Silver Screen. 17th January

Nottingham

The Broadway Cinema, on Broad Street in Nottingham is an independent cinema. Every Thursday morning and early afternoon they have a Silver Screen showing of one of the films that are currently on. Today was Stan and Ollie. We could either go at 10.30am or 1.30pm, it being a 25 minute walk from our mooring we chose the later.

Unfortunately it turned out these screenings are very popular, or maybe it was just this film. Your hair doesn’t have to be silver or have a lack of hair to get in, everyone is charged £5 no matter what your age, you also get a free cuppa with your ticket. Today however the film was full, they were showing it on two screens. We were disappointed, but were handed a voucher each to be able to see the film at the same price at a different time, brilliant! We’ll return.

The Favourite had also caught our eye, so as we’d made the effort on a chilly day we booked for the next showing. This left us with sometime to kill, so we had a wander around town.

I have a voucher for The White Company, we had a look around their shop. Just about everything in the shop being white isn’t the best thing when you have a cat who doesn’t understand about wiping her paws. They do a range of crockery which was interesting but they didn’t have much stock, thankfully they have a click and collect service. So some perusing of the website is needed.

Reflections on a blue skied day

Next we went into Whittards to stock up on my morning tea, which is actually their Afternoon Tea. They only had it in tea bags which just isn’t the same. We asked the ladies in the store if my tea (that I’ve been drinking just about every morning for decades, since I was a student in fact) was still available in loose leaf. As far as they knew it was only available in an Alice in Wonderland tea caddy, but they did have some old stock which was reduced, thank goodness! The tea caddy is £11 and I already have a caddy so spending the extra £5 just to be able to drink my tea in the mornings is not on. We bought four packs and I have since checked their website, it is only available in the caddy. I have sent them a stern email hoping that I’m not going to have to remove some of Oleanna’s ballast and replace it with what old stock I can find.

Back at the cinema we weren’t expecting to be sat with too many people, but the big comfy seats got fuller and fuller. Maybe there were others like us who’d made the effort to come into town and not managed to get to see Stan and Ollie, so got tickets for the next film.

Set in the early 18th Century as Queen Anne’s health is deteriorating, her friend Lady Sarah tends to her needs and advises her over the war in France. Lady Sarah is the wife of Lord Marlborough of Blenheim Palace fame. Sarah’s cousin Abigail, once a lady in her own right, arrives hoping for a job in the palace and soon she wins the Queens attentions and maybe affections. Olivia Colman is superb as Queen Anne, Rachel Weisz and Emma Stone aren’t bad either.

A wonderful tapestry clad room

Such wigs

Filmed mostly on location at Hatfield House the settings are historically plush and the mens wigs so large. Yorgos Lanthimos’s use of natural lighting is wonderfully atmospheric where in the night time scenes the only illumination comes from numerous candles. It really gives you a feeling of what life was like before gas or electric lighting. A funny, wicked and filthy film, no wonder it is turning heads at the awards.

Is anyone else having hassles with Open Live Writer? It won’t let me upload photos in a post.

0 locks, 0 miles, 10,000 steps each, 4 pouches tea, 1 voucher still unspent, 2 much white, 2 vouchers, 0 cuppas, 1 full, 1 OAP at the flicks.

Playing The Sainsburys Game. 16th, 17th January

Nottingham

As the marina was closed on Tuesday Mick took our life jackets in first thing Wednesday. They have now been sent off and will take around a week to come back. Thank you all for your comments regarding doing it ourselves, we’ll look into it further and be prepared to do it next year, near a handy address for any spare parts that may be required.

Being back in civilisation means there are things that need doing. Christmas vouchers to spend, tea to stock up on. The slippers Mick got for his birthday from Tilly had sprung a leak, I’d tried to mend them, but the glue wasn’t strong enough to hold the top to the bottom. These are sheepskin slippers with an outdoor sole, so not cheap and had been proving to be very good, mine have lasted over five years. They have been sent back to either be replaced or reglued, we’re waiting to hear.

Tip of Tilly’s tail just visible

The trip to the Post Office was delayed somewhat as the heavens opened, quite a downpour it was too. So thoughts of going for a walk around Nottingham were put on hold. Tilly however was not put off. Out of her sulk, neck nearly back to normal, It takes an awful lot of grooming (two whole days) to get my fur back to being gleaming and sleek, her collar was put back on with a new bell and out she went. Straight into the sideways trees by the boat. An extra rule today, ‘Mind the bikes’, they don’t half hurtle along the towpath here.

I decided it was a perfect day to do my accounts for last year. In the old days this would take several days even though I’d done my best to keep things up to date as the year went on, a day to check everything over and then hand them on to my accountant. But as my earnings for the last few years from being self employed have not come to enough to pay an accountant I don’t need one anymore, however the tax man still wants me to do a tax return.

How depressing our rental income was for that year, tenants who’d left the house in a state, loosing their bond and it costing us more to put right! Then a rotten joist in a backroom meant we had to have the kitchen floor dug up, concrete, etc, give a months free rent to our new tenants, the year just kept on taking our income away from us.

Tilly helping with maths

By late afternoon all the figures were ready, I was all prepared to make a start on putting figures into boxes. But where had self assessment gone? It took forever to find it rather than just information on why I should be doing one. Then there were so so many questions, to tailor my tax return to my income and make it easier. There were far more than there used to be. This was meant to save me time, but took nearly as long as it used to take me to fill the whole return in!

Time to put numbers in, I’d checked about what I could claim back regarding the work we had done on the house, most of it not included! But new carpets, curtains, mending leaks on bay windows were. With only a few questions in front of me at a time I put numbers in, only to be told that I was wrong! I persevered only to find a question on the next page where some of the expenses should be. Going back I altered the figures, but this then lost the next section I’d already filled out! GRRRR!!!!! This was going to take quite a lot of concentration and everyone was wanting to be fed, so I closed it down to revisit another day, that’s if I can find the bloomin thing again, it’s not as if I owe them any money anyway.

A small dusting

Thursday morning was bright if cold. There had been an icing sugar dusting of snow overnight. With temperatures set to be lower in the coming days we decided to stock up on coal and diesel before the marina possibly froze. The canal has a flow to it, so hopefully will stay liquid. After breakfast we rolled up the frozen covers, persuaded frozen ropes to untie and pushed off reversing to the marina entrance. This is so much easier on Oleanna than it was on Lillian. Oleanna behaves better and when she starts to drift a touch of the girlie button helps to correct things.

Stocking up

We turned into the marina, winded and reversed to the service pontoon. This is where the slipway is, so you have to be careful not to go too far. It was recommended that we nudged forward if we were going to fill the diesel tank as our skeg might just end up on the bottom with all the extra weight, so we did. Four bags of coal, gas and a full tank of diesel, hopefully this will see us into Yorkshire. We pulled back out onto the canal and moored on the same two rings.

Nottingham Castle covered in scaffolding

The moorings here are very handy for Sainsburys, so we tend to pop in and buy things as we need them. Mick has already been on several such trips. In the past the voucher machine has been really glad to see us again and offered us a voucher for double points or extra bonus points on things we tend to buy, although not on wine! However the really good voucher will only be produced on a big shop as a reward and to tempt us back in next week to do the same again. But these sort of vouchers on a final shop are usually worthless to us, so we try playing them at their own game. We start off with just a few bits, no voucher, a few more, no voucher, a semi shop (over £10) this one quite often works, but hasn’t this time! It may be because we have a double points voucher that runs out tomorrow. But we may try and call their bluff. We’ll do a big shop, using our voucher and most probably be given another. This time though we’ll be back in time to use it before it runs out.

0 locks, 0.18 miles mostly reversed, 180 degrees, 1 wind, 1 left, £4k, 0 useful at Gov Gateway, 1 hour hunting, 2 much! 1 freezing morning, 4 bags excell, 83 litres, 1 empty wee tank, 1 new gas bottle, 2 slipper in the post, 1 new blue bell, 2 chilly to be out for long.

Windlass Lessness. 15th January

Trent Lock Pontoon to Sainsburys, Nottingham and Beeston Canal

Another lovely sunny morning, we woke to pink clouds across the river, these weren’t of interest to our silent Second Mate, the gulls kept her focus. I think she’s forgiven us for yesterday, nearly!

After breakfast we put our layers and life jackets on and said goodbye to our neighbours. Over night we protected them from the wind and the noisy lapping of the river on our hull. I suspect the pontoon also cuts down the noise, so that is the reason they were on the inside as they will be there for two weeks.

I untied the bow first (we’d moored using innie ropes) as this was only holding the boat in to the pontoon. The stern rope was doing all the work of stopping us from drifting downstream so was left until I had stepped on board having given Oleanna a little push, the flow of the river then did the rest helping her to turn.

Second left and we were into Cranfleet Cut, a big sign showing us the way north. From here everything is very familiar, three/four years ago we had to loiter near to Nottingham for me to visit the hospital weekly to get physio for my hand so we got to know the area quite well. HS2 will cross the cut in years to come and just add another railway bridge to the landscape here. The tap above Cranfleet Lock now has a tap fitted to it, there was one time when you needed molegrips to turn the water on, but as the pressure was only a trickle it wasn’t worth it, today we carried on.

No need for windlasses today as both locks we’d be doing have them welded onto the paddle gear. The lock needed filling so the top gate paddles were lifted, all four of them. When coming up this lock you have to take care in which paddle you lift when, best to stay back and even better to share it with another boat. The Lockie grins away waist deep in the flower bed, he’s only here for show!

River cruising is good for diesel engines, no longer constrained to going slowly, it is also good for doing your washing. One load was put on before we left Trent Lock, once this was well on it’s way to finishing the dishwasher was put on. The river is wide with several obstacles you have to avoid. Today there were masses of geese, Canadian and Greylags. It was interesting to see when they decided to fly off only one species would go leaving the other behind.

At Beeston Lock a boat had just left the lock coming our way, but his didn’t mean it would be in our favour. On leaving this lock you leave a red paddle up at both ends to keep a flow of water running through Nottingham, so the chamber starts to empty straight away. Once set we worked our way down, Mick taking Oleanna to the water point whilst I closed and lifted paddles.

The cottages just by the lock have now been restored and are open as the Canal Heritage Centre. These cottages were first detailed on the 1839 census, with 21 people living on site, but by 1980 the last inhabitant moved out. By 2010 the Canal Heritage Centre Trust was formed with the aim of creating a new community facility at the workers cottages. Works were on going when we last came through April 2017 and the centre is now open to the public. There is a tea room, exhibition space along with community activities including a Classic Film Club run every two weeks in the afternoon.

We made use of the time on the water point, did another load of washing hoping to top up the tank before moving off. Keeping a watchful eye out we had lunch too, if anyone came wanting to use the services we’d have moved off, but luckily they didn’t.

Now the plod into town. The daffodils are shooting up to find light by the willow trees, we saw our first snowdrops the other day! The new bridge crossing the canal to Boots is open, bits of work still happening around it and the locals have already left their marks. The works on the off side always amuse us with the funny noises, Nottingham Ready Mix Co. Spurts of ingredients get blown from hoppers, each making slightly different shhhht noises, it’s almost musical. There seem to be more toilets too.

Just after Castle Marina the visitor moorings start. The first stretch is currently filled with cruisers who all look settled for two weeks and have left modesty gaps between themselves! New posh student rabbit hutches are going up next door to the existing block. So we had a choice of builders, students or road noise. In the end we just moored at the end of the cruisers, within easy walking distance to Sainsburys. The builders won’t be noisy at night and the building looks to be made mostly from glulam so it shouldn’t be too loud. The road quietens down overnight, let’s just hope the current residential students are quieter than the first lot we encountered here who chatted and laughed away the nights.

2 locks, 8.18 miles, 2nd left, 1 cheesy grin, 2 loads washing, 1 dishwasher, 1 full tank water, 1 wet neck, 9 toilets, 6 git gaps, 1 marina closed on Tuesdays, 3 life jackets still waiting.

https://goo.gl/maps/XkcgrD8cJzp

B***ards! And Leaving The Soar. 14th January

Zouch Lock to Trent Lock Pontoon

Our life jackets need a service. They were last done whilst we were in Liverpool and the big date that was put on the back of them reminds us every time we put them on that they should be checked before we head out onto the tidal Trent. We can check the date on the air canisters ourselves and give them a visual inspection, but in a service they are inflated and left for 24hrs to make sure they don’t have a leak. The time before last we had them done at Sawley Marina. We picked them up and then discovered that one of the air canisters that they had replaced would run out/or already had run out before their next check. So it all took longer than was expected.

Sawley could do them, but the chap who does them is on holiday, but they might be able to get them done at the weekend. We then tried Castle Marina in Nottingham. They would send them off to be done and it would take around a week. Before replacing any parts this was going to be cheaper and a better place to hang around for them to be done. So no diversion today up Sawley Lock.

A cooked breakfast and Tilly was allowed to go off and stretch her legs, there will be times coming up when she will not be allowed shore leave so she was told to make the most of it. However she decided to return long before her time was up and sit indoors instead Hmph! She’s not saying much as she’s a bit p’d off with us this evening.

With out of date life jackets on we timed our departure very well as a boat had just come up Zouch Lock therefore closing the bottom gates for us. Whilst we worked our way down the lock and along the next reach of river a Ryanair plane kept circling. We are close to East Midlands Airport here so planes are not that unusual. Mick checked Flight Radar 24 (he likes planes) and tracked the plane, it was circling and circling. They were doing circuits and bumps, practicing landing and taking off without stopping. Round and round they went, then they circled a bit further off for some scheduled planes to come in and land before carrying on. Just how many trainee pilots were on board this plane, was the instructor in one seat and each trainee taking it in turns to land and take off?

The approach to Kegworth Deep Lock has several weirs off to the side, the main weir channel going in front of a grand house. The lock was ready and waiting for us, winding the paddles up takes some doing due to the depth of water in the lock around 10ft 4 of it.

Here was my first view of the dreaded blue risers, there will be more of these along the Trent, I may have to operate the locks as it is out of season, so I may not have to touch any of them.

Kegworth Shallow Flood Lock was open for us to just cruise through. We’d hoped to be able to fill up with diesel at Kegworth Marine but a sign was out saying they were closed, so we’ll have to wait for either Nottingham or Newark.

Ratcliffe Power Station comes in and out of view constantly now, it was busy generating, all the cooling towers steaming away. Ratcliffe Lock our last on the Soar dropped us back down to join the river.

Here most boats are wide, the Dutch barges look wonderful with their elegant curves next to the less pleasing shapes of the others.

Through the last flood lock which is wonderfully framed by it’s bridge.

We were soon at Trent Junction avoiding the weir to our right and now pushing against the water flowing down the Trent. Left left left! There are so many ways you could go here, down the weir, Cranfleet Cut towards Nottingham, up onto the Erewash or left up the Trent to Sawley then the Trent and Mersey Canal, this route to the north is closed with winter stoppages.

Soon we could see that there was space on the pontoon, two boats were moored on the inside, but nobody on the better side for views. Already facing upstream we pulled in, tied up and settled down for the day. Tilly wasn’t too happy, Harumph!!! as she wasn’t allowed out. Being on a river on a pontoon constitutes in our eyes too greater risk for a cat . Our nearest neighbour also has dogs, so an added factor in our decision.

With no feline shore leave on the cards we decided to take advantage of the situation. B***stards!! Tilly’s collar was removed, a box reached from the top of the bathroom shelves, foil packet removed the tube from inside twisted, Tilly caught and put on the table. F**ing B***dy B**stards!!!! The first drop of flee stuff goes on relatively easily, but then the alcohol chill factor hits her neck and it is so hard to keep hold of her. Chilling b**stard wetness on my neck! Just where it’s impossible to get at!!!! B**stards!!!! Avoidance tactics and a chase around the boat to grab hold of her, clamp her down, part her fur and administer the rest of the liquid. B………………………………………………..s!!!!!

After an hour of squatting in a corner and sulking Tilly then managed to assume various sulky poses around the boat for the rest of the evening.

3 locks, 2 flood locks straight through, 6.08 miles, 1 left, 1 left left left, 1 river down, 1.5 sausages, 3 left for sausage rolls, 2 out of date jackets, 8 circuits, 0 diesel, 8 cooling towers, 1 favourite mooring, 1st Look North in ages, 2 drops, 1 seething sulking soggy necked swearing second mate, 2 complete and utter B*STARDS!!! 1 cat protected from flees for another 3 months.

https://goo.gl/maps/jzn6HCbGaSu

Head On Wind. 13th January

Barrow-Upon-Soar to Zouch Lock

A lie in and a long look at the Saturday newspaper before we pushed off this morning.

Last night a boat had come up Barrow Deep Lock ahead of us, so it was all set for us this morning. This lock leads you down onto a stretch of the river and above there is a set of traffic lights that let you know if it is safe to proceed. Today the lights weren’t working and I couldn’t see a colour river levels board, have to admit I didn’t look too hard as all the boards we came past yesterday were very much in the green and it hadn’t rained that much yesterday. Another sign along side the lock inferred that the navigation was open, so we dropped down. and carried on our way northwards.

Along this stretch is a weir with a radial gate that is used to manage flood waters. Big new signs are everywhere instructing you to stay left away from the weir. Between October and March Pillings Flood Lock (named after William Pillings the Lock Keeper for at least 45 years) is kept closed.

A red paddle at either end of the lock is meant to be left up to help maintain the level on the cut into Loughborough, similar to those at Beeston Lock on the River Trent. The level in the cut today was a few inches lower than the river, so paddles had to be wound up and down at both ends to get us through and then the red ones left up as we exited. There are more signs on the approach from Loughborough which say not to proceed if the red light is flashing. We looked for the light, but it was nowhere to be seen, maybe it’s not been installed yet.

The next three miles of cut skirts it’s way round the eastern side of Loughborough. New housing is going up along the canal by bridge 35 where a scrap yard used to be. Being a more unban area there were more boats on the move today, three in quick succession. NB Marmite (a familiar boat from the Grand Union near Yardley Gobion) was tied up outside The Boat Inn, a sign above the water point here saying it was not in use, good job we didn’t want to top up today.

We reached the Loughborough Branch Junction, sounded the horn and turned to the north. The forecast had been for stronger winds than yesterday and as we made the turn we suddenly knew about it. We’d turned straight into a head wind, elsewhere we’d been sheltered today, but now there was no avoiding it.

The Lock Cottage at Bishop Meadows Lock is for sale. It has always stood out sitting at the end of a lane past a line of moored boats, views across the canal and fields towards the railway. The owners have a telephone box and a red Post Box in their garden which is filled with other interesting bits and bobs. ‘Situated upon the canal banks of Loughborough this outstanding character property offers the benefits of easy access to local amenities but also the feeling of a rural lifestyle.’ We wonder if this is referring to the local sewage works being both local amenities and having a rural aroma!

Down the lock and the river soon joins again, passing by all the wooden houses on stilts at Normanton on Soar with it’s lovely church. Here the river floods, there are more warning lights (these exist), when they flash you need to moor up against emergency dolphins in the channel, certainly heading down stream you wouldn’t want to continue as the weir would have far too much pull. Luckily today we had no need for them we just had to battle against the strong wind that was building. The pram cover needed weighing down on the roof and the river was decidedly choppy, our progress being made in a diagonal fashion.

Under Zouch Road Bridge and through the flood gates we were on a cut again. Once past the houses there was little shelter from the wind. Here was where we’ planned to moor, the wind made this a touch troublesome as it appeared to have changed direction. So instead of it assisting us by pushing us in, it was doing it’s best to get us to the other side. Luckily there are bollards so mooring was a lot easier than it could have been.

Why do they insist on coming here when it’s a weekend? Far too many walkers, even more woofers! Just a pounce away there are big holes that need investigating, they are big enough to get inside, but those bloomin woofers just kept coming! She said I had to make the most of it here, so I tried my best despite the conditions.

3 locks, 1 flood lock, 6.91 miles, 0 red lights, 1 love it or hate it boat, 0 view of the canal, 1 right, 2 boaters with tears in their eyes, 2 windy, £350k (phone box and post box included?), 2 directional wind, 6 holes, 3 bunnies, 0 Roger still, 1 Sunday roast about to go in the oven, 93rd and 94th panto performance the last for this year.

https://goo.gl/maps/MNB5572w65S2

Nobody Said Anything About Rain! 12th January

Watermead Country Park to Barrow Deep Lock 51

Pitter patter on the roof as we woke this morning, that wasn’t meant to happen today! Not here, maybe in Scotland, but not here!

A few things to do before setting off today and not just getting a newspaper. The anchor needed attaching to it’s chain and rope and then to the boat. We’ll be doing more stretches of river now so it should be ready for deployment should the need arise. Mick did all the necessary, then I moved things around in the cratch so that I had enough space to be able to stand and open the front doors. The weed hatch was opened and the prop checked for any plastic we might have picked up on our way through Leicester. To Mick’s amazement there was only a tiny amount, hardly worth bothering with, considering the amount of rubbish and urban jelly fish we’ve seen over the last couple of days.

We pushed off to pull in just the other side of the bridge to fill with water. Boy the tap was slow! A collection of full plastic bags, which has to be boaters rubbish, surrounded the tap. There are no bins here, so why have lazy people just left it. Who will clear it up? Maybe another boater or someone from the pub, or will it just become a health hazard. Yes we could have picked it up to put in the next bin, but it would have to sit on the roof until such a time and with strong winds forecast it would most probably get blown into the river.

There was a touch of drizzle in the air, so waterproofs were needed they’d also help keep the wind out.

We are definitely now on the river, it meanders round some quite tight bends. Plenty of weed growing where we’ve seen waterlilies before. Other rivers join in and weirs help to keep the levels for navigation whilst letting the excess water flow over them.

Four locks today one of which we moored at three years ago as the river rose around us very quickly and then slowly subsided after a downpour. Looking back at Oleanna today I reckon the water got halfway up the wall that night.

There were plenty of people out walking along the river bank, one chap with his dog kept overtaking us at locks. At Mountsorrel Lock he had stopped for a pint and watched as I started to fill the chamber for us. A Grandad and Granddaughter came out to see if they could lend a hand, which of course they could. Mick brought Oleanna out of the lock as the rain started again, the chap said they’d close the gate for us so I could climb back on board. There is a bridge just after the lock, so to get back on board you have to cross over a road on a bend with the humpbacked bridge. Back on board we looked behind us and both gates were wide open, the chap just disappearing back into the pub. Nothing for it but to walk back and close them.

The gravel conveyor bridge is still one of my favourites and always requires a photo or two to be taken. This is shortly followed by the small basin surrounded by dutch style gabble houses. I say style as they look more like a lego attempt to recreate Amsterdam which has forgotten to add a floor or two to the houses.

This morning there was around eight hours of cruising on the Soar left to get us to Trent Lock, we decided to chop it into three as we’d had a later start today. So we reached Barrow-upon-Soar at around 3pm. The visitor mooring by the weir was free, but I didn’t like the idea of Tilly roaming around fast moving water, so we carried on into the lock cut. Three jolly fishermen filled up the space left on the winter moorings, so we carried on and pulled up on the first of many bollards before the lock.

Lots to play with here, including a very bright blue birdie. I was told I had to leave it alone, no choice really as it was far far too quick for me to catch….not that I tried!

The forecast last night hadn’t mentioned any rain, so we’ve had a look at the Met Office radar for today. Scotland had rain, that was expected. Then just about exactly where we are is the only other place in the country! We have slack ropes and the tyre fenders are out to keep us away from the overhanging edge should the river rise which we doubt.

4 locks, 6.22 miles, 1 soggy morning, 1 newspaper, 1 anchor ready, 1 cleared weed hatch, 1 clean pooh box, 1 blowy day, 2 not quite so helpful gongoozlers, A6, 1 man and his dog and pint.

https://goo.gl/maps/vpiyYxEkodR2

Paintings On The Walls. 11th January

Castle Gardens Moorings to Watermead Country Park

Yesterday we couldn’t sum up the effort to walk over the river to go to Tescos for a top up shop, so we went this morning. Mostly fresh veg and fruit was needed along with a few other bits and bobs so that we can keep the freezer full in case we get stuck somewhere.

With the shopping stowed we pushed off, winding managing to avoid the numerous swans that loiter for white sliced. The pontoon at Friars Mill could well have been noisier than Castle Gardens this morning as work is still on going with new buildings going up right along the river bank, we just had to contend with drunkards last night.

The frog graffiti is still on the walls as you round the bend to avoid the weir before Frog Island. When we passed through April before last there was a mass of very good graffiti along all the walls leading to North Lock. Most of these have now been covered with smart elaborate tags, very colourful, but I preferred the old Indian chap with turban and huge white moustache.

A cartoony old man with round glasses (Boaster) and a young lady looking on disapprovingly (Joto Foto) sing out from all the tags.

On social media we’d heard rumours that another pontoon had been installed in Leicester. As we approached Limekiln Lock the end dolphin showed itself. A long pontoon stretches down into the arm which once seemed full of rubbish. A Leicester College building stands to one side at the end of the arm along with a modern carpark. We couldn’t see any mooring signs suggesting how long you can moor there for and without going to have a look we couldn’t see if they were secure. Maybe they are for visitors or permanent moorers, we’ll be interested to find out as stopping here would mean we’d be nearer to the National Space Centre and the Abbey Pumping Station Museum that we’d like to visit someday.

New buildings are going up around Wolsey Island, modern houses and a very large block of apartments are progressing well. This side of the city is certainly having some money spent on it. Maybe this will mean there is less rubbish in the river in years to come!

Belgrave Lock looked like the lumberjacks had been around. Large branches needed to be encouraged to move out of the way of the gates and a large log prohibited me from being able to open one of the gates. There have been a lot of trees and logs floating about. In locks like this it’s hard to get them out as the sides are so high, so we had to leave them for someone else.

At Loughborough Road Bridge there is a new culvert this will be used to help flood water flow past the bridge and the surrounding land has been lowered to give more storage for water. Running through the culvert is a new cycle path leading out of the city.

Birstall Lock bottom gates were exceptionally heavy today. I normally can bump gates to get them to close, but this one was obstinate. I got it to move a couple of feet, then would it shift, would it heck as like. Mick was just about to come and help when I managed to commandeer a chap who was planning on walking straight by with his girlfriend. It was still very heavy with two of us but we got it to move in the end.

Thurmaston Lock was our last for the day and we made our way along the straight towards the Hope and Anchor stopping short of the bridge to give Tilly a better mooring. Today is the first time we’ve done this stretch without it snowing. Usually there have been clouds of fairies or blossom wafting through the air, but today unless it snows overnight it is decidedly brown.

Trees, plenty of friendly cover to keep me busy and a later curfew time today. I wonder if this is a bit like a curlew but is rarer, it certainly feels that way to me. This outside has a handy fence for me to stand on above the friendly cover, giving me a better vantage point and greater pouncability. Just a shame there are lots of people on bikes and woofers, but they didn’t seem to see me up on the fence.

I thought I should mention that there will be a couple of Myth Busting Workshops on Composting Toilets next month in the London area, similar to the one we went to in Banbury. If anyone is interested click the link (Link) which will take you to the Eventbrite website where you can reserve yourself a place, the workshops are free.

5 locks, 5.97 miles, 1 wind, 1 chicken, 2 carrots, 2 parsnips, 1 broken camera, 51 swans, 4 branches, 6 logs, 1 stubborn gate, 0 pipe bridge, £99 deposit, 0 canoes, 1 cyclepath, A46, 1 elevated pouncing perch, 2 noisy crows, 1 friend, 15 minutes longer, 1 cat picked up squirming to return to the boat, 1 secret passage, 1 determined cat.

I wonder where we’ll be getting our newspaper from tomorrow?

https://goo.gl/maps/1mdsA9xYmtx

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

Plenty Of Water. 9th January

Ross Bridge 74 to Ellis Bridge 86

Central heating was needed this morning as it was a touch chilly outside despite it being sunny. A bowl of porridge for breakfast, thermals and padded trousers donned we hoped we’d manage to cruise for a bit longer today before seeking warmth inside. We’d like to try to get through Leicester before the weekend, doable with a few chilly days.

Just through the next bridge a C&RT work boat was being pushed across the cut and a couple of chaps were loading chainsaws and hedge trimmers onto it. From where the boat had been moored on the offside you could see exactly where they had finished work yesterday. As we passed them we knew there would now be overhanging branches etc, good job we didn’t expect to meet anyone coming the other way.

Not far and we came to our first wide lock, not sure when we’ll see our next narrow one, maybe not for a few months and before then we’ll certainly be seeing far bigger locks. It looked like all the locks would be against us today unless we met another boat as the first few were empty. These locks have a tendency for the gates to want to stay open so if the bottom gates were open it was worth cracking a paddle at the top end before even walking down to close them.

Stood on the back of the boat you were glad to be wearing thermals and several layers. But with the sun out and winding paddles up and down, hoiking gates open and closed I soon started to over heat. There’s plenty of debris about, some meaning gates wouldn’t open fully. Then a tree had a go at stopping our progress, but luckily moved out of the way for us.

Once the first batch of locks were done I went below to put the kettle on for a warming drink. Our insulated mugs came out the back just in time for us to pass Wistow.

We’d wanted to try to moor here last night, but another couple of hours in the cold we’d have been nithered and Tilly would have been non to impressed at not having any shore leave. It is such a wonderful view.

As we approached Newton Top Lock we could see someone in red at the next lock. Were they a dog walker or was there a boat coming? Hopping off I could get a better angle of view and saw the bow of a boat headed in our direction. One of the bottom gates was already open so the lock was ready and waiting for them. Two members of crew were making their way towards me, I suspect as surprised at seeing another boat as we were. It quickly became obvious that they were new to boating. They didn’t understand why I was waiting for them to use the lock and hadn’t reset it, the other clue was the way their boat was trying to double the amount of distance between the two locks in a very impressive zigzag.

We helped them up and chatted away. One of the crew was hoping to move back from Australia, he misses our winters and I think his family and he is considering moving onto a narrowboat. He’d not been on board a hire boat for 25 years and was impressed at all the modern electrics now. Over the summer we’d seen this crinkle cut boat NB Jennifer Ann a lot on the summit pound, we’d not realised it was a hire boat.

Now the locks ahead of us were more or less full. The section between Turnover Lock and Bumblebee Lock was also full. When we headed south after picking Oleanna up we were held up here with a Lockie filling up the pounds. Other times on Lillian I’ve walked between locks as we didn’t think we’d be able to get her into the side as the levels were so low. This section is renowned for low water. None of that today, the bywashes were flowing and excess water spilled over lock gates.

Our aimed mooring for the day came into sight as the sun started to dip behind clouds. Stopping just short of Kilby Bridge meant we’d have a more rural mooring for Tilly. We’re also being treated to quite a pretty coloured sky as the sun sets.

12 locks, 4.7 miles, 1 zigzagging boat, 2 much water where there’s always been not enough, 2 many layers, 1 lovely view.

https://goo.gl/maps/2xSgtg7tdJD2

Down Hill To Yorkshire. 8th January

Morton’s Bridge 56 to Ross Bridge 74

At last we woke at a suitable time, and before the alarm clock went off!

Pushing off just before 10am we made our way to the top of Foxton just passing NB Isolnian, The Coffee Boat before they pushed off themselves. Both boats wanted water and the two taps obliged. The lady from NB Isolnian walked down to find the lock keeper to book us both in, there was a 70ft boat on it’s way up so there would be a bit of a wait, so there was no rush to fill our tanks.

A cheeky robin looking for crumbs hopped aboard Oleanna. He sat on the tiller, then the pram hood, then made sure that we’d noticed him by sitting on the rope Mick had just untied to move us up! Sadly by the time we’d found a fat ball he’d been scared off by a big group of walkers. As the top lock filled for the boat coming up a crow decided that he’d have a try for some tasty morsels, he had no luck either.

Once the top lock was clear it was our turn to head down. Another boat was starting to ascend in the bottom staircase, but as we were being followed down they would have to pull over between the staircases for both boats to pass. The sun was shining, what a day to do the flight!

Three volunteers were on duty and glad that there was a busy spell, yesterday there’d only been one boat, the rest of the time was spent drinking tea and re-reading the newspaper. Despite it being a cold January day there were still quite a few gongoozlers. A foreign couple who’d never seen a lock working before never mind a narrowboat, they asked lots of questions, all intelligent. Not once did they ask if it was cold, but they did wonder how we got our shopping.

My favourite gongoozlers were a Grandfather and Granddaughter who stood and watched us for quite sometime. He looked like he was explaining how they worked, all the time with a five year olds glinting look of excitement in his eye . As the water levels equalised I could hear a quiet argument going on between them. He was so obviously chomping at the bit to open a gate and she was saying he couldn’t just do it. She was getting a touch irate with him, ‘You can’t just do it without asking!!!’ So I asked him if he’d like to help, that gate was opened immediately, just a shame that he didn’t stay to close it again!

We reached the bottom chamber of the top staircase before the one coming up had got into the top chamber of their staircase. So I had to wait for them before I could lift my paddle. At Foxton and Watford staircases you always lift the red paddle before the white one, this fills the bottom chamber to the same level as the side pound. When the white paddle is lifted this empties the top chamber into the side pound. When both chambers and the side pound are all level then the gates will open between the chambers. So when you reach the pound between the two staircases (where it is possible to pass another boat) the red paddle is situated at the top of the bottom staircase and the white one at the bottom of the top staircase. If you are doing the flight on your own you have to walk round to do one before walking back to do the other, but as a boat was coming up I just had to wait for them to start filling their lock before emptying mine.

Once everything was level they came out from their lock and pulled into the side. Here they would sit whilst we went past followed by NB Isolnian, then they would be free to carry on up.

At the bottom lock a chap with a windlass in his hand said to leave the gates open as a boat was waiting to come up. I suspect he was with another boat, second in line and was just being helpful. However I insisted that we closed the gates as otherwise someone would have to do some reversing to let Isolnian out of the flight.

At Bridge 61 many people were enjoying the sunshine as we turned left under Rainbow Bridge and towards Leicester.

Today we started our descent to Yorkshire. It’s almost downhill all the way, Keadby Lock being the exception as we’ll be going up there from the Tidal Trent onto the Stainforth and Keadby Canal. This level fluctuates with the tide, but from the top of Foxton we’ll have descended 125m to be at sea level. From Keadby the border into South Yorkshire is between Maud’s Swing Bridge and Medge Hall Swing Bridge which is just over 6 miles west, almost 128 miles away from the top of the staircase locks. At least today we managed to tick off 10 of the 65 locks of the journey.

The countryside looked beautiful today, the greens so lush and the sky bright bright blue. The Riverknits boat was moored with a great view across rolling hills, but Becci wasn’t in to say hello to, just as well as I’d have been tempted to buy some of her yarn. We pootled on meandering our way around the SSSI. It’s the first time we’ve been this way in winter and the views that the hedges normally hide are wonderful.

Saddington Tunnel was clear all the way through a lot of cutting back has happened here, we only just managed to squeeze through when we headed south the year before last. Despite having worked up a sweat doing the locks in all my layers we were now getting cold, the thought of the warmth indoors was appealing so we pulled up and had a late lunch, letting Tilly enjoy the sunny afternoon outside for a couple of hours.

10 locks, 2 staircases of 5, 6.08 miles, 1 left, 1 topped up water tank, 1 cheeky robin, 1 bold crow, 3 volunteers, 1 eyed 1 legged lock keeper, 0 chilled medication available today, 1 tunnel, 0 bats, 123 miles 55 locks and 125m to Yorkshire.

https://goo.gl/maps/R9n4EGFo93D2

Narrowboat Oleanna

Travels of Narrowboat Oleanna