AN “INTERESTING YEAR” BUT WE ARE HOME NOW.

 

Home at Swan Lane

Ye, we are happily back at Swan Lane for the winter, so this will probably be my last blog for this year. Nothing much happens boating wise for us in the winter, and I am hoping to go back to work soon. So life will settle into our winter routines.

On our way to Fazeley we stopped at Shobnall marina to fill up with diesel, get a pump out and buy a gas bottle, this was in preparation for if the locks didn’t open and we were stuck poddling up and down the Coventry canal. The Captain nearly fainted when he paid the bill.

https://www.jannel.co.uk/

We stayed at Fazeley Monday, as we had received a notification from CRT that they were going to assess the locks on Wednesday, but with no guarantee they would reopen. I held the hope that we would hear something Wednesday, but the Captain thought it would take them a couple of days to post an update. For some much needed exercise we visited the Tameside local nature reserve and had a pint in the Three Horseshoes.

https://www.staffs-wildlife.org.uk/sites/default/files/2021-02/Tameside_Nature_Reserve.pdf

Tuesday we left and decided to head to Tamworth for a couple of days. we head up the 2 locks at Glascote and moored just before the bridge which went into Tamworth. We headed to a pub we hadn’t been in before The Dolphin, It was ok.

Wednesday and the day of the assessment, we decided we would go into Tamworth for the afternoon and see what had changed, the last time we had been in, there was a lot of redevelopment going on. There are a quite few decent pubs, including the Tamworth Tap. But we never made it, just after lunch the news we had been waiting for came through, (see my prediction was right) the Atherstone locks were reopening from Friday on restricted times, 10am until 3.30pm with last boat in at 2pm. YIPPEE, we could get home, so instead of heading into Tamworth we headed off up the canal and moored at Polesworth for the night. We went to the pub to celebrate, well that’s our excuse, the Spread Eagle and then a pint in the Social club.

It was only a short hop to the bottom of the locks next day in readiness for locking up as soon as they opened next morning.

We moored just before the lock landing with 2 boats behind us. The Captain off one of the boats came for a chat, and said he had been waiting for 3 weeks for the locks to open, and so had his friend off the other boat, who was not about but was expected back later that day. We said if you’ve been waiting then you must go first, that’s how queuing works. Not a problem.

Well we were up and ready right on time next morning, and the guy from CRT came and took the lock of the gates. Now that’s when things got a little interesting. The guy off the boat we chatted to the day before was up and about, but the other was still fast a sleep on his boat, I know because I could see him through the window, catching flies. We were still more than willing to let the 2 boats go first, but we weren't willing to hang about whilst they got their act together and set off.

The guy who was up must have woken his mate, I went up to the lock and set it ready for the first boat which ever it was. I stayed on the lock whilst the Captain dealt with the mess that was unfolding below. The first guy’s engine wouldn’t start, the second guy had only just woken up and it turned out his boat didn’t have a working engine, and so he was going to have to bow haul it in through the locks. The first guy told us to go, but the second guy got a bit shirty with the Captain when he spotted me waiting patiently on the lock, thinking we were trying to nick the lock. The Captain explained that I was simply waiting to help whichever boat was going up first. As it turned out we ended up going first, as neither of the others were ready and time was ticking on. I am so glad we did, because it would have taken so much longer following these 2 boats, as it was we cleared the 11 locks in a very respectable 2hours 10minutes and managed to find moorings at the top. This in itself was a feat, as half the visitors moorings are closed at the moment due to construction work on the offside of the canal.

Atherstone Top Lock

I was just so relieved to be on our way home with no more restrictions a head of us.

We stayed in Atherstone a couple of days, Col and Mags came to see us on the Saturday, and we celebrated being back with a few pints in the Market Tavern.

https://www.facebook.com/p/Market-Tavern-Tap-61559023703840/

Mags and Col

Sunday was spent in the MONW, and Monday we made it to Hawkesbury and a well earned pint and meal in the Greyhound. After we moored up a hire boat from Napton Narrowboats moored in front of us, I didn’t really pay it much attention.

https://www.thegreyhoundsuttonstop.co.uk/

Then in the Greyhound whilst we say having a pre dinner pint, the crew from the hire boat came in, and I right away I recognised the Captains friend Pip, we had last run into him in Newark, it was a real surprise. We chatted, and he told us they were heading down to the basin next day, as were we, but unlike us they weren’t staying for night as they only had the boat for a few more days and needed to get back to Napton. We were staying the night as we had an event to attend, the Hops d’Amour were having a ‘meet the brewer’ to launch a Peanut Butter and Oreo stout. A collaboration between Underground Medicine brewery, and a local ice hockey player the pub sponsors. It was a very enjoyable night.

https://coventryblaze.co.uk/partner/hops-damour

Next day was the best as we made our way home to Swan Lane. We were soon moored in our spot and catching up with the other moorers who were about, and of course Keith, the boss, and soon to be owner of the wharf.

So that is the end of this years adventure and we have no idea what next years will be ….. yet.

Thank you to every one who follows my blog, and I look forward to entertaining you with our stories in the future.

29 miles, 13 locks and 1 canal.

Our total journey over the 6 months is as follows

457 miles

238 locks

2 bridges

6174yrds in Tunnels.

8 Canals

3 Rivers