Monday 12 June 2017

Getting near home

Sutton Road Bridge is a reasonably safe mooring, not least because the Audi dealers alongside has substantial CCTV coverage, but it was a bit noisy last night with (presumably) youngsters racing cars around the car parks. It did go quiet eventually so we got some sleep, if rather erratically.

Off we went at what seems to be our usual time these days, a bit before eight. Sheila steered in rather more wind than we'd been hoping for, though she coped well, naturally. I did lookout, mostly, with occasional breaks to get the washing machine going and the like. Hopwas came and went, then Hopwas Woods. They've replaced the Firing Range warning notices with rather sterner ones and erected big gates at the access points.

Indeed, the flags were flying today and from time to time we could hear the sound of firing, a mixture of rifle fire and some heavier stuff, mortars I suspect. I seem to remember having been told that the range is mostly used for TA training these days, so presumably what we could hear were the activities of a summer camp for part-time soldiers.

Whittington seemed very quiet as befits a village that's running out of pubs, sadly, and there were few lurkers in the vicinity of Huddlesford Junction. We passed Farne sitting quietly on her mooring. The guy who was trying to set up a business by the railway bridge seems to have given up, though there was a part-completed boat tied under the bridge. Even the visitor moorings at the Plough were almost empty.

I took over for the last stretch to our target mooring by the entrance to Kings Orchard marina. It's continued windy for much of the afternoon, though it seems to be easing down at last. The forecast is much better for the next couple of days, warmer and calmer, but at present it's scheduled to get breezier again on Thursday.

If it stays that way, we may well trim a day off the cruising plan and do Alrewas to Mercia in one day on Wednesday, rather than trying to get onto our pontoon in a severe draught. Meanwhile, Jo and I have co-ordinated an Ocado delivery for Friday morning.



Location:Streethay

1 comment:

Jo said...

We have indeed! See you Wednesday.