BRAUNSTON TO BANBURY

 

Old Working Boats

Well Swan Lane to Banbury actually. Its a trip of 50miles and 25 locks. Including the Coventry, the North Oxford and the South Oxford canals.

We didn’t set off from Swan Lane as early in the week as the Captain would have liked, but there were jobs to do and shopping to get, so we eventually left on the Thursday morning.

We were followed later in the day by Keith and Andrew on steamboat Hasty, they were off to the Braunston Historic Boat Rally.

https://braunstonmarina.co.uk/historic-boat-rally-2022/?category=sold

We moored up in the MONW for the night, the canal was very busy with people heading to the rally, or just out for a cruise.

After a late start we didn’t go far, and moored just before the junction at Braunston. Before long we were passed by Hasty and had a quick chat with Keith, and his crew as they passed by.

Steamboat Hasty

We knew it would be fun and games at the junction and we managed to get there whilst the parade was going on. The boats in the parade use the junction to turn round and return to the rally.

We were instructed to wait by one of the stewards, whilst a couple of the old working boats turned and then she waved us through, and on to the South Oxford canal (we had joined the North Oxford at Hawkesbury Junction stop lock).

Now we were truly on our way, well as far as Napton, where next day Col and Mags were coming to visit us.

At Napton is a very good canal side pub called the Folly, and we have visited on a few occasion. We popped in for a couple on the Saturday, but much to the Captains disappointment they had no darks on.

Col and Mags met us in the Folly the next day, well this was the plan, but the pub was shut, but praise be the Potting Shed was open and serving beer. The Potting Shed was built by the landlord of The Folly during lockdown and the restrictions that followed, and is an amazing place. Really quirky and full of knick knacks. Col was most impressed, and almost speechless, which is totally not him.

The Potting Shed

http://follyatnapton.co.uk/

Luckily we hadn’t planned to eat at the Folly, I had organised food on the boat, as I knew their hours were subject to change due to staffing problems.

We had a great time with our friends, and hope to see them later in the year.

Next day and the 9 locks of the Napton flight. These raise the boat 49ft in just under 2 miles, so good exercise for me. The locks were busy with boats going in both directions.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Napton_on_the_Hill

We stopped at Fenny Compton for the night, and of course had to try the pub, The Wharf, it was ok but no darks on for the Captain once again, it does appear the further south we come the lighter the ale becomes.

https://www.facebook.com/TheWharfInnFennyCompton/

9 locks next day and this took down and through Cropredy, but we didn’t moor there and continued on to moored in the MONW for a peaceful night.

The South Oxford canal is a very rural canal, and in many places the towpath is very narrow and overgrown. This impacts on moorings, as the vegetation has been allowed to run riot, meaning it is impossible to see were the bankside begins, it is also quite shallow. We always find somewhere to moor, but at times they took some finding.

The canal was built in 1790 and is 78miles in length (both north and south), it was built to transport coal from the Coventry pits to Oxford and London. It continued to be used for transport until the 1960’s.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oxford_Canal

It is 7 years since we last cruised this part of the system, so the changes in Banbury came as a very nice surprise. The town has embraced the canal, and visiting narrowboats, and there is excellent mooring right in the town centre were a new entertainment venue ‘The Light’ has recently opened, giving the area a continental feel. There are moorings on both sides, and new charging points for electric boats have been installed on the offside. The offside houses the Castle Quays Shopping centre. There is also a Lidl about 3 minutes walk away a definite plus for boaters.

https://banbury.thelight.co.uk/

We were lucky and found excellent moorings right outside The Light, and decided to stay for a few nights.

Of course we had to try the local hostelries. A micropub called The Apothecary caught our eye, so that was the first port of call. A quirky place with a very friendly owner, and an even more friendly dog. A bit to pricey for our taste, at around £10 for 2, 2 thirds not even pints but great beer.

https://www.theapothecarytap.com/

We tried the White Horse next, much more to our taste and pocket. They had a very interesting tapas menu on that night.

http://www.whitehorsebanbury.com/

We walked back through the shopping centre and stopped to peruse Lock 29, which as well as being a real ale bar, it also has a selection of street food vendors, with a large open area to sit and enjoy your beer and food.

https://www.lock29.co.uk/

Next day we explored more of Banbury. We visited the museum, which has a display about the Oxford canal. The main exhibition is the history of the town from the English civil war (1642- 1651) to the present day. Well worth visiting.

https://www.banburymuseum.org/

After a very weak pint of Hooky mild in Ye Olde Reine Deer Inn we ventured again to the White Horse. Change of menu, now 2 meals for £15 including fish and chips. The Captain was definitely interested and checked the price of the same in Wetherspoons (their app is very handy for checking things out). Good thing he did, they were completely sold out of fish, in fact they were sold out of a lot of things.

We didn’t eat at the White Horse as they didn’t start serving food until 6pm, and it was only 4.30pm and I was starving.

So we ended up at Lock 29, and it was amazing, I tried the Greek food, it was delicious and good value for money, whilst the Captain had a burger, also very nice.

Yummy

We decided to stay put on Saturday as the weather forecast wasn’t great, and had a surprise visit from little Chris our boat painter, his wife Lucy and William their toddler son. We chatted for a while and caught up.

Unfortunately our final night in Banbury was marred by some very noisy teenagers who congregated outside The Light (after it was closed), and continued shouting and banging things until around 2am.

I reported this to The Light, and also followed up with an email to Castle Quays outlining what had happened, and expressing a hope they would nip this in the bud before many more youngsters decided to join their friends to cause a nuisance, and maybe some vandalism to the venue or moored boats. As the Captain said, it only takes one to be egged on by their peers to jump on a boat, or start throwing things.

On to Oxford in the next instalment

RED KITES AND WOODPECKERS.

A Green Woodpecker

We have now entered proper Red Kite country and we are seeing these magnificent birds on a regular basis, close up and personnel as they soar above the boat. We have seen 2 Greater Spotted Woodpeckers and one, a first for us, a Green Woodpecker and a few kingfishers. I caught sight of a couple of Dippers, a Tree Creeper and a common Tern as well.

We left Banbury and the configuration of the locks changed, still narrow locks, but with only one gate at the bottom end. This made the gates quiet heavy to open and close, but I managed most without help. I had company at King’s Sutton lock, when a friendly local cat came to be stroked and then stayed to watch and offer moral support.

We moored for the night outside The Pig Place, it came highly recommended but we didn’t give it a try as we fancied a quiet night in, and the Captain wanted to watch the British Grand Prix.

https://thepigplace.co.uk/

Also in the skies above us we have seen Chinook helicopters, or as the Captain calls them wocca wocca’s due to the sound their twin rotor blades make. We are quiet close to Brize Norton airbase here so we have had other military aeroplanes overhead too.

We got to Lower Hayford on Tuesday after 5 quite deep locks, and called in at The Bell. We are still struggling to find dark ales for the Captain, so he had to make do with a Guinness.

Next day we stopped at Lower Hayford wharf for diesel, but the Captain balked at paying the price they were asking. So we went and queued for water instead. NB Cherry Tree was filling up, they said it was a slow tap so it took a while, but as always on the water there is no rushing. Its Captain and crew were American and heading to Oxford, a place they had not visited before.

In one of the locks I spotted a pair of pretty grey Wagtails, whose nest was in the wall of the lock. They were taking food to their chicks.

Grey Wagtail

The Captain had marked some offside moorings in our Nicholson book, but couldn’t remember a lot about them. There were 3 boats moored as we cruised slowly by, so we decided to keep going. Then a shout from the bank ‘hey you 2 haven’t seen you for a while’ I racked my brains trying to recall this friendly boater and came up with the name Phil, as we were expecting to see Phil Brook Little on this stretch of the canal. The guy laughed and said no, Rick. It all kind of fell into place then, we had met Rick at the Cape of Good Hope on a rainy afternoon spent in the pub. Bubbles our ginger tom had joined us in the pub, until he spotted Rick’s dog then he turned tail and fled. The barman told me he would have to be on a lead if we wanted to bring him in again. Happy memories and quite a few years ago. We had a chat, and will probably see him and his boat NB Juniper again on the Thames or K&A.

We never did meet up with Phil.

I also discovered a great new recipe for making roti’s

https://www.bbc.co.uk/food/recipes/roti_31237

Thursday was another day for unexpected reunions, and busy. The Captain planned to stay at Thrupp, then going on to Wolvercote next day where we could catch the bus into Oxford. There were 3 locks, and at one of these I was happily chatting to the. guy off the boat behind us. As he helped with the lock his wife came along and recognised me and the Captain. It was Ken and Annie on NB Ceilidh who we had met going into Warwick in 2017. We got along famously and had done some serious foraging with them before a pint in the pub. They have sold their boat due to family commitments, but were getting their yearly boating fix on their daughters boat. They were heading back to base on the K&A.

We couldn’t get in at Thrupp, so pushed onto Wolvercote. As I said in the last blog, the South Oxford canal is terrible for mooring, as in most places the vegetation is so overgrown, and the canal shallow, you simply can’t get to the side to moor.

We were not able to moor at Wolvercote either, as a long length of the bank is given over to Agenda 21 permanent moorings, and I mean a long long way. Each time we thought we had come to the end of them, round the bend it would start again. There were signs for visitors moorings, but as with a lot of the canal they were overgrown and inaccessible.

http://narrowboater.blogspot.com/2011/09/agenda-21.html

So on we went, the Captain getting increasingly grumpy, things improved when we got to Jerico and found the moorings we had used 7yrs ago, still there and very accessible and free. Yippee.

So we pulled in and stayed for a couple of nights. We went to try a couple of the local pubs, The Old Bookbinders Ale House first, a lovely pub with an interesting menu, but no darks, so just the one.

https://craftybelle.uk/oldbookbinders/

Then on to the Harcourt Arms, no darks on the bar, but I did spot bottles of Fullers London Porter and Black Cab in the chiller, so the Captain was a happy bunny. I wasn’t when I went to pay £11.20 for a porter and a pint of Birra Moretti. Deep intake of breath and a gulp of beer to steady my nerves.

Next day and our trip into Oxford, £3 return on the bus not too bad, but I was having a bad day with my knee so I wasn’t real feeling it.

The buildings in Oxford are lovely and we did take a steady walk round, we went to the indoor market, full of interesting and quirky shops, but the best find was the food market at Gloucester Green. There was Sri Lankan, Mexican, Greek, Nepalese, Chinese,, but the one doing the best trade was South Korean, she had organised like a buffet were you could buy small portions at a reasonable price and mix and match things. It smelt wonderful too.

https://www.oxford.gov.uk/info/20231/markets/109/gloucester_green_market

We were eating out but first a pint. We walked out of the first 2 pubs, no darks on of course, but the Swan and Castle had Rudgate Ruby Mild on so that’s were we headed, it was a Wetherspoons so we knew we could eat there to.

To end a lovely day the Captain treated me to a bottle of Whitely and Neill rhubarb and ginger gin. He’s a wonderful fella.

Next day and it was time to leave the canal and join the mighty river Thames, but first a pump out and fuel at College Cruisers. The price of their fuel was a lot more reasonable so the Captain was happy.

https://www.collegecruisers.com/

Through Isis Lock and we were on the Thames, that’s for next time folks.

HOME AND HOLIDAYS

 

On the Oxford canal we headed for Rugby and Tesco for some much needed shopping. The canal was still like the M1 with boats of every description. At one point we were in a convoy of 8 or 9 boats all heading for Hillmorton locks.

Or so it seemed, but when we got there, expecting a queue and a long wait there was not another boat in sight. Very strange.

Hillmorton locks comprise of 6 single locks in 3 pairs side by side. If any one of the locks is out of action it can cause major hold ups, but today everything was working fine, well nearly everything, a couple paddles were out of action.

http://www.hillmortonlocks.co.uk/

As we exited the first lock a hire boat turned up and followed us down. On the last set of locks lockees were there to help out. I jumped off as they bought a hire boat coming up into the lock, the girls had jumped off with their windlasses and were being given a lesson in what to do by a helpful lockee. So I just stood back and watched.

We were soon on our way and got to Rugby, managing to moor close to the bridge that leads to Tesco.

Sunday and the weather didn’t look to promising, but we decided to risk it and travel the 12 miles to Hawksbury Junction. We made it in a respectable 4 ½ hours and moored up before the little stop lock. Off course we had to go to the pub, The Greyhound, and as usual they had Theakstons mild on for the Captain, so he was a happy bunny, the food in here is excellent, but we gave it a miss and returned to the boat for tea after a couple of pints.

https://www.thegreyhoundlongford.co.uk/

Sunday, and a happy return to Swan Lane wharf, Keith was tinkering with Snowdrop his 1930 Rolls Royce, so we had a chat and caught up with the gossip. Everything is tickety boo which is great. I had been waiting with some trepidation for my results from the hospital, and I am pleased to report they came back negative so nothing to worry about.

After a pump out we cruised down to the basin for a couple of nights, and of course had to visit the Hops D’amour and say hi to Vyk and Greg. I had thought about eating out, but decided against it and returned to the boat for tea. In the basin we were joined by 4 other boats and a CRT classroom boat.

I am pleased to report that the 5 ½ miles from Hawksbury to the basin is very tidy and a pleasure to cruise

https://canalrivertrust.org.uk/places-to-visit/coventry-canal-basin

https://www.facebook.com/hopsdamourcoventry

We returned to Swan Lane mid week after a very enjoyable time in the basin, including watching a rather scrawny fox stalk a family of geese trying to get some sleep. The parents were having none of it and were extremely noisy in the process, until a kind passer-by chased the fox away and we were all able to get some sleep.

Only a few last minutes bits to get and we were ready for our holiday to Zadar in Croatia. We left ourselves plenty of time at Birmingham airport having heard the horror stories of the queues to get through security, but we sailed through and managed to find a table in the Wetherspoons, a couple of pints and we were off.

That’s all for now folks pictures to follow.

WONDERFUL ZADAR

The Sea Organ

The bridge that connects the old and new towns 

A busmans's holiday

The View from the Forum

The sea and the mountains

We had a great time in Zadar and hopefully the pictures share a little of its beauty with you.

TUNNELS

 

The 5 ½ miles to Market Harborough were uneventful, there are only 2 swing bridges for me to do. At the first I helped a single hander on NB Buckeroo through, and was repaid at the second one, as a boat coming the other way had already opened it and we cruised through with ease.

There are some strange mooring signs on this part of the canal and they look new. On one stretch it told us it was 7 days, but there was no way to moor your boat. The towpath was stoned right up to the edge of the canal so cant use pins, there was no arnco for nappy pins or chains, and no rings or bollards either. Very strange.

We managed to nab the last moorings just outside the basin and had a chat with the guy off Buckeroo, and caught up again with Koi Carp Diem and Nelwyn. Nelwyn was the boat which had broken down (trouble with the oil sump) and they had managed to get it fixed with the help of Debdale Marina. They couldn’t praise the marina highly enough.

https://www.debdalewharf.co.uk/

We only stopped for one night, and after an excellent curry and great catch up with Dave and Sandra, we headed back to Foxton locks.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Foxton_Locks

I love Foxton locks, they were the first locks I ever did, I love to help out as we wait our turn. This day was no different. We had a bit of a wait as the lockees were bringing 6 boats down, before letting the 8 waiting up, and we were about 5^th in line.

As the last boat came down I went to see if I could help, and the first boat up was Nelwyn with her single handed crew, I took him up the first 5 locks to the passing pound where a helpful gongoozler offered to help him the rest of the way. So I returned to the bottom lock and helped out were I could.

After Nelwyn came a boat with no name, then Koi Carp Diem, Gosling, Acen, Elizabeth Rose, then us followed by Still Waters. With everyone helping out it didn’t take long at all. There was lots of questions and chatting on the locks which made it a very enjoyable day. We treated ourselves to an ice cream from the cafe at the top of the locks before heading to the MONW for the night.

https://www.facebook.com/TopLockCoffeeStop/

The reason for this blog being called tunnels, is because on this leg of our journey there were a few to do. The Captain hates tunnels, especially 2 way working ones. You always seem to meet another boat at just the wrong moment, where there is a kink or the ceiling is low and it narrows passage. He is rather precious of our new paint work and covers, and who can blame him.

The first tunnel was Husband Bosworth, at 1166yrds not to bad, and as the saying goes you can see the light at the end of the tunnel. We didn’t meet anyone so a successful passage.

As we were approaching the Jubilee weekend the canals were getting noticeably busier with hire and private boats. We passed each other with a cheery wave and a smile.

In the sky gliders from a local club were taking flight, being towed by a light aircraft in to the blue yonder, before being released and left to the mercies of the wind and weather.

https://www.theglidingcentre.co.uk/

There is another reason for the increase in boat traffic on this route, the Jubilee weekend was also the Crick boat show weekend, this is the largest show dedicated to canals, narrowboats and every thing that goes with them.

https://www.crickboatshow.com/

Although the moorings at Crick were suspended for the show, we got permission to moor for an hour to do some essential shopping at the Co-op there. Shopping opportunities on this route are few and far between.

The next tunnel, Crick tunnel at 1528yrds, slightly longer than the last but again straight. But our luck ran out and we met 3 boats coming the other way. The tunnels are only just wide enough for 2 boats to pass, its very dark, so it is almost impossible to judge distance until the 2 boats are really close. Some boats will stop and wait for you to pass, other will plough on through with fingers crossed.

The 7 locks at Watford are the same as Foxton, one way working and you have to book in with the lockee and wait your turn. When we turned up there was only a hire boat in front of us but 6 boats were coming up, so we had a bit of a wait, so we pitched in and helped. Eventually it was our turn and 2 had turned into 3. It took no time at all to get down, but in that time 6 boats had turned up at the bottom all heading for Crick show.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Watford_Locks

We moored at Norton Junction for the night and went for tea at the New Inn, one of our favourite pubs on the system. At the pub we met up with the guy off Buckeroo, and a newbie boater off Elsie Ann. This lead to an impromptu boaters get together sat by the lock. But we never found out their names.

https://www.newinnbuckbywharf.co.uk/

At Norton Junction we turned off the Leicester arm of the GU and on to the mainline Grand Union heading for Braunston

Braunston tunnel is 2042yrds long and has a number of kinks in it. It was the one the Captain was dreading, and all his fears came true as we met boat after boat coming the other way. 6 in total. Of course we had to meet them at the worst points, and we had more than a few scrapes and bumps.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Braunston_Tunnel

Next we had to tackle the 6 Braunston locks, these are double locks but we had know one to buddy up with, we met boats coming up which helped. Then I spotted a hire boat on the next lock landing, they seemed to be waiting for us. Unfortunately this was not the case, and when I approached them they told me they were mooring up, they seemed a little put out when I told them they couldn’t moor there as it was a lock landing, and needed by boats using the lock. However I pointed out they could simply pull back and use pins to moor, which they did.

At Braunston after calling in at Midland Chandlers we turned onto the Oxford canal heading for home in Coventry

The birdlife has been plentiful, I enjoyed watching the Pied Wagtails hovering just above the water, we had a robin sit with us outside Bridge 61, kestrels, red kite and buzzards have soared above us. |Reed Bunting and Chaffinches have been easy to spot along with gold finches, blue tits and long tailed tits.

Reed Bunting

And bats have swooped around the boat at dusk.

HAPPY DAYS

 

Foxton Locks

Our trip from Loughborough took us 3 days, although it is only 16miles and 11 locks for me to do.

The Captain had planned it this way, as he wanted to use the pump out machine at Leicester Marina on the Friday, and we had planned to be in Leicester itself on the Saturday. We had hoped to meet up with Heath and Jennifer, but unfortunately they were away on holiday in their new camper van. Hopefully we will see them in the summer.

https://canalriverhub.co.uk/moorings/leicester-marina/

After visiting the marina we moored at Birstall for the night, but with difficulty, as a hire boat had left a right git gap not leaving us quite enough space, so we had to moor the best we could. We didn’t venture to the pub as it was hard for me to get on and off the boat.

The 4 locks into Leicester, were a few years ago, some of the worst maintained locks I had ever had to deal with, and I did contact CRT about them. There has been some improvements, and we were lucky enough to pair up with another boat for the first 3 called Koi Carp Diem, the Captain and crew were heading for Foxton locks to help out a friend who had broken down.

At the last, and the very worst of the locks, North Lock, we caught up with another boat Eau de Vie and Koi Carp Diem joined them in the lock. Leaving us to do it on our own.

There are so many things wrong with this lock. I turned in my windlass and choose to take the boat into the lock instead. I am so glad I did, as the Captain had major problem getting the gate open, and he is a big strong fella.

But we made it and headed for Castle Gardens, on the way we checked the pontoons at Memory Lane moorings but nothing seemed to have been done since last year, CRT are meant to be building a sanitary station here, which is really needed. Disappointed we were.

We passed Friars Mill mooring and there was space which was good as Castle Gardens was full, it didn’t help that a large CRT work boat was moored on the pontoons taking up much needed visitors moorings. So we winded and returned to Friars Mill. Last year there were a lot of stories about access to these pontoons, and the first thing I did was make sure that the waterways key opened the access gate, it did. Even better the water had been turned on again. So we were set for the night.

We joined narrowboats Winging It and Jaracanda. NB Matilda turned up later and we helped them moor before having a chat.

It was date night so we headed into town, calling first at the Blue Boar, an amazing real ale pub that also sells Samuel Smith beer. It was heaving and so noisy, but the choice for the Captain was amazing and Taddy lager for me. Then onto the Salmon, another fantastic real ale pub but a lot quieter than the Boar. We had decided to go to Zizzi’s for tea. Unfortunately my meal wasn’t up to scratch, but the waitress was marvellous and sorted it out. Then didn’t charge me for my meal. Very good customer service.

http://www.blueboarleicester.co.uk/

https://www.blackcountryales.co.uk/pubs/the-salmon

We left Leicester on Sunday, and this is why this episode is called happy days. We did 8 miles and 11 locks, but the gongoozlers we met made it a very special day. I had help from both young and old. Many questions were asked and answered. Everyone was smiling, the sun was out. A perfect day. We even helped some people magnet fishing retrieve their magnet when it got stuck between 2 rocks and they couldn’t dislodge it. The fishermen were happy to.

We did meet 2 very different groups of teenagers, the first were cheeky, well mainly one of them, and wanted to get on the boat, but no way jose, this is our home. The second were respectful and listened and asked questions politely and helped out when ask. One made my day when he asked how old I was and then guessed in my forties, ahhhh bless him, for those that don’t know I am actually 59.

Monday was a quiet day, and after 4 miles and 8 locks we moored in the MONW for the night.

Tuesday was an interesting day, we had 6 miles, 5 locks and Saddington Tunnel (880yards) to do to get to Foxton Locks. At the last lock we met up with some volunteer lockees, and they had a very important guest with them, Phil Mulligan who is the CRT regional director for the East Midlands. Now earlier in this blog I mention reporting the problems with the Leicester locks, and I did this by emailing, yes you guessed it Phil Mulligan, and I got a substantial reply from him. So it was great to but a face to a name. We managed to chat about various issues, the main one being the sanitary station and moorings at Memory Lane. He said they had been the bane of his life for the past 3 years, but was hopeful that within a year it would all be sorted. Fingers crossed he is right.

We also mentioned the up coming riverside festival in Leicester, and the suspension of the mooring there as there was no notification of this on the CRT webpage. He was most surprised and said he would look into it.

I complained about North Lock, and he and the lockees all rolled their eyes already knowing all the problems at this lock. Again hopefully it is on his to do list, well at the top I hope.

It was a very interesting meeting and he seemed genuinely interested it what we had to say.

We were lucky the rain held off until we got to Foxton and moored up outside the Lock Inn. We also managed to dodge the showers when we headed to Bridge 61, a little real ale pub that sells Langton Brewery beers on draft and in bottle. The Captain is very partial to their Bulls Eye stout, so a couple before tea.

https://www.facebook.com/Bridge-61-174949759195755/

https://langtonbrewery.co.uk/

We decided to stay at Foxton the next day, before heading down the arm to Market Harborough and a curry at the Bengal Kitchen and a pint at The Beer house with Dave and Sandra Biddle, some old boating mates who have given up life afloat and now have a motorhome. This change in life style means they get to spend time with their lovely daughter and grandchildren.

https://bengalkitchenle16.co.uk/

https://beerhousemh.square.site/

Foxton Locks next time folks.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Foxton_Locks

RAIN AND LOCKS

I don’t know what it as about rain and locks, but it seems if rain is forecast, it always catches me as I am just about to do a lock, and I end up getting soaked.

The week started with nice weather as we cruised down the Trent and Mersey, we moored up in the middle of nowhere, as the moorings were full at Whittington and Hopwas. It was a lovely afternoon, so we sat on the back with the pram cover down and had a couple of beers. The number of boats that passed us was quite amazing.

Next day was the Captains birthday. We did a short cruise to Alrewas before I took him for a celebratory pint in the George and Dragon, and then cooked him a lovely steak dinner.

7 locks the next day, and we met up with NB Aquaholics and its crew, they were have problems with their electrics, and heading to Shardlow marina for someone to look at it. I hope they got it sorted.

As we cruised in to Burton on Trent the Captain jumped ship to go to the Marston Brewery beer shop, and he came back a very happy bunny with lots of nice dark ales. As recommended by Petra and Kevin of NB Autumn Myst last year.

https://www.facebook.com/MarstonsTourandStore/

Then just round the corner we bumped (not literally) into some very old friends Lisa and Fred off NB Chyandour, so we hovered in the centre of the canal and chatted for a while. They have a mooring in Shobnall marina but are planning to head south like us later in the year, so hopefully we will meet up again.

A plan had been hatched to moor in Burton on Trent for the weekend, and hopefully catch up with another friend Phil Hancox on the Sunday. But first we had to give the pubs a try, after all Burton is the brewing capital of the world.

Friday night and we took a short walk to the Weighbridge Inn, a lovely little micropub not far from the canal. They had Muirhouse Stout on for the Captain and Pravha for me.

https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100057584283863&sk=about

Saturday and we caught the bus into Burton. After a little shopping we tried a few of the local hostelries starting with the Old Royal Oak, local CAMRA pub of the year 2022, very good choice of beer from Fownes Brewery.

https://oldroyaloak.co.uk/

Then on to The Dog, a Black Country Ales tap house, so another great selection of real ales on the bar.

https://www.blackcountryales.co.uk/pubs/the-dog-inn

And finally Beeropolis were the Captain decided to push the boat out and try 3 beers, a 3^rd of each. I didn’t ask him how much the round was, but his face was a picture when he sat down, glad it wasn’t my round.

https://www.facebook.com/BeeropolisBurton

We were going to walk around the corner and try the Burton Bridge, which is a tap house for a brewery of the same name, but hunger got the better of us and we decided to have a meal at Baan Thai. The food was lovely, and the staff very friendly.

https://www.baanthaiburton.com/

Unfortunately the terrible bus service marred the rest of our visit. I have been having problems with my knee, and the options of waiting an hour for a bus, or a half hour walk back to the boat didn’t suit me. We made it to The Last Heretic, another very good micropub, but I was in no mood to enjoy its delights. The Captain had a half whilst we waited for a taxi.

Shame as we had had such a good day.

A message from Phil on Sunday had us out of bed quite early for us. He came and had a coffee and a long chat. He is planning to head out cruising later in May, and hopefully we will catch up then. The rest of the day was quiet and I rested my knee the best I could.

Next day, Fred and Lisa hooted as they passed us, but as usual we were still in bed, but not for long as it was time to move on. Our next port of call was Willington and we passed a boat called Avalon Mist, the second one with that name we had seen. As we moored up I could not believe my eyes, the boat next to us had 2 owls on board. The things we see.

A walk to the Dragon was on the agenda and this took us past Avalon Mist, we had a chat with its crew, unfortunately they had a very noisy generator running and stated they were intending to stay on a 2 day mooring for at least a couple of weeks. This is inconsiderate to other boaters as Willington is a popular spot to stop due to its shops, pubs and takeaways. Even worse, about 6am next morning they started running the generator, there is a rule on the cut no running of engines (unless your moving) or generators before 8am or after 8pm, we were 3 boats away and it woke us up. Oh well!!

Now here comes the bit about the rain, our next port of call was Shardlow and we had a number locks to do. The forecast said rain, but it seemed to be holding off, that was until I got to the second lock, off I jumped with my windlass in hand, and no coat on (it was quite warm), then little spots of rain began, and then it got a bit faster and faster, luckily the Captain had my waterproof coat on hand so I didn’t get to wet, back on the boat and it stopped raining so the coat came off. At the next lock exactly the same, only this time it didn’t stop and we had to take cover under a bridge. We had to have a fire in that night, not something we normally do at this time of the year, but it felt damp, and its a feeling we don’t like.

We passed NB Hang Loose and I waved madly as Stephanie is a friend on Facebook but unfortunately she wasn't at home. She also writes a blog about their travels by narrowboat. 

https://www.facebook.com/shakahangloose/ 

 Next day and we were back on the River Trent. I like being on rivers, they seem so big after being on the narrow canals. It was also very good for bird watching, and I managed to spot the first 2 kingfishers of the season, my first heron, great crested grebes, cormorants and a majestic buzzard soaring high in the sky.

We actually managed to get on the pontoons at Trent Lock, a first for us. As always we had to go and say ‘Hi’to Simon at the Steam Boat, the Captain was very happy as there was Blue Monkey Chocolate Amaretto Guerilla stout on.

https://www.steamboattrentlock.co.uk/

The next 2 days were spent doing the 16 locks, and 12miles of the Erewash canal to Langley Mill, but more about that next time.

PREPARATIONS AND WE’RE OFF.

Well I have finished work for another year. It was sad to say goodbye to all of my friends at UTL, but I will be back before they know it.

Before leaving for our cruise there are always jobs to be done. Maintenance for the Captain, and usually shopping and cooking for me.

This year was no exception. The Captain did an excellent job of cleaning out the engine bay and giving it a coat of paint. He has fitted a solar dump too, don’t worry its not as bad as it sounds. It should enable us to use any extra solar power to heat the water in our emersion tank. We just have to see if it actually works. I have great faith in him but my fingers crossed just in case.

I have made sure we have plenty of food, but more importantly a good stock of beer and wine.

We could not leave the day after I finished work, which was Good Friday, as I had a hospital appointment on the following Tuesday. Nothing got done on Good Friday either as we bunked off and went to celebrate my sons birthday at the New Inn at Shardlow. A lovely canal side pub that does great food, (we went by car not boat).

https://thenewinnshardlowpub.co.uk/

We didn’t actually leave until the following Friday, as a plan was hatched with our good friends Col and Mags for them to join us as far as Atherstone, and as they still work it had to be the weekend.

This meant we didn’t have to rush, and we took the opportunity to nip into Coventry and say our goodbyes to Mr and Mrs Hop, Vyk and Greg at the Hops d’Amour.

https://www.facebook.com/hopsdamourcoventry

We also got a ride in Keith’s new toy, a 1930 white Rolls Royce.

Then it was time to say goodbye to Swan Lane and we were off. The weather gods were kind to us, the sun shone and the wind was warm.

I spent the first part of the journey cooking, as once again I had promised to produce one of my tapas feasts.

But once done I was able to enjoy the passing scenery and the bird song.

We moored in the middle of nowhere for the night, enjoyed good food and a couple of drinks with our friends. Next day we pushed on to Atherstone.

The weather was a little cooler but still fine and dry.

As we approached the visitors mooring I spied and old friend on the towpath, Eric off NB Cherrie. I shouted across and he waved and said see you in the Angel.

The Angel is our favourite pub in Atherstone, great real ales for the Captain, and Krombacher lager for me. Col and Mags were happy bunnies too. Eric did come in but didn't see us.

https://www.facebook.com/theangelinnrealalehouseatherstone/

After a couple of pints a delicious curry at the Raj Mahal finished the day off nicely.

Back to the boat and an early night for Col and Mags, as they had an early start in the morning to do the 6 hours cruise back to Trinity Marina, whilst we were heading down the 11 Atherstone locks.

A tap at the window as we watched TV took us by surprise, and apprehensively I got up see who it was. It was Eric and his dog. We chatted for a while, catching up on the gossip before he headed home. It was great to see him again.

Col and Mags did get off early next day but the Captain got up to say bye, before back to bed for our usual cup of tea and a biscuit. We eventually surface about 10am and set off for the locks. There were volunteer lock keepers on the first 3 which was helpful, but then we were on our own for the next 8. I soon got back into the swing of it and it took us a respectable 2½ hours. Good going.

It was a day for bird spotting, the main event being the number of Kestrels there were about, and I even thought I spotted a Red kite soaring above us, but I didn’t get a good look at its tail (buzzards have a round tail whilst Red Kites have forked tails).

The cutest thing we saw was at a lock, a tiny wood mouse, which showed no fear as it made its way round the Captains foot and down to the water for a drink before hopping off through the grass like a miniature kangaroo.

We moored up at the bottom of the locks, it was so peaceful with only bird song to be heard. Across the water was a field of yellow rapeseed which sparkled in the sun. As night dropped there was no traffic noise or people disturbing the peace.

A late start next day, we did the 8miles and 2 locks in about 4 hours to Fazeley. Slightly cooler again but when the sun came out it was lovely.

And Fazeley can mean only one thing, a fish and chip supper from Fazeley Fish Bar for the Captain, and a kebab for me.

https://www.facebook.com/Fazeleyfishbarfazeley

We had a couple of pints in the Three Tuns first. This canal side pub has been hit and miss in the past, there were a selection of real ales on the pumps but non suited the Captain, but he did spy a can of Northern Star porter by Northern Monk brewery, which he found very much to his taste.

https://northernmonk.com/beer/

Next day on to Fradley Junction were we joined the Trent and Mersey canal. After mooring up we had to go and try the Dirty Duck or to give it its proper title The Swan, it claims to be the most photographed pub on the canals. Again it can be hit and miss with its range of real ales, but the Captain was a happy bunny when he spotted a mild on the bar (didn’t remember to gets the name). They were serving food which looked very tasty and good value for money.

https://www.swaninnfradley.co.uk/

That’s all for now folks.