A good first day out

Wednesday 28^th September; Calcutt marina to Long Itchington

First, many thanks to Lisa, Mick and Jennie for your comments about Waterway routes and the ipad - it would be so much easier if it had a usb slot, but there we are.  Paul even reset our download limit so we could have another go, but no luck.   I will use the 7-day free trial of the full Acrobat software to make smaller files of the canals we are interested in and then I can email them across.  We will carry on using the analogue version (Nicholson's or printouts) for actual cruising to avoid accidents with electronics!

On Wednesday we arrived at the marina just after 1.  As we’d already eaten our sandwiches in the car on the way up, all we needed to do was unload the car and pay our mooring fees before we could leave.  Luke Cole (of Colecraft) arrived to complete the commissioning of WB Sheffield, against which we were moored, so we had a quick chat with him before setting off towards Stockton Top in bright sunshine.  It was wonderful to be back afloat on such a beautiful afternoon.

The beautiful Warwickshire countryside

We had hoped to get back on the boat on Monday, but Meg has been quite poorly so we have had to wait for the vet’s go-ahead before we could come away.  She isn’t fighting fit yet, and has at least another week of antibiotics ahead of her (she doesn’t mind that, the tablets are concealed in sausages) but she is much more like her old active self now and joined me locking ahead down Stockton locks.

Somewhere on the Stockton flight

The weather was fabulous, warm but not too hot and perfect for a hard afternoon’s locking.  The boat that had been following us from Calcutt had moored somewhere before the top lock, so we were alone and didn’t meet any boats coming up, and had to turn every single lock.  I only worked one side – we calculated once, coming up Hatton on our own, that you save so little time by opening both paddles that you might as well save the effort and just use the towpath side. 

The bottom lock of the first 8

When we have come down the Grand Union locks in previous years we got used to the idea that when you hear the bubbly splashy noise as the lock is emptying then the gates are about to be ready, though I’ve never wondered why that should be.  I was a bit surprised at the top end of the flight that this wasn’t the case today.  It took me till the 8^th lock to work out why – it occurs when the water level reaches the top of the culvert arch of the ground paddles.  And the water levels are a lot lower this year than usual ….  you learn something new every day! 

At Stockton bottom lock are these white plastic discs in the ground – are they to do with checking ground movement?

We trickled quietly on past the two pubs on either side of the canal and moored a couple of hundred yards beyond the road bridge for a well-earned cup of tea and some cake - and to finish the unpacking!  The evening got cold very quickly and we went up to the Boat Inn to eat.  What a lovely warm and welcoming pub!  With full tummies we went back and tried out the Eberspacher for the first time.  It is very noisy, sounds like an aeroplane taking off and then stays noisy.  But it does the job.  We won’t light the stove until I’ve cleaned the flue – that’s a job for tomorrow.

3½ miles, 10 locks

Does anyone use Waterway Routes on an iPad?

We have bought Paul's Waterway Routes (PDF version) and successfully got it on my laptop.  Then we tried to get it onto Dave's ipad, and it seems to have finished whatever it was doing after we clicked on the link supplied, but it hasn't appeared in Downloads.  Has anyone got any tips please?

Back to Calcutt

Yesterday (Monday 19^th September) was the Queen’s funeral.  We rang the bells at 12.30, once the funeral service was over.  I cycled the mile or so down to the church through a spookily quiet village – not a soul about, not even a cat, and no traffic either, just the wind in my ears. The bells were still muffled, and as most people were probably indoors glued to their TV sets I wonder if anyone heard the bells but the ringers.

Tuesday 6^th September; Napton Adkins lock to Calcutt marina

It started to rain as we went to bed last night, and there was another thunderstorm, longer and noisier than last night’s.  As well has the racket of the rain on the roof, there were several loud cracks of thunder, very close – we jumped out of our skins at the first big one and Meg decided she is frightened of thunder after all.  She’s nearly 13, and she’s never bothered about it before.

We were on our way soon after 8.  We had to turn most of the locks, but the weather was quiet after last night’s storm and it was a  pleasant descent.  The water buffalo were mostly relaxing and chewing the cud.

Boats were coming up the bottom two locks, but the water point was free so I fitted the new hose adaptor and was able to attach it and turn on the tap without getting soaked like last time!  I got some snacks in the shop while the tank slowly filled.  There was even time for Dave to fit the replacement shackles to the front fender.  The spring and shoelace repair had done their job well!

In the end my fingernails were needed to undo the bootlace.

We moved round the bend to moor and did a few more jobs, had lunch and finished most of the packing before setting off again towards Napton Junction.  It was a bit drizzly now and then, but nothing much.  The top Calcutt lock was ready for us, and as Dave had spotted someone approaching far behind us we waited in the lock for them.  We were soon down the locks and were able to get into the visitor mooring area very easily – calm conditions and a lovely widebeam to moor against!  Calcutt's visitor mooring area has one short stretch of solid edge to tie to and the rest is stern-on only with no pontoons, so you really need a similar length boat to tie up to – last time we were against a very short boat and it was quite tricky.

Pearl had the best bit of the visitor moorings.

The boat lift on the slipway beyond rather spoils the picture.  As we came alongside a confident voice said ‘A Colecraft!’ – which we are.  It was one of the Coles, at work commissioning widebeam Pearl for the Ethel Trust, which is based in South Yorkshire and takes people from disadvantaged groups for canal and river trips on their widebeam Ethel.  Pearl has a wheelchair lift, hoists, full disabled facilities and accommodation for crew and clients.  We had a brief look round – very impressive!

We were soon packed and driving home, and apart from a long traffic jam near the M5 had a straightforward trip home.

3½ miles, 9 locks.

Trip stats

100½ miles – 99 narrow, 1½ broad.

82 locks – 76 narrow, 6 broad.

Fenny Compton ‘tunnel’ (x2), 3 lift bridges that needed to be opened (x2).

Grand Union and Oxford canals, and the teeny tiny bit of the Thames below Isis lock.

We hope to be back on board in less than a week to bring Bonjour down to Droitwich Spa marina where we have a berth booked for the winter.

 

 

 

Stormy night, lovely day

Monday 3th September; Fenny Compton to Adkins lock

We were woken in the night by heavy rain drumming on the roof.  The loud noise upsets the dog so she jumped up on the bed.  She ignored the low rumble of thunder.  After a few minutes there was one loud clap, then a few minutes more before one last distant rumble and the storm was gone.  It was lovely and sunny in the morning.  At 9 am the marina office opened, and we took on fuel, did a pump-out, bought a gas bottle (now £44.50) and disposed of rubbish and recycling.  The chandlery is very small, but did have a new connector for the hose and some shackles.  And at last a Towpath Talk which seems to have been in short supply this summer.  All that took almost an hour, so it was 10 before we could leave.  Our single-hander friend, who we had expected to see at the chandlery buying a mooring pin, had already left – he is making for Braunston so will probably find plenty of Armco between here and there where he won't need one.  We had a cuppa and cruised along enjoying the late summer sunshine and the ripening hedgerow fruits

Wayfaring tree

The weather was glorious as we pottered along the summit level.  Water depth was fine too.  We looked out for the carved head that Dave had spotted on our way out – I had been making coffee so I missed it.

Hello!

As we approached the HS2 works we were astonished at how quiet it all was.  No-one about on the supply route -

And apart from a van driving across in the distance, there was no activity anywhere else either.

Nothing doing

I wonder if the sheep and swans are disturbed by the noise from the works?  We were back to the quiet countryside we love so much.

At least for a while!  There were very few boats about, but naturally we met one of them at a bridge.  It was Spurfoot, no. 123, which is on a bend with a lot of vegetation so we didn't see each other till quite late.  All would have been well except that a boat was moored on the other side, so the other steerer had to avoid that – and then his dog jumped off the boat so he had to pull in.

‘Last boat down’ the two Marston Doles locks at the top of the Napton flight is at 1.15, as a water-saving measure.  We were in no rush and had plenty of time, so we went down, hoping to stop for lunch just below the second lock, but the moorings were full.  The pound is long, with little mooring until you get much closer to Marston Doles, so that is where we stopped.

It was 2 o’clock when we stopped, so we had lunch and decided to stay there overnight.  A shower as we were eating may have tipped the balance!  It was pleasantly quiet, and although we were joined by three boats which had come up from the bottom, there was plenty of room for everyone.  Dave took Meg for a walk when the rain stopped, and later she came with me while I picked blackberries – there are very good bushes in this area.  And of course plenty of other autumn fruits as well.

Hawthorn

7 miles, 2 locks