Hot Spaniards and Stately Homes

We'd bought some hot Spanish sausages in Kinver as a change from their pre-war ones and had some of them last night with salad. The butcher had warned us that they were seriously hot and he was right. In flavour a bit like chorizo but in a classic British soss, the presence of chili seeds in the mix showed that hot was definitely what they were aiming for. We enjoyed them, although stopping from time to time to blow noses and wipe foreheads, but be warned, if you don't like it hot, don't buy these.

After a reasonable night despite the heat, we had a lazy start this morning as we only wanted to come on to Wightwick, about six lock miles from Bratch so maybe two hours cruising. Sheila steered and I locked, working up Awbridge, Ebbstree and Dimmingsdale in its lovely setting. We got to Wightwick by ten and had no problem finding a mooring. We didn't in fact use the actual visitor moorings as they are a bit close to a busy road bridge, but stopped just before.

It's Armco but with a wooden waling rail rather than the usual crash barrier stuff. This meant that I had to use a mooring pin to clear a hole for the chain to go down, but we've managed OK.

After lunch, we walked to Wightwick Manor, the first country house to be given to the National Trust. Built at the end of the 19th century by the Manders family of paint and varnish fame, it looks a lot older, having been deliberately designed by Ould to appear as if it had accumulated over the centuries. Inside, it's a testament to the Arts and Crafts Movement of William Morris and co.

Both house and grounds were well worth the visit and made one of the most enjoyable afternoons I've had for quite a while. Sheila took a fair few photos, but we're close enough to the Compton not-spot to have a weak signal, so you'll have to be content with just the one:

The only fly in the ointment of an otherwise perfect day is a spot of bother with the weed hatch fixing. The thread on the rod that holds the plate down has corroded, making it very hard to get it properly tight. I've fixed it for the moment but I hope we don't have to use it again before we get to Poynton in August to get it repaired properly.

Edit cos I nearly forgot. Ok, I did forget :( Reader Davidss reports that he's having probs with the blog loading in Firefox (see yesterday's comments). Anyone else having trouble?

Jo, thanks for reminding me!