A day of two halves and a lot of rain

This morning, we needed to get the water tank properly filled and then a pump out and diesel from Stone Boatbuilding, now trading as Stone Chandlery. We set off a bit before half eight and were just pipped to the post at the water point by a boat which came down the lock. We managed to tie beyond him, almost on the lock landing section, and only had a short wait before he'd managed to fill his tank, a water carrier and two lidded mugs.

As a single hander, presumably he wanted to be sure of a supply of drink before he set off. Once he was gone, we pulled Sanity Again back and got the tank filling. It's a very good pressure there indeed, which was just as well as another boat arrived when we were halfway through. Sheila took the time to water the plant troughs, which proved to be a mistake in view of the effect on the weather.

We worked up Star and Yard locks and tied outside the chandlery. Getting diesel was straightforward, 76ppl domestic at the moment, any declaration, but the pump out system looks like the one commissioned by Noah. It's a big old tank on the back of a Bedford truck that's escaped from the back lot of a transport museum, with a mains electric pump fixed on somewhere.

It pumps quite strongly but you only get an OK pump out. There's no sight glass in the probe and the operator has to rely on the sound of air sucking through the tank breather to know when it's empty. No rinse out and if you want blue, that's extra on top of the £18 charge. Our tank meter did show empty when he'd finished, but soon produced the first mark on the gauge, so about a day's use left in the tank.

It came on to rain whilst all this was going on and we locked up Newcastle Road and Top lock in a downpour. We've found a decent towpath mooring just beyond the Roger Fuller yard and were soon inside trying to dry off and getting a much needed cup of coffee.

It had mostly dried up outside by two when we set off to shop again, but we took waterproofs with us anyway, which proved to be a wise move as it started precipitating again whilst we were in Morrisons. Not a downpour this time, more a steady fine rain, very wetting.

No matter, we have a full diesel tank (almost), an empty toilet tank (almost) and a full water tank. The store cupboards and the drug cupboard are well stocked as is the wine cellar and the beer supply.

We are therefore well set up to get going again tomorrow.