeared just as we were about to untie. We waited for them to pass, two chaps who asked where the nearest shops were. Their speech was very loud yet a touch incoherent. Lizzie said thank goodness we’d be behind them as they engaged their dilithium crystals.

Time to say our farewells and leave Lizzie to the last of her Bank Holiday boat chores before she herself would be returning to Crick Marina. It’s been a lovely weekend and so nice to have a catch up at ease on the boats. Hopefully we’ll be seeing Lizzie later this week as some things for panto were being delivered to her work for me.

We pushed off with the aim of reaching the top of Long Buckby and finding a space to moor there for our Sainsburys delivery. Fingers crossed there would be space for us and that we’d have an easy time at Watford with not too much queuing. Our maps suggested it would take us around five hours, plus a bit if we had to wait at the staircase, so we should arrive for a late lunch.

There they go managing to avoid collision with the bridge

However. The blue boat had exhausted the boost of power and now just seemed to be working on Guinness and Stellar! They zigzagged across the cut, one of them trying to do something with their chimney, it’s suspected that it got a big whack going through a bridge hole. Several times it looked like they might be pulling in to let us go past, but this was only so that they could ricochet off the towpath to back into the deeper water before passing into the shallows on the off side. Would we actually reach Watford before the locks would be locked up for the day (thankfully extended hours still in place after Crick show)?

Then thankfully after about three quarters of an hour following them they managed to pull over just after Bridge 24, just after a moored boat, shortly before a winding hole and bend where of course a boat was just coming round! Mick engaged our lithium crystals and managed to pass them before there would be an awkward moment with the other boat. Back to normal cruising speed.

We think it’s the first time we’ve been through Crick without stopping for anything carrying on straight to the tunnel. Water proof coats and life jackets on we had the tunnel all to ourselves. The first 400ms are the wettest, I hoped my lovely clean roof would survive having an extra rinse. As we reached the southern portal the air grew misty, our lights creating search light beams onto the tunnel roof.

On to the top of Watford where we joined onto the back of a queue of 2 boats just nudging up to the top lock behind one going down. I hopped off to go and sign in with the Lockie. With a queue of boats below the flight we would have to wait, the two in front of us would go down, then boats would come up. Time for an early lunch.

Once the first uphill boat had risen up the last single lock we were locked down to wait in the pound above the staircase, therefore using a lock full of water and getting the downhill queue one lock ahead.

The next boat up the staircase didn’t sit well with the engine noise we could hear. A 57ft modern boat which would normally have a beta 43 sounded like an old work boat. This was because in the next chamber downhill there was a boat with a heart pounding thump, in fact it was a National DA2 built in 1949, only one of two thought to be in the UK. This was NB Hadar all 70ft of her, Keith at the helm and Jo working the paddles.

Mick helped with gates and chatted to Keith about Hadarford, the model railway in their hold, whilst I helped with the bottom gates of the top lock, closing them and emptying the lock ready for the next uphill boat.

Six in all came up, then it was our turn to head down. Plenty of Lock Keepers were on hand to assist and we made it down the staircase and the final two locks in no time. There was a boat in each pound below and a queue of hopeful boats was forming beyond them.

We’d been glad of helping with the locks it had kept the days chill off, but now stood at the back of Oleanna it crept back in. At Norton Junction we turned left towards the top of the locks, but it was soon evident that there was no space for us.

We’d just passed a big gap by the water point before the junction so into reverse we went and backed ourselves around the corner. Tomorrow morning one of us will go and await our order with bags and a bike, so no need to cancel the order again.

*They never let me out in Watford outside, the trees always look so good too!*

7 locks, 4 a staircase, 9.88 miles, 1 tunnel, 0 mysterons, 3 to 2 to 1 boat left, 1 pissed boat, 2 fleeces, 4th in line, 6 coming up, 5 Lock Keepers, 1 left, 1 reversed left (or is that right?), 3 hours shore leave, 1 stove lit on a Bank Holiday weekend.

https://goo.gl/maps/tMT5U4dgkrK7FETdA

A True Boater. 1st July

Rembrandt Gardens to St Pancras Cruising Club

Our booked seven days at Rembrandt Gardens were up today. After a leisurely start we pushed off at 11am, waving our new neighbours goodbye. The moorings under the trees are not so good for solar, but in warmer weather the shade would be welcome. One thing however that I’m not going to miss is the almost constant smell of weed. It seems as if nobody smokes cigarettes anymore, they just roll joints and find a boat to smoke them by!

We rounded the island and turned onto the Regents Canal. NB Muddy Waters a Finesse boat is still moored along the stretch before Maida Hill Tunnel, it looks like their tunnel light is as rusty as ours after four years. The tunnel was clear so no need to wait, popping out the other side where there are permanent moorings.

At the far end work is being done, it looks like new jetties are going in. Mick’s tug being put to work.

The stretch through Regents Park is always interesting. The big expensive houses with immaculate lawns, there will be a good crop of brambles on the other sides of their railings in a few weeks time! The towpath was busier than we’ve seen it before, so was the canal. Paddleboarders, trip boats and narrowboats all managing to be in the same place at once.

The Snowden Aviary at the Zoo is empty of birds, instead scaffolding was being erected and a chap stood on tip toes angle grinding another hole in the mesh. The aviary a Grade 2* listed building is being transformed by the architects Foster + Partners. It will become a walkthrough exhibit with colobus monkeys overhead, red duiker on the forest floor and African grey parrots will fly up to the top of the structure. More information can be found here.

As we rounded the bend by the Chinese floating restaurant we are still amazed that four years ago on Oleanna’s first trip to the capital we managed to get one of the 7 day moorings in Camden. Today it was crammed full, just like every other time we’ve been along this stretch. Good job we weren’t wanting a mooring today.

Just under the railway bridges we could see Christine walking towards us. She’d come to watch us go through Hampstead Road, Hawley and Kentish Town Locks as she only lives a few minutes walk away. Mick slowed Oleanna down and prepared to pick Christine up, however she decided to walk along the towpath.

A few minutes of us pootling along and chatting was brought to a very sudden stop!

How does time know when to slow down? It always manages it on such occasions.

I saw Christine put her right foot down, expecting there to be a solid surface below to meet it. Her foot just clipping the edge of the towpath, then there was nowhere else for it to go but into the canal, very closely followed by the rest of Christine!

Engine out of gear straight away. Oh blimey!!!

We still had momentum going forward getting further away from Christine. Mick shouted to a lady on the bank to help, ‘Please could you just hold her hand’. At least we hoped that would help until we could get off Oleanna to help her out.

In the meantime other people came running, we didn’t quite see what happened as we tried to get close to the bank without the prop becoming a danger. As soon as we looked again Christine had been helped up onto the towpath and was proceeding to empty her bag of water. Thank you’s all round and the samaritans who’d helped just seemed to vanish.

A sit down on Oleanna to assess any damage and to recover from the shock. Poor Christine, thankfully apart from a wet none functioning mobile she only seemed to have gained a grazed knee, which may have happened when she was pulled out of the water. We offered her a shower, but she decided as she was close to home she’d walk back an have one there. A short rather wet visit.

Up at the lock two canoes were coming up, then we were waved in. I hopped off to help the volunteer and take photos.

With volunteers at the next two locks we were a touch mob handed. The help was welcome, but when one of them commented that I was doing his job, I just carried on doing mine, I at least wait for confirmation from the helm before I start emptying a lock!

Four years ago there were cranes overhead, the general area a big building site. Today the railway arches are being converted into a cinema, a screen for each arch by the sounds of it.

I love that these two little blue houses have been allowed to keep an eye on the canal, with a gap between the modern boat like apartments.

Then as we ducked under the railway bridges and the repurposed gasometers came into view we knew we had reached our destination. St Pancras Cruising Club. We slowed and then started to back in towards NB Floradora who was to be our neighbour.

There had already been a discussion onboard as to whether it would be frowned upon to use our bow thruster to assist in mooring, but the amount of weed in the basin prohibited it’s use anyway. Terry from NB Floradora popped out to lend a hand, our centre rope passed over a t stud on the roof, this meant Oleanna could be brought into the gap almost sideways.

The weed made this a slow job, but after a while we were close enough for Mick to be able to catch the bow line and help pull her in to nestle up in the 60ft space below the HS1 line. Terry very kindly gave us a tour round, elsan, bins, garden, toilet etc, during which we met various people who all seemed to know who we were, well Marty did anyway!

We’d originally booked in for a few more days in Paddington Basin, but had been given the heads up by Heather Bleasdale that one of the longer boats at the cruising club was out at the moment, meaning that we might be able to use their mooring. We got in touch with the Harbour Master and booked our stay here instead, cancelling Paddington Basin as soon as we had confirmation.

Once we’d settled the first thing was to check if Christine was okay. She’d made it home safely, had a shower and was in the mobile phone shop trying to sort a replacement. Thank goodness she was okay.

Not long after we’d arrived there was a knock on the roof. Heather is down in London for a few days and staying on a boat in the basin. We made plans to meet later in the garden for food and then headed off to explore the area.

The new development around Kings Cross goes on for miles. It is a nice mixture of old warehouses mixed with modern architecture. Retail units, bars, restaurants, Central St Martins art college, plus exhibition spaces and gardens.

The gasometers now have flats built inside them, if you have a spare £825,000 you could buy one too! The old structure surrounds the new and gave a very vocal Blackbird a good perch to sing it’s heart out. Plenty to see and explore, we’ll have to come back to see more.

Once our evening meal was cooked, we loaded a bag with wine, crockery and cutlery and carried our two pans all the way round the basin to the garden. Heather joined us as did others to chat away the evening, a selection of gin and tonics spread across the table. It was dark by the time we decided to call it a day. After three glasses of wine each we made sure we walked carefully back round the basin to Oleanna with our dirty pots.

3 locks, 3.25 miles, 1 empty wee tank, 1 wind, 0 birds, 1 true none boating boater, 1 drip dry Christine, 1 reverse, 60ft under the railway lines, 1 visitation, 1 blackbird, 1 Tilly eyeing up the wall! 1 Tilly grounded, 2 spag bols in the garden, 3 glasses of wine, 4 gins, 1 very pleasant evening.

https://goo.gl/maps/KA1pq4wv9GRqeY7B9

Slow Boat To Leicester. 10th January

Ross Bridge to Castle Gardens Moorings, Leicester

The alarm goes off earlier each morning and each morning it is darker outside. Today we had quite a bit of cruising to do. According to Waterway Routes and Canal Plan it would take us 5.5 hours to reach the centre of Leicester, no need to arrive in plenty of time for shore leave as Tilly wouldn’t be allowed out anyway, but we still needed to get a move on.

Kilby Bridge we pulled in to top up with water and dispose of rubbish, it didn’t take long before we could push off again.

Every canal lock would be set against us today, but we did manage to have some help at some. As I was setting Double Rail Lock, three frisky horses charged across the fields to come and gongoozle. They were very lively and although not afraid of horses I was cautious due to being next to a 7ft 7” drop (the off side of the lock is the field). They seemed to have lost interest until I crossed back over the gates to lift a paddle, a head rub was all I had to give them, no spare carrots or apples, but they seemed happy with that and moved away.

Below Ervin’s Lock the level was low, down by about two foot. I decided to risk getting back on board and hoped that there would be enough depth at the next lock to get off. It was a slow pootle but we managed it, no need to call C&RT out.

People have been doing a lot of work to their gardens along this stretch. Lots of fancy garden rooms, bars, seating areas, we don’t remember them from two years ago. The next pound looked fine so we hoped the levels would be okay until we reached the river sections.

Dunn’s Lock came into view, there was a figure leaning against a beam and paddles were lifted, at both ends of the lock. Either someone was maliciously emptying the canal responsibly ( the gates were closed) or there were problems below with depth. The chap had a C&RT beanie hat on and said that they had a couple of boats stuck lower down so he was sending water to them. He thought they were almost there, another five minutes and he’d give them a call. We tied up and waited. I started to heat up some soup I’d made last night for us to have on the go when Mick said the lock was being filled for us. The chap walked down to the next lock to set it for us and we were on our way again.

On our way to Gee’s Lock I managed to get the soup up to a suitable temperature and into our insulated mugs, today we’d have to keep moving if we had a chance of reach Leicester in the light, no lunch break. The lock came into view and this was where we met the first of the boats that had been stuck. A C&RT tug and hopper boat were tied up above the lock, blocking the entrance and below a C&RT crane boat was doing it’s best to leave the lock. We helped close gates and fill the lock whilst chatting to the chap driving the tug. The lack of dredging along this section and the very low reserves in the reservoirs make it almost impossible for them to manoeuvre their work boats. The weight of the crane boat means that it is just ploughing it’s way along the bottom and any weight added to the hoppers means they drag too. They had spent all morning doing only two locks and using up a lot of water in the process.

With the tug and hopper out of the way we made our own way down the lock and followed to Blue Banks Lock. Here the tug had been left in gear just through a bridge and two chaps had just about finished filling the lock, they waved us to pass. The force from the tugs prop sent us all over the shop, it took a lot to keep Oleanna from avoiding hitting the bridge, then avoiding the offside vegetation, then to straighten up and not hit the hopper side on. By the time we were back under control the gates were being opened for us. They worked us through and warned us that we’d be meeting the crane boat soon, it was likely to get stuck at Soar Valley Way Bridges.

You could tell the bottom of the canal was being dragged, all the rotting leaves were surfacing and the water had turned almost black. We soon caught up with the crane and went into neutral. He saw us and suggested that we should pass on the off side. We looked, the vegetation team certainly hadn’t been along this stretch and we certainly were not going to drag Oleanna through the trees. So we carried on following very very s l o w e l y….. The bridge wasn’t a problem and maybe that is where we should have passed. A short distance on the crane got stuck, try and try again, reverse, try again, reverse again until he got moving.

The next wider section he managed to pull in towards the offside leaving enough room for us to pass. We offered him a tow but he declined!

Kings Lock. The Lock cottage has just recently had a new coat of paint, well all of it except the chimney stacks. A chap was replacing the fence along the front. Ade and Lou who built the set for Aladdin saved this cottage some 40 years ago when a fire had almost destroyed it. They put in an Elm fence and Ade’s youngest brother was forced up onto the roof with no scaffold or any form of safety to paint the chimney stacks (most probably the last time they were done).

We were now in front of the slow work boats and could up our speed. Once down Kings Lock we were joined by the River Soar enabling us to go a little bit quicker with more water underneath us. The next two locks were sat waiting, top gates open. The gasometer before St Mary’s Mill Lock has vanished. I used to be fixated with it’s staircases to nowhere, but now they are nowhere to be seen just hardcore where it once stood.

Freeman’s Meadow Lock needed filling which meant I got to stop the water going over the large weir for a few minutes. Then it was straight on into the centre of Leicester.

Castle Gardens moorings had a couple of boats on the pontoon, but we carried on under West Bridge to see if there would be space on the new pontoon at Friars Mill. Sadly there were three boats already moored here. If a touch more thought had been put into how they’d tied up then we’d possibly have fitted on the end, but the dolphins being on the outside doesn’t help with nudging up to each other. We winded and made our way back to Castle Gardens. Here we pulled back towards the other boats to be away from the footbridge and the amount of duck poo on the pontoon, all tied up just before sunset.

12 locks, 8.85 miles, 2ft down, 3 C&RT chaps, 1 crane, 1 tug, 1 very slow afternoon, 2 mugs of soup, 1 cottage, 1st river, 1 big space, 3 smaller spaces, 1 wind, 1 yapping woofer, 0 shore leave, 73 swans, 1 pants outside.

https://goo.gl/maps/xsu3TYEtn7q

Stupid Stupid Stupid. 4th October

Pigeon Bridge to Thrupp

After breakfast my dungarees went on and out came the woodskin. A coat carefully applied to all parts of the cratch without getting too much on myself and I managed to have a way to get off the bow too.

In the distance I could hear what sounded like a wood chipper, I wondered if it was on the golf course. But after a while a C&RT boat came round the bend in front of us. One chap pruned branches from the trees , another fed these into the chipper which sprayed the chips into the hedgerow. They then moved on to the next tree that needed parts removing. As they got closer they refrained from chopping anything down and photos were taken presumably to show their boss as to where they couldn’t trim back due to boats being in the way. As they waited their turn for the lock they did a bit of pruning on the off side. Sadly they were only interested in some trees others were left to overhang the narrow towpath.

With the cratch board drying there was nothing to stop us from pushing off and carrying on our way. Some extra care was needed when tying ropes so as not to touch the drying stickyness, but I managed. After a mile we rounded a bend that skirts around Gibraltar. If you click on this link you will find that this Gibraltar is very similar to most of England, most people speak English and use pounds sterling!

At Bakers Lock we dropped down onto the River Cherwell again. Here a new river level board with lights has been added at the side of the lock, similar to those on the River Severn. The old coloured board below the lock has been removed presumably no longer required. But what happens when light bulbs blow or the power fails and the river is in the red?

On the river you could tell Oleanna liked the extra bit of depth, I however didn’t like the amount of dust in the air. All the trees and bushes were covered in a dusting of whiteness that was drifting across the river. Was it all going to stick to the sticky cratch board? Nothing I could do about it if it did.

After a pootle on the river section Shipton Weir Lock takes you back onto the canal. Another lozenge shaped lock bigger than at Aynho. An accumulation of autumn branches and leaves stopped the bottom gate from closing properly. From the other end you’d most probably not notice, it would just take a long time to fill. Mick came back with the boat hook to give it a good clear out and then we were on our way again.

The service mooring was empty as we pulled into Thrupp. The washing machine had been put on shortly before we arrived, but it had soon stopped due to lack of water! Good job the water pressure was reasonable so it didn’t take too long for us to fill the tank, dispose of rubbish and watch a hire boat negotiate the lift bridge. They certainly did a good job of preparing the gunnels for the next coat of paint! Not sure the canal bank enjoyed it too much though.

Mick did a much better job when it was our turn to swing the ninety degrees and go through the narrow bridge hole. Plenty of moorings available today, two years ago there wasn’t a gap anywhere.

As soon as we were settled Tilly was allowed out. Off she went straight over a garden wall to check out the apple trees. I got my dungarees out again and started to rub down the starboard side gunnel. The weather report suggests that tomorrow will still be fine, so we’ll stay put for me to get the black paint out. We also just so happened to have pulled in alongside a handy Passing Place on the road, just perfect for a supermarket delivery. Whilst I got back ache, sore knees and seriously bored of sanding Mick got on with the job of securing a delivery slot for tomorrow and ordering supplies to replenish the wine cellar.

The trees here aren’t too tall, but very interesting. Big round balls hang off them, some red, but most green. Not too good for batting around the place, I did try with the ones on the floor, but they weren’t rolly enough.

I headed back to the boat to check in, they like to see me once in a while and I like the Dreamies they give me. Then I had a good look at the balls on the wall. These looked quite interesting and I was just wondering what would happen if I knocked them all off when a lovely afternoon got spoilt! A big noisy car came along the road. I didn’t like it, I didn’t understand it, I didn’t trust it, it scared me. Only one place to go … back to the boat. I jumped and ran as fast as I could. All I got when I got there was “You STUPID STUPID STUPID cat!” I wasn’t allowed back out, grounded she said for being STUPID. But I’m not, I’m quite good at maths!

2 locks, 3.45 miles, 1st coat woodskin, 1 sticky cratch, 3 men and a boat, 1 river pootle, 1 dusty cratch, 1 empty water tank, 1 full water tank, 1 empty yellow water tank, 1 perfect mooring for gunnels, 1.5 hours sanding, 1 coat fertan, 1 yarn bombed wheelbarrow, 37 apples, 1 stupid stupid stupid cat, 0 flat cat thank goodness, 1 grounded Tilly.

https://goo.gl/maps/dzSQSGGXNgF2

Narrowboat Oleanna

Travels of Narrowboat Oleanna