Summer Jaunt 2018. 17

Heading Home.

Saturday 15^th September

Very little done today except watch several episodes of Getty on BBC iPlayer, which was strongly recommended by my daughter. I have to say that it is very addictive and interestingly, it take place when JPG lived at Sutton Place alongside the River Wey near Guildford, although the set is somewhere else.

A visit to the Co-Op was also in order, but you already know what I think of that place. The Barley Mow was on the list on the way back, with their good selection of real ales.

Sunday 16^th September

It was a case of ‘Getty With Breakfast’ this morning and I had to make the most of it, as I had a free wi-fi connection from the houses just behind the moorings.

I took a walk along the towpath and through the village later in the afternoon, but nothing too strenuous, calling in again at the pub for a pint. A very lazy day!

Monday 17^th September

Time to make a move on to Rugby and being around midday there were copious moorings, so with a prodigious shopping list I walked down to Tesco and stocked up for the trip to Braunston. Otherwise, another idle day not doing much.

Between here and Braunston, the pubs are dire chain outfits where no one cares about the food, beer or customers, so it was a time for restraint.

Tuesday 18^th September

I am still making the most of the free wi-fi connection here and finished Episode 10 of Getty – fascinating stuff.The afternoon was spent doing a load of washing.

At 15.15 the NBT pair of boats past me with a crew of three by the looks of it – the only one I knew being Howard Williams. I am meeting up with the loading crew on Friday, which will entail some dirty work on Saturday, but no lifting will be involved on my part.

Wednesday 19^th September

As soon as another boat pulled off the water point, I untied and drifted across in the wind to water up and empty the portable loo. With that all done, I set off with breakfast on the hoof, wanting to make Braunston today, because the forecast for tomorrow was constant rain.

I stopped off at Clifton Cruisers for a pumpout, wanting to get rid of the Elsan Blue the guy had chucked in last time, so that I could revert to a biological method of cleaning the tank with SilkyRX. The. re was a warning that it would not work if in contact with formaldehyde. Maybe I should wait until after another pumpout before adding it; in which case it is going to be a long drawn out businsess.

As the morning progressed, the wind became stronger until it was gusting to gale force, which made boating very uncomfortable indeed and there were very few sheltered spots, even behind hedges. I did find one however around 12.30, when I was desperate for something to eat and drink. Fortunately there was some piling to clip the centre line to and I could hold the boat on that while I made a drink and a sandwich, so I was only there for 10 mins.

By this time, I was not far from Braunston and I thought that being in a hollow, it would be more sheltered. How wrong I was. Most of the moorings from the turn to the Boathouse were full and again the boats were 10 to 15ft apart, being either ignorant or selfish boaters. Eventually, I spotted Nuneaton and Brighton breasted up and there was a space ahead of them, but getting moored up was not easy. Firstly there was only one ring near enough to use and secondly despite the hedge, the wind was blowing Stronghold off the bank. Lastly, passing boaters would not slow down for someone trying to tie up. Eventually I got a stern line on the only ring, before pulling in on the centre line for the umpteenth time, sufficiently to drive a mooring pin in a previously used hole and affixing the bow line to it. Not only did I add a spring line to a short length of chain pinned to the towpath, but I added a centre line spring as belt and braces against the wind. I rarely do this, but the mooring pin was loose in the hole, although driven completely in to its full length behind the coping stone. I will remove the centre line if the wind drops later.

I was just taking stock, when I was approached by John Japp of NBT. We had a brief chat and he had been asked by Howard to make a few adjustments to the boats as he collected his gear. I gave him a hand to speed things up a bit so that he could get away home to Patcham nr. Brighton as soon as possible.

Thursday 20^th September

Well, the forecast was right and it started raining in the night and continued until about midday, after which the wind began again in earnest, so it was once again BBC iPlayer to keep me amused most of the morning. Eventually i had had enough and decided to take a walk up into the village and down Dark Lane to visit The Admiral Nelson. With very comfortable furniture and so many cookery books on display for customer’s delectation, along with an excellent choice of ales, how can they lose?

Back on board, it was time to sort out a meal. The lamb chops in the fridge were beginning to smell off, so they went in the bin. They were originally bought to BBQ and I did two some time ago. These I was going to roast with roast potatoes, so that was scrapped in favour of the last of a chicken sweet and sour with rice and garlic flavoured fried cashew nuts on top, which was certainly different. I shall have to stock up on food tomorrow morning in the village.

Friday 21^st September

A good shopping session, especially at the Braunston Butchers where they had calves liver again in stock, which I eagerly look forward to. The remainder of the afternoon was spent reading and sorting out the mess inside the boat.

The NBT crew arrived and we had a good catchup session before they moved the pair into the arm for loading the following morning. The butty was bow hauled in first and tie up to the wharf, followed by the motor on the outside.

Barry had made me a stainless steel chimney which fitted perfectly and I now have to decide whether to fit the old brass handle and fittings and polish them, or make new stainless ones. The brass fittings take such a battering from the heat and weather, they really need cleaning every day.

The new stainless steel chimney.

Saturday 22^nd September

Loading day was here and most people were there when I arrived on the wharf. There were 17 tons of mixed fuels to be loaded onto both boats and once it had started loading continued in record time of less than five minutes per ton. I has to be recognised that there were usually two persons lifting off the stacks and another two people stacking inside the hull, which is why it was so quick. When the butty was about level, the boats were swapped over and loading the motor was loaded to completion. I have to say that the loaders worked tirelessly, never pausing for breath and I wished that I was young and fit enough to do the same, but I did help with some of the clothing up afterwards, so did not feel entirely useless.

Loading the butty.

Off down the Oxford canal.

The pair left the arm at 13.30 in good time to get to The Folly at Napton for a meal with two new recruits on board for a short trip up to The Turn. I bade my goodbyes to the last of the loading crew and returned to Stronghold via The Nelson for a well deserved pint with Barry. Although I had done little this morning, I was knackered and had an hours snooze back on board.

It was time to meet up with my daughter again in The Nelson for a beer or two, although I was not in a drinking mood and consumed very little, but it was an excellent evening, despite being so crowded.

Summer Jaunt 2018. 16

Back Yet Again.

Monday 10^th September

Here I am back on board after an angioplasty, which involved inserting two stents into the right cardiac artery, so that should put paid to the angina for some while. After a seamless journey involving four trains, which fortunately all linked up, I started up the towpath and within five minutes, three people greeted me with a wave or hello. It is quite incredible really that this camaraderie exists on the cut and nowhere else and so many boaters remark upon it frequently.

Stronghold was exactly as I left her, all safe and sound and I soon had the gas and power back on, but had to pay a visit to the Co-Op to get something to cook later, via The Old Swan, which is a 16^th  century coaching inn; well what a let down: the beer was limited to Banks’s bitter and mild; there was only one small main bar and two other rooms; no food and basic seating, with about six customers.

Tuesday 11^th September

A more consistent shopping expedition was now in order to keep me going until I reached Rugby. Unfortunately it was raining fairly heavily and continued until about midday, so I was unable to make an early start unless I got soaked, which I was not prepared to do. There are two outlets of the Co-Op in Atherstone, so I went to the nearest and the smaller of the two, which was of course very limited, but the larger one is not much better. Despite the logo advertising “Good With Food”, it is just not true and I would have fared better in Aldi.

After lunch I did let go, heading for The Anchor again in Hartshill. Surprisingly there were a fair number of boats moored up there, but there always seems to be spaces. I had forgot about Tarmac’s yard opposite, which starts up at 07.00 with a fork lift or similar clanging about and probably loading trucks for delivery.

Wednesday 12^th September

I let go for Sutton Stop this morning and arrived in good time to bag a decent mooring just above the water point on the Coventry canal. After a good hot shower, I went to The Greyhound to meet up with Terry and Chris Rigden for a meal in the restaurant. I had previously bought a painting by Chris of Nuneaton and Brighton cruising past their property in Bedworth at the Braunston Show earlier this year and said that I would be passing through at the time. We had a very pleasant meal as always at The Greyhound and I learned more about their boating activities. They also invited me to stop off for a meal when I was  passing next, which I thought was most generous, but it will almost certainly be next year now.

Thursday 13^th September

Mostly a day relaxing on board, though I did go foraging for blackberries later. The best of which were to be found along the towpath of the North Oxford. I did eventually pick a pound and a half. I also bumped into John and Myra on Tramper II, who I met initially at Sawley some two years ago. It was they who sold Tramper, their first boat to my mate Colin, thus the initial reason for asking about the name and meeting them.

In the evening I met up with my eldest daughter and fiancé in The Greyhound for the last time this year, but this time it was for drinks only. Another great evening in one of my favourite waterway pubs.

Friday 14^th September

Heading off this morning for Newbold moorings, I encountered another boater holding in Papillon and his wife hanging on to her boat. It transpired that Papillon had come adrift at the stern end, so I stopped to lend a hand, which meant driving mooring pins in, because there were no rings. Papillon had been there about six weeks to my knowledge and already had two CRT tickets attached for overstaying the time limit. The stern mooring pin turned out to be a thin tubular steel broom handle, which someone else must have used in emergency, because the steel mooring pin was hanging on the end of the line at the back of the boat and had obviously not been seen. I drove it in tight to the steel piling, hoping that it would not pull out, because the ground was extremely soft at that point and quite unsuitable for mooring there. Whoever moored up originally, quite obviously either did not care or were just ignorant – maybe both. The front door had also been broken into, so it may even have been stolen.

Arriving at Newbold  after about five hours cruising, I moored up and was congratulated by the lady on the hire boat in front about the slick method that I use. There are plenty of rings available here, which does make it easy and I clip on the centre line to a ring, before attaching a tiller string to keep the boat straight which then springs her into the piling. With the boat held in position on tickover and in gear, I can now attach the bow and stern lines and suitable fenders and another spring line from the bow to stop any lengthways movement when other boats pass by.

Summer Jaunt 2018. 15

Just Hanging About.

Wednesday 22^nd August

It was time to move again, as I had been at Atherstone since Sunday and as I needed to go home again next week, I wanted quite a long time in the town when I was away and I could only moor here for 14 days in total.

I motored up to the top lock where I could wind the boat and water up, which took a considerable time, so I was obviously very low on water. I cruised back south towards Hartshill and The Anchor, which I passed by on the way up, finding plenty of space close to the pub. This place has memories, as it was here some years ago, when I was crewing Nuneaton and Brighton, that I was looking for a leak below the engine header tank. I found it close to the drain plug, so I found a spanner and thought I would tighten it up, only to find that the aluminium tank was corroded around the plug which came away in my hand. We had a meal, then removed the tank, sealed around the hole and covered it almost completely with a baked bean tin, which had been opened up with scissors, wrapped around and tightened with copper wire. We then went to the pub to celebrate a successful repair, which lasted for a few more trips on the pair of boats.

I went in the pub for a pint of Everard’s Tiger and not much had changed, except that the food on the menu is more tempting than I remember.

Thursday 23^rd August

This is noisy mooring, because directly opposite is a builders yard, with a lot of trucks in and out and loading or unloading in between, so I think I will move later. There are no other boats moored here either, which is rather strange for a pub mooring in August. Perhaps that is an indication of the popularity of the pub, where there were few customers last night.

Another load of washing was done this afternoon, which took that long, but with the engine running, the batteries are topped up along with the hot water.

Tony Redshaw’s boat came past this morning, with the overpowered 4 cylinder Gardner engine driving the boat fast and he cut the power when he reached my stern, so I was rocked around no end, despite having the lines tight and a spring line out. No bloody consideration for moored boats – selfish bastard! Much later Monarch also came past and there was Sam Noone, who now calls herself Sam Monarch holding little Archie on the gunwale and he is not so little now. They were in their way to Alvecote Historic Boat Gathering, where I would have been had I not had to go home.

Friday 24^th August

 A very changeable day for weather with many showers and bright spells. I took a chance between showers and had a walk down to the winding hole, not only to see how far it was, but also on the lookout for Nuneaton and Brighton on their way to Alvecote Historic Boat Rally, which I attended last year on the pair of boats. Shortly after getting back to Stronghold, I spotted them moving at a good pace towards me and got some photos. Howard Williams was steering the motor and Peter Lovatt was on the butty; both greeted me as they passed. The pics went on the Faceache Members Group straight away.

Nuneaton and Brighton passing The Anchor on the way to Alvecote Festival.

I ran the engine to get hot water and charge the batteries for about an hour, before changing the oil and filter. I am so used to doing it now, it is all over in about 30 mins and a job well done, as it is not a thing I relish.

I now had enough hot water for a shower, before I paid another visit to The Anchor, where I got chatting to another group of boaters, sitting close by.

Saturday 25^th August

Continued showers in the morning, but I managed to dodge them again and I went down and turned at the winding hole and motored up to just above Bridge 32, where there were a few other boats moored up.

After a light lunch, I took quite a steep walk up the hill into Hartshill via a busy and fast road with no footpath for a while, to sample one of the two pubs. The first was the Stag and Pheasant, where they had Doombar or Doombar on two handpumps, so it was take it or leave it, the former being the best option. On first impression it was a local drinkers pub only, but on further investigation the other bar was an Indian Resturant called Tiffins. There were about six English dishes also on the menu. The main bar was not very inviting, but the Trip Advisor reviews on the food were spectacular.

Thinking about adding another two pubs to my database, I forged on to The Malt House not far away and what a surprise was in store; the place was humming with people eating in the bar and in the restaurant. It seems that I followed two other guys from the previous pub, who greeted me at the bar and told me that the pub had caught fire last year and had only been re-opened for six weeks, which explained the good order of decoration. There were four familiar ales on tap here and obviously good food to be had.

I walked back to the cut along Apple Pie Lane to Bridge 31, which was a far safer route, despite having no footpath, as there was no traffic at all, either way.

Sunday 26^th August

The forecasters were spot on with the weather today – rain all day accompanied by a cold wind, so not a day for comfortable boating, nor a day for a ½ mile walk to the pub. Perhaps I should have stayed at The Anchor? It was also nearly cold enough to light the fire, except that meant digging out the chimney and liner from the fore end in the rain.

I was just making some soup, when I felt a sudden jar to the bow end and another boat had tried to pull in too fast and was being held by the centre line alone to try and stop. Not a wise thing to do where other boats are moored close together and there was no apology forthcoming either. It was fortunate that I was not pouring boiling water from the kettle at the time.

The weather is improving tomorrow, which is good, as I have to move back to Atherstone to get the train on Tuesday.

Monday 27^th August

Although it was drizzling at 09.00, it had cleared by 10.00, so it was time to make a move and in an hour I was back on the town moorings, but at the bottom end this time. Not only was there good TV reception, but I had a five bar BT wi-fi signal as well, so a good place to stop. I walked up to the locks to dump the trash and refresh the drinking water, before having a shower and I was thinking of strolling up to a pub.

At that point I had a text from Maggie, who was coming up the locks with Mark. Although I took a windlass with me, I was too late as they were just coming in to the bank. We had a good catch up on Alvecote Festival, before Mark was to drive his car back home. We walked down as far as the station  before Maggie and I went in The Kings Head opposite and had more conversation to catch up on. We then went back to our boats for a meal and bed.

This is the last entry for a while until I return.

Summer Jaunt 2018. 14

Greyhound Party and not a lot else.

Thursday 16^th August

Well, well, would you believe that I have now been back on board for six days and no blog written up. I have to say that they have been pretty uneventful days, so not a lot to write about.

At Rugby Wharf I settled up my mooring fee, which was only £5.00 per night – the cheapest that I have come across so far. Obviously there were very few boats passing in and out of the short arm and they were mostly hire boats, as this is the base for Willow Wren. I motored back to Rugby to shop and paid two heavy trips to Tesco to stock up, before heading north again towards Sutton Stop.

Just short of Ansty, there were moorings on a bend with rings, between Bridges 14 and 15; not the best place to moor on a bend, but there was little choice. The intention was to pay a visit to The Ansty village club, which was well advertised along the towpath, so it had to be open to the public. The main problem here has always been the lack of moorings closer to this place, where there are positively NO MOORING signs all along the embankment where the houses are, so the village discourages visitor mooring and the club is asking for custom – a dichotomy indeed!

It seems that I haven’t missed much in the past, as the club is fairly sterile with few customers in the bar. Food is served at pub prices and there is a varied menu, but nothing out of the ordinary. Two beers were on tap at slightly more than local pub prices, with a third pump being off. Wi-wi was available, along with Sky sports and a full sized snooker table. There were a few smiles at the bar when I asked for the sparkler to be taken off, so they were aware of where I came from. So in retrospect, I will happily pass it by next time.

Being only just past midday, there were ample moorings to be had a Sutton Stop and I settled just before the stop lock on Armco for a few days. Of course the places filled up as the afternoon wore on, until they were all full.

The next day, I was taking a walk up to The Greyhound for a late lunchtime pint, when I spotted nb Curraghmore coming through the lock. Sue and Mike were very surprised to see me, although I had heard that Mouse had made contact a few days before on the Trent and Mersey, when he spotted their home mooring as being on The Wey. It seems that the ‘Towpath Telegraph’ is as active as ever, but now even faster by mobile phone. After they were moored, Sue and Mike appeared in the pub and we had a good catch-up session of news.

The Greyhound is always busy, inside and out.

Friday 17^th August

Getting short of supplies again, so I walked up to the corner shop across the cut in the housing estate to see what they had for a meal. Well, it is a good job that I picked up some salad ingredients earlier in Tesco, because all this place had to offer in the way of food was either frozen or in tins and the choice was abysmal. I bought some tinned tuna to supplement the other fish that I had in a salad.

I had a message from Mouse this morning to tell me that he was on his way back from The Caldon and would be in Sutton Stop by Saturday, so I begged the waitress in The Greyhound to increase the table count to five for the evening meal, which she managed to do with a bit of table juggling. I look forward to it.

I caught up with some basic bits that needed to be done, such as running some of Captain Tolleys Creeping Crack Cure around the Houdini hatch, now that it was dry. Strange how the original Silicone sealant fixed the leak from the end of June and now it has started leaking again. Most likely it is to do with expansion and contraction of the glass, considering the long heat wave that we had.

I also did some refuelling from the 40 litre reserve that I bought at Braunston Hysterics. That will improve my cruising time for another 40 hours. I have to say that the inline pump speeds things up considerably compared with siphoning the diesel into the tank.

A pair of working boats passed by this afternoon and I walked up to the stop lock to see how they did the turn. They were motor Harrier and butty Lyra. Harrier being built in 1999 by Gary Gorton, with a 1946 Kelvin J2 engine. However, Lyra was built in 1935 by Yarwoods. https://www.reveriecanaltradingco.co.uk/

I had a brief chat with the crew of three as they went through the lock and learned that my guess about the Kelvin was correct, although I had only seen a few K2’s before. One of the crew commented on Nuneaton and Brighton’s perfect turn at Sutton Stop a week or so before. They also did it perfectly and got a round of applause from the Greyhound gongoozlers. Both cross straps were in place on the turn and the butty steerer was rowing the tiller like crazy.

Saturday 18^th August

A lot of the morning was taken up with internet stuff and fortunately I get a good wi-fi signal here from BT broadband in the houses nearby, but for more secure connections, I use a personal wi-fi router.

I went to the pub for one pint of mild and had a text from Mouse to say that they had arrived and were below the water point. I saw him walk over the bridge to the bins and gave him a shout, so next minute he had a pint in his hands too. He had secretly been invited to eat with my daughter later, which was to be a surprise and it certainly was. What a great evening we all had and Toody had even brought a birthday cake for Jim, which was brought to the table at the end of the evening by the waitress.

A great evening in The Greyhound.

Sunday 19^th August

Mouse and Karen left rather later than was announced last night, but I was up and waved them goodbye, before it was my turn to leave, with the intention of heading up to Atherstone for the night to do some food shopping, as I was now right out of anything to eat for a meal.

An uneventful trip and passing through Nuneaton was not the best of cruising. I spotted Terry and Chris’s boat Grace, which was obviously moored outside their bungalow, before passing Charity Dock, which is always good for a laugh and a few photos of the mannequins dressed in various ridiculous outfits.

Charity Dock, Bedworth.

No problem finding a mooring at Atherstone in the early afternoon, so I paid a visit to The Angel Alehouse in Church Street, which is North Warwickshire Pub of the Year once again after several years in succession. What an amazing selection of real ales and ciders on handpumps. Being a CAMRA member, there was also a 20p discount off a pint. Recorded music was being played on vinyl on a turntable obviously, which is a most unusual sight nowadays, especially in a pub!

Monday 20^th August

A heavy shopping session was in order for today and the only two places to do it were The Co-Operative and Aldi. Although the Co-Op was supposedly a supermarket, it was so disorganised and almost impossible to find some items at all and if you did the choice was abysmal. Had I gone to Aldi, as I found out later, it would have been a far more rewarding experience.

The pub of choice this evening was The New Swan, also in Church Street and although it is a Pubmaster house, all three ales were from Church End Brewery, a favourite in my family. Apparently the pub had recently been refurbished and a family were there to run it.

Tuesday 21^st August

Imagine my surprise when I checked the batteries this morning, to see Karen Cook (NBT) moored behind me. Her son James was with her and we had a conversation before they went into town. Then at lunchtime, Andy Belton (NBT) moored in front of me with wife Leslie, so another brief catch up was in order. Andy was previously moored at The Pelican not far from Stronghold, but recently moved house, job and mooring to Nottingham. Also moored close by was a Wey Navigation boat, that I had previously seen at Triggs Lock on The Wey. In all, what a small world it had suddenly become.

A few items were still needed in the store cupboard, or should I say locker? So it was off to Aldi this time, but not before a well needed haircut at Scissor Sisters, a male/female hairdressers in Long Street. As I was now further up the cut, I decided to investigate the train station and a way back along the towpath, which would be a shorter walk than through the town. Being close to The Kings Head, it was an opportunity to see what that was like after many years of closure. It was now refurbished and pleasant inside and out, with a garden and canal side mooring for one boat. Three ales were on and there was a varied menu of food available. The staff were very accommodating, offering to pull another pint before I even asked.

The steerer on this floating allotment cannot see astern and 

has to peer alongside to navigate forwards. Quite a hazardous procedure, surely?

Summer Jaunt 2018.13

Back and Forth

Tuesday 24^th July

I had decided that a visit to the Battlefield Line Railway was the order of the day from Market Bosworth, where the terminus was just across the canal, so I let go at 09.30 heading in that direction. I must say that this canal and surrounding countryside is stunningly beautiful and with no locks, that is a bonus.

In two and half hours I reached Bosworth Marina, where there were moorings advertised outside. Strangely enough, Dame du Cane was there too and after I had winded Stronghold, Pat and Sue gave me a hand to moor up behind their boat. We had a walk across the bridge to search out the station and I left them to have a bite to eat back on board. They returned not long after to give me the bad news, which was that there were no trains running for some time due to staff shortages and the possibility of sparks from the loco setting fire to nearby fields, so that was a trip wasted for me, although I decided there and then to stop the night and maybe bus up to the town for a pint later, when It had cooled down a little.

We went on the bus to The Olde Red Lion, where I had been last time, in the centre of Market Bosworth. The beer was Marston’s of course, being a Marston’s house, but the food was home cooked and good.

As we had come on the last bus, we had to walk back, but at least it was all downhill.

Pat and Sue on Dame du Cane were going to stay another night here, but we agreed to meet up again at Sutton Stop on Friday, so they will experience the glory of The Greyhound for the first time.

Wednesday 25^th July

Another red hot day was forecast and it has been more or less like this since the beginning of May, so no one can complain that it was a lousy summer. Canals are in trouble in the north and the Huddersfield Narrow is now closed from end to end. I have heard that the Southern Oxford has problems too, so it may be wise to return down the GU.

I let go at 09.30, heading back to The Lime Kilns again and the trip was uneventful although very hot once again. I thought of either stopping at Duck Corner and having a pint in the George and Dragon at Stoke Golding or keep on going to The Lime Kilns; the latter choice was the winner, although I did stop for lunch and to shop at the Bridge 23 Farm Shop, which was rather a waste of time with very little on display as they were about to close.

Continuing on, I arrived at the pub in good time and almost immediately went in to rehydrate, although I did not eat there this time. It is a very noisy mooring at evening rush hour and first thing in the morning, because it is adjacent to the A5 road, but there was ample mooring space above and below the A5 bridge.

I had had problems getting the cold air fan working, so that was taken apart and the spindle was quite stiff, so a little light lubrication was applied to both ends and then it started immediately, which was very welcome in the evening heat. You may remember that I found this 12 volt Road Pro car fan in the Braunston Marina launderette last year, along with the semi-circular table that is in the forward well deck well. Places like this seem to be a clearing house for other peoples’ cast offs, similarly the waste bin compound, where all sorts of treasures are to be had for free.

Thursday 26^th July

I was away fairly smartly this morning to get a good mooring at Sutton Stop. All went well and I got to Marston Junction in good time without meeting any boats coming towards me. It was nice and cool at this time in the morning and an ideal time to go boating. I got to the Junction in an hour less than my trip up a couple of days ago. Sure enough, there were loads of empty spaces at Suttons on the Coventry, so I did not need to turn the corner and I picked the closest mooring to the old pump house – pole position for The Greyhound, where I paid a visit straight away.

The afternoon was mostly spent on trying to rehash the horn, using a relay and a separate power source, but it sounded pretty hopeless after a great deal of fiddling about. I think the answer is to either use a motorcycle battery or have the horn at the stern end, where there is less voltage drop.

Friday 27^th July

The heat wave continues and I intended to clean up some of Stronghold today, but it has to be in the morning before it gets too hot. The horn was another continuing problem and by chance, I found an electric horn whilst searching a locker for something else, so I tried that out and with some alteration to the adjustment screw, I got it to work OK. It obviously did not require so much current as the 8 amp air horn.

Back to the cleaning business at long last. I had with me a Whale pump that I used in the garden for transferring water from one water butt to another, so I connected that up to a 12volt socket and extended the hose and tried it out. Sure enough it would pump water from the cut to the top of the boat with ease, which cut the cleaning time considerably and saved having to lift water in a bucket. Meanwhile, Pat and Sue were on their way to the pub for an early afternoon drink, so after finishing off the cleaning I joined them.

Back on board, I was tidying up the tools and replacing things on the cabin top, when there was a knock on the boat and I was very surprised to see Vic Wadley standing there with his dog Eric. It appears that he was moored just around the turn and was taking Eric for a walk, when he saw Stronghold. I should explain that Vic became a drinking buddy in The Pelican at Addlestone some long time ago, when he was fitting out his boat to go continuously cruising. That was more than six years ago and we seem to meet up by chance every year somewhere on the cut.

After such a hot job, it was time for a shower and change of clothes to welcome my daughter and fiancée on board and a visit to The Greyhound for a delicious meal in the restaurant and some suitable drinks, which was also very welcome after such a busy day.

Saturday 28^th July

This morning was spent answering e-mails and sorting out attachments to be sent to the new editor of The Steerer magazine that I gave up editing a while ago. The internet connection was so annoying when it kept cutting out, or telling me that my e-mail server had gone off line. The BT hotspot was hit and miss too, so how does that work? Sometimes it was there and at others times it had disappeared completely. I discovered by chance that if I used a different USB port, things improved considerably.

Pat and Sue were on their way to the pub for a light lunch and shortly after that Vic knocked to join him at The Greyhound, so after introductions were made, we all sat at the same table and exchanged experiences. I occasionally looked out of the window and saw nb Guilrose about to come through the turn, so went out to surprise Jenny and Mike Moorse, who I last saw at Canalway Cavalcade in May. We had a brief exchange at the Stop Lock, before they went on their way towards Rugby – what a coincidence!

It had begun to rain when we left the pub, which then turned into a thunderstorm and it was the first rain since the beginning of May. By 6pm, the heavy clouds had passed over and the wind dropped to zero, after blowing strongly all day. There is more rain forecast for the next couple of days, which might catch me out on the cruise back to Rugby.

Sunday 29^th July

I think it rained all night, but it was much cooler and sleeping was more comfortable. The rain continued throughout the morning and is forecast to carry on until 7pm and then after today it will be sunny intervals, so cruising back to Rugby is looking good.

It was a lazy morning mostly spent reading blogs and writing this one. I was pleased to see that Maffi has started blogging again and rightly has a go at speeding boaters and the damage they cause to banks and wildlife. It really annoys me too when they are so inconsiderate towards other moored boaters and threaten to pull out mooring pins with their speed. If you ask them to slow down a bit, you are often told to “get a life”, so they are also ignorant as well as selfish.

Monday 30^th July

I got to Newbold and had to ask a man on a brand new boat if he would mind moving up to the next ring, so that I could get in, which he and his wife obliged and Stronghold fitted in with about three feet to spare. The guy then asked if that was standard practice to moor on the same ring, to which I replied that it was like parking in the street with room for someone else to park as well. From that I recognised that he was new to boating, which he owned up to and he had only had his boat for a week, although he had hired boats previously. When I walked up to The Barley Mow, his wife was there having a drink, so I joined her and he turned up later.

Tuesday 31^st July

It was time to move again and before going home, I had enquired about a mooring in Rugby Wharf, which is one of Brindley’s original arms now, although it was originally a part of the North Oxford Canal, before Telford dug out all the straight connections. Mooring was no problem here and I got a bank side position, but with only one ring to tie up to, so had to use a stake as well.

I had a walk to suss out the bus stops and had a pint in the Steam Turbine, a big Hungry Horse pub and you know what I think of them! Sure enough the Abbott ale was off as soon as the barman pulled the handle, so I had to settle for something else.

summer Jaunt 2018. 12

A Trip up the Ashby and making new friends.

Wednesday 18^th July

Well folks, I got back yesterday, which was a week longer than I anticipated. Two friends of mine had reported that Stronghold was securely moored up and safe, which was some relief as I had never left her on the towpath before. I was forced by the heat to have a pint in The Bell and Barge, a Harvester house. Great choice of beers with 3 handpumps, Doombar, Doombar or Doombar!, good beer, but what choice! That indicates what type of pub it is.

Sure enough Stronghold was OK, although a thick layer of dust and cobwebs were abundant. It was good to be back on board and I eventually stocked up in Tesco. Shortly after unpacking the shopping, I noticed a familiar boat moored nearby, so I walked down to have a chat with Jane and David Brixey on nb Rowan. They were most surprised to see me and we chatted for about an hour, just catching up on each others news. They moved off later to tackle the Leicester Ring and I took off for Newbold, where there was a decent pub.

The moorings were all occupied and I asked a few if they were about to move, including Noddy boats. There were immense gaps between moored boats and if 2 or 3 had moored sensibly, I could easily have got in. After passing the water point, I moored just ahead of Bix, who had long overstayed his welcome.

Just after mooring up, a hire boat passed by and through the tunnel – this was one of the boats that I previously had asked if they were moving soon. So now I had the task of untying and reversing a fair way back, before doing it all again.

I should mention that nb Bix was now in a very poor state indeed, which is so disappointing, because she was originally owned by Iris Bryce and her husband many years ago. In my first days of hiring boats, I read many of Iris’s books an cruising the waterways and was even invited aboard, when we were on our first ever cruise. I still have the little cookbook that she also wrote. If Iris is still alive, she would recoil in horror at the present condition of Bix.

The sad state of Bix at Newbold.

Thursday 19^th July.

I let go at 11am and set off for Sutton Stop, which took 5 hours from Newbold. Another very hot day, but the slight breeze created by moving was of some comfort.

At the north end of All Oak Wood, I spotted Derwent 6 moored up and gave them a toot on my feeble horn, but either no one heard or they thought it was for someone else, because no one appeared. The strange thing is that I was reading their blog only a couple of hours earlier.

This was an incident free trip, with a sincere lack of watering holes on the way. The only respite would be at Ansty Village Club, but the only moorings to be had there were mostly for permit holders only and very few visitor moorings. There are plenty of No Mooring signs on the towpath, so it is not a village that encourages visitors to their club.

A little further on there is The Rose Inn, with a garden adjacent to the cut, but they don’t provide moorings either and the bridge is some way away. Having been there once for a meal, it is more restaurant than pub.

Eventually I reached Sutton Stop and the approach was wall to wall boats and no spaces, so around the turn I went to investigate the Coventry Canal moorings, where I found a convenient spot close to the water point. A dire visit was needed to The Greyhound after a light lunch and I at last could rehydrate on a pint of mild or two, which is much more available in the Midlands than ‘daan saarf’.

I could pick up a very strong wi-fi signal here and it was only when in Rugby that I discovered that the digital TV aerial (Moonraker) had to be redirected to pick up a horizontally polarised TV signal, so that was good too. To determine which is which, have a look at local TV aerials. Horizontal bars indicate a horizontal polarity and vertical bars indicate vertical polarity. Obvious really, but the instructions do not mention this basic fact.

Digital aerial in horizontal polarized position.

Friday 20^th July

Catching up on e-mails and writing the blog took up most of the morning – where does the time go? I was still online at 3pm – give it a rest! So I went into the Greyhound for some more mild and it was very full at that time. The favourite pastime here is gongoozling boats coming around the turn and one 60ft hire boat surpassed all others by having to make three attempts at it. There is no doubt that experience counts here; the secret being to turn up the wick to full speed as you push the tiller far over.

Although I intended to do some washing and fix up the better horn, neither jobs were done. The boat is still covered in towpath dust and a light shower made it look even worse.

Saturday 21^st July.

I was surprised to see nb Dame du Cane pass by this morning from the Wey Navigation and gave them a welcome smile and comment. They are also going up The Ashby Canal, so we will probably meet up there.

After watering up on a very slow tap, I set off about 10.30 and once again had to smile at the mannequins on parade at Charity Dock.

After an hour of cruising, I turned at Marston Junction onto the Ashby, having been up it once before on Stronghold. I reached the outskirts of Hinckley after 3hours from the junction and it was time to stop for some lunch and there were good moorings opposite The Lime Kilns pub, to which I paid a visit after a snack. Well what an excellent pub this is; there were five ales on tap from different breweries and the food looked to be very reasonably priced and all home cooked. In fact it was so tempting that I ate there in the evening and had  lamb in blueberry gravy with vegetables, which was superb. I shall stop here in the way back, without a doubt.

Sunday 22^nd July

I tackled the rocker box gasket this morning, having decided to stay here awhile and possibly have a pint with the couple on Dame du Cane at some point. The rocker box was not easy to get off, as there was a Jubilee clip in the way, which had to be loosened and turned 180 degrees first. When it was removed, one of the washers dropped beneath the engine, which delayed things for a while, but eventually it was completed with some adjustment to the retaining strips which were not wide enough for the gasket initially.

During this time Pat and Sue from Dame du Cane came along the towpath for a chat and we agreed to meet in the Lime Kilns for a pint after lunch, which consumed most of the afternoon, but how pleasant it was to have a conversation with fellow boaters.

Eventually, the washing was done and I was surprised that this little twin tub could cope with washing a Guernsey sweater and spin it very adequately.

Monday 23^rd July

I was up reasonably early and set off at 09.30 after a light breakfast. It was going to be a very hot day at 30deg C in the shade and after one and half hours I reached what is known as Duck Corner, just north of Stoke Golding, where there are good moorings on the off side and within easy reach of the village along a footpath across the adjacent field.

Before I walked up to the village, I researched opening times for the George and Dragon, the tap house for Church End Brewery and an excellent pub, where I have been a few time before. Unfortunately, it closes on Monday, but there were another two not far away, so surely they couldn’t all be closed. They were, but I was not to find out until I actually got there, so I retraced my steps in the heat and returned to the boat for a tinny, with the cooling fan at full blast. The alternative was the Dog and Hedgehog in nearby Dadlington, which I knew was open from midday, but by that time it was too late and anyway, it was siesta time.

After a very welcome warm shower, I had a light salad and took a walk up to the Dog and Hedgehog, which I have to say was a really pleasant pub with 3 ales on tap and a fair selection of restaurant food. The view from the car park of the surrounding countryside was magnificent.

Summer Jaunt 2018.11

Getting Nowhere Slowly

Monday 25th June

I planned an easy day ahead. It was going to be another hot one from the outset. I wrote up the blog in the morning and finally got it published – 15 days since the last one! Wi-fi in Braunston has improved no end for me here with a very strong BT signal. Previously it was Marina wi-fi only and that was a non starter for most people outside the marina.

Later I went up to the village to get some beer tokens (£20 notes) at the Post Office and some bread. Passing the hairdressers, I decided that I had better get a trim before I went home looking like Tarzan, then being such a hot day, it would be good sense to pay The Plough a visit, where it was nice and cool inside.

In the afternoon I stripped the bed and washed all the bed linen in the launderette, because this is probably my last chance for quite a while and it is too much to go in the twin tub. All in all, it took four hours out of the afternoon! Call this a quiet day?

Tuesday 26^th June

After breakfast, I walked around to the marina office to see if they could pressure spray the inside of my waste holding tank, as the capacity had diminished from 10 weeks to 3 weeks over the years, which is a vast difference. I though initially that Pyrford Marina pump out was only working at half capacity, but now I realise it is the tank that is the culprit. Despite another marina moorer telling me that they could pressure spray it, Graham said that it was not possible and the only way was to fill the tank with water and roll the boat about, which is going to be a long drawn out process and involve a great deal of pumping out. There is no inspection hatch on the tank, so it really is down to some chemical or biological method. I think a call to LeeSan might be in order as the next step. Another problem is that I agreed to have a large dose of Elsan Blue added to the tank at Clifton Cruisers, where I had the last pump out – a big mistake I think, as that all has to go before I can use any sort of biological product again.

It was time to move on up the cut, so I said goodbye to the Cat Herders that were left and motored up the North Oxford as far as Bridge 85 to a nice quiet spot behind nbTawny Owl, belonging to Richard Powell of Primrose Engineering, who was demonstrating at the Braunston Show. From that point on I did not intend doing a thing, so I didn’t, though I did consider walking across the fields to The Rose Inn at Willoughby, but I didn’t do that either.

Wednesday 27^th June

The day began very overcast, but it was forecast to improve later and by 11 am the sun had appeared and eventually it was wall to wall sunshine with a welcoming breeze to keep the temperature down.

After the spending the whole morning online answering e-mails and researching various things, I decided to walk to The Rose Inn, however things were not to be and I got lost across the fields. It was only at that point that I decided Google maps was the way to go, but by then it was getting too late as the pub closed at 3pm, so I wound my weary way up the road back to the boat, which was easier than taking the short cut, which was all long grass.

Time to move on a little further tomorrow.

Through the side hatch.

 Thursday 28^th June

When the canal was clear of traffic, I let go and as soon as I was adrift three boats came from one direction and one from the other, so all of a sudden it was like Piccadilly Circus. Without a line to the bank, things were difficult to control, although I did not hit anyone. Eventually I got away towards Hillmorton and the dreaded Old Royal Oak!

There were two boats that had been there a long time. I know because I asked some punters sitting outside. One of them was a glass fibre cruiser loosely tied up; some people have either no idea, or they just don’t care. It was a difficult place to moor alongside the outhouse, with a high bank at one end and no rings, so I had to rely on mooring pins, which I drove in alongside the wall. At the same time other boats were passing by, some at speed and had no consideration for what I was trying to do, which made it even more difficult. I did wonder if the mooring pins would hold, but after half an hour of other boats passing, it seemed to hold OK.

After a spot of lunch, I went in the pub and ordered a pint, which was crystal clear for a change. I could also use their wi-fi to watch the You Tube videos of the Braunston show, but none of them showed me hitting the point, which is most unusual as one of the cameramen is normally stationed there. Maybe I scared him away with my actions. A different pint was needed to rehydrate and that was clear too, which is so unusual. I returned to Stronghold, which was still securely hanging on the to the pins. I trimmed the nettles with the garden shears (a must on board a boat), which made it so much easier to get along the outside.

Later I was i need of more lubrication and returned to find that England were playing Belguim in Russia, so that was a must. At the end after another pint, I returned to cook the calves liver – delicious!

Friday 29^th June

I let go about midday and my mooring place was in demand by two canooists and a Noddy boat, so I do not know who won. Once again the leisure batteries were not getting sufficient charge, so I moored up just south of Hillmorton Locks to try and sort out the problem. Despite wriggling all the relevant wires about, there seemed to be no change, so I started the generator and ran on that for some considerable time, before reverting to the engine. By now the voltage had risen to 14volts, which seemed to be the limit of the alternator. I think there is a device that can boost this, so further investigation ir required,

In the meantime, I partook of a bit more washing in my new machine, so that took a while, but so much easier than by hand.

Saturday 30th June

I let go about 11am and soon arrived at the locks, but there were tow boats waiting and nowhere for me to moor, so I attempted to hold station in the middle, but what with the north wind from one side and the back pumping outfall on the other, I was on a losing wicket. At one point I was between the two waiting boats and one guy thought I was trying to jump the gun and said so vehemently. I spoke to him when he got in the lock and he apologised, not understanding my position.

The bottom lock had a volunteer on, so that was a great help. The wild orchids are now in full bloom pn the lock island and the lockies are doing all in their power to keep the mowing grunts away that cut them all down last year. As I passed my intended moorings there were no boats there, so I changed plans and decided to stay on the long term moorings in Rugby, where there are plenty of rings and usually some space. I filled up with water first and emptied the rubbish in the car park container, which was about to   overflow.

I watched a Girl Guide boat come around the bend heading for a moored boat; the steerer altered course at the last minute, but by that time there was nowhere for the stern to go, except into another moored boat, the owner of which went ape on the towpath, shouting and swearing at them as they moored up. She also took a photograph, which I found out later she was about to put on Face Ache. Later I walked down to commiserate with her and to ask if these were 14 day moorings; she was very animated over the whole thing and I reckoned that she was either drunk or stoned. While we were talking I noticed the cannabis plants growing on the cabin top in full view for all to see, so the answer was obvious.

Sunday 1^st July

I planned to spend an easy day, with a quick visit to Tesco, but I spent most of the morning down the engine ‘ole again looking for clues on the low charge rate, but nothing was evident and I reverted to the generator to get the battery voltage up to nearly 14 volts. Each alternator is only pushing out 14.2, so there is no possibility of getting much above that voltage.

I get no watchable TV here either, so considerable time was spent retuning this to different transmitters – all a waste of time.

It was another scorching day and surprisingly I moved the boat from the shade of a big tree into the sunshine when an opportunity occurred; this was so that the solar panel would get all day sun when I was away from the boat.