BRINKLOW TO LEICESTER

Oct 21st – Brinklow
Today we were treated to a spectacle of working boats heading towards Coventry.
Boats of various ages squeezed by, some wooden and some of steel with their characteristic thud-thud of single and two cylinder engines and what caught the eye was a single towed butty with smoking chimney, silent apart from the ripple of water around its huge wooden rudder.

But not everyone made us smile. The inconsiderate steerer on nb.Shoestring was demonstrating his disregard for other’s safety by “popping down to answer a call of nature” whilst on the move - single handed. Having missed a line of eight boats including ours by inches, his boat rammed the steel piling before he reappeared and grabbed the tiller. To my astonishment he uttered no word of apology but continued on his merry way, shrugging off my protests.

Later that evening we heard fireworks, somewhere in the direction of Coventry, reminding us that Diwali was being celebrated today.

Oct 22nd
A quiet day and those that could, cleaned their boats, the rest of us stayed below to avoid the showers. The working boats returned from wherever they’d been, having added to their number.
Nb.Shoestring brought up the rear but I was too slow off the mark and all I could do was stand on deck shaking my fist as he slipped out of sight.

Oct 23rd
We upped sticks in the early hours to out-run the clouds on our journey back towards Braunston, stopping for five minutes at Rugby to empty a cassette. I was so disappointed. Running across the park to the toilet block and round to the back where I’d seen another boater go earlier this month with his “parcel” I found the door securely padlocked.
There was nothing for it but to run back to the boat trying to make the cassette look light to save embarrassment.
I was so sure there was a boater’s trick here and had tried all my canal keys but it wasn’t going to be my day. I do hope no one was watching.

The forecast was half a day’s rain but it never arrived. Instead, we cruised through grey waters smooth as a mill pond under darkening skies, weaving left and right between farms and fields.

As afternoon turned to evening and crows headed for the trees we dropped anchor and added another three locks and thirty-seven bridges to our travels.

On a still evening, miles from the nearest road, sounds can carry over many hundreds of yards. This was just such an evening and as we finished roping ourselves to the bank a boat crept onto the landscape winding its way back and forth across the meadows. First came the sound of talking and laughter, followed by the clink of glasses and popping balloons until they finally came into view. Celebrating what, we shall never know but a friendlier bunch you’ll never find and they lifted our spirits from the cold and grey at the close of our first wintry day.

Oct 24th
Off again under a clear sky and with assurances from a boater in shorts !! (haven’t seen shorts for weeks now) that we would see yet one more summer’s day.

Seven bridges later we were greeted by Braunston’s church high up on the hill. What a welcoming sight this is. I wonder how many thousands of boaters have seen this view from the canal over the last 200 years?

Taking on water and paying respects to Midland Chandlers we entered one of the busiest stretches of canal in England.
Damaged the side of the boat whilst alongside the water point next to Midland Chandlers. The piling's jagged edge opens the side of your boat as you pull up against the bank. Another job for the tin of Deep Brunswick Green.

The temptation to stop for an all day breakfast at the Gongoozler’s Rest ended when we found them closed so we pressed onwards to the locks.

Passing the burnt out remains of nb.Purrrfect I made a note to check our insurance renewal date.
This boat had been someone’s home until recently.

At the Braunston lock flight we found Dave and Val with mum and son on their hired boat.
Sharing the locks we swapped stories until we reached the tunnel where Dave and Val stopped for lunch. Asking a boater from the other side how the tunnel was, we were assured it was perfectly dry today.
Lesson one – don’t believe a word they tell you, it cascaded down on us at the usual place – one hundred yards from the exit.

Out of the tunnel we turned left up the Leicester Arm of the Grand Union. What a difference from our last visit here on the way to the Fens. Weeds have been cut right back and the canal looks so much wider than before.
We moored between bridge 3 and the site of bridge 4, close to where we’d had dealings with a helicopter back in July. There were jobs to do so got distracted and cleaned the brass on the roof. True to form it rained heavily an hour later.

The evening brought a mixture of sadness and disbelief when we received a call from Mike and Pat on nb.Hyperion. On the Leeds and Liverpool canal near Wigan last night they’d been set on by a gang of teenagers bent on doing somebody harm. Bottles and stones thrown and threats of knifing, fire bombing and murder made them call 999. Apart from assurances two hours later that help was on its way and a call back at 8.30 the next day to see if anyone was injured, no police were seen or heard.
Strong complaints will be made to the police not just because they didn’t respond to a 999 call but because the Wigan station didn’t know they had a Leeds and Liverpool Canal and it wasn’t until a nearby pub was mentioned that they had any idea where Hyperion was.
Mike and Pat were understandably shaken and can’t understand why warnings haven’t been issued by BW when they’ve had problems for some time judging by the presence of anti climb paint and razor wire around the locks. After this and the troubles they experienced while passing through Blackburn and Burnley they have vowed never to cruise the Leeds and Liverpool Canal again.

25th Oct
A short journey to Watford Locks in light drizzle turned into steady rain as we looked for a lock keeper.
“We don’t walk about in the rain” was one’s comment on my second walk from the bottom lock to find someone to book us in.
You daren’t start up the flight without a slot and you don’t get a slot without tracking down the elusive locky and it can be a breath taking experience walking up and down and back again. Now I know why I was sent out the boat in the first place.

A hop, skip and a jump later we arrived in Crick. Grabbing the first empty space we sat out the rain opposite Crick Wharf watching the hired boats whiz back and forth from Crick Tunnel. Glad we stopped sooner rather than later because the winter restrictions have already applied to the next stretch of 14 day moorings. There’s only a 40 foot space left during the October to March period and at over £6 per foot per quarter it’s not the place for us to hang around. This is a “14 day no charge” towpath mooring during the summer.

26th Oct
Still at Crick Wharf we took coffee at Edwards Restaurant (Bridge 12) and wandered into the village to visit the Post Office and Co-op. Can’t comment on the menu at Edwards because we ate onboard Balmaha but if the presentation of our coffee and teacake in their lounge is anything to go by it must be really special.

27th Oct
Whilst taking on water at Crick Wharf we met the owners of nb.Sandringham who immediately recognised that the name Balmaha originated from a town at the foot of Conic Hill on the east shore of Loch Lomond and the Pass of Balmaha is part of the West Highland Way. Their walking achievements were so impressive that I decided not to confess to my preference for exploring Scotland by car. The Pass of Balmaha gave its name to our last merchant navy ship and to our present narrow boat home.

Setting out northwards we almost bumped into Dave and Val again.

Blocking the canal we exchanged news and contact details. After we had gone our separate ways we wondered if they’ll be spending money in the boat market before very much longer.

Making comparisons in the state of this old working boat with our July cruise through here we saw a worsening condition.

The engine is still intact but for how much longer? Once upon a time this would have made an interesting project.

We finally cleared another twenty-one bridges before settling down again and with the A14 at least a mile away we were surprised to find there was still a high level of road noise.
Weed control on the canal this far from Crick has become a bit sporadic. Shears would have been useful for clearing tree branches when we were forced to stop to allow boats travelling the other way. But the tow path is like a bowling green, pity we had to spoil it by sawing and splitting logs.

28th Oct
This is it for the weekend. It’s the last of the school holidays so a quiet Monday's cruise should see us somewhere in the Foxton area.

But for now we are content to watch the boats go by on the Grand Union and the farmer’s shooting friends creeping between the patches of maize stalking little brown birds.

BRINKLOW - THE OXFORD CANAL

Oct 14th - Saturday
It’s the weekend and we’ve seen how busy it gets on this part of the Oxford Canal. Hire boats passing to and from Rose’s base a mile away at Stretton dodging Viking and Ashby boats whilst mixing it with private cruisers.
Shan’t move until it all settles down on Monday and in any case we’ve got good company now that Roger and Babs (family - cousin) on nb.Megan caught us up on their long weekend away from the Napton / Calcutt area.
We’re always glad to see them but this time they surpassed all measures of generosity by giving us an Eco-Fan, yes our own electronic mystery air mover for shifting hot air around the boat. And it works – like a dream. No batteries, it just turns when it gets hot and puts an end to “temperature stratification” – that’s the in-term at the moment.
Even lets you know when fuel is needed by slowing down as the fire dies.
Yes, we were given wood and anthracite as well and feel thoroughly spoilt. If this is canal life then we’re totally sold on it. A really big thank-you to R & B.

Our sincere apologies to Pat (nb. Hyperion) for the dirty edges on the fire door’s glass window.

Another gem from Roger was clean the brass work with “Lime-Lite”. The mushroom vents sparkled after just a wipe and the surrounding paintwork doesn’t get scratched as can happen with “Shiny Sinks”. We’ve come a long way since using brown sauce but there’s still a tube of it in the cupboard just in case.

R&B left early afternoon for an easy cruise back to the Grand Union Canal. There was a moment’s panic as their TowPath Talk was left behind but after winding their boat the paper was passed across and they sailed back down south.

Oct 15th
It was a quiet day, most boats had quit their moorings by 11am and we took a walk round the block to the edge of Brinklow village and back. Having lost a cousin the day before we were joined by Ter and Claire (my brother, her sister – married. It’s not complicated) later on. News from Leicester was devoured along with their wine, food and a packet of mail. Thanks you guys.

Oct 16th
Departing Brinklow, we watered at Stretton Stop and marvelled at the nest of Rose hire boats as we competed with their cleaners for the rubbish bins and cess pit.

Two cuppas later we were at Sutton’s Stop (Hawkesbury) and a busy little place that is. Boats were in and out of the single lock every five minutes, all manoeuvres perfectly executed under the gaze of The Greyhound pub’s clientele.

Five and a half miles of canal later, through industrial areas, back gardens and canal water glistening with oil we arrived in Coventry. We almost turned round and left because the official signs on the lamp posts showed a “crossed” mooring bollard. Tied up anyway and read the small print and discovered the sign is meant to convey “No mooring exceeding 48hrs”.
Welcomed by Coventry City Rangers and given an information pack we started to feel good about the place and lit a smoky fire to celebrate our arrival.

Being the only boat in the Basin, until we were joined by another well after dark, we wondered what we had got ourselves into.

Oct 17th
It had been a quiet night and we awoke to the clip-clop of heels outside the portholes as office workers made their way into town from the nearby apartment block.
The Basin’s café “Country Crust” fortified us for two shopping expeditions. Unfortunately Maplins had moved from just outside the Basin to a new site between bridges 6 and 7 so we made do with a wander in and out of the centre’s shops ending in a Sainsbury’s 6 bag shop before returning to the boat.

Boats arrived and departed all day, leaving us with seven for the night including Sarah-Kate in the hands of Mike and Jo.

Mike made kind comments about the Blog and we got chatting, as you do. Sarah-Kate was a whole lot shorter when they bought her but after two stretches she’s made it to 47 foot long and suits their needs. We hope to see more of them when we’re back on the Leicester Line over the winter months and maybe bump into them on the Fens or the northern-most canals in the year ahead.

Taylor John’s House occupies one of the old brick built coal stores between the blocks of offices in the Basin and advertises Jazz nights from this Wednesday through to the weekend. Too bad we’ll have to leave (48 hr max mooring).
Other genres are catered for but it’s Jazz every Saturday. See www.thetinangel.co.uk for events. They cater for private functions and special events.

An evening disturbance caught our attention, particularly as two ten year olds were practising their skills with catapults amongst their elders who were pushing and shoving, drinking from brown paper bags and expressing their opinions at 90dB.

Took a walk to see what our prospects were and called the CCTV company advertised on the street corner to see if they were watching us. Ten minutes hadn’t passed before four Police officers arrived and set off to check on the crowd’s intentions. In conclusion Taylor John was hosting a college production and chucking out time was to be 10:30pm.
We were invited to call 999 or the CCTV company if we felt threatened at any time but as it happened everyone behaved themselves and by 11pm it was quiet again. Result.

Oct 18th
Our 48 hours are up and it’s time to leave Coventry. We left our comment card at the Rangers Offices, thanking them for their welcome, the lovely facilities and the fast Police response the night before. Wonder what they’ll make of that.

Bit of a squeeze under bridge 1 as we made our departure.

This used to be sealed off at night until they realised boats were good for business in the Basin.

Our chimney hat was knocked off by a thorn bush right outside the FED-EX offices. Considered pretending it didn’t matter but a change of heart saw us reverse and fish about in the mucky stuff with our magnet until we found it.

That wasn’t the only thing that went into the canal today. A couple of bridges further on we were halted by Sarah-Kate. A milk float was in the canal, blocking our way and BW were in attendance with a mobile crane trying to get the thing out. I said we should be in line for a free bottle of milk but the boater in front said he was more interested in the milk float’s batteries.

We passed Maplins and Tesco on the side of the canal but concrete towpaths without rings or bollards prevented mooring, what a shame, we could have been customers.
Someone is really trying to make the Coventry Canal attractive to boaters. There is far less litter than other towns and cities we’ve seen and the graffiti is almost entirely the officially approved variety,

Signs are dotted along the canal describing the delights of Coventry’s green corridor with invitations to the locals to use it and appreciate its benefits.

Mr Singh says “I go for walks by the canal, it’s a really nice place to be. It’s quiet but you’d be surprised how many people are down here enjoying it. I almost always see fishermen. They say the water is really good here so there are lots of fish.”
WHAT??? It’s got a black treacly surface that glistens with all the colours of the rainbow and the locals complain that the fish have all gone – swallowed by part of the european union.

Onwards and up the Coventry Canal we turned right at Marston Junction

and crept along the Ashby Canal. With no locks for the whole of its 21 miles the Ashby is a favourite winter location for boaters.

We were done in before Stoke Golding and grabbed the first stretch of empty steel piling. We slept as it started raining.
It was nice to see nb.Queenborough 3, another Sandhills boat, a mile down the road, still shining like the day she was launched. Well done G and S for keeping her in such good condition.

Oct 19th – Thursday
It rained at first but promised brighter later so we moved up to the 48hr moorings north of Stoke Golding. Called Graham at Earl Shilton on the off chance we could meet but he wasn’t in.
We continued to Sutton Cheney, using the book exchange service behind the shop and turning the boat for our journey back to the Coventry Canal. Time wouldn’t allow us to explore further so we left the rest of the Ashby Canal and the Snarestone Tunnel for another day.

Oct 20th
After a quiet night, apart from the sound of rain again, we set off for the Oxford Canal on our journey towards Leicester. Parts of the Ashby Canal surprised us with its contrasting steep sided cuttings with clever garden terraces and its flat open fields below the canal. Wooded corridors start and stop abruptly and towpaths are often muddy or under water.

Back on to the Coventry Canal we retraced our steps to Sutton’s Stop. Turning left we swept along the Oxford Canal to Stretton Stop, passing right through the middle of Rose’s boat fleet, back to our usual spot near Brinklow.

A chance arose to do our good neighbour bit as we tied our ropes. An unnamed boat was almost adrift on just a stern rope. One of those bent piling clips was to blame, the rope and clip dangling in the water as the bow brushed the bushes on the far side. Pulling the boat back and tying it with bow and centre ropes should keep her secure on this busy canal.

As we write there’s a news item on the BBC announcing the country’s almost total conversion to broadband internet.

We, however, shall be very fortunate to achieve GSM speed this weekend and may even have to resort to cocoa tin technology to post our Blog.

Broadband video chat? Wouldn’t that be nice.

The Oxford Canal west of Braunston

Oct 7th - Saturday
Today’s weather is brilliant – it’s back to short sleeved shirts. They tell us it’s unusual for this time of the year. Boat hirers obviously don’t think so because we spotted boats from 14 different hire companies today.

Just remembered - yesterday, as the sun was going down we saw a sparrow hawk just 20 feet away in a bush with a mouse held tightly in its claws. Tried taking a picture but it’s hard to tell the bird’s colours from the branches of the bush.

No sparrow hawk today but we had two rare birds as Roger and Babs arrived on nb.Megan along with gifts of logs for our fire.
The evening was spent onboard Balmaha eating, supping and chatting about families and boat business and watching their 2006 Canada trip video.
The same evening I got a call from Mark (nb.Lorimar in build) with an energy saving offer I couldn’t refuse – thanks Mark.

Oct 8th
Joined Roger on nb.Megan for a couple of hours cruise towards Braunston and back. Lovely to get the feel of another boat. A very tame Kingfisher accompanied us flitting from tree to tree right alongside the boat. Incredible colours.
Loads of chat through the day with a demonstration of the Eberspacher 10 and the benefits of LED lighting on boats.
But as all good things come to an end the time came to wave R&B off on their return to their home moorings (Babs scrubbing the boat).

Oct 9th
Overcast, windy and showers. We stayed put. Energies used in splitting logs for kindling
Half expected to see No Problem and Moore2Life pass en-route to Napton but they never showed.
Towards evening a spot of fishing saw one roach landed, thanks to Sue’s (NP) multi coloured maggots.
Watched the farmer work his tractor up and down the fields all day sowing new seed. He was still at it when we went to bed, working behind headlights.

Oct 10th
Our farmer was out there before 7.30 in thick morning mist, still trundling the field. He couldn’t have had much sleep last night.

We set off for the winding hole at bridge 107 and cruised back to Braunston to visit the chandlers, slowing down out of respect for this sunken boat with its contents floating inside the cabin. This boat was listing badly but still afloat just two days ago.

On leaving Midland Chandlers, after calming any of my concerns following their company take-over, we caught sight of nbs No Problem and Moore2Life slipping under the iron bridges towards Napton. Managed a distant wave and reflected on possibly not seeing them for several months.
Fare thee well both crews.
After a shopping trip up the hill in Braunston village we began our “diversion cruise” by heading up the Oxford Canal to a quiet spot between bridges 88 and 87.

Oct 11th
True to the forecast it rained all day. Thunder and lightning passed overhead but nothing moved apart from the hire boats. Poor things at the tiller, some were totally soaked.
Spent the day researching Ships Radio Licences and Operator’s certificates in preparation for a future trip down the Thames.

Oct 12th Thursday
The day was bright and sunny as we meandered through gently undulating countryside towards Rugby. Autumn colours of pink, orange and brown have started to appear at the canal bank.

Almost collided with working boat Newdigate on a blind bend and to make amends bought coal and diesel to carry us through to our destination in Leicestershire. Dropped a £10 note in the water as we set off (no, it’s not a boater’s custom) and had to zoom all over the canal chasing it before it got too wet and sank. Must have looked funny to anyone watching.

Passing the aerials of Rugby I remembered their value back in the 70s when we checked ship’s clocks against the long wave pulses we received from the Rugby Radio Station.

Hillmorton’s pairs of single width locks are unusual and in particular the gate’s rope post which is so useful for single handed boaters. Why these aren’t retained on modern gate replacements I do not know.

Arriving at Rugby we took the last space at the park moorings. A visit to Homebase and Tesco was in order before lighting a real fire for the evening. Baking ourselves in front of the log fire was fun and it had the benefit of drying all the washing hanging in the bathroom.

News arrived during the day that Roger and Babs are cruising again this weekend and heading our way towards Hawkesbury Junction near Bedworth.

13th Oct - Friday
The Rugby to Brinklow stage of our journey is most pleasant. Boats come less frequently and wildlife roams the towpath and canal banks as we pass. Rabbits hardly move as we sweep by and pheasants seem too distracted in courtship to bother with our intrusion.
This is our second misty morning this week and together with gentle curling smoke from wood burning stoves it signals the change from late summer to autumn.

The Oxford Canal passes through cuttings, aqueducts and woodland as part of the new route built in the 1820s as an improvement on the old contour following canal. Departures from the old route are sometimes marked by old iron bridges and short lengths of canal cul-de-sac such as this.

Newbold tunnel (250yds) just west of Rugby was part of the same 1820s improvements and is unusual with its footpath and modern lighting.

More of a wide bridge than a tunnel it might even benefit from piped music to accompany its fancy lights.

We didn’t intend travelling far today. For one thing we didn’t want to land up in the Coventry suburbs for the weekend and for another we wanted to keep clear of railways and motorways. The place we have chosen seems perfect with few tow path walkers, a view across the fields and the company of local wildlife, mostly ducks of course.

Batteries are charged, the fire is lit and it’s a time to catch up with paperwork (and maybe pick up that phone – T&C).

Oh look the sun is out, so maybe a walk.....

Sept 30th Cogenhoe
This is our second day at Coggy on the delightful banks of the River Nene. I washed the boat and it threatened rain so broke out a new bottle of Autoglym and it rained double strength which supports the theory that cleaning is frowned on by the weather fairy.

But who is this stirring the waters? Yes, it’s Moore 2 Life and No Problem in convoy heading upstream to Weston Favell.

No need to doff that cap Vic !!

Cows eat just outside our porthole but we are forbidden to pick and eat anything that isn’t attached to the ground so we make salad sandwiches again.

News has come in from nb.Hyperion saying Pat has dangled a leg in the water. Well done Pat, shame on you Mike for laughing. We hope the bruises heal fast. Greetings from Balmahahahaha.

Oct 1st
Rained most of the day. Spent time on the internet and found a fix for my XDA2. Lost the boot program during a software upgrade earlier this year and was told it would cost tens of pounds to fix, but found a simple solution on a PDA Forum so within the hour it was fixed and running again. Oh so nice to have a phone/PDA again. And loadsa money saved!!

For anyone else with this fault:-

Go to Bootloader mode:
Hold down the key (centre of the navigation keys)
+ [Power] + [Soft reset]
“Serial” appears on XDA2 screen in grey.
Place XDA2 in USB cradle.
“Serial” changes to “USB”
Start Activesync on PC and run software upgrade again, keeping computer out of standby mode.

Oct 2nd Cogenhoe to Northampton
Rained in the night, water levels up just 2” but nothing to get excited about. The man (or woman) on sluice control was doing his (her) job well.
Set off from Cogenhoe for Northampton and the Midsummer Meadows pontoons close to town.

Amazed at the logic of lock wall construction at Abington Lock. As if it isn’t enough to peel the boat paint off on the chains, someone in his wisdom had the lock walls done in ripple effect so that if the chains don’t get you the roughened concrete does.

Performed water in and water out.
The water pressure at the Northampton pontoon is poor. Noticed a hissing sound from inside the standpipe housing - a leak? Passed it on to EA who seemed grateful.
Local EA telephone numbers have been discontinued and replaced by an 0870 number. Is this an excuse to raise more money from the poor boater? Time to check-in with www.saynoto0870.com

Next - shopping and chopping. She shopped while I chopped a branch picked up two locks earlier - fuel for the stove.
Yummee - blackberry and apple pie again.

The police helicopter appeared overhead again, between 8 and 9pm tonight. Gone are the Panda cars, it’s sky patrols from now on. It’s very reassuring having a neighbourhood secured by the local fuzz 400 feet up. We slept better knowing they would be there during the night.

Oct 3rd - Northampton to Bugbrooke
It was an early start for us through Northampton town in search of the Northampton Arm Lock Flight.

At Hunsbury Lock we encountered a floating digger (dredger) with dicky engine that wouldn’t start when we needed to pass.
Spent time admiring the scenery, and noticed the local authority’s zero tolerance to rude graffiti. Their new water cannon did a great job on this brickwork.

While we waited in line behind Grandad Dyer and his K9 Carrying Services (four little dogs) the minutes turned into an hour before we were back on our merry way through the weeds.

We joined the Grand Union at Gayton Junction and were immediately struck by how busy the canals are. We’ve been used to seeing one or two boats on the move each day and now we are encountering boats buzzing about in all directions, daren’t take your eye off the canal for one minute.

Six and a half hours later we crawled in to Bugbrooke behind M2L and NP. Greeted by Molly and Lucy running to us on the tow path, Balmaha settled against the concrete bank and the afternoon was completed by making repairs to a sticky throttle/gearbox control handle.
We were rewarded for our marathon canal cruise by an excellent evening’s entertainment c/o Vic and Sue, Chas and Ann onboard No Problem.

Wed 4th
Ran Eberspatcher for 30 mins to get some warmth into the bathroom, the weather is changing.
Performed an engine oil change (1000 hours from new), must remember to write it in “The Book”.
Departed Bugbrooke in convoy with NP and M2L heading north on the Grand Union.
Thanks Sue for the fishing bait, just how long do they last in the fridge?

Stopped at Weedon for water. Another pathetic water tap. No wonder the boat we saw in the summer went to the pub while their tank filled. Gave up when someone else connected to the 2nd tap (faucet if you prefer).
Got out the Eye-Spy book further up the G.U as we spotted Granny Buttons, last seen at Aynho on our bash down the Oxford Canal.

Stopped at Whilton Marina to check out the Chandlers. Nothing I wanted but they had the cheapest Eco-fan I’ve seen this year (£70).

Then it got sad as we said farewell to Vic and Sue, Chas and Ann on NP and M2L. They will follow us another day and maybe we’ll catch a glimpse of them around Braunston before we head off in different directions for the winter.

After climbing the Buckby flight we spotted two brand new BW tugs and work pans. So money isn’t quite as short as we were led to believe.

Wasted some time looking for a stable canal bank west of Norton Junction (no bank repair money spent here for decades) we finally whacked the arrows in before Braunston Tunnel as the evening crept up.

5th Oct - Thursday
Forecast is fine this morning with wind and heavy rain pushing in from the west later. It started raining mid morning, just after the tunnel. Tempted to moor inside but it was too busy with boats going both ways so descended the locks and got soaked.
Stopped outside the marina at the same time that nb.Ardea pulled in. Swapped stories with Graham and Della, everything from Fen rivers to northern canals, taking in hydraulics and propeller sizes, as you do.

Checked prop prices at Braunston Chandlers but left decisions for another day. Eco fans are £78 here.

Set off in drizzle, going left at Braunston Turn, to find our usual spot on the way to “Wiggies” Turn.

The rain lashed us and the wind played havoc with the boat in front until he found himself stuck on the side after slowing for a bridge which gave us an opportunity to take the lead. The weather had turned for the worst but it’s all relative and if this had been the middle of winter we would have described it as a welcome mild day.

Of course the fire was lit, of course the tele was fired up, of course we hit the sack a little earlier.

Friday 6th
One of the nice things about windy days is wood smoke travels miles, especially if it’s wet. Ours was started the traditional way with rolled firelighters made from newspaper. Couldn’t find the flint so cheated and used matches to start it. Today we had news that Roger and Babs on nb.Megan will be heading our way and we’re assured of a present - logs for the fire, whoopee. It’s going to be a hot evening with all portholes open as we burn off our old wood tonight.

Unfortunately the quality of TV reception is no guarantee of mobile 3G. It’s brilliant here for 5 terrestrial TV channels but it’s a poor GPRS on O2’s phone service. Blogging might be slow.
Outside it’s like the Dover Straits with boats both ways every 5 to 10 minutes. Good for spotting strange boat names but hopeless for peace and quiet and an afternoon nap.

Made a non Eco-fan from the bits from a microwave oven that just happened to be on the boat. At 1.5 amps it’s got no future.
I’m under pressure to get a proper Eco job, but at £7O??
There has to be a simple principle involved here so I’m holding the expense while the brain gets going and electronics box gets raided for home made trials. Had short lived success using two baked bean tins and half a potato but the current was too low and the fan needed help in starting. Anyone know how a current is produced by the metal-something-metal sandwich in an Eco-fan? Is it a quartz slice?

Meanwhile

Goodbye Fens and harrier hens,
We’ll miss your freedom much.
Hello canals and moorhen howls
Your water we mustn’t touch.

Flat meadows gone and last upon
Your rivers we have cruised,
We make our way on cloudy day
To familiar canals we’ve used.

A fireside glow, expecting snow
We’re snug and safe inside,
Our little boat must stay afloat
The wild waters ride

Get paper, kindling, coal and wood
Bread, milk and sausage meat,
Get bait and hooks and reading books,
Its a life you can not beat.

But don’t forget there’s still time yet
To plan next summer’s cruise,
We’ll sally forth, explore the north
And lose those winter blues