Off we go; we're stopping out for the summer

4th & 5th April

With some serious boating in prospect, we made a prompt start yesterday, and had arrived at Fradley Junction by 9.45. It was my turn to steer, so Sheila took the bike out and used it all the way to Fradley. This enabled her to note that, despite the reassurances when we reported it the other day, the rabbit hole in the towpath below Common Lock had not been filled in, and indeed is now big enough to take the whole of the front of your foot. This will be bad luck for the jogger who catches their toes in it.

The junction was in its usual mood of merry chaos, especially as, being a Friday, all the OwnerShips boats were turning round. We pulled round onto the Coventry Canal water point, and took a phone call from Will Chapman. We'd used their address for Sheila to order some crochet cotton for her current order, and it hadn't turned up until yesterday.

Will, being one of the best, drove over to Fradley with it and delivered it before we'd finished packing away the water hose. Then it was onwards, with that still present sense of adventure we get at the start of each year's cruising.

We decided to make it to the shopping mooring at Fazeley in time to do our main shop for the week at Sainsbury's, so chose to eat lunch on the move. This meant that Sheila was on the tiller as we went through Whittington, where she got to see the first ducklings of the year, looking very new and like little furry bath toys.

We got to Fazeley by two, and went straight to Sainsbury's – the cupboards had got quite run down during the week at Alrewas with access only to a small Co-op for our groceries, so we had two good day sacks full of stuff, as well as a shopping bag in each hand for each of us.

Sheila then improved the shining hour still further by cutting some wood with the new blade in the bow saw, in view of the weather forecast, which predicts a brief return to wintry weather over the weekend.

It's no more than you can expect in April, after all, hence the saying "Ne'er cast a clout 'til may be out". This doesn't mean 'don't throw away dishcloths until the end of May', but rather don't put your winter woollies away until you see the hawthorn (or may) in bloom. Since hawthorn is sensitive to average daytime temperatures, this is one of those old saws that actually works. We won't be getting the shorts and t-shirts out for a bit.

Nonetheless, it's good to see some warm sun from time to time, and to be able to sleep at night with the Houdini open over the bed.

We made an even prompter start this morning – we wanted to get up Glascote Locks before the Saturday rush, recalling our experience there last autumn, when they were filling so slowly. We were away before eight, stopping briefly at Fazeley services to off load the recycling, then Sheila boated slowly on whilst I popped into the Tesco Express to buy a paper, catching up with her on the visitor moorings just on the Glascote side of the junction.

This did mean we were passed by a guy single handing a bright yellow boat, but when we got to Glascote he was just setting the lock, and indeed, with a little help from me, worked up the two very efficiently.

When we left the top lock, we found that the offside top paddle wouldn't wind down. Sheila drove Sanity out of the lock, and I closed it up and drew a bottom paddle. Then I lifted the offending top paddle to see if that would flush through whatever was blocking it, but no joy.

Having dropped the bottom paddle again, I rejoined the boat, and once we were underway, called the BW emergency line to report the problem. Must say they were very efficient, and the inspector called me back within ten minutes to cross check the message. He said that it was probably a car tyre sticking in the mouth of the paddle culvert, and that "the lads" would be straight out to sort it.

I then settled below, the weather having turned quite cold and damp, but had to go back to Sheila when she called – a passing bird had blessed her on the collar of her fleece, and some energetic scrubbing with wet kitchen towel was required to clean it off.

A bit later, whilst she was below taking a short break, we went through the Alvecote base of Canaltime, with the usual scrum of boats all over the cut. Also much in evidence were the Narrowcraft private boats that they sell there. These are built in Poland to a standard design and shipped over, and they make a very economical, but basic boat.

Just beyond Alvecote is a stretch of restructured land – the relic of the coal field which used to generate so much traffic for the canal in the first half of the 20th century. It's characterised by occasional narrows – at one of these Sheila saw a boat coming in the opposite direction, but she was clearly nearer the restriction, so held her course.

Unfortunately, the guy on the other boat didn't see it like that, and made no attempt to slow down, such that, as Sanity emerged through the narrows, he hit her bow a resounding clang and forced us over into the offside hedge, scratching our paintwork.

"So sorry," he said as he went past, "That was my fault." (!) Narrowboating may be a contact sport, but you are supposed to try to avoid each other. Note that the other boat was not some tyro hire boater, but a privateer in a smart, not to say shiny, boat.

Polesworth was duly passed through; no need to stop on this occasion, as we'd stocked up so thoroughly at Fazeley. By 12.30 we'd worked up the first two Atherstone Locks, and moored in the long pound that comes between those and the rest of the flight.

After lunch, the weather having improved a bit, Sheila cut some more wood, and we cleaned the outside of the boat a bit – she'd got quite manky with bird poo and the like over the past few days, so it's nice to see her looking a bit smarter again. Soon we'll have to do a serious job of shampooing and polishing her ready for the shows.