30th & 31st May
We made a good start to the day yesterday, by going onto the towpath side sanitary station at Braunston and doing a pump out, starting off at eight o'clock for the purpose.
It proved to be a bit of a long job; the tank was quite full and rinsing out in particular took a while. In addition, the sluice there is quite high up, and it's difficult to keep the output hose from kinking as it climbs up to it. Believe me, the last thing you want is a kinked output hose when pumping out.
By 9.15 we were away again. Both Braunston and the canal north to Hillmorton were very busy, it being the end of half term week. By lunchtime we were working down the locks and found a mooring just beyond the water point, although it wasn't brilliant due to the unmodified North Oxford wash wall there, which is basically the original sloping stone side of the canal.
Very significant, heritage wise, no doubt, but a bit of a trial for a square sided BCN style hull.
After lunch we were stimulated to move on by the arrival of two very scruffy looking GRP cruisers, one towing the other. They moored just beyond where we were, and proceeded to unload an air cooled generator and a motor bike. They also set the tone by crushing and tossing into the cut the cans of Carlsberg they'd been drinking on arrival.
We untied and trolled round the corner to the further end of the visitor mooring, where, in fact, the edge is much squarer and thus more pleasant for an overnight mooring anyway.
Hardly had we done so than another disreputable boater turned up in the form of Will Chapman on Quidditch, on his way back from promoting Save Our Waterways at the Rickmansworth and Wendover Arm Festivals.
He stopped for a chat, taking the opportunity to ventilate a bit about a number of boating mishaps which had dogged him on his way back North, culminating in an incident at Fenny Stratford Lock which left his tiller bent like a banana. He had however had a good time at both shows, and Ricky in particular had been a good chance for waterways networking.
He set off again with the intention of getting to Hawkesbury Junction by nightfall.
During the afternoon I got Colin Jones's Fender Book out to remind myself of the procedure for making a side fender out of crown knots (i.e. the usual kind). The fancy fender rope proves to be easier to work than natural sisal, although being black it can be a bit hard to see what you are doing, especially in the tricky early stages.
Later on, we were assailed from both sides by speeders – boats on the cut, and the motor bike off the skanky boats on the towpath. Later still, one of said skanky boats came chugging past, only to return in the middle of the night.
Despite all this, we had a reasonable night, and made a decent start in the morning. Having decided not to pay 90 pence per litre at Braunston, we wanted to fill up at Clifton Cruisers, and wanted to get there before their returning hire boats had overwhelmed them.
I'm pleased to say that this strategy worked well. We got to Clifton just on nine, and actually moored on their wharf, the first time I've ever been there and not had to moor about two boats out. Furthermore, their diesel was only (ha!) 81 ppl, which since we took 130 litres meant a good saving on what it would have cost at Mr Coghlan's establishment. They are really nice and friendly people too – if you are passing, find an excuse to give them some business.
A short chug took us round to the Tesco mooring. It was quite busy, but we were able to moor reasonably close to the path to the store. Since it's the first supermarket we've seen since Wolverton, we had a good load to get. By asking at Customer Services on the way out, we got the help of their trolley executive, (the guy who goes round and collects them up, that is) who came and released the trolley wheel after we'd pushed it over the red line at the start of the path back to the boat. This means that you can take the trolley to the boat side, a big help with a big load.
On getting there, we found Braidbar number 79 (Sanity is 78), William, moored just by us. We had a good natter with them before going off to Homebase and Halford's in search of a new shower head and some replacement folding chairs.
I'm ashamed to admit I can't either recall for certain, or cross check, the names of William's owners, and having made a complete fool of myself at Crick mistaking David off Mehalaland for Brian off Kyle, I'm not going to risk another howler here! A quick comment from anyone who sees this and knows them would be welcome, and would help me disguise my benign senile forgetfulness in future.
We found a new shower head, but not any folding chairs we fancied, and pottered round to Newbold for the night. The moorings are pretty busy here as well, but there was plenty of room on the 48 hour ones when we got here at two o'clock. As I write now, however, (4.50) they are pretty full up right to the bridge before the water point and tunnel.
We've started the process of dumping our recycling, which was beginning to fill all available space in the boat, and I've almost finished the fender. Tomorrow, we'll get rid of more recycling as we go by the water point, and then plod on to All Oaks Wood. The plan is to get to Fradley for next weekend and a rendezvous with Elanor.
Saturday, 31 May 2008
Thursday, 29 May 2008
Away we go again
28th & 29th May
The weather continued dramatic for our last night at Crick, with a massive thunder storm in the small hours. Sheila, nonetheless, slept through it. Despite this, we made a decent start, getting away by 8.30, to wind in the marina entrance (not the easiest one to use) and then stopping on the water point to refill a seriously depleted tank.
By 9.15 we were into the tunnel. Our passage through it was a bit slower than in the other direction, not because Sheila was steering, but because a Canaltime was in front, steering erratically and banging from side to side. Presumably, it was their first experience of tunnel navigation, but the lack of any kind of rear facing light did give She a problem. We always leave the stern doors open and a light in the engine 'ole, so that following boats can see where we are.
They moored just on the other side, to allow ourselves and a GRP cruiser to pass, which was decent of them. We, in turn, let the cruiser by, as they were clearly able to maintain a better speed over the shallows of the Leicester Section. It all adds interest to the tranquil canal scene, as the guide books are wont to say.
Arriving at the top of Watford we found a few boats waiting to go down. Andy the lockie said that we'd have to wait until a small queue at the bottom had come up, so we settled to make a cup of coffee and generally mooch about. Sheila started a washload, now that we've got water again.
Andy has a mini shop in the lockkeeper's hut, selling basic provisions, secondhand books and videos and the like. It's on an honesty box, as he's usually up and down the flight somewhere.
We started down the flight just before 12, and were out by 12.35. We'd planned to go on to the visitor moorings before Norton Junction, but decided to stop on the towpath just beyond Welton Marine, as we couldn't be sure of finding a space further on, and we were getting hungry.
This proved to be a very good mooring, with little noise from the M1 or the West Coast Mainline. During the afternoon, I read Andrew Denny's latest post on Granny Buttons – thanks for the kind words Andrew, and for the link to Fernwood's site and the account of the design of Whitefield, the avant garde boat they were showing at Crick.
Noteworthy are the facts that the owners decided to build it after becoming enthused about canals from watching the telly series Waterworld, and after one weekend actually boating. On that basis, they spent a quarter of a million pounds building this dramatically different boat.
No harm in their returning excess money to circulation, of course, but we'd heard whilst waiting at Watford that they'd had trouble navigating Crick Tunnel (the boat is joystick controlled), and indeed when they passed our mooring later in the day, the top of the fancy cratch cover was ripped where it had grazed the tunnel arch.
Could be that's why boring old traditional designs have solid steel in that location?
I also discovered via the Waterways World feed that BW has started the consultation on the moorings tender trial. Sheila and I are still pondering the issues raised, so I won't say anymore here, but I'll undoubtedly be back to the topic.
Today we got away at eight, as I wanted to get through Braunston Tunnel before it got too busy. It was a very pleasant day, and we had an uneventful passage. We waited a while at the top of the Braunston flight for a boat to come up, and that meant that a Willow Wren hire boat caught us up to share down.
Things then went a bit pear shaped, through no one's fault whatsoever. The second lock down was against us, there being two boats ahead of us. We could see a single boat coming up the lock below, so waited for them. Meanwhile, Grumpy Git could be seen turning the top lock for himself.
As the ascending boat came out of the lock below, its engine died, and they had to stop on the towpath to investigate. We therefore turned the lock, and went down, with Grumpy Git meanwhile scratching his head, as it appeared to him that we'd hung about above the lock he now wanted before suddenly starting down it.
As we came out of this lock, the Willow Wren also got into difficulties and had to stop, so that there were now two broken down boats in the one short pound. We therefore waited in the lock below for Grumpy Git, and worked down two with him before he announced he was stopping just below the Admiral Nelson pub.
At this stage we gave up on being responsible lock sharing boaters and went down the last two locks on our own. We found a mooring just by Butcher's Bridge, having taken from 9.15 to 11.15 to get there from the top of the flight.
Here we found that there's almost no Vodafone signal, but a fast internet connection via T-mobile. I texted Elanor and Graeme to let them know not to bother trying to ring us.
After lunch, we went to Tradline Rope and Fenders and bought some of their nice "Victory Black" synthetic rope for making some new fenders – the ones we've got at the moment are really on their last legs. Austin Siviter had shown us this stuff – it looks really good, like tarred sisal, but of course will be rot resistant. It costs £70 for a roll of 220 metres, but we should get at least 10 normal sized fenders out of that, or a smaller number of my mega side fenders, half hitched around a rolled up rubber mat, so compared to what you'd pay for ready mades, it's well worth it.
Diesel here is 90 pence per litre. I dipped the tank, and we've got about a third of it left, so we're not desperate. I've left a voicemail for Mike Partridge, whose boat Jubilee is the local coal boat, to see if he's likely to cross with us soon. If not, we'll diesel either at Clifton Cruisers or Willow Wren as we go through Rugby.
Apart from that, the afternoon has been spent quietly, tidying the engine 'ole, dozing, and (for Sheila) getting on with the knitting she put to one side to finish the porthole doilies for Kala.
The weather continued dramatic for our last night at Crick, with a massive thunder storm in the small hours. Sheila, nonetheless, slept through it. Despite this, we made a decent start, getting away by 8.30, to wind in the marina entrance (not the easiest one to use) and then stopping on the water point to refill a seriously depleted tank.
By 9.15 we were into the tunnel. Our passage through it was a bit slower than in the other direction, not because Sheila was steering, but because a Canaltime was in front, steering erratically and banging from side to side. Presumably, it was their first experience of tunnel navigation, but the lack of any kind of rear facing light did give She a problem. We always leave the stern doors open and a light in the engine 'ole, so that following boats can see where we are.
They moored just on the other side, to allow ourselves and a GRP cruiser to pass, which was decent of them. We, in turn, let the cruiser by, as they were clearly able to maintain a better speed over the shallows of the Leicester Section. It all adds interest to the tranquil canal scene, as the guide books are wont to say.
Arriving at the top of Watford we found a few boats waiting to go down. Andy the lockie said that we'd have to wait until a small queue at the bottom had come up, so we settled to make a cup of coffee and generally mooch about. Sheila started a washload, now that we've got water again.
Andy has a mini shop in the lockkeeper's hut, selling basic provisions, secondhand books and videos and the like. It's on an honesty box, as he's usually up and down the flight somewhere.
We started down the flight just before 12, and were out by 12.35. We'd planned to go on to the visitor moorings before Norton Junction, but decided to stop on the towpath just beyond Welton Marine, as we couldn't be sure of finding a space further on, and we were getting hungry.
This proved to be a very good mooring, with little noise from the M1 or the West Coast Mainline. During the afternoon, I read Andrew Denny's latest post on Granny Buttons – thanks for the kind words Andrew, and for the link to Fernwood's site and the account of the design of Whitefield, the avant garde boat they were showing at Crick.
Noteworthy are the facts that the owners decided to build it after becoming enthused about canals from watching the telly series Waterworld, and after one weekend actually boating. On that basis, they spent a quarter of a million pounds building this dramatically different boat.
No harm in their returning excess money to circulation, of course, but we'd heard whilst waiting at Watford that they'd had trouble navigating Crick Tunnel (the boat is joystick controlled), and indeed when they passed our mooring later in the day, the top of the fancy cratch cover was ripped where it had grazed the tunnel arch.
Could be that's why boring old traditional designs have solid steel in that location?
I also discovered via the Waterways World feed that BW has started the consultation on the moorings tender trial. Sheila and I are still pondering the issues raised, so I won't say anymore here, but I'll undoubtedly be back to the topic.
Today we got away at eight, as I wanted to get through Braunston Tunnel before it got too busy. It was a very pleasant day, and we had an uneventful passage. We waited a while at the top of the Braunston flight for a boat to come up, and that meant that a Willow Wren hire boat caught us up to share down.
Things then went a bit pear shaped, through no one's fault whatsoever. The second lock down was against us, there being two boats ahead of us. We could see a single boat coming up the lock below, so waited for them. Meanwhile, Grumpy Git could be seen turning the top lock for himself.
As the ascending boat came out of the lock below, its engine died, and they had to stop on the towpath to investigate. We therefore turned the lock, and went down, with Grumpy Git meanwhile scratching his head, as it appeared to him that we'd hung about above the lock he now wanted before suddenly starting down it.
As we came out of this lock, the Willow Wren also got into difficulties and had to stop, so that there were now two broken down boats in the one short pound. We therefore waited in the lock below for Grumpy Git, and worked down two with him before he announced he was stopping just below the Admiral Nelson pub.
At this stage we gave up on being responsible lock sharing boaters and went down the last two locks on our own. We found a mooring just by Butcher's Bridge, having taken from 9.15 to 11.15 to get there from the top of the flight.
Here we found that there's almost no Vodafone signal, but a fast internet connection via T-mobile. I texted Elanor and Graeme to let them know not to bother trying to ring us.
After lunch, we went to Tradline Rope and Fenders and bought some of their nice "Victory Black" synthetic rope for making some new fenders – the ones we've got at the moment are really on their last legs. Austin Siviter had shown us this stuff – it looks really good, like tarred sisal, but of course will be rot resistant. It costs £70 for a roll of 220 metres, but we should get at least 10 normal sized fenders out of that, or a smaller number of my mega side fenders, half hitched around a rolled up rubber mat, so compared to what you'd pay for ready mades, it's well worth it.
Diesel here is 90 pence per litre. I dipped the tank, and we've got about a third of it left, so we're not desperate. I've left a voicemail for Mike Partridge, whose boat Jubilee is the local coal boat, to see if he's likely to cross with us soon. If not, we'll diesel either at Clifton Cruisers or Willow Wren as we go through Rugby.
Apart from that, the afternoon has been spent quietly, tidying the engine 'ole, dozing, and (for Sheila) getting on with the knitting she put to one side to finish the porthole doilies for Kala.
Labels:
Braunston,
Crick,
Weltonfield
Tuesday, 27 May 2008
What a weekend!
24th to 27th May
Today is a recovery day, including catching up with the blog. It's been a great show, despite severe weather events; here follows a recap on the highlights.
Friday night was one of the best parties I've ever been involved with. We ended up with 13 people eating chilli and baked spuds on Sanity, with salads, sweets and cheese supplied by other members of the team. Peter brought a few (!) bottles of wine, several of which we drank.
At the end of the evening (well, after midnight, actually) Sheila, Elanor and I were on the bow, trying to clear up the worst of the detritus, when a strange ring of flashing red lights was seen moving down the towpath towards us, hovering in the air like something out of the X-files.
Eventually it drifted towards Elanor's shoulders, and Sheila finally found a torch to shine towards it. This exposed an apologetic and puzzled Doberman type dog with a collar of flashing LED's round its neck. It trotted off, and we collapsed chortling into the boat.
Saturday, we had the prospect of the long trek round to the show site, since we don't have the footbridge this year. The weather was, however, quite reasonable, and we were soon busy polishing Kala's sides, erecting the gazebo on the bank above the path and generally bracing ourselves for the fray.
Sheila had to trek back round to the boats on the towpath to fetch a vase, in what was to become the most irritating aspect of the show – it was around half a mile, I reckon, to get to and fro. We just must hope that they'll have sorted something out for next year.
Saturday saw a good steady stream of people looking round the boat, many of them making very complimentary remarks. Kala is very similar to Braidbar no. 100 that won Best Boat in Show last year, and made a striking contrast to the strange boat Fernwood were showing on the next pontoon.
This was a "state of the art" modern boat, with slanted window apertures and absolutely everything on remote control, including steering the boat from bow or stern, and raising and lowering the cratch cover, if that's the word for what it had over its bow.
We were told that there were a total of 15 remote controls on board, many of which had been persuaded to work by the end of the show.
In the afternoon we took groups of folk round the dangerous trek along the road to the boats on the towpath to let them see some alternative Braidbar designs, including Sanity which now shows the effect of four years' wear and tear. (I reckon four years' continuous cruising is equivalent to 50 years' average private holiday boat use, so she's entitled to look a bit scuffed here and there.)
In the evening we all ate separately, then met on Shimshams for drinks.
Sunday proved to be wet and windy, just like last year. Despite this, we continued to have a lot of interest shown in Kala. Sheila and I got the first two hours off to go round the show and look for the various things we wanted to buy. We also got a chance to chat to old friends like Joan Caplan of RBOA.
The shopping included waterproofs, some boat shoes for Sheila, and a recovery ladder in a bag to be attached to the stern fender chains. You can grab and pull a handle on the bottom if you've fallen in, and a four-rung ladder emerges, hopefully to allow you to cimb out.
We also got some of LeeSan's new descaler for the loo – I'll report back in due course when I see how effective it is in use.
In the evening it was Just Siviting's turn to host the post prandial drinks – this has been the most sociable Crick ever for us.
Monday started off windy, and clearly planned to become even more so. Sheila and I got the first turn off again, and at 10.30 we were just closing a deal on two pairs of Regatta zip-off trousers when we heard a Tannoy announcement that, because of the strong wind, they were abandoning the Show, and would the customers please make their way to exits.
This is the first time that it's been necessary to actually close the show. It seems a bit extreme to do so just because of the wind, but two small marquees had already been blown over, and the huge main marquee was beginning to shuffle its feet in a sinister fashion.
We went back to Kala straight away, where for the rest of the morning people continued to turn up to see round. Some had travelled long distances, so it was understandable that they were prepared to risk the wind to view the boat.
At lunchtime we shut down and packed everything away. Peter then generously gave us all lunch at Edward's of Crick. This took a while to order and consume, not because the service was slow, but because we were enjoying the wind down, and the excellent food deserved to be consumed with attention it deserved. Thank you, Peter.
After lunch Elanor set off, and just as she was leaving the boat, Andrew Denny of Granny Buttons arrived for a chat. It was good to meet a fellow blogger, especially one as experienced and authoritative as Andrew.
We spent a good time chatting, and, possibly from sheer force of habit, Sheila showed him over Sanity (for the next few weeks, anyone visiting Sanity risks being hauled over it with the complete sales talk.)
I then discovered that we'd taken so long to eat lunch it had been too late to get to the Co-op to buy cheese and biscuits for the evening's final party. (Nothing to do with Andrew, honestly – it was four o'clock when we came out of Edward's, and the Co-op had shut).
Nonetheless we had a selection of stuff left over from various boats, so were able to consume a bit of food with the wine and talk.
As might be supposed, and is indeed already indicated above, today has been a quiet day. We got up in leisurely fashion, wandered down to the Co-op to get stuff for lunch, and wandered back, still nattering to various friends on the towpath.
Just before lunch, I took some time to help Austin with an oil and filter change on Just Siviting, whilst Liz and Sheila retreated to Sanity to decipher a crochet pattern.
After lunch, I mounted the recovery ladder on the stern, but comprehensively failed to find anyone prepared to test it. Other activities have included snoozing, and watching a procession of smart looking boats leave the marina and set off for home.
We've decided to give the River Soar a miss this week, in view of the rain, and will go back to Braunston and so to Fradley, Great Hayward, Stourport and Gloucester on our way to Saul Junction for the next Festival.
Meantime, thanks to one and all for a great weekend. In no particular order, that means:
Austin and Liz Siviter
Chris and Lizzie Birks
Dan and Lesley Love
Peter and Susan Mason
Iain and Luisa Bryceland
and of course:
Sheila and Elanor Napier.
Today is a recovery day, including catching up with the blog. It's been a great show, despite severe weather events; here follows a recap on the highlights.
Friday night was one of the best parties I've ever been involved with. We ended up with 13 people eating chilli and baked spuds on Sanity, with salads, sweets and cheese supplied by other members of the team. Peter brought a few (!) bottles of wine, several of which we drank.
At the end of the evening (well, after midnight, actually) Sheila, Elanor and I were on the bow, trying to clear up the worst of the detritus, when a strange ring of flashing red lights was seen moving down the towpath towards us, hovering in the air like something out of the X-files.
Eventually it drifted towards Elanor's shoulders, and Sheila finally found a torch to shine towards it. This exposed an apologetic and puzzled Doberman type dog with a collar of flashing LED's round its neck. It trotted off, and we collapsed chortling into the boat.
Saturday, we had the prospect of the long trek round to the show site, since we don't have the footbridge this year. The weather was, however, quite reasonable, and we were soon busy polishing Kala's sides, erecting the gazebo on the bank above the path and generally bracing ourselves for the fray.
Sheila had to trek back round to the boats on the towpath to fetch a vase, in what was to become the most irritating aspect of the show – it was around half a mile, I reckon, to get to and fro. We just must hope that they'll have sorted something out for next year.
Saturday saw a good steady stream of people looking round the boat, many of them making very complimentary remarks. Kala is very similar to Braidbar no. 100 that won Best Boat in Show last year, and made a striking contrast to the strange boat Fernwood were showing on the next pontoon.
This was a "state of the art" modern boat, with slanted window apertures and absolutely everything on remote control, including steering the boat from bow or stern, and raising and lowering the cratch cover, if that's the word for what it had over its bow.
We were told that there were a total of 15 remote controls on board, many of which had been persuaded to work by the end of the show.
In the afternoon we took groups of folk round the dangerous trek along the road to the boats on the towpath to let them see some alternative Braidbar designs, including Sanity which now shows the effect of four years' wear and tear. (I reckon four years' continuous cruising is equivalent to 50 years' average private holiday boat use, so she's entitled to look a bit scuffed here and there.)
In the evening we all ate separately, then met on Shimshams for drinks.
Sunday proved to be wet and windy, just like last year. Despite this, we continued to have a lot of interest shown in Kala. Sheila and I got the first two hours off to go round the show and look for the various things we wanted to buy. We also got a chance to chat to old friends like Joan Caplan of RBOA.
The shopping included waterproofs, some boat shoes for Sheila, and a recovery ladder in a bag to be attached to the stern fender chains. You can grab and pull a handle on the bottom if you've fallen in, and a four-rung ladder emerges, hopefully to allow you to cimb out.
We also got some of LeeSan's new descaler for the loo – I'll report back in due course when I see how effective it is in use.
In the evening it was Just Siviting's turn to host the post prandial drinks – this has been the most sociable Crick ever for us.
Monday started off windy, and clearly planned to become even more so. Sheila and I got the first turn off again, and at 10.30 we were just closing a deal on two pairs of Regatta zip-off trousers when we heard a Tannoy announcement that, because of the strong wind, they were abandoning the Show, and would the customers please make their way to exits.
This is the first time that it's been necessary to actually close the show. It seems a bit extreme to do so just because of the wind, but two small marquees had already been blown over, and the huge main marquee was beginning to shuffle its feet in a sinister fashion.
We went back to Kala straight away, where for the rest of the morning people continued to turn up to see round. Some had travelled long distances, so it was understandable that they were prepared to risk the wind to view the boat.
At lunchtime we shut down and packed everything away. Peter then generously gave us all lunch at Edward's of Crick. This took a while to order and consume, not because the service was slow, but because we were enjoying the wind down, and the excellent food deserved to be consumed with attention it deserved. Thank you, Peter.
After lunch Elanor set off, and just as she was leaving the boat, Andrew Denny of Granny Buttons arrived for a chat. It was good to meet a fellow blogger, especially one as experienced and authoritative as Andrew.
We spent a good time chatting, and, possibly from sheer force of habit, Sheila showed him over Sanity (for the next few weeks, anyone visiting Sanity risks being hauled over it with the complete sales talk.)
I then discovered that we'd taken so long to eat lunch it had been too late to get to the Co-op to buy cheese and biscuits for the evening's final party. (Nothing to do with Andrew, honestly – it was four o'clock when we came out of Edward's, and the Co-op had shut).
Nonetheless we had a selection of stuff left over from various boats, so were able to consume a bit of food with the wine and talk.
As might be supposed, and is indeed already indicated above, today has been a quiet day. We got up in leisurely fashion, wandered down to the Co-op to get stuff for lunch, and wandered back, still nattering to various friends on the towpath.
Just before lunch, I took some time to help Austin with an oil and filter change on Just Siviting, whilst Liz and Sheila retreated to Sanity to decipher a crochet pattern.
After lunch, I mounted the recovery ladder on the stern, but comprehensively failed to find anyone prepared to test it. Other activities have included snoozing, and watching a procession of smart looking boats leave the marina and set off for home.
We've decided to give the River Soar a miss this week, in view of the rain, and will go back to Braunston and so to Fradley, Great Hayward, Stourport and Gloucester on our way to Saul Junction for the next Festival.
Meantime, thanks to one and all for a great weekend. In no particular order, that means:
Austin and Liz Siviter
Chris and Lizzie Birks
Dan and Lesley Love
Peter and Susan Mason
Iain and Luisa Bryceland
and of course:
Sheila and Elanor Napier.
Labels:
Crick
Friday, 23 May 2008
Preparing for Crick Show
22nd & 23rd May
On Wednesday evening we visited Austin and Liz on Just Siviting and had a grand evening catching up on Braidbar news and telling tales of previous Crick Shows. Austin and Liz are helping for the first time this year. As a result we made a leisurely start yesterday. We discovered the boat was liberally covered with bits of tree flower that had landed on our nice clean boat overnight. An hour's boating brought us to Crick but the tunnel was wet, as usual, so our nice clean boat was now covered in wet bits of tree. We paused at the Wharf to top up our water tank then moved onto our reserved mooring on the towpath. I had filled both our buckets with hot water while we were on the water point so we had plenty of hot water available to wash and polish the port side and stern without touching our full tank. By the time we had finished polishing the roof had dried so while Bruce made a first foray to the Co-op I got up on the roof and swept off the bits of tree.
The weather was very pleasant and we were able to eat lunch on the towpath in between greeting old friends and making new ones. Mooring at Crick is very sociable and we have many friends that we see each year at Crick so there is a lot of catching up to do.
There is much speculation this year about the absence of the footbridge which in previous years has been erected across the canal from the moorings to the marina. Not only did it greatly reduce the distance to be walked but it removed the necessity to cross the canal on the road bridge which carries a lot of fast moving traffic and has only a very narrow pavement on one side. We have heard two theories for the lack of foot bridge: one is that the only position for the crane that lifted the bridge span into place is no longer available as it is part of the marina extension and now under water. The other theory is that Daventry Council refused planning consent for a temporary bridge as they wanted a permanent structure. This seems improbable as the marina would not be likely to accept that for security reasons. There was a suggestion in one of the canal mags that there was going to be a ferry to replace the bridge but that has not materialised and the rumour is that BW refused to supply a ferry for reasons of Health and Safety.
Personally I suspect simple penny pinching and I think it will be counterproductive in the long run as moorers are pretty unhappy about it. Certainly several people have said that they will not go back in the evening so the bar and food court units will feel the effect.
We had just finished lunch when Just Siviting turned up and we helped them moor behind us. Liz and I got busy with freezer labels and a felt tipped pen to correct the mooring sign for Just Siviting. It had been mistyped as Just Visiting – maybe someone thought that the Siviters played a lot of Monopoly. There are several interesting variations on the mooring signs. one of my favourites is for a boat called Kiwi which has been renamed K1 W1.
We tried for an internet connection after lunch but couldn't get a stable connection. However we were just within the range of the Wifi service at the marina so for £9 we signed up for a weeks connection.
The rest of the afternoon was spent cleaning the inside of the boat and chatting on the towpath. The Braidbar showboat Kala turned up later on in the afternoon and went straight into the marina. We decided to leave them in peace to settle in. Austin and Liz joined us on Sanity for another convivial evening.
This morning we were up in reasonable time (considering the demands of the last two evenings) but we decided not to disturb Dan and Lesley too early on Kala. I rang Lizzie on Shimshams to see when they expected to arrive and they were just about to enter Crick tunnel and would be with us within the hour. That being so Bruce and Austin set off for the marina to see what help was needed and Liz and I stayed on the towpath to help Shimshams moor outside us.
Bruce and Austin returned shortly after Shimshams arrived so we stopped for a coffee break on Sanity. Six people in our saloon is a bit cosy. We shall have to see what happens tonight when there are thirteen for supper! There wasn't a great amount to do on Kala. Austin was going back to help fit a cupboard door but the rest of us were not needed until after lunch. Bruce and I made another raid on the Co-op.
This afternoon saw a mass polishing party. You would not believe that five people could fit into the back cabin and engine room with two more standing on the gunwales outside and we were all busy polishing although there were only two cans of Brasso between us. Periodically a cry went up of "Who's got the Brasso?" but whoever requested it would have to wait as it was passed across with everyone who touched it stopping to take some themselves. Of course there was plenty more polish back on the boats on the towpath but nobody wanted to walk back to fetch it.
Now we are all back on our respective boats and tonight we will be getting together for supper either on the towpath or spread across Sanity, Shimshams and Just Siviting according to the weather.
On Wednesday evening we visited Austin and Liz on Just Siviting and had a grand evening catching up on Braidbar news and telling tales of previous Crick Shows. Austin and Liz are helping for the first time this year. As a result we made a leisurely start yesterday. We discovered the boat was liberally covered with bits of tree flower that had landed on our nice clean boat overnight. An hour's boating brought us to Crick but the tunnel was wet, as usual, so our nice clean boat was now covered in wet bits of tree. We paused at the Wharf to top up our water tank then moved onto our reserved mooring on the towpath. I had filled both our buckets with hot water while we were on the water point so we had plenty of hot water available to wash and polish the port side and stern without touching our full tank. By the time we had finished polishing the roof had dried so while Bruce made a first foray to the Co-op I got up on the roof and swept off the bits of tree.
The weather was very pleasant and we were able to eat lunch on the towpath in between greeting old friends and making new ones. Mooring at Crick is very sociable and we have many friends that we see each year at Crick so there is a lot of catching up to do.
There is much speculation this year about the absence of the footbridge which in previous years has been erected across the canal from the moorings to the marina. Not only did it greatly reduce the distance to be walked but it removed the necessity to cross the canal on the road bridge which carries a lot of fast moving traffic and has only a very narrow pavement on one side. We have heard two theories for the lack of foot bridge: one is that the only position for the crane that lifted the bridge span into place is no longer available as it is part of the marina extension and now under water. The other theory is that Daventry Council refused planning consent for a temporary bridge as they wanted a permanent structure. This seems improbable as the marina would not be likely to accept that for security reasons. There was a suggestion in one of the canal mags that there was going to be a ferry to replace the bridge but that has not materialised and the rumour is that BW refused to supply a ferry for reasons of Health and Safety.
Personally I suspect simple penny pinching and I think it will be counterproductive in the long run as moorers are pretty unhappy about it. Certainly several people have said that they will not go back in the evening so the bar and food court units will feel the effect.
We had just finished lunch when Just Siviting turned up and we helped them moor behind us. Liz and I got busy with freezer labels and a felt tipped pen to correct the mooring sign for Just Siviting. It had been mistyped as Just Visiting – maybe someone thought that the Siviters played a lot of Monopoly. There are several interesting variations on the mooring signs. one of my favourites is for a boat called Kiwi which has been renamed K1 W1.
We tried for an internet connection after lunch but couldn't get a stable connection. However we were just within the range of the Wifi service at the marina so for £9 we signed up for a weeks connection.
The rest of the afternoon was spent cleaning the inside of the boat and chatting on the towpath. The Braidbar showboat Kala turned up later on in the afternoon and went straight into the marina. We decided to leave them in peace to settle in. Austin and Liz joined us on Sanity for another convivial evening.
This morning we were up in reasonable time (considering the demands of the last two evenings) but we decided not to disturb Dan and Lesley too early on Kala. I rang Lizzie on Shimshams to see when they expected to arrive and they were just about to enter Crick tunnel and would be with us within the hour. That being so Bruce and Austin set off for the marina to see what help was needed and Liz and I stayed on the towpath to help Shimshams moor outside us.
Bruce and Austin returned shortly after Shimshams arrived so we stopped for a coffee break on Sanity. Six people in our saloon is a bit cosy. We shall have to see what happens tonight when there are thirteen for supper! There wasn't a great amount to do on Kala. Austin was going back to help fit a cupboard door but the rest of us were not needed until after lunch. Bruce and I made another raid on the Co-op.
This afternoon saw a mass polishing party. You would not believe that five people could fit into the back cabin and engine room with two more standing on the gunwales outside and we were all busy polishing although there were only two cans of Brasso between us. Periodically a cry went up of "Who's got the Brasso?" but whoever requested it would have to wait as it was passed across with everyone who touched it stopping to take some themselves. Of course there was plenty more polish back on the boats on the towpath but nobody wanted to walk back to fetch it.
Now we are all back on our respective boats and tonight we will be getting together for supper either on the towpath or spread across Sanity, Shimshams and Just Siviting according to the weather.
Labels:
Crick
Wednesday, 21 May 2008
Approaching Crick
20th & 21st May
Today's blog is a joint effort, as we're both working hard on getting the boat ready for the show. Sheila did the first draft and Bruce edited it later.
We had a lazy start yesterday, the first day this month that we haven't been on the move. We finished the work of the day before by attacking the port holes and the Houdini hatch with Brasso (Sheila) and T cut (Bruce). Then we went on to work on the bits and pieces, tiller pins and door knobs. Bruce did a little magnet fishing to while away the last quarter hour before lunch. He didn't make a very good haul apart from one nice solid mooring pin – always welcome. After lunch we put another coat of polish on the starboard side, hard work but it made all the difference. Sanity is beginning to look sleek and glossy (for the first time this year).
As we finished work and settled on the towpath for a well earned cup of tea a boat called Van Diemen moored in front of us. She was being single handed by a chap called Geoff and it was no surprise to discover that he came from Tasmania. He was in his second season and was looking for information on boat electrics. Bruce promised to pass his phone number on to Richard Edwards who is the expert that we contact when we have questions.
This morning we woke early, just before 6.00 am and decided to take advantage of a fine morning so we could get to Watford flight before there was too much of a queue. We were boating soon after 7.00 am and by 7.30 we had worked the last lock in the Buckby flight and were on the water point. Once the tank was full we set off and turned with pleasure onto the Leicester Arm. It was a good feeling to be back on a narrow canal even if only for two lock flights.
The Leicester Arm from Norton Junction to Foxton is a lovely canal. The trees are full of blossom and the birds are in full voice, particularly the chaffinches at the moment. It's a bad time of year for bird spotting of course because you can hear the little blighters but with so much leaf on the trees there is no way you can see them. Sheila comments: Bruce gets cross with me when I'm steering because I do get distracted by the birds and Bruce is afraid I will run us aground. (I haven't done so yet.) (Not quite (Bruce))
It was a surprise to arrive at the foot of Watford Locks at 9.00 and not find a queue. In fact we were the second boat of the day. Before we went into the bottom lock one of the lockkeepers went into the pump house by the bottom lock and turned on some pumps. This caused a lot of turbulence just in front of us and Sheila asked what it was for. Apparently it is a device to discourage the spread of Zander which are in the Braunston pound. The pumps were blowing a stream of bubbles into the water which is supposed to stop the mature fish from entering the lock. However the fry and eggs are not affected so it doesn't sound as though it will make too much difference. (Hope BW aren't spending too much money on the scheme if it is only going to be a short term fix.)
We really like the Watford flight although that is partly because it comes after a flight of broad locks. Staircases have a bit of a reputation but I don't think it is deserved. They do have to be worked slightly differently from single locks but once you get the rhythm they are very quick and easy. I always recite to myself the verse I was first taught on the Foxton flight by Mick and Crystal :
Red before white and you'll be alright,
White before red, you'll wish you were dead.
This is because there are side ponds on the flight and the red paddle from the lower lock to the side pond must be raised before the white paddle from the upper lock to the side pond. Getting it wrong annoys the lockkeeper. In the days of Mick and Crystal at Foxton they would tell you loudly and clearly what a fool you were and since Foxton is always crawling with gongoozlers it was red face time.
Watford is a noisy flight being very close to the M1 but the noise of the motorway serves to remind us how lucky we are to be living at a slower pace than the people on the road. We left the flight by 9.30 having been helped up the flight by Andy the friendly locky and Sheila carried on through the next two bridges to moor at the end of the piling just after bridge 8 while Bruce started making bread for lunch.
Sheila: I was very pleased with myself that I managed to bring the boat in and get her properly moored while Bruce was below. Then I looked again at the mooring and realised that if we were half a length further back the trees wouldn't hang so far down onto the bow. I decided to wait until Bruce was free to move her. Mooring once by myself was enough.
This is a nice mooring as it is far enough from the motorway to be peaceful and it puts the starboard side of the boat to the bank for final cleaning. When we get to Crick the port side will be to the towpath and we will be able to finish cleaning that side. Wherever we moor along this stretch the boat ends up covered in bits that come off the trees – but that's life. The only real hazard are the supports for the piling which are not properly buried but are covered by grass. Tripping is a real hazard.
Just after lunch Liz and Austin Siviter arrived on their boat Just Siviting and decided to moor in front of us. I'm glad they see the funny side of the mooring plan for Crick where their boat has been renamed Just Visiting. We had a good natter to catch up with Braidbar news. We may yet see Shimshams or Kala if they come up Watford tonight.
Between the hard work of helping at the show, and the fact that it's a very erratic connection at Crick, blogs may be a bit irregular for the next few days; bear with us and normal service will be resumed as soon as we set off along the pound towards Foxton.
Today's blog is a joint effort, as we're both working hard on getting the boat ready for the show. Sheila did the first draft and Bruce edited it later.
We had a lazy start yesterday, the first day this month that we haven't been on the move. We finished the work of the day before by attacking the port holes and the Houdini hatch with Brasso (Sheila) and T cut (Bruce). Then we went on to work on the bits and pieces, tiller pins and door knobs. Bruce did a little magnet fishing to while away the last quarter hour before lunch. He didn't make a very good haul apart from one nice solid mooring pin – always welcome. After lunch we put another coat of polish on the starboard side, hard work but it made all the difference. Sanity is beginning to look sleek and glossy (for the first time this year).
As we finished work and settled on the towpath for a well earned cup of tea a boat called Van Diemen moored in front of us. She was being single handed by a chap called Geoff and it was no surprise to discover that he came from Tasmania. He was in his second season and was looking for information on boat electrics. Bruce promised to pass his phone number on to Richard Edwards who is the expert that we contact when we have questions.
This morning we woke early, just before 6.00 am and decided to take advantage of a fine morning so we could get to Watford flight before there was too much of a queue. We were boating soon after 7.00 am and by 7.30 we had worked the last lock in the Buckby flight and were on the water point. Once the tank was full we set off and turned with pleasure onto the Leicester Arm. It was a good feeling to be back on a narrow canal even if only for two lock flights.
The Leicester Arm from Norton Junction to Foxton is a lovely canal. The trees are full of blossom and the birds are in full voice, particularly the chaffinches at the moment. It's a bad time of year for bird spotting of course because you can hear the little blighters but with so much leaf on the trees there is no way you can see them. Sheila comments: Bruce gets cross with me when I'm steering because I do get distracted by the birds and Bruce is afraid I will run us aground. (I haven't done so yet.) (Not quite (Bruce))
It was a surprise to arrive at the foot of Watford Locks at 9.00 and not find a queue. In fact we were the second boat of the day. Before we went into the bottom lock one of the lockkeepers went into the pump house by the bottom lock and turned on some pumps. This caused a lot of turbulence just in front of us and Sheila asked what it was for. Apparently it is a device to discourage the spread of Zander which are in the Braunston pound. The pumps were blowing a stream of bubbles into the water which is supposed to stop the mature fish from entering the lock. However the fry and eggs are not affected so it doesn't sound as though it will make too much difference. (Hope BW aren't spending too much money on the scheme if it is only going to be a short term fix.)
We really like the Watford flight although that is partly because it comes after a flight of broad locks. Staircases have a bit of a reputation but I don't think it is deserved. They do have to be worked slightly differently from single locks but once you get the rhythm they are very quick and easy. I always recite to myself the verse I was first taught on the Foxton flight by Mick and Crystal :
Red before white and you'll be alright,
White before red, you'll wish you were dead.
This is because there are side ponds on the flight and the red paddle from the lower lock to the side pond must be raised before the white paddle from the upper lock to the side pond. Getting it wrong annoys the lockkeeper. In the days of Mick and Crystal at Foxton they would tell you loudly and clearly what a fool you were and since Foxton is always crawling with gongoozlers it was red face time.
Watford is a noisy flight being very close to the M1 but the noise of the motorway serves to remind us how lucky we are to be living at a slower pace than the people on the road. We left the flight by 9.30 having been helped up the flight by Andy the friendly locky and Sheila carried on through the next two bridges to moor at the end of the piling just after bridge 8 while Bruce started making bread for lunch.
Sheila: I was very pleased with myself that I managed to bring the boat in and get her properly moored while Bruce was below. Then I looked again at the mooring and realised that if we were half a length further back the trees wouldn't hang so far down onto the bow. I decided to wait until Bruce was free to move her. Mooring once by myself was enough.
This is a nice mooring as it is far enough from the motorway to be peaceful and it puts the starboard side of the boat to the bank for final cleaning. When we get to Crick the port side will be to the towpath and we will be able to finish cleaning that side. Wherever we moor along this stretch the boat ends up covered in bits that come off the trees – but that's life. The only real hazard are the supports for the piling which are not properly buried but are covered by grass. Tripping is a real hazard.
Just after lunch Liz and Austin Siviter arrived on their boat Just Siviting and decided to moor in front of us. I'm glad they see the funny side of the mooring plan for Crick where their boat has been renamed Just Visiting. We had a good natter to catch up with Braidbar news. We may yet see Shimshams or Kala if they come up Watford tonight.
Between the hard work of helping at the show, and the fact that it's a very erratic connection at Crick, blogs may be a bit irregular for the next few days; bear with us and normal service will be resumed as soon as we set off along the pound towards Foxton.
Monday, 19 May 2008
Getting a buzz just when I need it
18th & 19th May
Just before settling down to do today's blog, I read the latest from Andrew Denny on Granny Buttons, and that led me to Dogsontour by Greygal, who's just done a post about her favourite blogs, and includes this one.
Gosh! A year past January, when I started this blog, I had no idea if anyone would ever read it, and now I get enthusiastic mentions by other dedicated bloggers. I can't say how much difference it makes, especially on a day like today, when I'm cream crackered from trying to get Sanity look presentable for Crick, I've still got the dinner to cook, and it's a blog day.
Getting a plug like that, like the kindly folks who post encouraging comments, makes it all worthwhile. Thanks Greygal.
Meanwhile, back to the (b)log: yesterday was an early start day, as we wanted to get through the tunnel before it got busy and full of smoke. We were boating by 7.15, and up the last two locks and at the tunnel mouth by eight. Rigging the new small wander lamp on the slide makes it so much easier to negotiate the tunnel. You can see exactly where the long axis of the boat is, and it was even possible to steer round some of the worst of the downpours from the ventilation shafts. Blisworth has always been a wet tunnel, and after the recent rain the north end in particular was streaming.
We got through in just 30 minutes, and then spent the rest of the day meeting lots of traffic coming the other way. There's no lack of moorings and marinas around here these days, and a cool but sunny Sunday had brought a lot of weekenders out.
By 11 we were at Stowe Hill, and stopped to fill the water tank and run a washload at the same time. The water point was in great demand – everyone was being good natured about it, though – it just wasn't the kind of day to get worked up about stuff.
We went round the corner to our usual mooring at Weedon by midday, and I nipped into the village to get a loaf of bread. I actually succumbed to the prospect of Cornish pasties. They were your basic mass produced beasts, but still very welcome after a long morning at the tiller.
In the afternoon, we started the process of trying to get Sanity look a bit like she did when we first got her from the yard, i.e. clean and shining. We cleared all the stuff off the roof, and while Sheila sawed up the various bits of wood so that they'd fit into the bread tray or the coal box or down the back of the stove, I washed and rinsed the length of it.
Then we put it all back, and much better it looked for it, even if hawthorn blossom began immediately to blow off the hedge onto the nice clean paintwork.
Today we made a much lazier start, as we wanted to get more fresh stuff from the shop, and a gas cylinder from Whilton Chandlery at the foot of Buckby Locks.
Nevertheless we were boating by half eight, and by half nine getting near to Whilton. Sheila took over the helm so that I could start getting the gas locker sorted to change the bottle. It was just as well that she did, as when I came to lift the bottle out of the locker, it became apparent that it still contained some gas. When changing over bottles the other day, I hadn't quite closed off the stop valve on the empty, and it had slowly filled up a little from the new bottle.
This is a pain, as the only sensible thing to do is to go back to using this bottle until it runs out again, then switch over and change bottles reasonably promptly before the other one runs out. At least we found out before I'd bought the new bottle. Whilton Chandlery, never the cheapest place on the system, is now charging 95 pence per litre for red diesel, so I doubt if their gas would have been the cheapest deal either.
We hung about below the bottom lock to see if a locking partner would turn up. One boat showed in the distance after while, and I turned the lock (two boats having just gone up as we arrived at the bottom) to get ready. The approaching boat then signalled that he wasn't coming up, so after hanging about a bit more, we went up the first lock. No sooner were we well on the way up, than yet another boat appeared.
Accordingly, we waited above the lock. This one proved to be Lady Dilys, who'd been moored near us at Weedon. She was crewed by Brain and Dilys, former "ten pound poms" (beneficiaries of the old assisted passage scheme for British migrants to Oz) from New South Wales, and they made excellent locking partners, good humoured, skilled with the boat and just generally good people to be with.
We stopped in the pound below the top lock, and they went on, but I hope we'll have the chance to boat with them again.
Whilst hanging around at the bottom, I'd bought a Waterways World. It contains the piece we'd written about butchers on the cut, I'm pleased to say, in the Good Grub section at the front.
During the afternoon, Sheila finished the doilies to decorate Kala, the Braidbar showboat, which means she's now able to take a bit more of a risk with her hands. Whilst doing the crochet, she has to try to avoid getting the skin too rough, or she can't handle the cotton properly.
Now she can join in the boat cleaning bit. I've spent the afternoon polishing the starboard cabin side, though I'm not satisfied with it, and I think it'll have to be done again tomorrow. Sheila, meanwhile, heroically started the process of getting the brass of the Houdini hatch clean. The first line of attack is with Astonish paste, then it will have to be polished with Brasso.
I'll get it sealed with Incralac this year if it's the last thing I do.
Just before settling down to do today's blog, I read the latest from Andrew Denny on Granny Buttons, and that led me to Dogsontour by Greygal, who's just done a post about her favourite blogs, and includes this one.
Gosh! A year past January, when I started this blog, I had no idea if anyone would ever read it, and now I get enthusiastic mentions by other dedicated bloggers. I can't say how much difference it makes, especially on a day like today, when I'm cream crackered from trying to get Sanity look presentable for Crick, I've still got the dinner to cook, and it's a blog day.
Getting a plug like that, like the kindly folks who post encouraging comments, makes it all worthwhile. Thanks Greygal.
Meanwhile, back to the (b)log: yesterday was an early start day, as we wanted to get through the tunnel before it got busy and full of smoke. We were boating by 7.15, and up the last two locks and at the tunnel mouth by eight. Rigging the new small wander lamp on the slide makes it so much easier to negotiate the tunnel. You can see exactly where the long axis of the boat is, and it was even possible to steer round some of the worst of the downpours from the ventilation shafts. Blisworth has always been a wet tunnel, and after the recent rain the north end in particular was streaming.
We got through in just 30 minutes, and then spent the rest of the day meeting lots of traffic coming the other way. There's no lack of moorings and marinas around here these days, and a cool but sunny Sunday had brought a lot of weekenders out.
By 11 we were at Stowe Hill, and stopped to fill the water tank and run a washload at the same time. The water point was in great demand – everyone was being good natured about it, though – it just wasn't the kind of day to get worked up about stuff.
We went round the corner to our usual mooring at Weedon by midday, and I nipped into the village to get a loaf of bread. I actually succumbed to the prospect of Cornish pasties. They were your basic mass produced beasts, but still very welcome after a long morning at the tiller.
In the afternoon, we started the process of trying to get Sanity look a bit like she did when we first got her from the yard, i.e. clean and shining. We cleared all the stuff off the roof, and while Sheila sawed up the various bits of wood so that they'd fit into the bread tray or the coal box or down the back of the stove, I washed and rinsed the length of it.
Then we put it all back, and much better it looked for it, even if hawthorn blossom began immediately to blow off the hedge onto the nice clean paintwork.
Today we made a much lazier start, as we wanted to get more fresh stuff from the shop, and a gas cylinder from Whilton Chandlery at the foot of Buckby Locks.
Nevertheless we were boating by half eight, and by half nine getting near to Whilton. Sheila took over the helm so that I could start getting the gas locker sorted to change the bottle. It was just as well that she did, as when I came to lift the bottle out of the locker, it became apparent that it still contained some gas. When changing over bottles the other day, I hadn't quite closed off the stop valve on the empty, and it had slowly filled up a little from the new bottle.
This is a pain, as the only sensible thing to do is to go back to using this bottle until it runs out again, then switch over and change bottles reasonably promptly before the other one runs out. At least we found out before I'd bought the new bottle. Whilton Chandlery, never the cheapest place on the system, is now charging 95 pence per litre for red diesel, so I doubt if their gas would have been the cheapest deal either.
We hung about below the bottom lock to see if a locking partner would turn up. One boat showed in the distance after while, and I turned the lock (two boats having just gone up as we arrived at the bottom) to get ready. The approaching boat then signalled that he wasn't coming up, so after hanging about a bit more, we went up the first lock. No sooner were we well on the way up, than yet another boat appeared.
Accordingly, we waited above the lock. This one proved to be Lady Dilys, who'd been moored near us at Weedon. She was crewed by Brain and Dilys, former "ten pound poms" (beneficiaries of the old assisted passage scheme for British migrants to Oz) from New South Wales, and they made excellent locking partners, good humoured, skilled with the boat and just generally good people to be with.
We stopped in the pound below the top lock, and they went on, but I hope we'll have the chance to boat with them again.
Whilst hanging around at the bottom, I'd bought a Waterways World. It contains the piece we'd written about butchers on the cut, I'm pleased to say, in the Good Grub section at the front.
During the afternoon, Sheila finished the doilies to decorate Kala, the Braidbar showboat, which means she's now able to take a bit more of a risk with her hands. Whilst doing the crochet, she has to try to avoid getting the skin too rough, or she can't handle the cotton properly.
Now she can join in the boat cleaning bit. I've spent the afternoon polishing the starboard cabin side, though I'm not satisfied with it, and I think it'll have to be done again tomorrow. Sheila, meanwhile, heroically started the process of getting the brass of the Houdini hatch clean. The first line of attack is with Astonish paste, then it will have to be polished with Brasso.
I'll get it sealed with Incralac this year if it's the last thing I do.
Saturday, 17 May 2008
To Stoke Bruerne in the rain
16th & 17th May
We've now settled down into steady cruise mode, aiming to get to Crick at the end of next week. Yesterday we set off at eight on a damp and cool day which gradually became downright cold. After three hours steady chug through Milton Keynes, we'd reached Wolverton, where a brief stop was made for Bruce to do a bit of shopping, leaving Sheila gratefully on anchor watch. She hates the open iron staircase that leads up from the towpath to the roadside here.
Then we set off again for the last little stretch to Cosgrove, tying below the lock in time for lunch.
In the afternoon we made a start on getting Sanity into something like show condition. We used Astonish paste to clean the starboard portholes, these being the ones that didn't get the Incralac treatment last year. Having done that, it was necessary to wash that side of the boat before retreating inside to the warmth of the Squirrel and a quiet evening.
Today we made another prompt(ish) start. Just as we were getting ready to go before 8.30, we saw another boat doing likewise from just a little further down the towpath. This proved to be Autumn Venture, and we shared up the lock with her before setting off to follow along the pound from Cosgrove to Stoke Bruerne via Yardley Gobion and Grafton Regis. The East Midlands has some of the most amazing village names.
This pound is always either much longer or much shorter than you expect. Today it was in short mode, and well before I was expecting it, the bottom of Stoke flight came into view.
The flight was very busy, and we waited a little while for a couple of boats to come down the bottom lock. The one above was thus with us, but just as I set off to get it open, I saw someone raising the top paddles to turn it. There's no point shouting and screaming in these circs, tempting though it can be, so we just waited until the bottom lock was full and the top gates open before going up to the next.
The boat coming down proved to be a wide beam craft, Tamesis, and by the time Jan off Autumn Venture and I had got there, he'd got the top gates open and the boat was coming into the lock, steered by the woman on board. We were a bit took aback when the bloke shouted to Jan to drop the offside paddles he'd left up, then a bit mollified when he crossed over to help her shut the top gate.
To our complete amazement, he then got back on the boat and left us to work it down the lock.. It does seem a striking piece of chutzpah to not only pinch the lock from in front of you but then expect you to work it for him. In a way it makes it easier to avoid having a fit: such behaviour surely must stem from complete ignorance of canal etiquette (I hope).
Things were much better for the next lock – there were another two boats waiting to come down, but not only did they not turn the lock in front of us, they opened the bottom gates and helped us work up before going in themselves. In the meantime, an Alvechurch boat had come down the lock above, and had to squeeze out onto the lock landing to let us in.
This one was covered with Wey and Arun Canal Trust banners, but her crew didn't seem any more clued up than the typical Alvechurch hirer ( i.e., not totally bemused, but not especially skilled boaters either)
We finished for the day in the long pound below the top two locks, leaving Autumn Venture to carry on by themselves. The weather was again looking a bit gloomy, and by the time we'd had lunch it was raining off and on, so a quiet afternoon on board seemed indicated.
Sheila is still working on doilies for Crick, and I improved the shining hour by washing the port side of the cabin to match the starboard side. This will make it easier to give both a quick wash and then a good polish next week
We ran a washload whilst this was going on, then went for a short walk between showers, just up to the tunnel mouth and back to stretch our legs. I'm currently researching the availability of handheld GPS to improve the variety of walks away from the boat we attempt. I'm tempted by the Garmin eTrex HCx, but almost all of the software is for Windows machines, not Macs. There is some Mac stuff in development, but for Mac OS 10.4 and above, and I've resisted the temptation to upgrade from 10.3.9 so far.
Tomorrow we go on through the tunnel and for a longish plod (the 15 mile pound, even) to Weedon.
We've now settled down into steady cruise mode, aiming to get to Crick at the end of next week. Yesterday we set off at eight on a damp and cool day which gradually became downright cold. After three hours steady chug through Milton Keynes, we'd reached Wolverton, where a brief stop was made for Bruce to do a bit of shopping, leaving Sheila gratefully on anchor watch. She hates the open iron staircase that leads up from the towpath to the roadside here.
Then we set off again for the last little stretch to Cosgrove, tying below the lock in time for lunch.
In the afternoon we made a start on getting Sanity into something like show condition. We used Astonish paste to clean the starboard portholes, these being the ones that didn't get the Incralac treatment last year. Having done that, it was necessary to wash that side of the boat before retreating inside to the warmth of the Squirrel and a quiet evening.
Today we made another prompt(ish) start. Just as we were getting ready to go before 8.30, we saw another boat doing likewise from just a little further down the towpath. This proved to be Autumn Venture, and we shared up the lock with her before setting off to follow along the pound from Cosgrove to Stoke Bruerne via Yardley Gobion and Grafton Regis. The East Midlands has some of the most amazing village names.
This pound is always either much longer or much shorter than you expect. Today it was in short mode, and well before I was expecting it, the bottom of Stoke flight came into view.
The flight was very busy, and we waited a little while for a couple of boats to come down the bottom lock. The one above was thus with us, but just as I set off to get it open, I saw someone raising the top paddles to turn it. There's no point shouting and screaming in these circs, tempting though it can be, so we just waited until the bottom lock was full and the top gates open before going up to the next.
The boat coming down proved to be a wide beam craft, Tamesis, and by the time Jan off Autumn Venture and I had got there, he'd got the top gates open and the boat was coming into the lock, steered by the woman on board. We were a bit took aback when the bloke shouted to Jan to drop the offside paddles he'd left up, then a bit mollified when he crossed over to help her shut the top gate.
To our complete amazement, he then got back on the boat and left us to work it down the lock.. It does seem a striking piece of chutzpah to not only pinch the lock from in front of you but then expect you to work it for him. In a way it makes it easier to avoid having a fit: such behaviour surely must stem from complete ignorance of canal etiquette (I hope).
Things were much better for the next lock – there were another two boats waiting to come down, but not only did they not turn the lock in front of us, they opened the bottom gates and helped us work up before going in themselves. In the meantime, an Alvechurch boat had come down the lock above, and had to squeeze out onto the lock landing to let us in.
This one was covered with Wey and Arun Canal Trust banners, but her crew didn't seem any more clued up than the typical Alvechurch hirer ( i.e., not totally bemused, but not especially skilled boaters either)
We finished for the day in the long pound below the top two locks, leaving Autumn Venture to carry on by themselves. The weather was again looking a bit gloomy, and by the time we'd had lunch it was raining off and on, so a quiet afternoon on board seemed indicated.
Sheila is still working on doilies for Crick, and I improved the shining hour by washing the port side of the cabin to match the starboard side. This will make it easier to give both a quick wash and then a good polish next week
We ran a washload whilst this was going on, then went for a short walk between showers, just up to the tunnel mouth and back to stretch our legs. I'm currently researching the availability of handheld GPS to improve the variety of walks away from the boat we attempt. I'm tempted by the Garmin eTrex HCx, but almost all of the software is for Windows machines, not Macs. There is some Mac stuff in development, but for Mac OS 10.4 and above, and I've resisted the temptation to upgrade from 10.3.9 so far.
Tomorrow we go on through the tunnel and for a longish plod (the 15 mile pound, even) to Weedon.
Labels:
Cosgrove,
Stoke Bruerne,
Wolverton
Thursday, 15 May 2008
Exciting and Inciteful Boating
13th & 14th May
It was an excellent evening the night before last; both John and Nev were in high spirits (provided we stayed off the subject of Watford FC) and we had a high old time. Many classic remarks were passed, most of which had better not be reported on an unrestricted site. A flavour may be had from one by John, commenting on his new mobile internet deal. "I'm so pleased with my new dongle, when I get home I may well get rid of the old Virgin". Shades of the late and much lamented Humphrey Lyttleton, and I'm Sorry, I Haven't a Clue.
We managed to tear ourselves away in reasonable time, though, which was just as well, as we woke very early the next day, in the way that you do when you know you have to get up early. I'd set the alarm for six, but well before that we were up and about.
One problem swiftly presented itself – I'd taken the new hat to show John and Nev, and had carefully placed it on the step out of Waimaru's saloon so as not to forget it, but John had equally carefully put it out of the way when going to speak to someone outside, and I had duly forgotten it.
Waimaru initially looked all quiet, but as we were starting to get Sanity ready John looked out to hand over the missing article. He'd been kept awake by the passing goods trains for half the night, he said, but I reckon he was consumed by guilt at having hidden my hat.
Then followed a period of hanging about and peering down the cut, but at last the first Incite boat came round the corner at half seven. Rather than Davinia, it was in the charge of one of the other leaders, CJ, but she'd been told to look out for us, and we were soon rising in the lower lock of the Gas 2, whilst the course members urged each other on with merry cries and brandished windlasses.
There followed one of the most sustained bits of boating I've ever done. For seven hours non-stop we went up to the Cowroast, through Tring cutting and down the other side to Leighton. It must have been like this on a Tuesday Night Club cruise. The Incite boats stopped below the Grove for purposes of their own, and we went on to the Tesco mooring for a brief shopping trip before carrying on to moor near the Globe.
I don't know what the Incite Teams courses are like (though the participants clearly enjoy them ) but as a canal escort service they are superb. Many thanks to CJ, Davinia and co for their company and assistance.
Today, after a good, not to say exhausted, night's sleep, we woke at a more reasonable hour, and were boating by eight. The weather has now broken; instead of blazing sun, it was cloudy all day, and started to rain with increasing savagery as the morning went on.
We had to hang about at the top of the Soulbury Three for a bit. They were all against us on arrival, and a boat was just coming into the bottom lock, so we thought we'd give them a chance to come up before going down. They proved to be a sweet old Canadian couple in an enormous Wyvern boat. Seemingly they'd booked a much smaller boat, but on arrival at the yard had been given this beast which must have been 65 foot long.
For any first timers it would have been a bit of a challenge, but these old dears were seriously struggling. We helped them up the flight and saw them on their way before going down ourselves. I must say that, in view of Wyvern boss James Griffin's negative attitude to continuous cruisers, our continuing support and help for his customers is one of the most appealing things about us. That and our modesty, of course.
The weather continued to deteriorate, so I lit the Squirrel in anticipation of Sheila's need to thaw out at the end of her steering session. Just after 11 we got to Fenny Stratford and stopped on the service point to pump out and water. It's not that long since we had the pump out at Cowley Peachey, but we want the tank to be as empty as possible before we arrive at Crick.
It continued to rain at such a pace that one began to peer through it down the cut in expectation of this old guy with a complete set of animals on his boat showing up, but all we got was yet another Wyvern (whose mythical status presumably implies that they missed the original boat). Having completed our tasks, we worked down Fenny Lock, and are now moored on the handy visitor moorings at the bottom. Tomorrow we go through Milton Keynes without stopping, for once, and will probably tie below Cosgrove Lock.
It was an excellent evening the night before last; both John and Nev were in high spirits (provided we stayed off the subject of Watford FC) and we had a high old time. Many classic remarks were passed, most of which had better not be reported on an unrestricted site. A flavour may be had from one by John, commenting on his new mobile internet deal. "I'm so pleased with my new dongle, when I get home I may well get rid of the old Virgin". Shades of the late and much lamented Humphrey Lyttleton, and I'm Sorry, I Haven't a Clue.
We managed to tear ourselves away in reasonable time, though, which was just as well, as we woke very early the next day, in the way that you do when you know you have to get up early. I'd set the alarm for six, but well before that we were up and about.
One problem swiftly presented itself – I'd taken the new hat to show John and Nev, and had carefully placed it on the step out of Waimaru's saloon so as not to forget it, but John had equally carefully put it out of the way when going to speak to someone outside, and I had duly forgotten it.
Waimaru initially looked all quiet, but as we were starting to get Sanity ready John looked out to hand over the missing article. He'd been kept awake by the passing goods trains for half the night, he said, but I reckon he was consumed by guilt at having hidden my hat.
Then followed a period of hanging about and peering down the cut, but at last the first Incite boat came round the corner at half seven. Rather than Davinia, it was in the charge of one of the other leaders, CJ, but she'd been told to look out for us, and we were soon rising in the lower lock of the Gas 2, whilst the course members urged each other on with merry cries and brandished windlasses.
There followed one of the most sustained bits of boating I've ever done. For seven hours non-stop we went up to the Cowroast, through Tring cutting and down the other side to Leighton. It must have been like this on a Tuesday Night Club cruise. The Incite boats stopped below the Grove for purposes of their own, and we went on to the Tesco mooring for a brief shopping trip before carrying on to moor near the Globe.
I don't know what the Incite Teams courses are like (though the participants clearly enjoy them ) but as a canal escort service they are superb. Many thanks to CJ, Davinia and co for their company and assistance.
Today, after a good, not to say exhausted, night's sleep, we woke at a more reasonable hour, and were boating by eight. The weather has now broken; instead of blazing sun, it was cloudy all day, and started to rain with increasing savagery as the morning went on.
We had to hang about at the top of the Soulbury Three for a bit. They were all against us on arrival, and a boat was just coming into the bottom lock, so we thought we'd give them a chance to come up before going down. They proved to be a sweet old Canadian couple in an enormous Wyvern boat. Seemingly they'd booked a much smaller boat, but on arrival at the yard had been given this beast which must have been 65 foot long.
For any first timers it would have been a bit of a challenge, but these old dears were seriously struggling. We helped them up the flight and saw them on their way before going down ourselves. I must say that, in view of Wyvern boss James Griffin's negative attitude to continuous cruisers, our continuing support and help for his customers is one of the most appealing things about us. That and our modesty, of course.
The weather continued to deteriorate, so I lit the Squirrel in anticipation of Sheila's need to thaw out at the end of her steering session. Just after 11 we got to Fenny Stratford and stopped on the service point to pump out and water. It's not that long since we had the pump out at Cowley Peachey, but we want the tank to be as empty as possible before we arrive at Crick.
It continued to rain at such a pace that one began to peer through it down the cut in expectation of this old guy with a complete set of animals on his boat showing up, but all we got was yet another Wyvern (whose mythical status presumably implies that they missed the original boat). Having completed our tasks, we worked down Fenny Lock, and are now moored on the handy visitor moorings at the bottom. Tomorrow we go through Milton Keynes without stopping, for once, and will probably tie below Cosgrove Lock.
Labels:
Fenny Stratford,
Leighton Buzzard
Tuesday, 13 May 2008
Back up to Berko
12th & 13th May
Yesterday we woke very early, after an early night the evening before. Since it was shaping to be another very hot day, we went over to summer cruising technique, that is, get the boating done before it gets too hot.
We set off at seven in bright sun but with a pleasantly cool breeze. Just after nine, we arrived at the Apsley Sainsbury's mooring, and followed up the shopping with a visit to the water point above the lock. Tank refilled and wash load on the way, we plugged steadily on to Winkwell, Bruce steering and Sheila lock wheeling on the bike.
There were a few boaters about, some of them with odd habits – lots of them seemed to need both gates open to get a single narrowboat out of a broad lock, and one of them, Elidir, perpetrated the most blatant piece of lock stealing we've seen for quite a while.
As Sheila approached from below, she could see a bottom gate standing open. The lock wheeler from Elidir appeared and started to close it. Sheila rang her bell and waved the windlass over her head, but to no avail.
When she got there, the woman had already drawn a top ground paddle. She said "Sorry, I didn't see you there" and wound the gate paddle on that side as well, although the lock had barely started filling, and it would have taken little time to turn the lock back and let Sanity into it. (For those not familiar with waterways etiquette, turning a lock round in the face of an approaching boat is one of the ultimate crimes, as it wastes a lockfull of water that could have been used by that boat).
Despite this, we continued to make good time, and got to Winkwell just on lunchtime. After lunch we did some well earned dozing in the sun – well, I did, so I'm told. Sheila is working hard to finish the porthole doilies for the Braidbar show boat, so kept going through the heat and haze, she says.
A bit later, when it was a shade cooler, I got her to cut my hair, taking it down to half an inch all over, in view of the prevailing weather conditions. It will now, no doubt, cool down.
Winkwell proved a pleasant mooring, though the Three Horseshoes pub on the opposite side had some sort of entertainment going on, with loads of people noisily enjoying the fine evening out on their canal side terrace.
Today, we had a lie in, and didn't start boating until 7.45. The breeze was distinctly cooler, but it was still sunny, and the boating continued to be idyllic, although hard work. It was my turn to bike, and work the locks. Along this stretch are a number of locks whose sidewalls leak so badly that you have to leave them empty no matter which direction you're going in.
This is handy when working uphill, but is a good example of the way in which BW's lack of cash for maintenance leads to increased problems in day to day running. It's fine at this end of the season, when there's plenty of water coming down the rivers which feed this stretch of the canal, but if we have a dry one and the Gade and Bulbourne start running low, throwing away all those lockfulls of water will make no sense at all.
By Bourne End Locks we heard our first cuckoo of the year. They are said to be getting rarer, so it's even more pleasure than usual to hear the familiar two tone call. Either he was a very active bird, or he had a rival, as we could hear the call all the way up to Bottom Side Lock.
Berkhamsted was busy as ever. We managed to find a first mooring under the footbridge that links the main part of the town to the park by the railway, but as this wasn't ideal, I carried on on the bike and found a better spot much further on. It's another good example of the bike earning its keep – just a moment to pedal a bit further on, but it would have been a tedious little trek on foot at the end of the day's boating.
Whilst we were sitting on the bow eating lunch, the Incite boats turned up. We had a cheerful shouted conversation with Davinia, so hopefully we are set up for an early start and assisted passage all the way back to Leighton Buzzard tomorrow.
Later in the day, John and Nev arrived on Waimaru. She looks very smart – John's had some minor mods done to her, and is now very pleased with the arrangements in the engine room.
We're eating with them tonight, a pleasure to be greatly anticipated; I just hope it doesn't make tomorrow's early start too painful. Truly it can be said, this second adolescence is much more fun than the first time around!
Yesterday we woke very early, after an early night the evening before. Since it was shaping to be another very hot day, we went over to summer cruising technique, that is, get the boating done before it gets too hot.
We set off at seven in bright sun but with a pleasantly cool breeze. Just after nine, we arrived at the Apsley Sainsbury's mooring, and followed up the shopping with a visit to the water point above the lock. Tank refilled and wash load on the way, we plugged steadily on to Winkwell, Bruce steering and Sheila lock wheeling on the bike.
There were a few boaters about, some of them with odd habits – lots of them seemed to need both gates open to get a single narrowboat out of a broad lock, and one of them, Elidir, perpetrated the most blatant piece of lock stealing we've seen for quite a while.
As Sheila approached from below, she could see a bottom gate standing open. The lock wheeler from Elidir appeared and started to close it. Sheila rang her bell and waved the windlass over her head, but to no avail.
When she got there, the woman had already drawn a top ground paddle. She said "Sorry, I didn't see you there" and wound the gate paddle on that side as well, although the lock had barely started filling, and it would have taken little time to turn the lock back and let Sanity into it. (For those not familiar with waterways etiquette, turning a lock round in the face of an approaching boat is one of the ultimate crimes, as it wastes a lockfull of water that could have been used by that boat).
Despite this, we continued to make good time, and got to Winkwell just on lunchtime. After lunch we did some well earned dozing in the sun – well, I did, so I'm told. Sheila is working hard to finish the porthole doilies for the Braidbar show boat, so kept going through the heat and haze, she says.
A bit later, when it was a shade cooler, I got her to cut my hair, taking it down to half an inch all over, in view of the prevailing weather conditions. It will now, no doubt, cool down.
Winkwell proved a pleasant mooring, though the Three Horseshoes pub on the opposite side had some sort of entertainment going on, with loads of people noisily enjoying the fine evening out on their canal side terrace.
Today, we had a lie in, and didn't start boating until 7.45. The breeze was distinctly cooler, but it was still sunny, and the boating continued to be idyllic, although hard work. It was my turn to bike, and work the locks. Along this stretch are a number of locks whose sidewalls leak so badly that you have to leave them empty no matter which direction you're going in.
This is handy when working uphill, but is a good example of the way in which BW's lack of cash for maintenance leads to increased problems in day to day running. It's fine at this end of the season, when there's plenty of water coming down the rivers which feed this stretch of the canal, but if we have a dry one and the Gade and Bulbourne start running low, throwing away all those lockfulls of water will make no sense at all.
By Bourne End Locks we heard our first cuckoo of the year. They are said to be getting rarer, so it's even more pleasure than usual to hear the familiar two tone call. Either he was a very active bird, or he had a rival, as we could hear the call all the way up to Bottom Side Lock.
Berkhamsted was busy as ever. We managed to find a first mooring under the footbridge that links the main part of the town to the park by the railway, but as this wasn't ideal, I carried on on the bike and found a better spot much further on. It's another good example of the bike earning its keep – just a moment to pedal a bit further on, but it would have been a tedious little trek on foot at the end of the day's boating.
Whilst we were sitting on the bow eating lunch, the Incite boats turned up. We had a cheerful shouted conversation with Davinia, so hopefully we are set up for an early start and assisted passage all the way back to Leighton Buzzard tomorrow.
Later in the day, John and Nev arrived on Waimaru. She looks very smart – John's had some minor mods done to her, and is now very pleased with the arrangements in the engine room.
We're eating with them tonight, a pleasure to be greatly anticipated; I just hope it doesn't make tomorrow's early start too painful. Truly it can be said, this second adolescence is much more fun than the first time around!
Labels:
Apsley,
Berkhamsted,
Winkwell
Sunday, 11 May 2008
Heading out of London
10th & 11th May
The main task for yesterday morning was a trip to central London for Bruce and Michael, so that Michael could get a train for Newark from Kings Cross. I went along to sort out his ticket, and to bring back the Oyster card he was using. This meant a relaxed start, then a warm walk to Uxbridge tube. In less than an hour we were immersed in tourist hordes under Kings Cross, and I saw Michael onto a train ultimately bound for Leeds, but calling at Newark on the way.
I queued briefly in the Underground Ticket Hall to check on the cash left on my Oyster – after four tube trips (one the long one from Uxbridge) and a bus ride, I still had £9.60 left of the £15 I'd put on it. Truly, using an Oyster card is the way to get round London these days.
Back at the boat in time for lunch, we set off for an afternoon's boating for a change. It's noticeable that people are much more reluctant to slow down passing moorings down here on the southern GU. I'm not one of those sad souls who spends his time lurking in the side hatches bawling "SLOW DOWN!" at every passing boat, but it's come to something when our best mooring pin, the one that's an inch in diameter, comes out of the ground slightly bent after one night's duty.
We'd originally planned to go just a short way uphill to above Denham Deep Lock, but it was such a nice day, we carried on to our next planned stop at Rickmansworth Aquadrome, getting there at around five.
This morning was a classic early summer morning – calm, warm and with a slight mist curling up from the surface of the water. We'd woken early, so made the most of it, and were boating by 7.30.
It was a superb morning, getting steadily warmer as the day went on. At Lot Mead Lock at around 8.30, I was joined in my lock operations by a magnificent ginger tom. He was clearly disgusted that his staff hadn't yet surfaced, and spent the whole time the lock was filling standing on the balance beam beside me to be stroked.
When we left the lock, he gave us a look of disgust, as should say "Another broken reed" and stalked off into the undergrowth by the offside.
At the lower Cassio Lock, we had a short wait whilst a couple of BW guys tried to clear an obstruction from behind the offside lower gate. In the end they gave up long enough to let us lock through. It's Ricky Canal Festival next weekend, so they'll be keen to have all the locks as functional as possible.
I commented on them being about on a Sunday morning, but seemingly they now work shifts seven days per week, on a basis of 'contracted overtime': that is, they do the overtime, but don't get paid extra for it.
Further on in Cassio Park we saw a grass snake swimming along, making its elegant S-bends through the water.
By 12 we were approaching King's Langley. For the last half hour, a rattley vibration, which has been coming and going a bit over the last few weeks, seemed to get worse and worse, until, as I approached North Grove Lock, there was a clonk from under my feet and the noise and vibration stopped. The engine continued to run OK, so I waited until we were in the lock to lift the engine boards.
It immediately became apparent that the idler pulley on the TravelPower belt had disappeared. The belt was still running OK, so I left it be. We were stopping just above the lock in any event.
After lunch, and having allowed the engine to cool down a bit, I had a good look. The pulley had come clean off, and rolled to the stern of the engine bilge, out of the way.
Fishing it out, it was apparent why we'd had all this vibe – the bearing was an interesting oval shape. I knew from previous conversations with Beta Marine reps at the shows that they'd had so much trouble with this idler - it's the second one we've had, the first having seized solid after around 1500 hours – that they don't bother fitting it any more. It's supposed to improve the wrap of the belt around the alternator pulley, but the polyvee belt is so effective anyway, it's not really necessary.
I retensioned the belt so that it won't slip under load, and we'll see how the TravelPower performs in the future.
Tomorrow we're going to plod on up the cut, probably finishing near the Three Horseshoes at Winkwell for the night.
The main task for yesterday morning was a trip to central London for Bruce and Michael, so that Michael could get a train for Newark from Kings Cross. I went along to sort out his ticket, and to bring back the Oyster card he was using. This meant a relaxed start, then a warm walk to Uxbridge tube. In less than an hour we were immersed in tourist hordes under Kings Cross, and I saw Michael onto a train ultimately bound for Leeds, but calling at Newark on the way.
I queued briefly in the Underground Ticket Hall to check on the cash left on my Oyster – after four tube trips (one the long one from Uxbridge) and a bus ride, I still had £9.60 left of the £15 I'd put on it. Truly, using an Oyster card is the way to get round London these days.
Back at the boat in time for lunch, we set off for an afternoon's boating for a change. It's noticeable that people are much more reluctant to slow down passing moorings down here on the southern GU. I'm not one of those sad souls who spends his time lurking in the side hatches bawling "SLOW DOWN!" at every passing boat, but it's come to something when our best mooring pin, the one that's an inch in diameter, comes out of the ground slightly bent after one night's duty.
We'd originally planned to go just a short way uphill to above Denham Deep Lock, but it was such a nice day, we carried on to our next planned stop at Rickmansworth Aquadrome, getting there at around five.
This morning was a classic early summer morning – calm, warm and with a slight mist curling up from the surface of the water. We'd woken early, so made the most of it, and were boating by 7.30.
It was a superb morning, getting steadily warmer as the day went on. At Lot Mead Lock at around 8.30, I was joined in my lock operations by a magnificent ginger tom. He was clearly disgusted that his staff hadn't yet surfaced, and spent the whole time the lock was filling standing on the balance beam beside me to be stroked.
When we left the lock, he gave us a look of disgust, as should say "Another broken reed" and stalked off into the undergrowth by the offside.
At the lower Cassio Lock, we had a short wait whilst a couple of BW guys tried to clear an obstruction from behind the offside lower gate. In the end they gave up long enough to let us lock through. It's Ricky Canal Festival next weekend, so they'll be keen to have all the locks as functional as possible.
I commented on them being about on a Sunday morning, but seemingly they now work shifts seven days per week, on a basis of 'contracted overtime': that is, they do the overtime, but don't get paid extra for it.
Further on in Cassio Park we saw a grass snake swimming along, making its elegant S-bends through the water.
By 12 we were approaching King's Langley. For the last half hour, a rattley vibration, which has been coming and going a bit over the last few weeks, seemed to get worse and worse, until, as I approached North Grove Lock, there was a clonk from under my feet and the noise and vibration stopped. The engine continued to run OK, so I waited until we were in the lock to lift the engine boards.
It immediately became apparent that the idler pulley on the TravelPower belt had disappeared. The belt was still running OK, so I left it be. We were stopping just above the lock in any event.
After lunch, and having allowed the engine to cool down a bit, I had a good look. The pulley had come clean off, and rolled to the stern of the engine bilge, out of the way.
Fishing it out, it was apparent why we'd had all this vibe – the bearing was an interesting oval shape. I knew from previous conversations with Beta Marine reps at the shows that they'd had so much trouble with this idler - it's the second one we've had, the first having seized solid after around 1500 hours – that they don't bother fitting it any more. It's supposed to improve the wrap of the belt around the alternator pulley, but the polyvee belt is so effective anyway, it's not really necessary.
I retensioned the belt so that it won't slip under load, and we'll see how the TravelPower performs in the future.
Tomorrow we're going to plod on up the cut, probably finishing near the Three Horseshoes at Winkwell for the night.
Labels:
King's Langley,
Rickmansworth,
Uxbridge
Friday, 9 May 2008
Up the Thames and back to Uxbridge
8th & 9th May
The fine weather continued yesterday, although I'd found it prudent to put the legs back on my zip off trousers as my knees were still grumbling about their exposure the day before. We had a leisurely start to the day, having been to The Grapes the night before for an excellent fish dinner; at £40 per head it wasn't cheap, but well worth it.
Free entertainment had previously been obtained by watching the antics of some youths on the far side of the basin. The top of that dock wall is provided with decorative wrought iron posts and chains, and they were amusing themselves by bunny hopping to and fro over the swag of chain, risking falling into the dock if they got it wrong.
What happened, perhaps inevitably, was not that, but one lad misjudged his jump and came down with one leg either side of the chain, at a point where it's about three feet off the ground...
He was rolling and writhing for some minutes, whilst his mates fell about.
With us booked to lock out onto the tideway at 2.15, the morning was spent in various preparatory activities – checking the engine, getting the life jackets out, making sure that everything on the roof was secure.
Mid morning, Mike Fisher (skipper of Nuggler) and I went and saw the lock keeper to confirm that we were still heading out. He told us that we were the only pair going, which was mildly surprising given the handy tide timing and the Cavalcade event the weekend before.
By lunchtime, I was in my usual pre tideway state of wondering why on earth I had thought it a good idea to risk my boat and home on the ocean deep (the Thames is very wide at Limehouse). No matter: at 2.15 the lock lights turned green and we motored in, holding ourselves against the sides with ropes around the vertical sliding poles.
Limehouse is by no means the largest lock we've ever been in, but it still feels pretty huge with just the two narrowboats in it. The gates opened and we set off into the river, sounding one long blast on the horn ("I am entering the fairway") as we did so.
As required, I attempted to raise London VTS, the traffic control system for the tidal Thames, on my VHF, but found that it wasn't powerful enough to reach them. Mike has a properly installed VHF on Nuggler, (rather than Sanity's handheld), with an aerial on the roof, but he was barely able to reach them. With the base being down at Woolwich, they could really use some more repeaters if they want small pleasure craft like ourselves to co-operate with the system.
The river was quite choppy at first; Michael had been sitting on the gunwale of the well deck, rather than get a folding seat out, but as Sanity shouldered her way through a big bit of swell from a passing trip boat, the spray rose up and soaked him to the shoulder, and he found it prudent to retreat a little.
Apart from the swell, conditions were near ideal, with pleasant sun, a bit of breeze occasionally gusting up, and some traffic, but nothing to cause major problems.
By quarter to five we were entering Brentford Creek. The lockie was looking out for us, and had the gates open at both ends of the lock, so that the creek was tidal up to the gauging locks. This gave us an anxious moment under the bridge just below, but we squeaked through, with Michael holding down the radio aerial to save it from being bent hard over.
We found a mooring space on the visitor moorings above the gauging locks, and were joined for dinner by Mike. A convivial evening ensued.
Despite that, we made a good start this morning, getting away at eight, with a good bit of boating to do to get to Uxbridge for tonight. Hanwell flight is a challenge, but with four of us and two boats we made good progress. We were following Orient Express, who was single handing, so Michael spent a fair bit of his time riding ahead on the bike and giving its steerer a hand.
Twelve locks later we reached Bulls Bridge and Tesco. Mike went on in Nuggler, taking her back to her home mooring at Harefield Marina. We shopped, watered, ran a washload and had lunch at Bulls Bridge. The moorings were quite empty today, unlike our previous visit. The patrol craft Verulam was hanging about, which may have had something to do with it.
Chugging on, we had a DIY pump out on the card operated machine at the Packet Boat Marina at Cowley Peachey Junction. This proved to be very good – a powerful machine which got our tank well clean.
Final move of the day was up Cowley Lock to find a mooring at Uxbridge by half four. These moorings are quite cluttered, but we squeezed into a space. Tomorrow, Michael leaves us to visit his cousin Graeme near Lincoln – Elanor is going over there tomorrow as well, so they can have a good generational get together before Michael heads back to Germany.
Ideally, he'd like to spend more time in the UK; that would mean getting a job, of course, so if anyone wants to employ a hard working, computer literate, bilingual guy of eighteen, turn his hand to anything, can steer a narrowboat and work locks, do let me know!
The fine weather continued yesterday, although I'd found it prudent to put the legs back on my zip off trousers as my knees were still grumbling about their exposure the day before. We had a leisurely start to the day, having been to The Grapes the night before for an excellent fish dinner; at £40 per head it wasn't cheap, but well worth it.
Free entertainment had previously been obtained by watching the antics of some youths on the far side of the basin. The top of that dock wall is provided with decorative wrought iron posts and chains, and they were amusing themselves by bunny hopping to and fro over the swag of chain, risking falling into the dock if they got it wrong.
What happened, perhaps inevitably, was not that, but one lad misjudged his jump and came down with one leg either side of the chain, at a point where it's about three feet off the ground...
He was rolling and writhing for some minutes, whilst his mates fell about.
With us booked to lock out onto the tideway at 2.15, the morning was spent in various preparatory activities – checking the engine, getting the life jackets out, making sure that everything on the roof was secure.
Mid morning, Mike Fisher (skipper of Nuggler) and I went and saw the lock keeper to confirm that we were still heading out. He told us that we were the only pair going, which was mildly surprising given the handy tide timing and the Cavalcade event the weekend before.
By lunchtime, I was in my usual pre tideway state of wondering why on earth I had thought it a good idea to risk my boat and home on the ocean deep (the Thames is very wide at Limehouse). No matter: at 2.15 the lock lights turned green and we motored in, holding ourselves against the sides with ropes around the vertical sliding poles.
Limehouse is by no means the largest lock we've ever been in, but it still feels pretty huge with just the two narrowboats in it. The gates opened and we set off into the river, sounding one long blast on the horn ("I am entering the fairway") as we did so.
As required, I attempted to raise London VTS, the traffic control system for the tidal Thames, on my VHF, but found that it wasn't powerful enough to reach them. Mike has a properly installed VHF on Nuggler, (rather than Sanity's handheld), with an aerial on the roof, but he was barely able to reach them. With the base being down at Woolwich, they could really use some more repeaters if they want small pleasure craft like ourselves to co-operate with the system.
The river was quite choppy at first; Michael had been sitting on the gunwale of the well deck, rather than get a folding seat out, but as Sanity shouldered her way through a big bit of swell from a passing trip boat, the spray rose up and soaked him to the shoulder, and he found it prudent to retreat a little.
Apart from the swell, conditions were near ideal, with pleasant sun, a bit of breeze occasionally gusting up, and some traffic, but nothing to cause major problems.
By quarter to five we were entering Brentford Creek. The lockie was looking out for us, and had the gates open at both ends of the lock, so that the creek was tidal up to the gauging locks. This gave us an anxious moment under the bridge just below, but we squeaked through, with Michael holding down the radio aerial to save it from being bent hard over.
We found a mooring space on the visitor moorings above the gauging locks, and were joined for dinner by Mike. A convivial evening ensued.
Despite that, we made a good start this morning, getting away at eight, with a good bit of boating to do to get to Uxbridge for tonight. Hanwell flight is a challenge, but with four of us and two boats we made good progress. We were following Orient Express, who was single handing, so Michael spent a fair bit of his time riding ahead on the bike and giving its steerer a hand.
Twelve locks later we reached Bulls Bridge and Tesco. Mike went on in Nuggler, taking her back to her home mooring at Harefield Marina. We shopped, watered, ran a washload and had lunch at Bulls Bridge. The moorings were quite empty today, unlike our previous visit. The patrol craft Verulam was hanging about, which may have had something to do with it.
Chugging on, we had a DIY pump out on the card operated machine at the Packet Boat Marina at Cowley Peachey Junction. This proved to be very good – a powerful machine which got our tank well clean.
Final move of the day was up Cowley Lock to find a mooring at Uxbridge by half four. These moorings are quite cluttered, but we squeezed into a space. Tomorrow, Michael leaves us to visit his cousin Graeme near Lincoln – Elanor is going over there tomorrow as well, so they can have a good generational get together before Michael heads back to Germany.
Ideally, he'd like to spend more time in the UK; that would mean getting a job, of course, so if anyone wants to employ a hard working, computer literate, bilingual guy of eighteen, turn his hand to anything, can steer a narrowboat and work locks, do let me know!
Wednesday, 7 May 2008
Cavalcade Days 2 and 3, post Cavalcade, Limehouse
4th to 7th May
You can tell we've been busy – neither Sheila nor I have had time to do the regular blog, so this is a catch up.
On Sunday, I spent time with the sparks gang again, firstly checking that all was well on the show site, then assisting Malcolm Bridge to wire a new set of lights to the genny trailer – these are fancy state of the art ones, LED based so that they well take either 12 or 24 volts – no need to change them depending on which vehicle is towing.
It was a reasonably straightforward job for an experienced hobby electrician like Malcolm – the main problem being getting the relevant bits off the trailer.
Meanwhile Sheila was doing the behind the scenes stuff that's not very glamorous but is nonetheless essential, like litter picking and rubbish collection. It makes all the difference to a show if the site remains tidy and presentable throughout.
The show was very busy in warm but rather humid weather – it felt like it might thunder at any time, but never did.
Monday was another day for routine stuff, making for a relaxed start (ie eight o'clock) and pottering round keeping the show going. I spent much of the day driving the little tug we borrow from Wood Hall and Heward, Lenny. Lenny is actually two sterns of Springer narrow boats welded together with a BMC 1.5 under the deck. She's capable of pushing a big pan, but we use her for rubbish collection and the like.
She also took part in the parade of historic boats, carrying three members of the Police presence at the show. The early evening was a case of flinging ourselves back on site, taking down banners, clearing up rubbish and so forth.
Later in the evening, an old colleague of mine, Gethin Griffith, now working at Brunel University, took us out to dinner. We had a very pleasant meal at an Italian place we found not far from Praed Street. It was good to catch up on gossip from Bangor – being still in the groves of academe, he's kept up with their doings much more than I've been able to.
Tuesday was a matter of more of the same, dismantling the last bits of the show structures, sweeping and litter picking and so on. We managed to get Sanity round to the coal and diesel boats Archimedes and Ara to get diesel, before Sheila, Liz and I took Opportunity back to the Laburnum Boat Club, dropping off the market stalls at Camden on the way.
At half six I set off to collect Michael from Stansted Airport. This was one of those logistic exercises which went surprisingly well. In order to get back from Laburnum, I'd got a couple of Oyster cards, the cashless system for paying for tube and bus journeys in London, and I was able to use those to get from Paddington to Liverpool Street Station, to catch the Stansted Express to the airport. The plane was on time, and we were back at the boat by eleven.
Today we set off on our travels again. The weather has been getting hotter and hotter as the week's gone on, and sun block and floppy hats were definitely needed. We had a good trip along the length of the Regent's Canal, arriving at Limehouse by four.
Michael took to lock working as if born to it, Sheila steered ands I ran around making sure everything went to plan ( OK, this is the way I see it). Highlights of the trip:
We're now tied on the wall at Limehouse, hiding from the sun, getting cool showers and planning to go for a meal in the Grapes tonight. Tomorrow, the Thames.
You can tell we've been busy – neither Sheila nor I have had time to do the regular blog, so this is a catch up.
On Sunday, I spent time with the sparks gang again, firstly checking that all was well on the show site, then assisting Malcolm Bridge to wire a new set of lights to the genny trailer – these are fancy state of the art ones, LED based so that they well take either 12 or 24 volts – no need to change them depending on which vehicle is towing.
It was a reasonably straightforward job for an experienced hobby electrician like Malcolm – the main problem being getting the relevant bits off the trailer.
Meanwhile Sheila was doing the behind the scenes stuff that's not very glamorous but is nonetheless essential, like litter picking and rubbish collection. It makes all the difference to a show if the site remains tidy and presentable throughout.
The show was very busy in warm but rather humid weather – it felt like it might thunder at any time, but never did.
Monday was another day for routine stuff, making for a relaxed start (ie eight o'clock) and pottering round keeping the show going. I spent much of the day driving the little tug we borrow from Wood Hall and Heward, Lenny. Lenny is actually two sterns of Springer narrow boats welded together with a BMC 1.5 under the deck. She's capable of pushing a big pan, but we use her for rubbish collection and the like.
She also took part in the parade of historic boats, carrying three members of the Police presence at the show. The early evening was a case of flinging ourselves back on site, taking down banners, clearing up rubbish and so forth.
Later in the evening, an old colleague of mine, Gethin Griffith, now working at Brunel University, took us out to dinner. We had a very pleasant meal at an Italian place we found not far from Praed Street. It was good to catch up on gossip from Bangor – being still in the groves of academe, he's kept up with their doings much more than I've been able to.
Tuesday was a matter of more of the same, dismantling the last bits of the show structures, sweeping and litter picking and so on. We managed to get Sanity round to the coal and diesel boats Archimedes and Ara to get diesel, before Sheila, Liz and I took Opportunity back to the Laburnum Boat Club, dropping off the market stalls at Camden on the way.
At half six I set off to collect Michael from Stansted Airport. This was one of those logistic exercises which went surprisingly well. In order to get back from Laburnum, I'd got a couple of Oyster cards, the cashless system for paying for tube and bus journeys in London, and I was able to use those to get from Paddington to Liverpool Street Station, to catch the Stansted Express to the airport. The plane was on time, and we were back at the boat by eleven.
Today we set off on our travels again. The weather has been getting hotter and hotter as the week's gone on, and sun block and floppy hats were definitely needed. We had a good trip along the length of the Regent's Canal, arriving at Limehouse by four.
Michael took to lock working as if born to it, Sheila steered ands I ran around making sure everything went to plan ( OK, this is the way I see it). Highlights of the trip:
- A pair of coots mating on a floating plank above St Pancras Lock
- A sunbathing terrapin on another plank a bit later on, below Mile End Lock
- A family of swans sharing Johnson's Lock with us.
We're now tied on the wall at Limehouse, hiding from the sun, getting cool showers and planning to go for a meal in the Grapes tonight. Tomorrow, the Thames.
Labels:
Limehouse,
Little Venice
Saturday, 3 May 2008
Cavalcade Eve and Day 1
2nd & 3rd May
Bruce is run off his feet so this is Sheila's contribution to the blog.
Yesterday started quite easily as breakfast was not until 8 am. But we were not allowed to linger over it. Bruce was detailed to help Bungle and Malcolm with putting in the electricity supply. That was particularly fun when it came to wiring up lights on the island in the middle of the pool. There were nesting Canada Geese and a pair of swans already fighting each other for possession. None of them much liked the idea of surrendering their territory to humans. They had also booby trapped the island with liberal supplies of poo.
Other cables were needed to supply power for the public address system and the festoon slung from the bridge at the entrance to the pool. It was a full day of work, then in the evening the traders started to arrive and needed to have their power supplies wired in.
I meanwhile was working round a variety of jobs, starting with hanging banners and covering with plastic sheeting the rather tired boards for the market stalls that we had collected the day before. Then there were tables and chairs to be set out in the Entertainments Marquee for the Boaters' fish and chip supper. As soon as the Water Bus had made its last run of the day there were detour signs to put up to direct travellers to the temporary Water Bus Stop that will be in use for the weekend. Finally the stall holders started to arrive and I was on the towpath in a high vis jacket leading the traders vehicles to their pitches. It was a bit like the days when there was a man with a red flag walking in front of each motor vehicle only I wasn't supplied with a red flag.
One nice event was the receipt of an e-mail from Davinia of Incite. She had caught up with the blog and wanted to thank Bruce for the nice comments. She was very interested in the link Bruce had posted to the web site of Incite as it was the wrong company! Someone else is using a very similar company name, the correct addresses are here and here.
The day felt a bit as though it would never end but at last Maria called everyone into dinner at 8.30 pm then just as we were finishing Elanor arrived but we only had time for a brief chat before we decided that enough was enough and went to bed. Elanor went off the bar to socialise.
Today started very early for Elanor as breakfast was 6.30 to 7 am. We decided to skip breakfast in favour of a lie in and eat on our own boat a little later as we were to take most of the day off. Jane and Tom, Graeme's mother in law and her husband, were coming to see us and have a look at Cavalcade and we needed time to tidy up.
Bruce took the opportunity to type out a notice to put on the fence of the wrg compound. It was deliberately written to look like the sort of notice seen on an enclosure at the zoo. It seemed appropriate in view of the way we spend a lot of our free time sitting in a fenced compound with commuters streaming past us and giving us some rather strange looks. The text ran as follows:
This compound contains some interesting specimens of Homo wergiensis, a species closely related to Homo sapiens. H. wrgie, as it is known, was first described by Palmer and Arnold in the 1970s, but is believed to have existed in secret for many years prior to that.
Territory
It is quite unusual to find H wrgie in an urban environment such as this; they are normally to be seen lurking about in rural habitats, usually near old watercourses. This group was attracted here by placing the Dualit toaster and Burcos on a table, and within a few hours the first specimens had arrived and assembled the typical fenced area around them. Sleeping accommodation has been provided on the old boats behind you – this is always a popular move, as in the wild wrgies sleeping arrangements are best described as basic.
Feeding
H wrgie is probably the most omnivorous species known to man. The diet is widely varied, and invariably involves some form of alcohol, although subspecies H wrgie veggie and H wrgie vegan have been recorded.
Breeding
The breeding habits of H wrgie are something of a mystery, as normally only mature specimens aged between 18 and 70 can be found. Wrgies younger than this are very seldom seen. Older wrgies have been known to shed the typical bright red colouration for the blue "eclipse" colouration. This mimics the blue which appears on the related species Homo iwa. It's thought that they do this in order to avoid having to do any hard work around the nest site.
Much more research is needed into the habits and distribution of this fascinating animal. You can find out how to contribute by visiting the website dedicated to them, www.wrg.org.uk. It is also possible to subscribe to the research journal Navvies, which contains details of recent sightings of the species.
It was a reasonably fine day and quite warm so we had a really nice day. Jane and Tom did not have a good journey coming up from near Maidstone as the railways were disrupted by maintenance but they arrived in time for a leisurely lunch. Then we took a ramble round the pool to look at the boats and see some of the decorated boats in the parade. After a cup of tea back at the boat Jane and Tom had to start their epic journey back without knowing which trains would be running.
Most of the wrgies have gone out to a Spanish restaurant for dinner so Bruce agreed to cook for the five remaining workers. That is why he has no time to write today's blog.
Bruce is run off his feet so this is Sheila's contribution to the blog.
Yesterday started quite easily as breakfast was not until 8 am. But we were not allowed to linger over it. Bruce was detailed to help Bungle and Malcolm with putting in the electricity supply. That was particularly fun when it came to wiring up lights on the island in the middle of the pool. There were nesting Canada Geese and a pair of swans already fighting each other for possession. None of them much liked the idea of surrendering their territory to humans. They had also booby trapped the island with liberal supplies of poo.
Other cables were needed to supply power for the public address system and the festoon slung from the bridge at the entrance to the pool. It was a full day of work, then in the evening the traders started to arrive and needed to have their power supplies wired in.
I meanwhile was working round a variety of jobs, starting with hanging banners and covering with plastic sheeting the rather tired boards for the market stalls that we had collected the day before. Then there were tables and chairs to be set out in the Entertainments Marquee for the Boaters' fish and chip supper. As soon as the Water Bus had made its last run of the day there were detour signs to put up to direct travellers to the temporary Water Bus Stop that will be in use for the weekend. Finally the stall holders started to arrive and I was on the towpath in a high vis jacket leading the traders vehicles to their pitches. It was a bit like the days when there was a man with a red flag walking in front of each motor vehicle only I wasn't supplied with a red flag.
One nice event was the receipt of an e-mail from Davinia of Incite. She had caught up with the blog and wanted to thank Bruce for the nice comments. She was very interested in the link Bruce had posted to the web site of Incite as it was the wrong company! Someone else is using a very similar company name, the correct addresses are here and here.
The day felt a bit as though it would never end but at last Maria called everyone into dinner at 8.30 pm then just as we were finishing Elanor arrived but we only had time for a brief chat before we decided that enough was enough and went to bed. Elanor went off the bar to socialise.
Today started very early for Elanor as breakfast was 6.30 to 7 am. We decided to skip breakfast in favour of a lie in and eat on our own boat a little later as we were to take most of the day off. Jane and Tom, Graeme's mother in law and her husband, were coming to see us and have a look at Cavalcade and we needed time to tidy up.
Bruce took the opportunity to type out a notice to put on the fence of the wrg compound. It was deliberately written to look like the sort of notice seen on an enclosure at the zoo. It seemed appropriate in view of the way we spend a lot of our free time sitting in a fenced compound with commuters streaming past us and giving us some rather strange looks. The text ran as follows:
Homo wergiensis
This compound contains some interesting specimens of Homo wergiensis, a species closely related to Homo sapiens. H. wrgie, as it is known, was first described by Palmer and Arnold in the 1970s, but is believed to have existed in secret for many years prior to that.
Territory
It is quite unusual to find H wrgie in an urban environment such as this; they are normally to be seen lurking about in rural habitats, usually near old watercourses. This group was attracted here by placing the Dualit toaster and Burcos on a table, and within a few hours the first specimens had arrived and assembled the typical fenced area around them. Sleeping accommodation has been provided on the old boats behind you – this is always a popular move, as in the wild wrgies sleeping arrangements are best described as basic.
Feeding
H wrgie is probably the most omnivorous species known to man. The diet is widely varied, and invariably involves some form of alcohol, although subspecies H wrgie veggie and H wrgie vegan have been recorded.
Breeding
The breeding habits of H wrgie are something of a mystery, as normally only mature specimens aged between 18 and 70 can be found. Wrgies younger than this are very seldom seen. Older wrgies have been known to shed the typical bright red colouration for the blue "eclipse" colouration. This mimics the blue which appears on the related species Homo iwa. It's thought that they do this in order to avoid having to do any hard work around the nest site.
Much more research is needed into the habits and distribution of this fascinating animal. You can find out how to contribute by visiting the website dedicated to them, www.wrg.org.uk. It is also possible to subscribe to the research journal Navvies, which contains details of recent sightings of the species.
----------
It was a reasonably fine day and quite warm so we had a really nice day. Jane and Tom did not have a good journey coming up from near Maidstone as the railways were disrupted by maintenance but they arrived in time for a leisurely lunch. Then we took a ramble round the pool to look at the boats and see some of the decorated boats in the parade. After a cup of tea back at the boat Jane and Tom had to start their epic journey back without knowing which trains would be running.
Most of the wrgies have gone out to a Spanish restaurant for dinner so Bruce agreed to cook for the five remaining workers. That is why he has no time to write today's blog.
Labels:
Little Venice
Thursday, 1 May 2008
Getting set for Cavalcade
30th April and 1st May
Making an early start yesterday, we were on the mooring outside Sainsbury's and shopping by 7.30. By 8.45 we were on the water point at Little Venice, filling the tank and running the washing machine. It was tipping it down again, but apart from that all was well. A couple of BW guys arrived on the natty little boat they use to clean rubbish off the surface of the canal. Someone had spilt some diesel on the towpath by the sanitary station, so they carefully spread some sand over it. When the diesel had been absorbed, they swept it all into the water, this being ecosensitivity, BW style.
At 9.30 we arrived at the workers' boats mooring on the arm down to Paddington Basin, after a total of one hour's boating. First task was a lot of boat shuffling, moving those boats who had tied where we needed the workers' boats to be, and arranging ours in the way our leader, Mr Hearnden (aka Moose – don't ask) wanted them.
The afternoon was spent carting fencing panels to the site and creating the compound where we will store stuff and eat most of our meals for the next week. There was a certain amount of other fetching and carrying to be done, but there was a quite relaxed atmosphere on this first day – that can be expected to change.
Late in the day, the main accommodation boat, Belfast arrived. We were able to eat dinner on her, as it was still raining small domestic mammals outside. Belfast is a community boat from Dacorum Council, and well laid out for that type of boat, but it still means getting very friendly with one another as you squeeze to and fro.
Today was a distinctly relaxed start for a camp run by Moose, and breakfast was available from 8.30 to 9. I had already had a bit of entertainment first thing – when I got up to make the early morning tea, the gas ran out. Hopping about on the bow in your PJs is not a good idea in central London, with the commuters going to and fro to Paddington Station, so I threw my clothes on and went out there to switch the cylinders over. A passer by promptly stopped for a chat about the boating life.
Since the whole point of Cavalcade is to increase people's awareness of the cut and those who live on it, it didn't seem appropriate to give her the same advice as Noah gave the departing animals. Accordingly, I spent some time chatting to her, despite my desperate need to go and get the kettle on.
On our way to breakfast, we met a familiar figure who was nonetheless difficult to place as he stood there immaculate in business suit and holding a briefcase. Suddenly the penny dropped – this was Peter Harper of Cala, normally encountered in boating costume. He was on his way to a meeting nearby, poor soul.
Three of us had agreed to fetch another of the regular boats, Opportunity, from Laburnum Boat Club. This meant getting a taxi across to where she was moored on the Regent's Canal in Haggerston, then Liz, Sheila and I took her up the six locks between there and the summit pound at Camden Lock. After a break to eat our packed lunch, we went into the amazing world of Camden Lock Market and made contact with the Market Office.
We collected from them the parts for six market stalls, and carted them to the waters edge where we loaded them onto Opportunity's long well deck. Then Sheila took over the helm to steer her back to Little Venice to be off loaded.
Final event of today for us has been connecting the boat to the genset supplied shoreline power, so that we won't need to run the engine again whilst working here.
Making an early start yesterday, we were on the mooring outside Sainsbury's and shopping by 7.30. By 8.45 we were on the water point at Little Venice, filling the tank and running the washing machine. It was tipping it down again, but apart from that all was well. A couple of BW guys arrived on the natty little boat they use to clean rubbish off the surface of the canal. Someone had spilt some diesel on the towpath by the sanitary station, so they carefully spread some sand over it. When the diesel had been absorbed, they swept it all into the water, this being ecosensitivity, BW style.
At 9.30 we arrived at the workers' boats mooring on the arm down to Paddington Basin, after a total of one hour's boating. First task was a lot of boat shuffling, moving those boats who had tied where we needed the workers' boats to be, and arranging ours in the way our leader, Mr Hearnden (aka Moose – don't ask) wanted them.
The afternoon was spent carting fencing panels to the site and creating the compound where we will store stuff and eat most of our meals for the next week. There was a certain amount of other fetching and carrying to be done, but there was a quite relaxed atmosphere on this first day – that can be expected to change.
Late in the day, the main accommodation boat, Belfast arrived. We were able to eat dinner on her, as it was still raining small domestic mammals outside. Belfast is a community boat from Dacorum Council, and well laid out for that type of boat, but it still means getting very friendly with one another as you squeeze to and fro.
Today was a distinctly relaxed start for a camp run by Moose, and breakfast was available from 8.30 to 9. I had already had a bit of entertainment first thing – when I got up to make the early morning tea, the gas ran out. Hopping about on the bow in your PJs is not a good idea in central London, with the commuters going to and fro to Paddington Station, so I threw my clothes on and went out there to switch the cylinders over. A passer by promptly stopped for a chat about the boating life.
Since the whole point of Cavalcade is to increase people's awareness of the cut and those who live on it, it didn't seem appropriate to give her the same advice as Noah gave the departing animals. Accordingly, I spent some time chatting to her, despite my desperate need to go and get the kettle on.
On our way to breakfast, we met a familiar figure who was nonetheless difficult to place as he stood there immaculate in business suit and holding a briefcase. Suddenly the penny dropped – this was Peter Harper of Cala, normally encountered in boating costume. He was on his way to a meeting nearby, poor soul.
Three of us had agreed to fetch another of the regular boats, Opportunity, from Laburnum Boat Club. This meant getting a taxi across to where she was moored on the Regent's Canal in Haggerston, then Liz, Sheila and I took her up the six locks between there and the summit pound at Camden Lock. After a break to eat our packed lunch, we went into the amazing world of Camden Lock Market and made contact with the Market Office.
We collected from them the parts for six market stalls, and carted them to the waters edge where we loaded them onto Opportunity's long well deck. Then Sheila took over the helm to steer her back to Little Venice to be off loaded.
Final event of today for us has been connecting the boat to the genset supplied shoreline power, so that we won't need to run the engine again whilst working here.
Labels:
Little Venice,
Paddington Basin
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