Back to Barbridge

8th & 9th February

One of the big problems of boating on an otherwise delightful waterway is the "Shroppie ledge". Much of the Shropshire Union towpath is edged with a concrete casting which has a ledge just below the waterline. Regular moorers often invest in a pair of old motor wheels, complete with tyres, which, when tied to the boat as fenders, hold it out from the bank far enough to avoid the ledge, but such are too bulky to be practical on a continuously cruising boat.

We usually cope with it by attaching the piling chains to the fender eyes on the gunwale, and then hanging our largest fenders off a link in the chain, so that they hang below the water, between the bottom edge of the hull side and the dreaded ledge.

We'd tried to do this on our mooring at Hurleston, but obviously hadn't got it quite right, because during the evening, one of them popped up above the ledge, and the boat bumped at irregular intervals through the night. This didn't make for a restful night's kip, and another lazy start was the result.

Fortunately, we didn't have far to go yesterday, just back to Barbridge, so starting after 10 was not a problem. It helped that it was a fine day, and that the forecast was quite encouraging. No doubt there is more bad weather to come before winter has entirely finished with us, but it is nice to see the sun again for more than a few minutes at a time.

On arrival at Barbridge we were able to get a mooring just through the bridge and nearly opposite the pub car park, handy for Peter and Jan today. Inspired by the weather, we washed the bow and well decks and the hull and cabin sides around them, so that Sanity is beginning to emerge from her winter mud splashes.

This morning was beautifully bright, with the promise of a fine day, subsequently fulfilled. We got up in good time, for us, for a Saturday, and gave the inside of the boat a quick tidy and titivation in readiness for our visitors. Peter and Jan duly arrived just after 10, bearing various goodies for us, like the repaired VHF radio. By 10.30 we were underway for our tootle to the top of the Bunbury staircase and back.

Peter took the helm for most of the trip, including the winding at Bunbury, and coped with the only two boats we met coming the other way, both in bridge 'oles, naturally.

We got back to Barbridge by around 12.30, and found a mooring without too much trouble, although they were much busier than when we left. You could tell that it was a sunny Saturday at the beginning of Spring half term.

The Olde Barbridge Inn was quite quiet, however, and we were able to get a table in the gallery that overlooks the canal. An excellent lunch was had by all, washed down in the case of the men with pints of Everard's Tiger – it's unusual to see it this far from its home in Leicester.

After coffee, sitting out on the bow of the boat, Peter and Jan tore themselves away, and Sheila and I settled to a quiet, not to say somnolent, afternoon.