Birmingham and beyond....

If Robert spent as much time concentrating on his work in school, as he does looking out of the window, his work would be so much better. So was the text on one of my school reports. True … the one thing I have always lacked is concentration. I do have the problem of losing interest in things if they don’t grab me. My real worry when we decided to go off on our ‘old age travelling’ . . what will happen if the novelty wears off.??

Well nearly four years in to our adventure, so far it hasn’t.

Every day is completely different. Even cruising some canals again and again it’s different every time.

We have our routines, checks on the engine, animals to ‘battle stations’ when we approach locks or mooring. Carly is tethered to the back fence and Jake is below decks. Jenny says to him . . ‘Locks’ . . and he goes straight down into the cabin. Trouble is he has developed the habit of barking as he goes. To discourage him, Jen has a water pistol and a quick jet of water in the ear usually stops him. Jake being Jake though, has realised if he hides behind the bulkhead she can’t hit him, so its a case of woof woof woof then he pulls his head out of range for the water pistol.

That damn dog is too clever for his own good. But he does make us laugh. Very much loved doggie.

Since the last blog we have basically been retracing our way back heading towards Birmingham. We stayed in Gas St basin last year but only passed through and there are more canals in the city we hadn’t seen. Thing being different every day is quite true. All locks look the same but.. they all react differently. Jenny is the lock master and I do the driving. When you enter the lock slowly as the centre of the boat passes the gate you slip her into reverse, raising engine revs to 1200rpm and gently she slows to a stop in front of the other gate.

Now. . this is the theory. The practise is often totally different, every lock appears to be different dependant on various factors. Wind. . depth of water, people watching. That's when you or rather me screw it up. Sliding in gently, select reverse, 1200 rpm.

Nothing happens...panic !! engine to 3500 !! just stops in time ..big cloud of smoke, alarm in cabin goes off. As I said, every day is different. Met so many great people in our ‘five minute friendships’ at locks or at the various hostelries we have frequented.

As we approached the outskirts of Brum the surroundings started to change. Most of the bridges and walls started to be adorned by what I believe is called local art. Some of it is quite plainly poor quality graffiti but some of it is Urban art, and does cheer up a drab area.

One thing is we are not in a hurry. We take our time and enjoy our surroundings. On a long day (more than12 locks) we started to be harassed (in a nice way) by a young family on a holiday boat. . when you are on a hire boat you have time tables to keep too, to get around set routes to be back at the hire depot on time for the next hirer.

I asked if they were in a hurry and would they like to ‘overtake’ at the next pound.

They said that would be great and we pulled over and let them pass.

The problem is following another boat means one thing, all the locks are against you. Meaning you have to flood them before you can go in. This is time consuming but hay ho ..thats life.

Off they sped, and we toddled off again . . at our pace.

When we arrived at the next lock they had disappeared into the distance.

But the lock had been flooded and we could just open the gate and sail in. They had left a member of their crew to ‘set the lock’ for us. All the next locks were set for us.

A classic ‘one good turn deserves another’

Holiday makers helping out the old folk ..Hee hee.

.

We had heard some areas of Brum are not really safe to moor in because of anti social behaviour, but so far we have not had any problems on our adventure.

The one place I wanted to go to was the Black Country museum. . have a look on Google.

It is a fantastic place. If you are near, please go.. you will not be disappointed.

It is a living museum. A black country town all rebuilt on a canal side site. It was just like going back in time for real. All the buildings have been knocked down and rebuilt here. Some of the houses have people dressed in the costumes of the time. Some of the shops were actually doing business, sweet shops, bakery and cake shop, fish and chips, and the local pub. It was very expensive in the pub. We had a pork pie and a beer each and it was over £14.00, but if it helps to keep the museum going it was worth it.

Rode on a trolley bus like I did in Belfast as a child. 

We managed to moor up outside on a visitor mooring and promptly we were spoken to by a local. Friendly chap with 2 labradors, we asked about the area and were relieved to find out it was safe. He recommended a pub or rather a restaurant down the road famous for their pies. Mad o’Rourkes pie factory. It looked tempting..so we thought . .hang the expense, we are ‘on holiday’ so off we went.

It was an old building with character, a bit like a wild west saloon. A few old bits and pieces hanging on the walls. Meat hooks and other butchery implements. An old phone exchange, the type the receptionist had when I first started work in the 60’s made me feel old.

One side was a pub selling real home made ales (which were very good). There was three types on sale a weak 3.2 abv through to a very strong 5.6 abv I tried one of each Lovely , and served in proper glasses. .ones with handles. On the other side of the room was the ‘pie factory’ the young girls who were serving were great. Obviously enjoyed their jobs, the atmosphere was great.

Jenny had a Steak and Mushroom and I had...wait for it ...I had a ‘Desperate Dan cow pie,

complete with horns!!. . It was huge !! but lovely, great big chunks of beef. At a very reasonable price as well. I wobbled back to the boat, with a very full tummy, I also received a certificate to say I had won the challenge. Some people fail to complete the experience.

The next day we did the museum and also the old Dudley tunnels on an electric narrow boat a great day out.

The only problem we had on the canal on the way in was….the weeds. The hot weather caused the weed to grow and when they do they wrap themselves around the propeller and the boat slows down. We had to stop every few mins (literally) and remove the same. We wanted to travel into Gas street basin on the other canal to the one we navigated last year but it was too weedy.

Gas street was its usual self. A bristling area full of atmosphere. The canal side pubs are great. Its a well known place for hen parties and stag do’s. There was a group of Irish fella’s over from Belfast for a wedding. They were on two hired narrow boats, all dressed in Peaky Blinders outfits. They were all very drunk, but still good company and acting accordingly. 

The bridegroom was dressed as woman from the era. They we very funny.

There was also a hen do going on as well outside the pub called the Canalside.

Sadly we were watching at 6pm and we knew .….some of the young ladies were NOT going too make last orders. . They were arguing (in a nice way) who was going to pay for the round !!….Until the barman pointed out . . one had already paid “!!

On the Wednesday we had a visit from two of our friends from Yelvertoft. Jim and Jan. . It was good to catch up and we had a light lunch on board. Jim is the leader of the local Independent chapel in Yelvertoft.

After 4 days in Gas St time to leave on the Monday morning. Again virgin canals for us. We had to wait on the top of the Butchers Bridge flight of locks while a guy filled up his tanks with water. There was a CRT guy there sorting out the rubbish and we had a few laughs with him pulling our legs and visa versa. 

Off we went down the flight until arriving at a lock..Jenny struggled to open it to go in so I helped. Then came the problem of closing it. DOH !! it wouldn’t..after a few minutes of trying (us, as well as passers by) we gave up and phoned up the Canal and River Trust. Within 10 mins the guy we were having a laugh with earlier turned up. A piece of wood had fell out of the collar on the gate causing it too fall down on the pivot, that was why it wouldn't close. Another phone call because it was two man job to replace the wood and we were on our way again only held up for about an hour.

Heading to Hawksbury Junction for the weekend then into Johns at Lime farm marina for the annual engine service before heading home for winter. Its been a great summer cruise. Again this year we didn’t make where we wanted.. last year we failed to get to Llangollen canal this year . . the Peak district canal, but we have had a great time. . met some great people and have enjoyed every moment of it. Thank you for following us old age travellers. XX

Anderton Lift and the Weaver

Anderton Lift and the Weaver.

Back again.. the next chapter in our old age travelling.. I mentioned the Harecastle tunnel in the last blog. Before we left Westport lake at Stoke I was talking to a couple who were moored behind us. They had just bought a ‘new to them’ narrow boat and were on the way home with their pride and joy. They were asking questions about the best way to tackle the tunnel, my advise, in the middle and as fast as you can….the bow wave will keep you in the middle. It was a lovely looking boat, a Hudson semi tug in great condition. We wished them luck and sailed off to continue our adventure.

On Facebook, we are members of the Narrowboat users group where we can keep in touch with other boaters, ask for help, discuss issues and generally be sociable. There was a situation reported of a narrow boat sinking in a lock a couple of days later. Complete with pictures. I was shocked to see it was the boat belonging to the people I was talking too. It seems the boat didn’t have a rear button, that is a rope fender which stops the rear of the boat hitting and damaging the tiller or propeller. When they closed the gate on a lock, the tiller was caught between the gates. As she lowered into the lock the rear didn’t go down, causing the bows to drop into the water until the water level caused it to sink.

So sad, locks can be very dangerous places.

I just hope they were insured and the company pays out. Not a good start to their boating experience.

When we first told people of our dream to live afloat one of our friends Frank and Susan who lived on the same park as us in Norfolk, said to us ‘if’ you ever go to the Anderton Lift please let us know because I want to have a ride on it !!

Frank and Susan

To say Frank is a character is an understatement, eccentric is perhaps to far, but he is a great guy. When the lift fell into disrepair and a group raised money for the restoration Frank and his friends did various motor cycle events to raise awareness and cash.

He is into small vintage motors cycles and other memorabilia. When we knew a day we would be arriving we emailed them as they only live a few miles from the lift.

The lift drops narrowboats down the 50 or 60 feet onto the River Weaver. It’s a huge construction which works on a cantilever system. You sail into a big trough they seal the ends then you are lowered down as another boat comes up the other side.

To say Frank was pleased to hear from us was an understatement !! He was like a kid on Christmas morning.

We had a couple of hours wait before we could go down so it was time for a lunch and coffee in the restaurant and a look round the visitor centre before boarding the boat and having the downward trip. Susan didn’t go on the boat sadly, a bit of a phobia but Frank was in seventh heaven. It was great to see. 

Entering the Anderton Lift

Frank and Bob

Anderton Lift

We turned out of the lift on too the River Weaver moored up for the night and we set off the next morning. Before he left Frank asked for a passage on the return trip of course we said yes. The River Weaver runs from the Anderton lift to Middlewich its was only this part of the river we wanted to see. There were some really big boats here. One sea going tug. Various wide beam boats and big locks. 

The first lock we came to too was being repaired so we had to wait for the guys doing it ..a voice drifted out from the CRT (Canal and River Trust) barge ‘so you made it then’, it was guy called Steve who we had met in Wheelock a few days earlier. Turned out he worked for CRT and lived in the canal side cottage.

The main cargo being moved on the river in the early days was salt, there are huge and I mean HUGE piles of the stuff down the river on the right hand side going down. Also lots of broken down walls and brick work. . I wondered what they were in the heyday of water transport. 

Salt Works

Salt mountain

26^th July was my birthday and after an overnight stop half way we arrived at the end of the navigable river, just by a pub called The Red Lion’ a new mooring outside under trees so had a very continental feel about it. We don’t usually use pubs in the lunch time but, it was hot, my birthday and the cider looked very inviting. A couple of pints later I remembered why we don’t drink at lunch time I was ready for a kip. Two hours later and refreshed it was decided we would go for a meal and a bottle of wine to celebrate my 68^th year.

The staff were absolutely lovely, we had a great laugh, I have a habit of pulling bar staffs legs, especially if they are new. One was a beautiful barmaid who was a full time worker in a bank but does evening work to get out of her flat. She even came over and sat with us for a while after she found out it was my birthday. Ok... I was flirting !! but it was my birthday. We only had a fish and chip supper and a few bottles of white wine but it was good.

Towards the end of the evening there was some live music which just rounded it off.

A great day..two girls ?? Well one girl and a quite unconvincing transvestite but could he/she play that guitar. Yes he/she could, I didn’t know any of the songs in the middle set but jazz blues style. Having just seen the film about Amy Winehouse it could have been some of her works. When Jenny left, just before the end, to take the pooches for a walk I was left on my own, I took the long way home one step forward, two side ways and one back . . repeat until you arrive at the boat. Well it was my buff day. I don’t get wobbly leg syndrome very often these days. 

Red Lion Mooring area

While we sat outside talking, a guy turned up on a bike after riding up the tow path. Jake as people may or not know hates bikes !! As soon as he saw him, or rather the bike he went into a barking fit, and tried to bite his tyres. We obviously apologised profusely

for his bad behaviour and the guy just laughed and said he’d seen worse, after he obtained a drink from the bar he came and joined us on our table.

It turned out his name was Rick and he was a dog behaviourist. We talked about Jake and his problems, not that he really has any apart from his bike phobia. Then Rick put Jake through the paces. Took him for a short walk. He had him walking to heel, stopped him doing what he wanted and generally showed him who was boss. He was very good.

At the end of his drink he bid farewell and mounted his bike but before he pedalled off Jake said bye bye . .. by playfully biting his foot !!

It was Jake having the last word. As usual. So funny. 

Rick and Jake

When we awoke next morning we had to reverse out of the mooring as there wasn’t enough room to turn around. Manoeuvring a 62ft narrow boat backwards on a flowing river is easier to say than do, however it was completed with out running aground and/or wedging ourselves across the river. I was quite chuffed. Returning back along the river with the flow this time. On the way down because of the width and plenty of room we did run the engine up to 3200 rpm the fastest we have had her.

We phoned Frank and he again joined us on the lift and waved us good bye as we sailed off to the next chapter of our old age adventure. We are retracing our steps due to various canal closures. Heading back toward home now via Birmingham...Have to be back by end of September.. TTFN Over to the editor for the pictures and you never know a video. 

Trent and Mersey Canal

Continuing North.

After leaving Handley Park it was a steady cruise back along the Caldon canal, a right hand turn on to the Trent and Mersey again and straight away we were looking for a ‘filling station’. Down to half a tank of red diesel, I don’t like to get lower that this, incase it drags up any muck at the bottom of the tank.

We were passing the Black Prince hire company depot so thought we could re-fuel here. . .after struggling to get on to the mooring we were told ...sorry... we can’t refill you because...we have two boats going out this morning. . ..WHAT.??..

It takes a maximum of 10 minutes to fill the tank. They couldn’t be bothered more like it.

So, onwards towards the Harecastle Tunnel. Luckily enough we passed another boat yard who were more than happy to have our custom. £120.00 later we have a full fuel tank and a 5ltr can of engine oil served by a lovely lady.

The lake we had moored beside was called Westport Lake, sadly it had been on the national news the previous week. Three lads went into the water to cool off, tragically only two came out. A body was found two days later. So sad to see the tribute of flowers by the visitors centre, a life lost so young.

As we came into our chosen mooring spot we noticed a narrow boat called ‘Barge Inn’. .it was a floating mobile pub !!

As we checked exactly where we were on our new app on the phone (big brother is watching you) Jenny had down loaded it before we left Yelvertoft.

If you open it, press a marker on the page, it shows you exactly where you are using sat nav. If you zoom in it shows all the surrounding area. Shops and other services we need. As we surveyed the surrounding area it was decided to go ‘hunter gathering’ Hunting out the bargains and gathering the food needed.. We were only about ten minutes walk from Aldi. Our favourite store, so off Jenny went, complete with our trolley, she set out in brilliant sun shine, dressed in shorts and T-shirt to said supermarket. As she came out there was a cloud burst !!She arrived back at the boat absolutely soaked to the skin..

Did I laugh you might ask, …….Err actually ... Yes !! …..It was funny. However a hot shower and dry clothes she was soon back to normal.

We had planned to go and check out the floating pub but as it was a wet evening we stayed in and left it till the next day. A slow stroll down the tow path. We were greeted by a happy chappy with his head sticking out of the serving hatch just about level with our feet. Checked out the beer on offer, a local brewery call Titanic.. I thought that will go down well !!….Just don’t ask for ice.. It was sensible pricing, Jenny with a glass of white wine, me with a pint of local brew. Jake and Carly being fed treats out of the window after asking permission. We had a couple of hours in some lovely company. Some locals, just walking their dogs, other boaters moored near by...good conversation, who could ask for a better evening. Geoff and Wayne the owners do mobile shows and events. A new venture, I hope it works out for them they have the right attitude for hospitality. Yes I admit it ...we went back the next day..sadly spent all our spending money for the week in two days. Doh !!

Barge-Inn

Monday morning we set off towards the Harecastle Tunnel.

Last year when we returned from the top of the Shroppie canal we chickened out of passing through the Harecastle tunnel. We didn’t trust the engine then, but we do now.

Mooring up at the entrance, the CRT official came over and did a run down of the ‘do’s and don't s’. When you enter the tunnel, its one way so its only wide enough for one boat.

They leave two minutes between boats, keep to the middle, don’t go too slowly, don’t try to stand on the gunnel's or the roof. Mind you that would be impossible due to the height of the tunnel roof. In some places its only about 6 inches. I had to duck my head to stop me hitting the structure.

Passing though was uneventful (thankfully) however if we had of broken down, a long blast on our hooter would have alerted the authorities, we were timed in and out taking 40 to 45 minutes to complete the passage. It is 2962 yards long and pitch black (one and a half miles). The original tunnel(s) were complete at 1827 taking 3 years to dig out. There were two tunnels built, but the other tunnel collapsed due to underground mining works and subsidence. It was closed in 1973 or 1977 (conflicting information).

The Boggart !!….The tunnel is haunted !!!. . Now that's a surprise. Again there is conflicting information regarding this. According to legend, a headless woman has been seen as you enter the tunnel. Trouble is, it could be mixed up with another incident.

A lady by the name of Christiana Collins hired a couple of bargemen (and a boy) to take her to London. Slower, but more comfortable than horse and carriage also cheaper. .10/6d one-way.

However the boat men liked the alcohol too much, at a stay over one night, at Rugeley, she complained to a company representative regarding the men's behaviour but it was ignored. Sadly she was raped and murdered and her body was dumped at Hopwas, (near where we stayed the other week end).

The boat men were tried and hung for their crimes. The cabin boy went to jail.

Some wag has painted a skelton trying to get out of a hole in the wall as you enter the tunnel going North to South. That was the only thing I saw on our passage.

Entrance to Harecastle Tunnel

Friday the thirteenth passed with no incidents but I’m not superstitious (touch wood).

As we arrived at a local beauty spot my energy levels had dropped to emergency tank level so we moored up for the weekend. 3 to 4 hours a day moving seems to be about right. Jake and Carly can manage that amount of time in between squats and leg lifts without any problems. They must come first to us. They are loving our lifestyle, different back garden everyday, lots of new smells and other four legged friends.

A five day week it plenty, I like to have the weekends off, there's no rush, as long as we are back by October that's all that matters. Only need to make sure we have a TV signal so I can watch the F1 Grand Prix.

We continued on our travels through Red Bull where we did the bits we need to do a couple of times a week. Bog empty.. rubbish dump.. and water filling.

Red Bull service area

The next stop will be the village of Wheelock. When we dropped down the last lock in to the village a person was running towards us waving their arms about. This usually means ‘leave the lock gates open’ ‘we are coming through’ but the there wasn’t a boat, that we could see.

As we got closer, it turned out to be our friends Gail and Chris, on the way back from their excursion further up North. Had a pint with them in The Cheshire Cheese pub, but as they were with other friends we didn’t gate crash, although we did sit opposite them in the Italian restaurant that evening. I made the waiting staff laugh when I asked if they would move them ...because they were hassling us ..did explain later they were our friends.

Enough for now...to come next time...meeting up with old friends from Norfolk .. Frank and Susan..the ride on the Anderton lift...our trip on the Weaver... Jakes run in with a dog behaviourist ..and my birthday party.

The Caldon Canal Shropshire

Caldon Canal

After turning off the Trent and Mersey canal we eventually managed to get on to the water point and refreshed our water supply. Mr and Mrs Obnoxious had moved off so we decided to cancel the trip and turn around in case we ran into them again but..

the workers from the Canal and River trust had moored two of their work boats in the arm used for turning.. so we had no choice but to carry on up.

The canal was originally built as a link from the Wedgwood factory at Etrutria to Uttoxeter designed and built by James Brindley in 1779 consisting of 21 lock and going to Froxhall as the first stop but eventually to Uttoxeter. After rising up the first lock (a staircase lock) we soon were moving out through the suburbs of Stoke on Trent. 

Staircase Lock

The main industry here is or rather was, pottery making and two of the old kilns are still standing. The factories have been pulled down and new flats and homes have been built.

It looks quite a good area to live in, new properties and recreational areas. What the planners had done was leave the old kilns in place around the new. It looks really pleasing to the eye. 

Kilns

Through a couple of lift bridges and on to Handley Park for the night. Lots of youngster were there, family's with toddlers. The tow path was on the starboard side so we had people walking by the open ‘swan hatch’ one little lad stuck his head in and shouted ‘HELLO’ it was funny his dad looked a bit apologetic but we didn’t mind. Its all part of our lifestyle. All the sports equipment was being used. . . tennis courts . . .5 a side football, netball . . .also cricket nets. Not to mention the joggers. With all the youngsters we were a bit worried about trouble after dark but, as the light faded it went dead quite until the dawn chorus woke us up. 

Moored at Henley Park

Moving on the next morning we were realising the canal waters were quite low, if we were to close to the edge, the boat leaned a bit as she rode the silt edge. One holiday boat came towards us and was a bit worried, moved over more than they needed too and ...promptly ran aground.

We love the holiday season, watching all the new canal boat hirers making all the mistakes we made in the beginning...laughing with them , NOT at them, cuz we all had to learn.

We help if we can, also if they want help but some think they know what to do because they have seen the video supplied by the hire company or they have had a 20 minute training session. We leave this sort too it.

We have been doing the locks and cruising for over 4 years now and not a day goes by without learning some thing new.

Approaching a very narrow and shallow part of the canal it was a bit awkward to say the least. It was under a bridge as well!! . . .When suddenly, the bow of a 70ft hotel narrow boat towing another 70ft butty boat (for non boaty people a butty boat is one without an engine towed by the front boat but steered by a separate skipper) but wait for it . . . .

some clown was trying to over take !!!

Sadly the hotel boat ended up aground with a member of the crew push it off the sand bar with the barge pole. . they let two boats past before refloating and continuing on their way. We had a chat to passengers on the boat who looked as if they were enjoying themselves.

We continued non stop to the end of the canal noting the places of interest on the way up because we would be turning around and retracing our steps in our case waves.

The canal has been disused for years and part the goes to Uttoxeter is now a railway line. There is a tunnel at the end which we wouldn't get thorough so we turned early and headed back

In the working years we were told up to 100 boats per day would ply their trade carrying flint and vast quantities of limestone. We noticed a flint mill on the way up and stopped on the way back as it had a 48 hour mooring outside. It was free entrance and donations if you wanted too. A very knowledgeable guy came over and welcomed us and told us about the mill. It is still in working order although one of the two water wheels was being restored at the time we were there. They were part of a gang of a few locals who maintained the old mill also a millers cottage on the site. We were allowed to go inside, 2 up 2 down with a small scullery on the back. Opposite was a bigger house by the canal which an old lady of 98 lived. She was born in the old millers cottage and has live all her life in the area. The water wheels are turned by the river running beside the canal, every so often the river floods and the marks on the cottage were about 3 foot up the walls. However the river has never flooded the other big house. 

Flint Mill

Flint Mill

The sound of an old steam train whistle was heard over the weekend. Love that smell of smoke and steam. We tend to moor up over Saturdays and Sundays, we aren’t in any rush. We had a 20 minute walk back along the tow path to the local hostelry. The Boat. . we were not impressed. It looked lovely from the outside but when approaching the bar its normal in bars to be greeted with, hello, how can I help you? ...not a look and a yes !

The landlord looked as if he wasn’t a happy man and the barmaid didn’t smile.

Beer was served in plastic glasses outside. No food ..over a weekend (?).

but if there was, a beefburger would have set you back . . £8.50 that's a bit steep in my books.

One customer had left a comment on the pubs web site commenting on the prices being quite high the landlord had come back at him regarding the amount of rent he had to pay £1000.00 a week...with his attitude he won’t be there long, he needs to welcome people if he’s going to make a profit.

One of my fears is one day we may come across a calamity of some sort. We have seen a body of a sheep float past this week and on the Monday as we returned back to the Trent and Mersey canal we had to stop a bit earlier. If we have a busy day or a few locks we run out of energy we call it a day.

On the Monday we had planned to return to the Handley Park again as we had enjoyed it. However stopping early was divine perhaps.

At 7.30 in the morning the body of a man was recovered from the canal where we would have moored. Not sure what happened but there were no suspicious circumstances.

So sad. Ok enough for now...in the next episode The Trent and Mersey...Harecastle tunnel and the Floating bar ...The Barge inn. Cancelling the peak district (for now).

Take care …

Lastly a short video of  the Caldon Canal

Continuing our travels

Continuing our Travels north.

Well blog time again the cruise season is going so fast. After our friends Gail and Chris left us we continued at our pace. They are early start and early finish. We start ...when we feel like it and finish when we feel like it. They are meeting up with friends further on so needed to be at a place at a certain time.

Leaving Atherstone we continued on our way. We couldn’t have asked for better weather, it is beautiful. It’s been decked in shorts for comfort. The only problem is keeping the furry kids cool.

Jake and Carly have had a rough time. Carly must, when travelling, sit at my feet,

Jake is happy moving between below decks to sticking his head out of his little port hole on the gate. Call it the port hole because its on the left hand side.

Jenny bought some doggie cooling blankets, they are really good. Like chamois leather, you soak them in water and cover the dog, as they dry out it cools the dog . . . Brilliant

But they were off their food and were very sick, unable to keep their food down.

Jake with his cool blanket.

Chilling on the deck

Coming to a few locks we dropped down in the last lock and when the gates opened,

I couldn’t get out. There was an old fuel boat trying to overtake a boat moored on the side, not realising there was a queue and they were waiting to get into the lock. .

Three into one don’t go. It was quite funny as we all sorted ourselves out. One (the fuel boat) reversed, so I couldn’t..we all saw the funny side of it and started laughing. Don’t ya love it when it all goes wrong. Canal people in the main are so laid back.

Up through Tamworth and had a few days off at Hopwas. Jenny was feeling energetic and decided to repaint the starboard side of the boat. Monday morning and off again, refreshed, well I was, Jenny had done a great job with the painting, I’m now on tenter hooks in case I scrape it ...

Our planned route was up the Coventry canal to Fradley junction. There is a lovely pub there affectionately known as the Mucky Duck, alias The White Swan goes back many hundreds of years we had a few beers and a lovely meal there.

The Mucky Duck....

Next morning leaving at our usual time about 10.30ish the sun was out, the engine was performing wonderfully the birds were singing and everything was perfect. Thinking how blessed we were...then suddenly the 10.30 express Virgin train to somewhere or other went past at about 120mph !! ….Talk about jump !! I nearly jumped overboard. I just didn’t hear it coming . Putting it politely I nearly had a bowel movement !!... Lots of railway lines run parallel with the canals, but if you don’t keep an eye out for them, it has its consequences. 

Next stop Rugeley for a major shop, we were running low on provisions. I.e. wine and beer.. . In the morning, as we were preparing to cast off, an almighty bang was heard, as we sailed past the pub at the end of the tow path there was a plume of thick black smoke rising from behind the Tesco’s store we had shopped at. We thought at first it was the petrol station had gone up in flames. It turned out later it was an explosion at a wood yard nearby. Destroyed a car, lorry and a caravan. Nobody hurt which is the main thing.

Weston on Trent and Stone were passed, we had plan a night stop over at Stone but by the time we arrived there all the moorings had been taken, so we ended up out in the country again. Our next stop, is Barleston. The pub there is called The Plume of Feathers. It is owned by the actor Neil Morrisey. So we though we would give it a try.

On entry it is a light and airy pub. Very clean and the staff welcoming. I had a laugh with Calum the bar man and pulled his leg like I do. He was genuinely interested in our floating travels, coming over to ask questions from behind the bar. We checked the menu and Jenny ordered Mussels and Frites with crusty bread and I order a rump steak with a blue cheese sauce. The mussels10 out of 10 ….Mine…. I sent it back... the steak wasn’t edible. So tough. The manager was very apologetic and suggested I didn’t have another one as it would be from the same batch. So I had a chicken dish covered in a spicy sauce. That was good. I felt quite sorry for the staff, because it was a good place otherwise. Let down by a bad butcher.

Before leaving Barleston and heading north again, ‘the bosun’ as I call her, had been plotting us a course when we realised that the Wedgwood factory was near here so we found a twenty minute walk took us to the factory and museum. I think Jenny enjoyed it more than me, it was like a big china shop, but without the canals, their business would not have prospered. Moving china and potteries by horse and wagon caused a lot of damaged and broken stock, but on the canal a barge can carry 40 tonnes and it not subject to shocks as a wagon wheel is. One cart carried half a ton and was slow. Barge was faster and gentle. 

Wedgewood punch bowl set only.....£10000.00!!!

Wedgewood Dragon made from plates and cups.

The majority of people we meet have been great but...sadly we ran into some people who were not the nicest. They wanted to go faster than us and tried to intimidate us following so close. and when behind at a lock were taking the ‘wee wee’ out of us and laughing at us. Not directly, but you knew where it was directed.

We pulled over and let them pass. Also the hot weather was playing havoc with the engine. She was running hot and losing oil pressure on tick over and a green light was flashing .. I did panic for a bit but after a half hour rest all was back to normal and we continued.

We had planned to go straight into the Harecastle tunnel, but being a bit low on drinking water we needed to top up ..empty the toilet and dump the rubbish. So we turned a virtual 180 degrees onto the Caldon Canal. Only to find Mr and Mrs Obnoxious and co, (they were in two boats) to be moored on the services.!!!

So another change of plan was made. Services... then turn around and back on to the Trent and Mersey canal and though the tunnel...WRONG !!!

the idiots from CRT had moored two of their working boats in the place for turning, we had no choice but to do the Caldon canal as we were to long.

But enough for now..The Caldon canal is a great experience so follow this blog ..coming to a computer or smart phone near you soon..XXX

TTFN 

and a short video....

First leg to the Peaks.

27^th June 2018

Well, we left Yelvertoft on the 6^th of June on the way eventually, to go to the Peak District. Turning left out of the marina and at a steady 2000 rpm from the old BMC engine we traversed a well cruised length of canal, the Leicester Arm. At those revs the engine is comfortable, the boat running at 3 mph using the sat nav on our phone as a speedometer we can see all that is going on about us.

We thought that going over same canals we would get bored, but you would be surprised how much the scenery changes in a few weeks. The lambs were growing up, the hay is higher, the corn is swaying in the wind. Why in our youth didn’t we appreciate the beauty all around us??

I believe it was Oscar Wilde who said that youth is wasted on the young..how true it is ….although it has been attributed to George Bernard Shaw as well I believe.

Passing the next marina down the canal….Crick... there were a few boats moored on the opposite bank. When you leave a mooring its good practise too, as in a car, look before you pull out. Some clown didn’t as we drew close to him...straight out, not looking, I didn’t have to take avoiding action as I was going a bit slower, however did drop the revs a bit.

As he went past he looked a bit sheepish, I think he realised what he’d done.

The ironic part was the name of his vessel….Narrow Miss…….It was …

The first tunnel we meet is the Crick tunnel. As we approached the same, I remembered to remove my glasses because of the brilliant darkening tint. When you go into the dark entrance with tinted specs you can’t see a thing until your eyes adjust.

There was a boat on her way out so we approached very slowly. Jake and Carly below decks for safety reasons. I was as close to the right hand side as I could be too give her plenty of room, when suddenly there was an almighty bang. I thought for a minute she had hit us, but there wasn’t a shudder down the boat you normally get with a collision.

We looked back and the other boat by this time was stretched right across the canal her nose buried into the bank. I think she must have hit some thing under the water line as she came out of the tunnel, luckily there was a boat behind us so she had some help. There are some sad people who think its good to drop rubbish into the canals of this country. Safes, push bikes, motor bikes, all sorts of metal work. Supermarket trolleys. Etc.

They can do a lot of expensive damage…. feral kids who believe they can do what they want and get away with it. So sad.

The rest of the trip to Lime Farm marina was totally uneventful. Watching the wild life in the evenings. Found out moorhens like corn flakes, also they put their chick’s first was so cute watching them feed the young ...Jenny was a bit miffed as I shared her breakfast with our feathered neighbours.

Not in a rush we had a night at the top of the Hillmorton flight then on the Sunday we had a wander down to the cafe for a naughty iced bun and a lovely cup of coffee.

We had passed here many times but never stopped. Had an overnight at Newbold, a couple of beers in the Barley Mow and my usual hug with the lovely landlady Kelly and a good hand shake from Simon her husband.

On the Tuesday we arrived at Lime Farm Marina, ready for John to do the couple of jobs Jenny had asked him to do.

We are just about getting used to the different time zones on the canals.

We have had so far GMT.. you all know that one. BST when the clocks change ...and there is canal time, which can vary depending which canal you are on and any other circumstances which may alter it.

The one we are just getting used too is Brady time..

We were booked into the marina for the jobs on Tuesday and we are totaly ignored by everybody, to quote Steve one of the guys ...didn’t know you were coming.

Eventually, when its time to go home John turns up, just as I'm cooking evening meal, to do one of the jobs. Similar the next day they are all busy and we are fitted in at the end of the day..reason one day they are off to drive E type Jags and the Saturday he’s off to get a new pickup. Joking apart he’s done us a good job and reasonable price so we are all ready to go. John and his lovely wife Sarah have a good attitude to life I believe they work to live NOT live to work. So glad we have found them. Saved us a load of money with their honesty, and their work is good. Also I get a lovely hug when we leave as well...Sarah that is . . not John, I’m glad to say.

Peak district here we come…...planned a stop over at Hawksbury Junction on the Saturday and a meet with my daughter on the Sunday. Sadly she had to cancel due to other family commitments so we pulled our pins and moved on to Marston Junction.

After we stopped for the night just sat down opened a beer the phone rang.

Hi Bob ‘where are you’ the voice asked …..on the boat I said ….It was our friends from Yelvertoft and they had just moored at Hawksbury thinking we were there.

Next morning they caught us up for coffee and a chat. We decided to carry on and have an overnight at Atherstone. There is a lovely local pub in the High street, so we had a good natter until dinner time. They are early starters, so Jenny waved them off out of the window as they slid past.. Me ?? I was fast asleep still. Well that takes us up too the 20^th of June. Jenny has just gone to Tesco for supplies. Watch this place for the tails of the old age travellers.

Bye bye for now.. XX

…..okay, he forgot or purposely left it out, I call him goldfish brain, he-he, made me laugh...cruising along in open countryside a farmer was watering his field, the hose swung over the canal, I managed to get inside but Bob was left outside….as per picture...

and lastly a short film of the canal we have passed through.

June 2018, our life update....

June Blog

Where is this year going to!! June already and we haven’t started cruising yet !!

As I write we are still in Yelvertoft marina...We are both getting Marina crazy we need to get out and on our way to the Peak district.

Jenny as always has put the time to good use, re-painting the engine room while the weather has been dry and warm. A good coat of anti rust then a top coat has made it look really good. Not bad for an old one (boat that is not Jenny !!)

Me ? What have it been up to?? I’ve been my usual lazy self just pottering about doing little jobs and the daily chores as required. Bog empting, rubbish dumping, cooking and washing up. This helps Jenny ., well that's my excuse.

I have been experiencing extreme toothache, and a few wobbly teeth for a few months.

I finally plucked up courage to find a dentist. I have a fear of these people going back to a very bad experience with the school practitioner in Northampton. Having woken up while two teeth were being pulled out when I was about 7 years old. The pain and blood I’ll never forget.

Ploughing through a list on the internet we found a local dentist who is taking new NHS patients, well I say local, its at Daventry about 10 miles away.

Other dentists are not doing NHS just private, so was lucky to find one. Full check up revealed 5 teeth beyond repair, rotten and gums missing. X-ray and full ‘invasive clean’ was recommended. Spread out over a month…. each Monday morning for a few weeks . They pulled 1 tooth on the first examination, then all 4 in one hit the next week ..ouch !!..

I looked like a blooming hamster with a pouch full of nuts. Swollen face and so sore.

Then the fitting and making of dentures is now under way !!!...Dohhh. So the stay here at Yelvertoft has had to be extended.

The weather over the last month has been a bit changeable, on the whole it has been quite warm, but also with heavy atmosphere. We had a terrific thunder storm one night, I was ‘stirred’ by a very bright flash, followed by a roll of thunder. Carly and Jake were very frightened according to Jenny ...me, I turned over and went back to sleep. The storm went on for 2 hours, lightning, thunder, torrential rain, I missed it.

It was a shame really because I love to watch lighting. Reminds me of the free light shows we used to watch when we lived in Gorleston, looking out of our lounge window straight out to sea. The only thing I miss about the apartment !!

Living an outside lifestyle has always been a big part of our life so we decided to have a BBQ as we hadn’t had one for months.

Invited next door (Gregg and Jane) and a couple we have pal’d up with (Gail and Chris) who live over the other side of the marina also Jim and Jan from the local chapel came as well. It was a lovely night, warm and still. We had a good laugh and I managed to remember how to BBQ without burning it !! Chris bough his guitar over and I dug mine out and we murdered a few old songs. Murdered being the operative word, for some reason the old Eko didn’t want to stay in tune. Think it might require a re string. Mind you it getting on for 50 years old. One sold for over £250.00 on E bay a few months ago.

As readers of my blogs know we had to come back to the marina to celebrate a special day, the owners of the boat next door on our pontoon were getting married. Gregg and his partner Jane, after a horrible divorce decided to try again and were married at Cathorpe Manor a lovely old Georgian house a few miles up the road from here.

I actually splashed out on a new silk shirt. . hand made in Thialand. Sadly it arrived two weeks after the wedding, but it does look good and fits well.

We were a bit apprehensive about attending the wedding because we didn’t know anybody except the bride and groom, however as soon as we walked in and were introduced to some of the family it was really good, felt at home and the day was beautiful.

Jane walked down the aisle with her son and sang a love song to Gregg it was so romantic.

Our neighbours are, to say the least, very accident prone or to put it in their words. . clumsy. Just after we moved onto the pontoon we invited them to dinner, they both like hot chilli concarni and that is my signature dish (well one of).

The room on a narrow boat is very limited so one has to be careful. The first thing Jane did was, when trying to sit down, she managed to knock some of the decorations off the shelf by the table, talk about looking embarrassed. We laughed as it wasn’t a problem. THEN….Gregg sat down there was an almighty crack.. the chair promptly collapsed, the main hinge had given way and was completely useless. What an introduction to a new friendship.

There weren’t any wedding speeches apart from Gregg to say thank you to all the wedding guests and for the gifts etc. During the talk he mentioned the incident at ours and the mishaps and about being accident prone. He then made a comment that he hoped the mansion would still be standing in the morning as they were staying the night. To which everyone laughed.

Next morning as we sat on the boat having breakfast a TXT came in ...From Gregg at the Manor house. . the pair of them had just left their room on way to breakfast, as he closed the fire door on the corridor there was an almighty crash behind them and when they looked back, about 10ft of coving had fell off the ceiling and blocked the passage way. , we couldn’t stop laughing. It could only happen to them.

Sadly they have just sold their boat and are buying a lovely house in Wales. Haven’t known them long but its been fun having them as part of our lives for the last couple of years. The boat will be moving to its new mooring next week.

Well enough waffle for this blog. . Jenny has just made me a beef sandwich using up the rest of the Sunday joint. With luck should get my new gnashers tomorrow morning and then we should be away for this years cruise. That is if we can find the canals that are still open. .The Middlewich section is closed due to the canal collapsing into the valley. The locks at Marple are closed due to the lock walls collapsing I wish CRT would get on and do the repairs and maintenance that the old system needs…. otherwise we can’t live our dream.. Bye for now.

Over to the editor for editing, sorry no photos as not been anywhere yet….