Tuesday 15th July.
Royal Leamington Spa to Saltersford Arm Warwick. 3.8 miles and 2 locks.
The sun was shining and we were on our way at 8.40 am, heading firstly for Tesco near Warwick, where we could stock up on provisions. We crept past Colin and Margaret on NB Seeburg, who we had got to know late yesterday afternoon, after they moored up in front of us.
The scenery is pretty uninspiring, and nothing to get over excited about, so having arrived at Tesco at 9.25 am we found ourselves somewhere to moor and went and did our shopping. Having arrived back at the boat, I was putting the shopping away, when I heard voices, and who should it be but Colin and Margaret on NB Seeburg, they had moored behind us and were off to get their shopping done. We continued on our way at 10. 50 am towards the locks where we paired up with another boat to do the pair of locks. We saw moored up NB Valerie, but there was no sign of Les, so we continued on, we then parted company with the boat we shared the locks with, as they continued on their way and we took a sharp left hand turn into the Saltersford Arm. We met coming in the other direction the Willow Wren boat Dipper, who was coming out of the arm to turn around, having done a pump out. We managed to pass each other and we continued up the arm, noticing two people waving at us, those people were Merleen and Paul on NB Lady Celine; they now have a residential mooring in the arm. We were instructed by Ian who looks after the arm to turn Hadar around in the winding hole and moor outside of the office, which we did. Everyone there made us feel so very welcome. A mooring over night till midday the next day is free, then after that it is £4 a day. You can hook up to the electric for £3 a day. There is a laundry which is £1 for a warm wash and £2 for a hot wash; they also have a drier for 20p a go, an absolute bargain. There is pump out elsan and rubbish point. Everything you could ask for, they also do short or long term moorings, or moorings for the winter. Moored behind us were the Willow Wren boats Crane and Dipper with 18 young people onboard, who were at Warwick Castle for the day. Having eaten lunch, who should appear and moor alongside us but NB Seeburg. We took a walk into Warwick and had a nose around. There are some lovely Antique shops in the town and other places of interest. We were not sure if we would visit the castle. Anyway tomorrow we would investigate further; this was a quick look around. We got back to the boat and were met by Merleen, who invited us to their boat NB Lady Celine for a coffee and a catch up chat, which was really wonderful, as the last time we saw them was at Braunston. One of their Shelties has been very, very poorly, but hopefully now after an operation is on the mend at long last. We have said we would go out for a meal with them on Thursday. We were just on our way back to the boat when we were met by Les off of NB Valerie, he was out for a walk and saw Hadar, so knew we were about, we stood and caught up on the news with him. It has been a day of catching up with boating friends. During the evening we enjoyed watching the 18 young people off of NB Crane and Dipper playing rounders, they were using a stick and a conker, so I found them a ball to play to use out of my carrier bags full of balls of all shapes and sizes. It was so enjoyable to watch a group of young people having so much fun and laughter. In this day and age we hear so many bad things about the youth of today, and here were this group of young people playing and enjoying each others company and the company of their teachers. The day drew to a close at 9.45 pm with the youngsters going in and the evening getting chilly.
It has been a fantastic day. We plan on staying in the arm for a few days.
Wednesday 16th July.
Today was a day of culture and history. We did all the usual morning chores and said good morning to Margaret and Colin next door to us. Keith and I then walked into Warwick early as I wanted to find a hairdresser, who would do a dry trim and not charge the earth. I found such a hairdressers who trimmed an inch off my hair and only charged me £10, which was not bad at all. Although £10 for two minutes work seems a little over the top, but it had been 12 weeks since my last trim, so needs must I suppose.
We then did the museum in the square and St. Johns House Museum, both of them free to enter and very informative, especially St. Johns where we learned the history of the Warwickshire Regiment. By this time it was lunch time and our feet needed a rest, so we found a Thai restaurant which was doing a 2 course meal for £6.50 each from a set menu, which would do for us. It was a really good meal and service. By this time it was 12.45 pm and we were going to visit the castle, Merleen gave us a voucher for one of us to get in free, we made our way to Warwick Castle where we had the most fantastic afternoon. The castle itself was bustling with school and college parties, so it was a little crowded, but we climbed over 500 steps to the ramparts and towers, to see spectacular views across the country, we sat and watched the falconry display by Hawk Experience which was really amazing, we then enjoyed a walk around the grounds. Inside the castle the exhibitions in each of the rooms was truly amazing, with wax work figures dressed in period costume. The even had sound affects for each of the rooms and people on hand to answer any questions. Of all the castles we have been to this was by far the best and I for one recommend you visit it. Having done all that walking and climbing we left the castle to find a street café for a well earned coffee, before making our way back to Hadar. The rest of the day was spent relaxing on the boat, neither of us had any energy for much else ha ha ha.
Thursday, July 17, 2008
Monday, July 14, 2008
Fosse Locks to Royal Leamington Spa.
Saturday 12th and Sunday 13th July.
Being moored up for a couple of days has given us the chance to get some much needed jobs done; it has also given us the chance to watch the wildlife around us.
Saturday we woke up to a hula baloo going on outside. A bird was screaming and another was calling back, but neither Keith nor I could figure out what bird it was. The noise died down and we got out of bed to what was a hit and miss day as far as the weather was concerned. One minute it was sunny, and the next, dark ominous clouds would appear overhead.
Having taken Paddy for a walk and stood on the towpath for a while I heard the screaming of the mystery bird all over again and the other bird calling. It was soon clear what bird it was, when the parent bird hovered overhead.
So 8.50 am and off we went. We were met at the lock by a ewe that had somehow got out of the field beside the lock. She seemed to know her way back, so we left her to get on with life, whilst we carried on our way. The scenery is not as pretty as we had seen before, but never the less it is pleasant. We descended Radford Bottom Lock where there is a place to get rid of any rubbish and continued past wooded areas. The River Leam runs a alongside the canal for a way, before the canal joins a busy road for a short distance, we were then into the outskirts of Leamington. We were told by George on NB Penny that the moorings by Bridge 40 were good, so as we approached bridge 40 we pulled in at the 48 hour moorings, only to discover that they were too shallow for Hadar. It took some manoeuvring to get her off, so whilst Keith sorted that out, I walked to the other side of the bridge to see what was on offer. Hey Presto there were more moorings. To get to them not only did we have to get Hadar moving again, but we also needed to wait for the three hire boats to pass us going in the same direction as us. My only thought at that point was. “Heck I hope they don’t want to moor up on the other side of the bridge”. Thankfully they continued on, probably to Warwick. So we took up a mooring place just big enough for Hadar and tied up.
We then shut the boat up and headed into Royal Leamington Spa. The first thing that struck me was that all the buildings are Cream, if it wasn’t for all the flowers planted out it would look very bland. It was wonderful walking up and down the streets, with the buildings towering over us, and made a nice change to see high street stores in such buildings, instead of busy shopping malls. We were both very impressed by the place. Unfortunately the Pump House Museum is not open on a Monday, but we can do that another time. We did enjoy lunch out before walking around the ornate Jephson Gardens; they are named after Dr Jephson (1798-1878). He was the local Practitioner, who was responsible for the spa’s large medical reputation. With all the gardens planted out, it was beautiful to walk around and look at the many different species of trees.
Whilst walking around the town Keith spotted overhead a Douglas Dakota Aeroplane it seemed that the plane was circling over us. What we found out was the Dakota was flying farewell flights from Coventry.
During the morning I had dropped my mobile phone and the screen split, but I managed to get another cover whilst we were on our walk. I also got a new pair of steel toe capped shoes to replace the ones I wear now which are forever splitting. I have lost count of the times I have spent gluing them together. But now I have a brand new pair to wear in. I like to feel safe under foot on the boat, so want my shoes to be nonslip. But also because we are dealing with heavy bags of coal I need steal top caps. We really enjoyed our walk around this largely Victorian town and will most definitely come back again.
Being moored up for a couple of days has given us the chance to get some much needed jobs done; it has also given us the chance to watch the wildlife around us.
Saturday we woke up to a hula baloo going on outside. A bird was screaming and another was calling back, but neither Keith nor I could figure out what bird it was. The noise died down and we got out of bed to what was a hit and miss day as far as the weather was concerned. One minute it was sunny, and the next, dark ominous clouds would appear overhead.
Having taken Paddy for a walk and stood on the towpath for a while I heard the screaming of the mystery bird all over again and the other bird calling. It was soon clear what bird it was, when the parent bird hovered overhead.
A pair of Kestrels had either one or two young and the youngsters were screaming for food whilst flying after the parents. I just wish I could have photographed them together, but they were too quick for me. Neither of us had ever seen this behaviour before, we have only ever seen the adult birds whilst hovering, but certainly hope we will see it again. Another bird of prey was also near and they were Buzzards, they were mewing and calling, so maybe they had young as well.
As the day wore on the weather turned into dark skies and heavy showers. So it meant anything we wanted to do was put on hold till Sunday.
We did nothing much during Saturday, and enjoyed a quiet evening onboard watching films.
Sunday began with glorious sunshine, such a contrast from the past few days. It should have been a day of rest, but not for us we had a list of things to get done. First on the list was to undo the sheeting and open up the hold, so we could see what we were doing. We wanted to move all our clutter and put it on top of the water tank, so we could cover it up with a tarpaulin. We are hoping to have the sheeting off for the IWA National Festival to show the open hold and the coal we are carrying. The sun was beating down making the job a hot one. We also wanted to cut up all the wood in the hold, so Keith got the chainsaw out and got it ready for work, but no matter how hard we both tried the darn thing would not start, so it was back to the hand saw and axe. We managed to chop up all the dry stuff and bag it up ready for the winter. At that point we had lunch and a well deserved break. Just as we were about to get to work again Dave and Jade on NB Flamingo appeared out of the lock. Dave reads our diary whilst at work; he said it is what keeps him sane. Dave asked if we had any coal onboard as they would like a bag, so whilst they moored up I pulled a bag out of the hold. Flamingo is an ex-working boat from the Willow Wren Fleet. She was originally known as Letchworth and still has her air cooled Lister engine from her BW days sitting in her original engine room.
I promised I would give Dave and Jade a mention in the diary. I hope you’re keeping sane at work today Dave. Here is your five minutes of fame ha ha ha. It was lovely to meet you both and hope we will meet again someday. Flamingo looks fantastic keep up the good work.
Back to the hold I swept it out and stacked the bagged wood, we then moved some of the coal, ready for a new intake in the autumn. It was then time for another sit down and a can of lager. We have seen quite a few boats moving this past couple of days, up and down the locks. Whilst sitting enjoying the break, Marmite was lying out on the towpath by the galley window, she was trying to catch Bumble bees, which we do not encourage. We soon discovered that Marmite was actually laying a couple of feet away from a bees nest under the ground.
We sat and watched the bees flying in and out of a hole no bigger than my thumb nail.
Isn’t nature wonderful?
What amazed us both was the fact they knew where the hole was to come back to. They are fantastic little creatures.
Marmite looked on as they flew to and fro all afternoon. There was no way we were allowing her to play near the nest so she was put on her harness and lead. Having completed all the jobs we had in mind we called it a day as we both felt shattered. During the evening we both needed a shower, you can only imagine what a state we were both in after lugging coal about, not only that Keith had managed to catch the sun as well, so he was feeling a little tender on his back. Due to a busy day it was bed at 10 pm for us both. We were both pooped after a long day, but it was rewarding because we had got all the jobs done on our mental list.
Monday 14th July.
Fosse Locks to Royal Leamington Spa. 3.7 miles and 2 locks.
Another Monday morning to week 21 of our cruising of the waterways and we are still having lots of fun, so much so, that today we were heading for Royal Leamington Spa. It was just a small jaunt, but one that would mean I could get a wash done and we could go and explore an historic town.
Fosse Locks to Royal Leamington Spa. 3.7 miles and 2 locks.
Another Monday morning to week 21 of our cruising of the waterways and we are still having lots of fun, so much so, that today we were heading for Royal Leamington Spa. It was just a small jaunt, but one that would mean I could get a wash done and we could go and explore an historic town.
So 8.50 am and off we went. We were met at the lock by a ewe that had somehow got out of the field beside the lock. She seemed to know her way back, so we left her to get on with life, whilst we carried on our way. The scenery is not as pretty as we had seen before, but never the less it is pleasant. We descended Radford Bottom Lock where there is a place to get rid of any rubbish and continued past wooded areas. The River Leam runs a alongside the canal for a way, before the canal joins a busy road for a short distance, we were then into the outskirts of Leamington. We were told by George on NB Penny that the moorings by Bridge 40 were good, so as we approached bridge 40 we pulled in at the 48 hour moorings, only to discover that they were too shallow for Hadar. It took some manoeuvring to get her off, so whilst Keith sorted that out, I walked to the other side of the bridge to see what was on offer. Hey Presto there were more moorings. To get to them not only did we have to get Hadar moving again, but we also needed to wait for the three hire boats to pass us going in the same direction as us. My only thought at that point was. “Heck I hope they don’t want to moor up on the other side of the bridge”. Thankfully they continued on, probably to Warwick. So we took up a mooring place just big enough for Hadar and tied up.
We then shut the boat up and headed into Royal Leamington Spa. The first thing that struck me was that all the buildings are Cream, if it wasn’t for all the flowers planted out it would look very bland. It was wonderful walking up and down the streets, with the buildings towering over us, and made a nice change to see high street stores in such buildings, instead of busy shopping malls. We were both very impressed by the place. Unfortunately the Pump House Museum is not open on a Monday, but we can do that another time. We did enjoy lunch out before walking around the ornate Jephson Gardens; they are named after Dr Jephson (1798-1878). He was the local Practitioner, who was responsible for the spa’s large medical reputation. With all the gardens planted out, it was beautiful to walk around and look at the many different species of trees. Whilst walking around the town Keith spotted overhead a Douglas Dakota Aeroplane it seemed that the plane was circling over us. What we found out was the Dakota was flying farewell flights from Coventry.
During the morning I had dropped my mobile phone and the screen split, but I managed to get another cover whilst we were on our walk. I also got a new pair of steel toe capped shoes to replace the ones I wear now which are forever splitting. I have lost count of the times I have spent gluing them together. But now I have a brand new pair to wear in. I like to feel safe under foot on the boat, so want my shoes to be nonslip. But also because we are dealing with heavy bags of coal I need steal top caps. We really enjoyed our walk around this largely Victorian town and will most definitely come back again.
Friday, July 11, 2008
Tuesday 8th July.
Bridge 129 near the Medieval Village of Wormleighton to the bottom of the Napton Locks. 6.3 miles and 9 locks.
Having had a night of heavy rain, we were woken at 6 am by the alarm clock to a cloudy yet dry morning. Paddy enjoyed a run across the field before setting off at 7 am. You’re probably thinking we start early. We start early some days to avoid all the traffic when it comes to the locks. The first 3 miles or so of the trip today was enjoyable open countryside, with wonderful scenery across the valley and no other boat in sight.
Although the morning began dry it did not last long and we were soon getting heavy showers, which are more associated with April than with July, but a little drop of rain never hurt anyone. Our first lock Napton Top Lock was at Marston Doles, where you can begin to see the Windmill clearer from the summit. You also get fantastic views across the valley. We then began the drop down to the junction. We passed Old Engine House Arm, which is now home to private moorings and the boats. It used to be the site of a firmer pump house. Dropping down the Napton flight we began to notice cattle in the fields and not just any old cattle, these were water buffalo. We have been to farmers markets and seen water buffalo meat, cheese etc for sale, but never seen them in the flesh before. Well now we have and not only that we were probably the first people of the day to see a new arrival to the water buffalo family.
This perfectly formed calf had just been born and was taking its first tentative steps in life.
Mum was giving him/her an introduction to the world. It really gladdened the heart seeing this beautiful.
It seems a local farm has a herd of around 80 or should that now be 81 water buffalo and is doing very well with the herd and the produce they get from them. We look forward to trying that produce sometime.
We arrived at the bottom lock of the Napton flight having seen very few boats moving, only to become part of a traffic jam. We wanted to use the water point as did other boats, but also boats wanted to get through to use the sanitary station on the other side and to use the lock, so we had to do a bit of boat juggling, because with Hadar being 70 ft she needed a lot of room. But it was all sorted out with a minimum of fuss and we tied up at the water point and began filling the water tank. It took over an hour to fill the tank. Be warned if you want to fill up at the bottom of the Napton Flight it takes an age because the water pressure is practically none existent lol. Still we were in no hurry as it was only 10.45 am, but the weather was also not helping as it was chucking it down. Eventually the tank was full and we found a mooring just big enough for us to squeeze into. Having had a bacon sandwich for lunch we, decided to take a walk up on to the hill of Napton on the Hill, so see the views. The walk takes you to over 400ft up but it is so worth it for the view. The windmill is now a private home, but you can use a public footpath to see the view by the side of the windmill.
They say you can see seven counties from the highest point on a good day and I reckon we saw a few of the seven, it was a stunning view and well worth the walk.
We could even see as far as Coventry, which was 12 miles plus away. Having sat down to admire the view for a while we then walked back down the road past a Rowan tree.
Which was planted as a mark of remembrance for the 50th Anniversary of the Blitz. The seat and tree are very close to the site of an observer post, which witnessed the Coventry blitz. Our next port of call was St. Lawrence Church, which is also up on the hill. It is a stunning church in such peaceful surroundings.
The church itself dates back to the 13th-C. It is told that the church was built on the village green, but the devil kept removing the buildings stones and placing them in its present site, where the church was eventually built. How spooky is that?
We found walking around the church yard that names kept cropping up, Sheasby’s, Eaton’s, Alsop’s and Batchelor’s, and feel that these must have been families who spent their lifetimes in this village. I will delve further to see what I can dig up, so to speak. We also found that some had died in the First World War; one such person was a Bombardier who died in 1918. Some think of grave yards as being sad places, I find them useful in finding out all about the history of a place. For instance the Sheasby’s lost three men in the Great War, now I wonder where they brothers?
Keith and really enjoyed our walk to the top of Napton on the Hill, we have been through her so many times before and never walked into the village. The village itself is lovely with thatched and Georgian houses, there is a useful post office come shop and the Crown Pub. We went to The Folly Pub near Napton bottom lock for our evening meal, which was very nice. We both had the Steak and Kidney Pie with chips, which was very nice. The food at The Folly Pub is your basic pub grub. So if you like good honest plain food then give the place a go. Whilst there we met Bob and Jane from NB Hobo, Jane asked me if we could deliver a couple of bags of coal to their boat in the morning, as the weather was going to be awful and they wanted a fire. We of course said “it was no problem”. The day ended with a lovely sunset over the bow of the boat and us enjoying a coffee before bedtime.
Wednesday 9th July.
True to the weather forecasters word Wednesday was a complete and utter washout, so much so that we did not more and neither did an one else on the moorings. Keith and I deliver two bags of coal to Jane and Bob, so they could light their fire. I went to the sanitary station to get rid of rubbish and then called into the Folly Shop, where I stood having a natter with the owner. We were discussing the diesel situation and she was telling me of how the local farmers have been having their diesel stolen. I also read on Sue and Vic’s diary from NB No problem that they had, had the diesel stolen out of their boat. Nothing it seems is sacred anymore. It is a darn right low act to steal someone else’s diesel, but then these people have little respect for others. I also found out why BW is putting in new bollards a long the lock chambers. I will give you one guess why they are doing it.
Go on I bet you know the answer?
Three words, Health and Safety that is why they are putting them in. They have been told to do it apparently. Where on earth will this end I wonder?
Anyway I was gone so long that Keith came looking for me ha ha ha. We spent the rest of the day hunkered down in the boat against the darn right awful weather. The only boaters moving were the hirers and none of them looked happy with the rain lashing down on them. We are lucky we do not have to move if the weather is bad like it was today.
Thursday 10th July.
Napton to Long Itchington. 6.1 miles and 13 locks.
We woke up to a bright sunny morning; it was such a contrast to yesterday’s awful weather. 8 am and we were off, hoping to avoid the heavy showers forecast.
We waved goodbye once more to the Napton on the hill windmill and whilst Keith steered Hadar towards the junction, I put a wash on. We arrived at Napton Junction at 8.45 am and turned onto the Grand Union Canal, this being new territory for me again.
We rolled on past the Napton Reservoir towards the Calcutt Locks.
We are back to double locks, but sadly no one to share ours with. These locks also have different paddle gear, really easy to wind up and let down. There were three of the Calcutt locks, which then took us north past Stockton. We had not gone far when we noticed George and Carol’s boat NB Penny moored up, tow heads popped out of the front doors, asking “How far are you going”. We told then just down through the Stockton Lock, so they said “We may see you later”. We first met George (The Fenderman) and Carol a few weeks ago at the Reading Water Fest. We said cheerio and carried on to descend down the 10 Stockton Locks, fortunately there were pairs of boats coming up the locks so we had the locks with us, the downside was we had no one to share the locks with and the work. The landscape changes and you go from being quite flat to seeing hills. There are old quarries that produced blue lias. Blue lias is a local stone and cement which was used in the construction of the Thames Embankment. It is said that large fossils were found in the blue lias clay, which is the lowest layer from the Jurassic period. I can imagine it would be quite exciting to find dinosaur bones, giving an insight to our history all those years ago.
We descended down through the last lock of the day, with it pretty lock cottage looking on.
We then found a mooring just below the lock at Long Itchington. Having done some lunch, Keith and I took a walk into the village, which has a village pond co-op, post office, hair dressers etc. There are some pretty cottages in the village some dating back to the 17th and 18th-C. Opposite The Duck on the Pond Inn. It is said that Queen Elizabeth 1st once stayed at the house. It is now up for sale. The village is a jumble of old and new which gives it a lot of character. You are spoilt for choice as far as pubs is concerned, we counted five.
So another day done and the weather stayed pretty good, we only had a few spots of rain. We met lots of other boaters heading in the opposite direction, they had all stayed put in yesterdays weather. We’ve only seen a couple of other boats coming down our way, so all in all it is pretty quiet.
Friday 11th July.
Long Itchington to Fosse Locks. 2.8 miles and 8 locks.
We were awake at 6.30am, Marmite made sure we did not go back to sleep by standing on Keith’s chest, meowing at him to let him know she wanted us up because she wanted her breakfast. She reminded me of Garfield in the film we watched last night, where Garfield stands on his owner’s chest, wanting him to get out of bed.
The sun was shining as I opened the back cabin doors to let Paddy out for his morning walk. So we would be off to destinations new again today.
We cruised by the Two Boats Inn and under the A 423 entering into wild expanses of farm land and hills.
We headed towards Bascote Locks. The top two locks being staircase locks, along side the lock is a pretty toll cottage.
The paddle winding gear on these locks was harder to wind up, either that or I was feeling the affects of yesterdays locks. I think it was the fact they were harder to do ha ha ha. Having let Hadar out of the lock, I then shut the gate behind her and walked on to the next lock.
No one else seemed to be moving, we had seen nobody else about.
Once again we were into the quiet countryside, with lush wooded areas along the canal. It was really quite pretty, even if the weather was looking a bit iffy. Dark clouds were on the horizon.
Having cruised under the Fosse Way, Roman Road and past Fosse Wharf, we did the first of the Fosse Locks before finding a mooring, which is where we will stay for the weekend. We sorted ourselves out and had some lunch when we heard a boat coming. It turned out to be George and Carol on NB Penny; they were doing the locks with NB Talisman, who bought a bag of coal from us, before going down the second of the Fosse Locks. We may see George and Carol in Warwick next week if they are still around. As they left the lock dark clouds were over head and drops of rain began to fall, light at first but then it got heavy and prolonged. So it looks like a wet end to our day.
We shall see you next week, all being well. Have a lovely weekend no matter where you are.
Bridge 129 near the Medieval Village of Wormleighton to the bottom of the Napton Locks. 6.3 miles and 9 locks.
Having had a night of heavy rain, we were woken at 6 am by the alarm clock to a cloudy yet dry morning. Paddy enjoyed a run across the field before setting off at 7 am. You’re probably thinking we start early. We start early some days to avoid all the traffic when it comes to the locks. The first 3 miles or so of the trip today was enjoyable open countryside, with wonderful scenery across the valley and no other boat in sight.
Although the morning began dry it did not last long and we were soon getting heavy showers, which are more associated with April than with July, but a little drop of rain never hurt anyone. Our first lock Napton Top Lock was at Marston Doles, where you can begin to see the Windmill clearer from the summit. You also get fantastic views across the valley. We then began the drop down to the junction. We passed Old Engine House Arm, which is now home to private moorings and the boats. It used to be the site of a firmer pump house. Dropping down the Napton flight we began to notice cattle in the fields and not just any old cattle, these were water buffalo. We have been to farmers markets and seen water buffalo meat, cheese etc for sale, but never seen them in the flesh before. Well now we have and not only that we were probably the first people of the day to see a new arrival to the water buffalo family.
This perfectly formed calf had just been born and was taking its first tentative steps in life.
Mum was giving him/her an introduction to the world. It really gladdened the heart seeing this beautiful.It seems a local farm has a herd of around 80 or should that now be 81 water buffalo and is doing very well with the herd and the produce they get from them. We look forward to trying that produce sometime.
We arrived at the bottom lock of the Napton flight having seen very few boats moving, only to become part of a traffic jam. We wanted to use the water point as did other boats, but also boats wanted to get through to use the sanitary station on the other side and to use the lock, so we had to do a bit of boat juggling, because with Hadar being 70 ft she needed a lot of room. But it was all sorted out with a minimum of fuss and we tied up at the water point and began filling the water tank. It took over an hour to fill the tank. Be warned if you want to fill up at the bottom of the Napton Flight it takes an age because the water pressure is practically none existent lol. Still we were in no hurry as it was only 10.45 am, but the weather was also not helping as it was chucking it down. Eventually the tank was full and we found a mooring just big enough for us to squeeze into. Having had a bacon sandwich for lunch we, decided to take a walk up on to the hill of Napton on the Hill, so see the views. The walk takes you to over 400ft up but it is so worth it for the view. The windmill is now a private home, but you can use a public footpath to see the view by the side of the windmill.
They say you can see seven counties from the highest point on a good day and I reckon we saw a few of the seven, it was a stunning view and well worth the walk.
We could even see as far as Coventry, which was 12 miles plus away. Having sat down to admire the view for a while we then walked back down the road past a Rowan tree.
Which was planted as a mark of remembrance for the 50th Anniversary of the Blitz. The seat and tree are very close to the site of an observer post, which witnessed the Coventry blitz. Our next port of call was St. Lawrence Church, which is also up on the hill. It is a stunning church in such peaceful surroundings.
The church itself dates back to the 13th-C. It is told that the church was built on the village green, but the devil kept removing the buildings stones and placing them in its present site, where the church was eventually built. How spooky is that?We found walking around the church yard that names kept cropping up, Sheasby’s, Eaton’s, Alsop’s and Batchelor’s, and feel that these must have been families who spent their lifetimes in this village. I will delve further to see what I can dig up, so to speak. We also found that some had died in the First World War; one such person was a Bombardier who died in 1918. Some think of grave yards as being sad places, I find them useful in finding out all about the history of a place. For instance the Sheasby’s lost three men in the Great War, now I wonder where they brothers?
Keith and really enjoyed our walk to the top of Napton on the Hill, we have been through her so many times before and never walked into the village. The village itself is lovely with thatched and Georgian houses, there is a useful post office come shop and the Crown Pub. We went to The Folly Pub near Napton bottom lock for our evening meal, which was very nice. We both had the Steak and Kidney Pie with chips, which was very nice. The food at The Folly Pub is your basic pub grub. So if you like good honest plain food then give the place a go. Whilst there we met Bob and Jane from NB Hobo, Jane asked me if we could deliver a couple of bags of coal to their boat in the morning, as the weather was going to be awful and they wanted a fire. We of course said “it was no problem”. The day ended with a lovely sunset over the bow of the boat and us enjoying a coffee before bedtime.
Wednesday 9th July.
True to the weather forecasters word Wednesday was a complete and utter washout, so much so that we did not more and neither did an one else on the moorings. Keith and I deliver two bags of coal to Jane and Bob, so they could light their fire. I went to the sanitary station to get rid of rubbish and then called into the Folly Shop, where I stood having a natter with the owner. We were discussing the diesel situation and she was telling me of how the local farmers have been having their diesel stolen. I also read on Sue and Vic’s diary from NB No problem that they had, had the diesel stolen out of their boat. Nothing it seems is sacred anymore. It is a darn right low act to steal someone else’s diesel, but then these people have little respect for others. I also found out why BW is putting in new bollards a long the lock chambers. I will give you one guess why they are doing it.
Go on I bet you know the answer?
Three words, Health and Safety that is why they are putting them in. They have been told to do it apparently. Where on earth will this end I wonder?
Anyway I was gone so long that Keith came looking for me ha ha ha. We spent the rest of the day hunkered down in the boat against the darn right awful weather. The only boaters moving were the hirers and none of them looked happy with the rain lashing down on them. We are lucky we do not have to move if the weather is bad like it was today.
Thursday 10th July.
Napton to Long Itchington. 6.1 miles and 13 locks.
We woke up to a bright sunny morning; it was such a contrast to yesterday’s awful weather. 8 am and we were off, hoping to avoid the heavy showers forecast.
We waved goodbye once more to the Napton on the hill windmill and whilst Keith steered Hadar towards the junction, I put a wash on. We arrived at Napton Junction at 8.45 am and turned onto the Grand Union Canal, this being new territory for me again.
We rolled on past the Napton Reservoir towards the Calcutt Locks.
We are back to double locks, but sadly no one to share ours with. These locks also have different paddle gear, really easy to wind up and let down. There were three of the Calcutt locks, which then took us north past Stockton. We had not gone far when we noticed George and Carol’s boat NB Penny moored up, tow heads popped out of the front doors, asking “How far are you going”. We told then just down through the Stockton Lock, so they said “We may see you later”. We first met George (The Fenderman) and Carol a few weeks ago at the Reading Water Fest. We said cheerio and carried on to descend down the 10 Stockton Locks, fortunately there were pairs of boats coming up the locks so we had the locks with us, the downside was we had no one to share the locks with and the work. The landscape changes and you go from being quite flat to seeing hills. There are old quarries that produced blue lias. Blue lias is a local stone and cement which was used in the construction of the Thames Embankment. It is said that large fossils were found in the blue lias clay, which is the lowest layer from the Jurassic period. I can imagine it would be quite exciting to find dinosaur bones, giving an insight to our history all those years ago.We descended down through the last lock of the day, with it pretty lock cottage looking on.
We then found a mooring just below the lock at Long Itchington. Having done some lunch, Keith and I took a walk into the village, which has a village pond co-op, post office, hair dressers etc. There are some pretty cottages in the village some dating back to the 17th and 18th-C. Opposite The Duck on the Pond Inn. It is said that Queen Elizabeth 1st once stayed at the house. It is now up for sale. The village is a jumble of old and new which gives it a lot of character. You are spoilt for choice as far as pubs is concerned, we counted five.So another day done and the weather stayed pretty good, we only had a few spots of rain. We met lots of other boaters heading in the opposite direction, they had all stayed put in yesterdays weather. We’ve only seen a couple of other boats coming down our way, so all in all it is pretty quiet.
Friday 11th July.
Long Itchington to Fosse Locks. 2.8 miles and 8 locks.
We were awake at 6.30am, Marmite made sure we did not go back to sleep by standing on Keith’s chest, meowing at him to let him know she wanted us up because she wanted her breakfast. She reminded me of Garfield in the film we watched last night, where Garfield stands on his owner’s chest, wanting him to get out of bed.
The sun was shining as I opened the back cabin doors to let Paddy out for his morning walk. So we would be off to destinations new again today.
We cruised by the Two Boats Inn and under the A 423 entering into wild expanses of farm land and hills.
We headed towards Bascote Locks. The top two locks being staircase locks, along side the lock is a pretty toll cottage.
The paddle winding gear on these locks was harder to wind up, either that or I was feeling the affects of yesterdays locks. I think it was the fact they were harder to do ha ha ha. Having let Hadar out of the lock, I then shut the gate behind her and walked on to the next lock.
No one else seemed to be moving, we had seen nobody else about.Once again we were into the quiet countryside, with lush wooded areas along the canal. It was really quite pretty, even if the weather was looking a bit iffy. Dark clouds were on the horizon.
Having cruised under the Fosse Way, Roman Road and past Fosse Wharf, we did the first of the Fosse Locks before finding a mooring, which is where we will stay for the weekend. We sorted ourselves out and had some lunch when we heard a boat coming. It turned out to be George and Carol on NB Penny; they were doing the locks with NB Talisman, who bought a bag of coal from us, before going down the second of the Fosse Locks. We may see George and Carol in Warwick next week if they are still around. As they left the lock dark clouds were over head and drops of rain began to fall, light at first but then it got heavy and prolonged. So it looks like a wet end to our day.
We shall see you next week, all being well. Have a lovely weekend no matter where you are.
Tuesday, July 08, 2008
Cropredy to Wormleighton
Monday 7th July.
Cropredy to Ladder Bridge 129 near the Medieval Village of Wormleighton. 8.7 miles and 9 locks.
At bedtime last night we set our clock for 6 am hoping for an early start, so as to avoid all the boats out and about at the moment.
The alarm went at 6 am and we both struggled out of bed, even Marmite was none to sprightly. No sooner had I put on my waterproof trousers, I heard pitter patter of rain drops on the boats roof arghhhhh, so much for getting a dry start. We had breakfast and I took Paddy for his walk, he had to endure a walk in the rain. He loathed it so much all’s he could muster was a quick wee and then he was off back to the boat for his biscuits. By the time we got back on the boat, Keith had Hadar started and was ready for the off. It now being 6.50 am and the rain was still falling. I walked up to the first lock of the nine Cropredy Lock and opened the gates ready for Hadar’s entrance. The one thing I love about early starts is the fact that nearly everyone else is still in their beds, I say nearly because as we were leaving Cropredy another boat was coming towards us. Someone else with an early morning in mind it seemed.
Due to the rain there were no photo’s and we have covered this ground many times before, the last time being back in February/March.
The scenery looks so different now from then due to the greenery and the flowers, but the views are still the same.
If you’re in need of fenders, a windlass etc the shop at Broadmoor Lock is useful. Not far from Varney’s and Elkington locks you can see the ridge and furrow fields of old. The fields were done this way, in order to cover more acreage with grass or crops and it has carried on to this day. We arrived at Claydon and the five locks which took us onto the summit. Claydon itself is an old village with brown stone houses and its church which has parts of it dating back to the 12th-C. Claydon also has The Bygones Museum. The museum houses local relics and has a recreation of a 19th-C cottage kitchen. There are lots of old tractors etc to be seen and it is open from Wednesday to Sunday from 10.30am. Sadly we would not see it this time.The canal does twist a bit after the locks and with Hadar being 70ft it meant Keith had to have his wits about him, as we did meet other boats coming towards us.
We were then into the Fenny Compton Tunnel, which is now a thickly wooded cutting. Bridge 137 will always be etched into my brain, because this was the bridge we became wedged with a Napton hire boat back at the beginning of the year, although it has to be said with it now being July and the trees and bushes are now in leaf it looks so different, to that cold dull day. Thankfully this time we met no one coming in the other direction. We pushed on past Fenny Marina, which is closed on Monday’s, not that we needed anything and then onwards past Fenny Compton Wharf and The Medieval Village of Wormleighton, which is now home to sheep, before we got to our mooring for the rest of the day. From the moor we can look across the valley to Napton-on-the-hill and its windmill, which will be our destination tomorrow. Having moored at up11.20 am, we got chatting to another boater already moored up, I made us some lunch and now the day was our own. The sun was out and it looked beautiful across the valley, so Paddy got a run out across the field, which pleased him no end, but from a distance I was watching a huge swathe of dark ominous cloud, trudging its way towards us, so we were soon back to the boat. Firstly it was working its way to the farm.
As it engulfed the farm, the clouds grew ever dark and more menacing. On the back edge of the dark clouds I was watching the rain falling on top of someone in the distance and this was going to be dropped onto us.
No sooner had I shut all of the doors on the boat, did it come crashing down. This was more like April and not July. So much for the great British Summer.
Watching the progress of this dark cloud system was really quite interesting, I could see it was not just any old rain cloud; this one had thunder and lightening in mind. The dark clouds then let out a thunderous roar as it dumped its load onto us and the surrounding countryside. Just as the thunder began a boat cruised past us, with all crew members huddled together under an umbrella ha ha ha. It’s just a drop of rain. Like my husband tells people “We are waterproof, it’s our clothes that are not”. That is so very true.
With only GPRS today it has taken an age to load this so todays efforts will have to wait till another day........
Cropredy to Ladder Bridge 129 near the Medieval Village of Wormleighton. 8.7 miles and 9 locks.
At bedtime last night we set our clock for 6 am hoping for an early start, so as to avoid all the boats out and about at the moment.
The alarm went at 6 am and we both struggled out of bed, even Marmite was none to sprightly. No sooner had I put on my waterproof trousers, I heard pitter patter of rain drops on the boats roof arghhhhh, so much for getting a dry start. We had breakfast and I took Paddy for his walk, he had to endure a walk in the rain. He loathed it so much all’s he could muster was a quick wee and then he was off back to the boat for his biscuits. By the time we got back on the boat, Keith had Hadar started and was ready for the off. It now being 6.50 am and the rain was still falling. I walked up to the first lock of the nine Cropredy Lock and opened the gates ready for Hadar’s entrance. The one thing I love about early starts is the fact that nearly everyone else is still in their beds, I say nearly because as we were leaving Cropredy another boat was coming towards us. Someone else with an early morning in mind it seemed.
Due to the rain there were no photo’s and we have covered this ground many times before, the last time being back in February/March.
The scenery looks so different now from then due to the greenery and the flowers, but the views are still the same.
If you’re in need of fenders, a windlass etc the shop at Broadmoor Lock is useful. Not far from Varney’s and Elkington locks you can see the ridge and furrow fields of old. The fields were done this way, in order to cover more acreage with grass or crops and it has carried on to this day. We arrived at Claydon and the five locks which took us onto the summit. Claydon itself is an old village with brown stone houses and its church which has parts of it dating back to the 12th-C. Claydon also has The Bygones Museum. The museum houses local relics and has a recreation of a 19th-C cottage kitchen. There are lots of old tractors etc to be seen and it is open from Wednesday to Sunday from 10.30am. Sadly we would not see it this time.The canal does twist a bit after the locks and with Hadar being 70ft it meant Keith had to have his wits about him, as we did meet other boats coming towards us.
We were then into the Fenny Compton Tunnel, which is now a thickly wooded cutting. Bridge 137 will always be etched into my brain, because this was the bridge we became wedged with a Napton hire boat back at the beginning of the year, although it has to be said with it now being July and the trees and bushes are now in leaf it looks so different, to that cold dull day. Thankfully this time we met no one coming in the other direction. We pushed on past Fenny Marina, which is closed on Monday’s, not that we needed anything and then onwards past Fenny Compton Wharf and The Medieval Village of Wormleighton, which is now home to sheep, before we got to our mooring for the rest of the day. From the moor we can look across the valley to Napton-on-the-hill and its windmill, which will be our destination tomorrow. Having moored at up11.20 am, we got chatting to another boater already moored up, I made us some lunch and now the day was our own. The sun was out and it looked beautiful across the valley, so Paddy got a run out across the field, which pleased him no end, but from a distance I was watching a huge swathe of dark ominous cloud, trudging its way towards us, so we were soon back to the boat. Firstly it was working its way to the farm.
As it engulfed the farm, the clouds grew ever dark and more menacing. On the back edge of the dark clouds I was watching the rain falling on top of someone in the distance and this was going to be dropped onto us.
No sooner had I shut all of the doors on the boat, did it come crashing down. This was more like April and not July. So much for the great British Summer.
Watching the progress of this dark cloud system was really quite interesting, I could see it was not just any old rain cloud; this one had thunder and lightening in mind. The dark clouds then let out a thunderous roar as it dumped its load onto us and the surrounding countryside. Just as the thunder began a boat cruised past us, with all crew members huddled together under an umbrella ha ha ha. It’s just a drop of rain. Like my husband tells people “We are waterproof, it’s our clothes that are not”. That is so very true.
With only GPRS today it has taken an age to load this so todays efforts will have to wait till another day........
Sunday, July 06, 2008
Banbury to Chropredy.
Saturday 5th July.
Banbury to Cropredy. 3.9 miles and 3 locks.
Rain was pitter pattering on the back cabin roof, as we were woken up by goings on at the bakery opposite the mooring. According to the clock it was only 6.30am yawn and now that we had been woken up, the only thing for it was to have a cup of tea. Marmite strode across the bed tail waving as if to say yes they are getting up. Having made a cuppa we lay in bed deciding whether we should stay put or move off. We had been on the mooring for almost the 48 hours limit so we should move, but the sound of the rain did not fill us with wild excitement.
We eventually climbed out of bed and Marmite did get her breakfast, which stopped her moaning for five minutes. To take Paddy for his walk I donned my wet weather gear and off we went around the park. The rain began to subside, with glimmers of blue sky pushing through the heavy clouds. With the prospect of some sunshine we decided that we would travel to Cropedy, it was only a short trip of a couple of hours if there was a mooring available. When we set off at 8.55 am the sky was still dark in places, but there was very little wind and the sun was trying to come out.
We crept passed moored craft along the canal and at Grimsbury Wharf, before reaching Hardwich Lock 7’6”, the locks now go back to double bottom gates, making life a little easier. Once again we passed under the M40, the third time in two days we have seen this motorway, and still the traffic thunders along. The River Cherwell follows the canal to Little Bourton Lock 6’5”, where sadly the lock cottage has seen better days. It used to be beautiful with a well tended garden. The garden has now been taken over by nature. We did however see lots of raspberries, if it had not been the fact that another boat was coming down we may have stopped and picked a few of the raspberries for a pudding. Slat Mill Lock 8’0” was the last for the day, with a boat waiting to go down after we exited the lock. There are some pretty views across the Cherwell valley from this lock. With the sun now out it made everything look so fresh after the early morning rain.
We approached Cropredy after passing under Cropredy Mill Bridge, there were no moorings free on the 14 days moorings so we carried on to Cropredy Wharf Bridge where we found a mooring just below The Bridge Store which is a Spar shop and is most useful. Opposite the mooring is the canoe club, who were out enjoying the water and the sunshine. Having got ourselves sorted, we had lunch, I went to the shop for a few extras and then we took a walk around the village of Cropredy.
There is a sanitary station just by Cropredy Wharf Bridge, with toilet facilities and a skip for rubbish. The store is very good with all provisions for a boater in need.
The village itself is really pretty with its old brick and honey coloured sandstone houses. The Red Lion pub has had a new thatched roof put on since we were here last.
The bells of St. Mary’s Church began to peel, suggesting a wedding was in the offing, so we continued out stroll in that direction, to see a horse and trap appear with bridesmaids onboard. The girls were wearing strapless burgundy coloured dresses, but I reckon with the chilly breeze they would of like to have had shawls on as well. It was also showery with no where to shelter whilst they waited for the bride. Goose bumps on goose bumps looked to be the picture of the day for the girls.
Not wanting to be nosy we did not linger to see the bride arrive. We didn’t think she would want a couple of tatty boater’s gauping at her and her party ha ha ha. So we continued on our way, enjoying the pretty stone cottages that would have looked good on the front of any chocolate box.
I love thatched cottages, as I grew up in one such cottage many years ago. So they have a soft spot in my heart.
Having done one half of the village we then walked over the Cropredy Wharf Bridge to the other side of the canal to find the site of the Battle of Cropredy Bridge, which took place 29th June 1644.
The battle took place in fields near the bridge during the First English Civil War. The Royalists were lead by King Charles the first and the Parliament’s by Sir William Waller. Another part of our history which so very few ever know about, but it changed our history forever.
Walk over between the sunshine and heavy showers, we were back on Hadar for the rest of the day.
Sunday 6th July.
What a night and what a morning, the rain has been pretty persistent, only now at 1pm has the sun come out, but we know not for how long. It seems the forecasters got it correct for a change, although it has not stopped people moving, even if they look cheesed off with the rain ha ha ha. We on the other hand have decided to stay put.
Paddy got a drizzly walk along the towpath and back again, he was just glad to get back on the boat into the dry and have his biscuit. Keith cooked us a breakfast of Sausages, bacon, poached eggs, mushrooms and tomatoes mmmm and very good it was too.
Being Sunday it was bake day so I baked a lemon drizzle cake and a quiche which we will have for dinner tonight. The rest of the day will be spent pottering around the boat getting indoor jobs done and listening to the radio. So with nothing much to report I will bid you farewell for another week, see you next week all being well.
Banbury to Cropredy. 3.9 miles and 3 locks.
Rain was pitter pattering on the back cabin roof, as we were woken up by goings on at the bakery opposite the mooring. According to the clock it was only 6.30am yawn and now that we had been woken up, the only thing for it was to have a cup of tea. Marmite strode across the bed tail waving as if to say yes they are getting up. Having made a cuppa we lay in bed deciding whether we should stay put or move off. We had been on the mooring for almost the 48 hours limit so we should move, but the sound of the rain did not fill us with wild excitement.
We eventually climbed out of bed and Marmite did get her breakfast, which stopped her moaning for five minutes. To take Paddy for his walk I donned my wet weather gear and off we went around the park. The rain began to subside, with glimmers of blue sky pushing through the heavy clouds. With the prospect of some sunshine we decided that we would travel to Cropedy, it was only a short trip of a couple of hours if there was a mooring available. When we set off at 8.55 am the sky was still dark in places, but there was very little wind and the sun was trying to come out.
We crept passed moored craft along the canal and at Grimsbury Wharf, before reaching Hardwich Lock 7’6”, the locks now go back to double bottom gates, making life a little easier. Once again we passed under the M40, the third time in two days we have seen this motorway, and still the traffic thunders along. The River Cherwell follows the canal to Little Bourton Lock 6’5”, where sadly the lock cottage has seen better days. It used to be beautiful with a well tended garden. The garden has now been taken over by nature. We did however see lots of raspberries, if it had not been the fact that another boat was coming down we may have stopped and picked a few of the raspberries for a pudding. Slat Mill Lock 8’0” was the last for the day, with a boat waiting to go down after we exited the lock. There are some pretty views across the Cherwell valley from this lock. With the sun now out it made everything look so fresh after the early morning rain.
We approached Cropredy after passing under Cropredy Mill Bridge, there were no moorings free on the 14 days moorings so we carried on to Cropredy Wharf Bridge where we found a mooring just below The Bridge Store which is a Spar shop and is most useful. Opposite the mooring is the canoe club, who were out enjoying the water and the sunshine. Having got ourselves sorted, we had lunch, I went to the shop for a few extras and then we took a walk around the village of Cropredy.
There is a sanitary station just by Cropredy Wharf Bridge, with toilet facilities and a skip for rubbish. The store is very good with all provisions for a boater in need.
The village itself is really pretty with its old brick and honey coloured sandstone houses. The Red Lion pub has had a new thatched roof put on since we were here last.The bells of St. Mary’s Church began to peel, suggesting a wedding was in the offing, so we continued out stroll in that direction, to see a horse and trap appear with bridesmaids onboard. The girls were wearing strapless burgundy coloured dresses, but I reckon with the chilly breeze they would of like to have had shawls on as well. It was also showery with no where to shelter whilst they waited for the bride. Goose bumps on goose bumps looked to be the picture of the day for the girls.
Not wanting to be nosy we did not linger to see the bride arrive. We didn’t think she would want a couple of tatty boater’s gauping at her and her party ha ha ha. So we continued on our way, enjoying the pretty stone cottages that would have looked good on the front of any chocolate box.I love thatched cottages, as I grew up in one such cottage many years ago. So they have a soft spot in my heart.Having done one half of the village we then walked over the Cropredy Wharf Bridge to the other side of the canal to find the site of the Battle of Cropredy Bridge, which took place 29th June 1644.
The battle took place in fields near the bridge during the First English Civil War. The Royalists were lead by King Charles the first and the Parliament’s by Sir William Waller. Another part of our history which so very few ever know about, but it changed our history forever.Walk over between the sunshine and heavy showers, we were back on Hadar for the rest of the day.
Sunday 6th July.
What a night and what a morning, the rain has been pretty persistent, only now at 1pm has the sun come out, but we know not for how long. It seems the forecasters got it correct for a change, although it has not stopped people moving, even if they look cheesed off with the rain ha ha ha. We on the other hand have decided to stay put.
Paddy got a drizzly walk along the towpath and back again, he was just glad to get back on the boat into the dry and have his biscuit. Keith cooked us a breakfast of Sausages, bacon, poached eggs, mushrooms and tomatoes mmmm and very good it was too.
Being Sunday it was bake day so I baked a lemon drizzle cake and a quiche which we will have for dinner tonight. The rest of the day will be spent pottering around the boat getting indoor jobs done and listening to the radio. So with nothing much to report I will bid you farewell for another week, see you next week all being well.
Friday, July 04, 2008
Shipton-on-Cherwell to Banbury.
Wednesday 2nd July.
Shipton-on-Cherwell to Aynho Wharf. 12.5 miles, 8 locks and a couple of lift bridges.
Good morning world and what a fine morning it was. The sun was out and there was absolutely no breeze at all. We were woken up early 6.30am to be precise by boats on the move; it was refreshing to know we are never the only ones who move early sometimes. But not this morning, we lay in bed with Marmite doing her best to get us up, with her meowing and jumping on the both of us. When we did get up and get organised it was 7.53am before we left Shipton-on-Cherwell. Destination for today Aynho Wharf if all went well.
Leaving Shipton-on-Cherwell we had to giggle to ourselves when we saw a pig in a canoe, it struck us as very funny.
I wonder if they have ever taken him out on the water in that canoe?
My first job of the day was a lift bridge. Pulling on the chain is the easy part, the more difficult bit is keeping the bridge up whilst Keith manoeuvres Hadar through the hole, I usually end up sitting on the beam. Now that is a sight to behold ha ha. There is no graceful way of doing it.
We then had Shipton Weir Lock, which can be a bit of a bugger, the gate is so difficult to open, that I have to press my feet on the wall of the bridge to get any leverage. I am no weakling, but this tests my strength every time. Just as well there was no one watching, it would of probably made them laugh.We were now on the River Cherwell, which was hardly moving this time. When we came down it back at the beginning of the year there was quite a flow. We cruised on by the old derelict cement work, with its huge chimney standing tall on the sky line.
After Bakers Lock we were back onto the canal again and heading past Gibraltar and the pub called The Rock of Gibraltar. The canal follows alongside a golf course where gentlemen were out playing the course in the morning sunshine, they obviously had no jobs to go to.
We then discovered we had a hitchhiker on the boats roof. We reckon he/she had been hiding in one of the fenders.
He/she is a froglet awwww I hear you cry. I carefully placed he/she in the water and wished it well on its journey through life.
Above Pigeon Lock we passed by NB Pan the floating shop which was closed according to the sign on the boats roof, so onward we went towards Northbrook Lock, where BW had done some work, with the replacement of one of the gates beams and new concrete bases for the bollards were being put in place. The same things have been done at Dashwood Lock. Anyone who reads our diary regularly will remember we reported to BW earlier in the year, that the beam on one of the gates at Dashwood Lock had been snapped by a previous boat, well it has now been replace by a nice new beam. Alls it needs now is some paint.
Having left Dashwood Lock to a hire boat, we had a long run to the next lock so I thought I would make us both a coffee. I disappeared into the galley; kettle was on the stove when all of a sudden Hadar was pushing on at full power. As I reappeared from the galley with coffee, wondering what was going on, Hadar was pushing the stern of an Oxfordshire Day boat round on the water. Apparently the day boat was coming towards us with a crew of 8+ onboard and they steered the boat the wrong way, when they saw Hadar coming towards them and managed to wedge their boat across the canal. None of the people on the boat were making any attempt to get out of the situation or our way, they were more concerned with drinking their beer at 11.15 am, so Keith pushed their stern with Hadar’s bow around so they were then facing the correct way and we carried on with our journey without saying a word. They just continued drinking and cheering. I do think that companies that hire out day boats etc should ask those people hiring their boats, not to drink whilst operating the boats. Surely it is a matter of safety to ask the boaters to refrain from drinking alcohol until they are moored up out of harms way. It was clear that these people were in no fit state to steer their boat safely. I can see it is an accident waiting to happen in my eyes, and then Health and Safety will become and issue. But that is just my opinion.Anyway back to BW it appears that BW has been busy along the Oxford Canal with repairs to locks and bridges. They had replaced some of the stone at bridge 210, but it has not lasted long, someone has already taken a huge chunk out of it.
We past through Lower and Upper Heyford, through Mill Lift Bridge and onto Somerton where the bank was collapsing into the canal earlier in the year, in places it had been breaching, but BW have been a long and put in wooden stakes with webbing behind the posts and back filled it with soil, so it is now nice and strong again. This part of the canal is so beautiful, there is some wonderful scenery. We made our way to Somerton Deep Lock. A Napton hirer very kindly waited for us to use the lock as it was already empty, so whilst Hadar slipped into the 12 foot lock I helped him with the large gate. Keith and I soon realise that the Napton boat they had hired was Monaco, who we had met in a bridge hole earlier in the year. When I say met I mean collided with and got stuck with for two and a quarter hours. Long story so I won’t go into it again, you can read all about it if you go back through the diary. On passing the boat as we left the lock, we noticed the dent in her side, which Hadar had put in her side when they collided on that day. For a new boat she already looks like she has had a tough season and it is not yet over LOL.
Sadly the weather took a turn downwards and it began to rain, we were heading to Aynho Wharf and that was our port of call for the day. We found a 48 hour mooring just before Aynho Bridge and tied up for the day. It was now 2.50pm so lunch was most definitely a late one, but that did not bother either of us. Having eaten lunch Hadar was then in need of an oil change, and it is better to do it when the engine is warm, so we sorted that out and gave her some new oil. We reckon on changing her oil every 200 hours. The evening was spent watching Andy Murray against Nadal. Having had rain we were blessed with some late evening sunshine, to finish off what had been an eventful day.
We saw lots more boats going in both directions and not all of them hirers. Everyone seems to be out boating at the moment, maybe taking their holidays for this year.
Thursday 3rd July.
Aynho to Banbury.
The journey to Banbury was uneventful and yet as always there were some lovely views of the great British countryside. BW has been doing a lot of repair work at locks and it seems that the lift bridges need some much needed care.
This lift bridge is sitting in the field and the brick work is in a dreadful state, where it has been hit by boats over the years. Maybe when we come this way again, there maybe a new lift bridge in place.
We continued onward through wooded countryside, with hills in the background. At Aynho Weir Lock the River Cherwell crosses the canal. We cruised under the M40 and the noise of the traffic overhead, everyone was in such a hurry to reach their destinations, and there was us pootling a long towards King’s Sutton Lock.
I love this lock with its pretty cottage and out buildings. As we came out of the lock another boat took our place on its way down the Oxford Canal. As always we said good morning and wished the gentleman a good day.
Once again we headed under the M40 and on towards Banbury, where you are welcomed by a sign, which also tells you not to over stay your welcome or you will be fined £25 for each day you over stay. Isn’t that a lovely welcome?
Has anyone actually been fined for overstaying?
We emptied the toilet at the sanitary station heading into Banbury and then up through Banbury Lock through the centre of Banbury, its shops and Tooley’s Boatyard. We stopped to fill up with Diesel at Sovereign Narrowboats. Hadar was already half full or half empty which ever way you want to look at it, but Keith felt it was worth filling her up before making the trip to the IWA Festival. After the diesel pump stopped pumping, the gauge read 341 litres at 86 pence a litre; you can do the maths LOL. We also took on some more oil and blue loo. At Sovereign you always get a nice welcome, but it is worth noting that they are not open Friday, Saturday or Sunday. Just past Sovereign we found a mooring on the 48 hour moorings and tied up.
During the afternoon we went food shopping and went into the town for a few bits. During the evening we went to the cinema with our free tickets to see Hancock with Will Smith. It is a really good film; we thoroughly enjoyed it and would recommend it to anyone. Will Smith was excellent as the no hope super hero; there are plenty of laughs as well as an unlikely twist in the story line. We would certainly get the DVD when it comes out so we can watch it again and again.
Friday 4th July.
A peaceful lie in this morning, well I say peaceful. It was until Marmite thought she would start running all over us in bed, no doubt she thought it may get her, her breakfast quicker. Eventually we got out of bed and had breakfast. Paddy enjoyed a walk around Banbury Park before having his breakfast. Keith and I then went into town as there was a Farmers Market on. It was actually only about half a dozen stalls of some local produce. After lunch we were off to the cinema again with our free tickets to see Narnia, Prince Caspian. We had see the first one The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe and really loved it, so we were hoping for something as good, if not better from this new film and we were not disappointed. The special affects were amazing and the scenery awesome. We absolutely loved the film. Back on Hadar, brass cleaning was the order of the late afternoon. It had not been done for a few days, so needed doing badly. I love to see it nice and clean, shining in the sunlight.
Nothing much on TV, so we settled down to watch Space Cowboys on DVD, this film stars Clint Eastwood and it quite a good film. Keith and I have amassed a large DVD collection for such occasions when there is nothing on TV or we cannot get a TV signal. Neither of us minds watching good films over and over again.
Tomorrow we will make a move so as not to overstay the 48 hours on the mooring, but the weather is not looking good so we shall see how far we get.
Shipton-on-Cherwell to Aynho Wharf. 12.5 miles, 8 locks and a couple of lift bridges.
Good morning world and what a fine morning it was. The sun was out and there was absolutely no breeze at all. We were woken up early 6.30am to be precise by boats on the move; it was refreshing to know we are never the only ones who move early sometimes. But not this morning, we lay in bed with Marmite doing her best to get us up, with her meowing and jumping on the both of us. When we did get up and get organised it was 7.53am before we left Shipton-on-Cherwell. Destination for today Aynho Wharf if all went well.Leaving Shipton-on-Cherwell we had to giggle to ourselves when we saw a pig in a canoe, it struck us as very funny.
I wonder if they have ever taken him out on the water in that canoe?My first job of the day was a lift bridge. Pulling on the chain is the easy part, the more difficult bit is keeping the bridge up whilst Keith manoeuvres Hadar through the hole, I usually end up sitting on the beam. Now that is a sight to behold ha ha. There is no graceful way of doing it.
We then had Shipton Weir Lock, which can be a bit of a bugger, the gate is so difficult to open, that I have to press my feet on the wall of the bridge to get any leverage. I am no weakling, but this tests my strength every time. Just as well there was no one watching, it would of probably made them laugh.We were now on the River Cherwell, which was hardly moving this time. When we came down it back at the beginning of the year there was quite a flow. We cruised on by the old derelict cement work, with its huge chimney standing tall on the sky line.
After Bakers Lock we were back onto the canal again and heading past Gibraltar and the pub called The Rock of Gibraltar. The canal follows alongside a golf course where gentlemen were out playing the course in the morning sunshine, they obviously had no jobs to go to.We then discovered we had a hitchhiker on the boats roof. We reckon he/she had been hiding in one of the fenders.
He/she is a froglet awwww I hear you cry. I carefully placed he/she in the water and wished it well on its journey through life.Above Pigeon Lock we passed by NB Pan the floating shop which was closed according to the sign on the boats roof, so onward we went towards Northbrook Lock, where BW had done some work, with the replacement of one of the gates beams and new concrete bases for the bollards were being put in place. The same things have been done at Dashwood Lock. Anyone who reads our diary regularly will remember we reported to BW earlier in the year, that the beam on one of the gates at Dashwood Lock had been snapped by a previous boat, well it has now been replace by a nice new beam. Alls it needs now is some paint.
Having left Dashwood Lock to a hire boat, we had a long run to the next lock so I thought I would make us both a coffee. I disappeared into the galley; kettle was on the stove when all of a sudden Hadar was pushing on at full power. As I reappeared from the galley with coffee, wondering what was going on, Hadar was pushing the stern of an Oxfordshire Day boat round on the water. Apparently the day boat was coming towards us with a crew of 8+ onboard and they steered the boat the wrong way, when they saw Hadar coming towards them and managed to wedge their boat across the canal. None of the people on the boat were making any attempt to get out of the situation or our way, they were more concerned with drinking their beer at 11.15 am, so Keith pushed their stern with Hadar’s bow around so they were then facing the correct way and we carried on with our journey without saying a word. They just continued drinking and cheering. I do think that companies that hire out day boats etc should ask those people hiring their boats, not to drink whilst operating the boats. Surely it is a matter of safety to ask the boaters to refrain from drinking alcohol until they are moored up out of harms way. It was clear that these people were in no fit state to steer their boat safely. I can see it is an accident waiting to happen in my eyes, and then Health and Safety will become and issue. But that is just my opinion.Anyway back to BW it appears that BW has been busy along the Oxford Canal with repairs to locks and bridges. They had replaced some of the stone at bridge 210, but it has not lasted long, someone has already taken a huge chunk out of it.
We past through Lower and Upper Heyford, through Mill Lift Bridge and onto Somerton where the bank was collapsing into the canal earlier in the year, in places it had been breaching, but BW have been a long and put in wooden stakes with webbing behind the posts and back filled it with soil, so it is now nice and strong again. This part of the canal is so beautiful, there is some wonderful scenery. We made our way to Somerton Deep Lock. A Napton hirer very kindly waited for us to use the lock as it was already empty, so whilst Hadar slipped into the 12 foot lock I helped him with the large gate. Keith and I soon realise that the Napton boat they had hired was Monaco, who we had met in a bridge hole earlier in the year. When I say met I mean collided with and got stuck with for two and a quarter hours. Long story so I won’t go into it again, you can read all about it if you go back through the diary. On passing the boat as we left the lock, we noticed the dent in her side, which Hadar had put in her side when they collided on that day. For a new boat she already looks like she has had a tough season and it is not yet over LOL.Sadly the weather took a turn downwards and it began to rain, we were heading to Aynho Wharf and that was our port of call for the day. We found a 48 hour mooring just before Aynho Bridge and tied up for the day. It was now 2.50pm so lunch was most definitely a late one, but that did not bother either of us. Having eaten lunch Hadar was then in need of an oil change, and it is better to do it when the engine is warm, so we sorted that out and gave her some new oil. We reckon on changing her oil every 200 hours. The evening was spent watching Andy Murray against Nadal. Having had rain we were blessed with some late evening sunshine, to finish off what had been an eventful day.
We saw lots more boats going in both directions and not all of them hirers. Everyone seems to be out boating at the moment, maybe taking their holidays for this year.
Thursday 3rd July.
Aynho to Banbury.
The journey to Banbury was uneventful and yet as always there were some lovely views of the great British countryside. BW has been doing a lot of repair work at locks and it seems that the lift bridges need some much needed care.
This lift bridge is sitting in the field and the brick work is in a dreadful state, where it has been hit by boats over the years. Maybe when we come this way again, there maybe a new lift bridge in place.We continued onward through wooded countryside, with hills in the background. At Aynho Weir Lock the River Cherwell crosses the canal. We cruised under the M40 and the noise of the traffic overhead, everyone was in such a hurry to reach their destinations, and there was us pootling a long towards King’s Sutton Lock.
I love this lock with its pretty cottage and out buildings. As we came out of the lock another boat took our place on its way down the Oxford Canal. As always we said good morning and wished the gentleman a good day.Once again we headed under the M40 and on towards Banbury, where you are welcomed by a sign, which also tells you not to over stay your welcome or you will be fined £25 for each day you over stay. Isn’t that a lovely welcome?
Has anyone actually been fined for overstaying?We emptied the toilet at the sanitary station heading into Banbury and then up through Banbury Lock through the centre of Banbury, its shops and Tooley’s Boatyard. We stopped to fill up with Diesel at Sovereign Narrowboats. Hadar was already half full or half empty which ever way you want to look at it, but Keith felt it was worth filling her up before making the trip to the IWA Festival. After the diesel pump stopped pumping, the gauge read 341 litres at 86 pence a litre; you can do the maths LOL. We also took on some more oil and blue loo. At Sovereign you always get a nice welcome, but it is worth noting that they are not open Friday, Saturday or Sunday. Just past Sovereign we found a mooring on the 48 hour moorings and tied up.
During the afternoon we went food shopping and went into the town for a few bits. During the evening we went to the cinema with our free tickets to see Hancock with Will Smith. It is a really good film; we thoroughly enjoyed it and would recommend it to anyone. Will Smith was excellent as the no hope super hero; there are plenty of laughs as well as an unlikely twist in the story line. We would certainly get the DVD when it comes out so we can watch it again and again.
Friday 4th July.
A peaceful lie in this morning, well I say peaceful. It was until Marmite thought she would start running all over us in bed, no doubt she thought it may get her, her breakfast quicker. Eventually we got out of bed and had breakfast. Paddy enjoyed a walk around Banbury Park before having his breakfast. Keith and I then went into town as there was a Farmers Market on. It was actually only about half a dozen stalls of some local produce. After lunch we were off to the cinema again with our free tickets to see Narnia, Prince Caspian. We had see the first one The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe and really loved it, so we were hoping for something as good, if not better from this new film and we were not disappointed. The special affects were amazing and the scenery awesome. We absolutely loved the film. Back on Hadar, brass cleaning was the order of the late afternoon. It had not been done for a few days, so needed doing badly. I love to see it nice and clean, shining in the sunlight.
Nothing much on TV, so we settled down to watch Space Cowboys on DVD, this film stars Clint Eastwood and it quite a good film. Keith and I have amassed a large DVD collection for such occasions when there is nothing on TV or we cannot get a TV signal. Neither of us minds watching good films over and over again.
Tomorrow we will make a move so as not to overstay the 48 hours on the mooring, but the weather is not looking good so we shall see how far we get.
Tuesday, July 01, 2008
Shipton-on-Cherwell.
We have spent a pleasant few days moored below Shipton Bridge at Shipton-on-Cherwell.
We have got all the paintwork and varnishing jobs done and yesterday Maffi and Bones came to visit us after their holiday. We enjoyed a couple of hours chatting and drinking coffee on the towpath in the last of the evening’s sunshine. They are both the nicest people you will ever meet and we could sit and natter to them both for hours. I am a one to search out a places history and there is no better place to begin than in a church yard looking at the headstones, it can tell you a lot about a place and the people who lived there. For instance on December 24th 1874 there was a train crash which occurred on the Great Western Railway. 34 people died that day and many more were injured. Shipton-on-Cherwell has an intersting history, for instance the Manor House was once owned by Richard Branson of Virgin Records.
Also having spoken with Maffi and Bones last night they told us about a manor house which burnt down just over the field and its church, so this morning Keith and I took a walk over the fields to find this manor house and church. Having seen the buildings for ourselves it got me wondering about the history of the manor house and the church and whether there was any connection between the two.
They are both set in the village of Hampton Gay, which has quite a history of its own. Whilst at the church we were invited inside by a lady who was arranging flowers for the funeral of her grandfather which was taking place later in the day. The Church of St Giles is very tiny and only gets used 6 times in the year due to the fact it has no electricity to it, which is sad as it is such a pretty church.
The Manor house has quite a history, which ended in 1887 when the house burnt down. It was originally built by the Barry family in the second half of the 16th Century
So it just goes to show that just because a village is tiny and shows no outward signs of a history, behind its doors lies a wealth of facts about it previous life.
Keith’s sister came to pay us a visit before she headed off to work. It gave us a chance to catch up on family news and tell her about our journey so far. Tomorrow we will be heading off on our way to Banbury.
We have got all the paintwork and varnishing jobs done and yesterday Maffi and Bones came to visit us after their holiday. We enjoyed a couple of hours chatting and drinking coffee on the towpath in the last of the evening’s sunshine. They are both the nicest people you will ever meet and we could sit and natter to them both for hours. I am a one to search out a places history and there is no better place to begin than in a church yard looking at the headstones, it can tell you a lot about a place and the people who lived there. For instance on December 24th 1874 there was a train crash which occurred on the Great Western Railway. 34 people died that day and many more were injured. Shipton-on-Cherwell has an intersting history, for instance the Manor House was once owned by Richard Branson of Virgin Records.
Also having spoken with Maffi and Bones last night they told us about a manor house which burnt down just over the field and its church, so this morning Keith and I took a walk over the fields to find this manor house and church. Having seen the buildings for ourselves it got me wondering about the history of the manor house and the church and whether there was any connection between the two.
They are both set in the village of Hampton Gay, which has quite a history of its own. Whilst at the church we were invited inside by a lady who was arranging flowers for the funeral of her grandfather which was taking place later in the day. The Church of St Giles is very tiny and only gets used 6 times in the year due to the fact it has no electricity to it, which is sad as it is such a pretty church.
The Manor house has quite a history, which ended in 1887 when the house burnt down. It was originally built by the Barry family in the second half of the 16th CenturySo it just goes to show that just because a village is tiny and shows no outward signs of a history, behind its doors lies a wealth of facts about it previous life.
Keith’s sister came to pay us a visit before she headed off to work. It gave us a chance to catch up on family news and tell her about our journey so far. Tomorrow we will be heading off on our way to Banbury.