and Have a Visitor
I'm sorry there's been rather a long gap between postings. We've had a busy time, as you will read.
Monday, 9th April
Today we travelled just a short distance along the North Oxford Canal and moored at Brinklow, as we wanted to do a walk around Easenhall. It was Easter Monday and the weather was glorious. Easter this year has been so warm, almost like summer.
We started the walk in Easenhall village. I've never been there before, and it really is a pretty place. There is a listed barn and some very pretty cottages. The best thing about the village is that there are no main roads running through it, so it's quiet and peaceful. 
There's also a good pub there, called the Golden Lion. It was a delightful walk, and we had a strange coincidence as we were checking on the map for the right route. Two walkers came along and we discussed the way with them. As we were talking, the woman said to Trev, "I think I know you," and Trev said he thought he knew her too. It turned out Trev had taught her daughter about twenty years ago! We finished the walk with our new found friends, and enjoyed their company.
Tuesday, 10th April
We went on to Rugby today and filled up with fuel at Yates's. It always used to be one of the cheaper places to buy diesel, but today it was 55p per litre--ouch! Then we shopped at Tesco, and bought so much my arms ended up touching the ground by the time we got back to the boat. We continued on along the N. Oxford Canal, up the three Hillmorton Locks and eventually arrived in Braunston. There were so many boats, we couldn't find anywhere to moor and prowled up and down the canal. Then someone moved on and we took their place.
Wednesday, 11th April
Today it was our turn to return some of the hospitality we have received and friends from Nuneaton came out to spend the day with us. 
We took them for a cruise and had a picnic along the way. moored right out in the countryside, with magnificent views across Warwickshire. Warwickshire is such a flat county, you don't need to be very high to get good views. When they left, we moored up in Braunston again, and this time there was plenty of room.
Thursday, 14th April
We took the boat in to Calcutt marina today, near Wigram's Turn, as we are going away for the weekend on a mixture of business and pleasure. We stayed with friends and wined and dined and generally had a jolly good time!
Monday, 16th April
Now we have to get a move on. Whilst I returned the hire car to Leaminton Spa, Trev took the boat up through the three Calcutt locks and filled up with water. We're having our bottom blacked at Welford, on the Leicester Branch of the Grand Union. We were expecting to have two days to get there, but we had a 'phone call from Les who's doing the job, asking if we could get there for Tuesday lunchtime. We have a long way to go-- miles, tunnels and locks.
Then we turned left on to the Grand Union at Wigram's Turn and along to Braunston. At Braunston we had a flight of six locks and then a 2000 yard tunnel. (This is where I go down below, put the lights on and draw the curtains. I don't like tunnels! Then we turned left at Norton Junction on to the Leicester Branch of the GU, and eventually went up the Watford Flight of locks. These are manned by a lockie, as the traffic has to be controlled in each direction. The flight wasn't too busy and we were soon up and on our way again.
At Crick, there is a nother tunnel, after which we met Trevor Whitling and he did our Boat Safety Certificate. This was the first time we had had it done. They're done every four years, and our boat is now four years old. We passed--hooray! Then we carried on to moor up. We had had a long day, and were within a few miles of the junction with the Welford Arm. I love this stretch of the Grand Union, even though it is blighted for a while by the noise of the M1. It is very rural and pretty.
Tuesday, 17th April
We completed the last few miles, and the shallow lock on the Welford Arm and arrived at the boatshed about eleven o'clock. Les was there and we went straight in to the dry dock. The stop planks were put in place and the pump started up to take the water out of the dry dock. In a couple of hours, we were resting on the railway sleepers on the bottom of the dry dock. We stayed on the boat the first night, but then we had things to do! On Wednesday, my friend Catharine picked me up and we went to Matlock to meet another friend for lunch. On the way back we picked up Trev and we all went to stay with Catharine in Solihull for the night, because the next day, Thursday, Trev was giving a talk about living on a narrowboat to the Kenilworth group of the U3A. You don't know what the u3a is? Then have a look here:
Click here to read about u3a
We got back to the boat on Friday, and I had to have a good clean up, because we have a special visitor coming to stay today: my brother. He has visited the boat for a few hours, but today he's coming to stay for eight nights. He lives in Spain, near Malaga, and his wife was going to visit her relations in Scotland, so he thought he would visit his! The transport links from Spain worked so well. He flew in to Birmingham airport, caught a train to Birmingham New Street, changed trains for Leicester, changed again for Market Harborough and then caught a bus to Welford. I waited for him at the bus stop, on tenterhooks that he might not be on the bus and wondering what I would do if he weren't. When the bus came along I put my hand out to stop it, determined that it should not pass by without me scrutinising the passengers to make sure he didn't miss the stop! He was the only passenger on the bus as it happened. It was so good to see him, and he was full of praise for the transport system. We only had to walk fifty yards to the boat, which had come out of the dry dock that morning, looking very smart--it won't last! Sadly we shall soon knock it about as we go through the locks.
Saturday, 21st April
Today we set off from Welford, down to the junction with the Leicester Branch and travelled as far as Yelvertoft, as we have friends who live in Leicester coming to see us tonight. We had a barbecue in the afternoon. We lit the barbecue and put a chair out for the barbecuer. Then the man on the boat in front let his dog off the boat and, of course, the first thing it did was to relieve itself on our chair. Yuck. Earlier that morning, I had been slobbered on by a Boxer dog. I don't like dogs all that much any way, but especially not when they relieve themselves on my furniture or wipe their chops on my trousers......................
However we had the barbecue and then our friends arrived with bananas and strawberries and a box of Indian savouries such as bajees, samosas and other such delicious things. By the time we'd eaten all of that we felt fit to drop!
Sunday, 22nd April
We set off before ten a.m. and went through Crick Tunnel, just under two thousand yards long and joined the queue to go down the Watford flight. There was a grey wagtail nesting in the lock gate! Every time the gate opened or shut, the nest went with it, with the hen bird sitting on the eggs! I suppose it was a safe place, but I wonder how she will teach those fledglings to fly; they'll only get the one chance to get it right! We waited about forty minutes to go down, and it took three-quarters of an hour to do the flight. Then it was on to Norton Junction, turn right on to the main GU, through the tunnel and down the Braunston Flight. We moored in the pound just below the Admiral Nelson, and, after we had eaten, we went to meet Carol & Fred from the Boat Shop in The Old Plough for a drink. Have a look at Carol & Fred's website:
Click here to see The Boat Shop
Monday, 23rd April--St. George's Day
We went down the last two locks and turned in to Braunston marina, as today we have an appointment with tradline, the fender suppliers. We have to have a new fender at the back, get the front one sorted out as it's rather droopy (!) and buy a couple of new side fenders. As you can see, running a boat is not cheap! Five hundred and forty pounds to have the bottom blacked (that's every two years) one hundred and twenty pounds for the safety certificate--every four years, new fenders--one hundred and forty pounds--as and when needed. I think I shall have to go back to work! Perish the thought. Here is the fender makers website:
Click here to see the Fender Maker's Shop
It's an Aladdin's cave, with so many fascinating things for sale.
Trevor and John walked up to the village shop and got supplies, then we moved out of the marina and moored along the towpath, as we're meeting friends for lunch. Sheridan and Ron came up from Bedfordshire to have lunch with us at the Admiral Nelson, and we spent a most congenial couple of hours together, enjoying an excellent steak. (We had one each, we didn't share!) After they left we went on to Midland Chandlers to buy a couple of boat bits--more money!
We had just set off along the Puddlebanks towards Napton, when we spied 'Cleo' moored up along there. Jackie and Clive are friends of ours who live on Cleo, so we stopped again! This time we had tea and cakes on board their boat. My brother spoke to his wife later in the evening and told her that on average we meet someone we know about every two and a half miles! We do know lots of people now, whom we have met through our way of life and it's so nice to meet up with them as we go along.
Eventually we moored up at one of our favourite places, Fox's Gate near Bridge 100.
Tuesday, 24th April
it rained in the night and the morning was cool, but the sun came out and it was fine for travelling. We went on to Napton and up the Napton Flight. It's good to have my brother on board, he's good company and is very useful doing locks too! Trev rode ahead and set the locks, John helped and I steered. We filled up with water at Marston Doles at the top of the flight and then moved on to moor in another of our favourite places, near bridge 130. The views from here are wonderful. It was a lovely evening, the washing dried out of doors and John taught me to play crib.
Wednesday, 25th April
We travelled as far as Fenny Compton and stopped to fill up with water, and it was here that my brother made a suggestion--we could all have a drink at The Wharf pub. Trev and I never stop at pubs at lunchtime, but today we had two drinks and then set off. We moored up near Bridge 143. Where we moored tonight was important for two reasons: Trev wanted good tv reception to watch 'The Apprentice' tonight, and we wanted to go to the Museum of Bygones at Claydon tomorrow. And it was here that the full effect of lunchtime drinking took its toll--we fell asleep for ages! I surfaced in time to cook dinner, and then it was time for 'The Apprentice'. I'm not very enthusiastic about it. I've grown to like Sir Alan Sugar more as the series has progressed, but I really can't bear the hyped up, self-important young people who take part, and I can't understand why they have to use so much bad language. I would have thought a sign of strength would be to be able to deal with situations in a calm and polite way. But may be I'm out of touch!
Thursday, 29th April
We walked up to the Museum of Bygones in Claydon this morning, about three-quarters of a mile from the canal. It's a fascinating collection of anything and everything from the last hundred years or so. As my brother said, it's quite disconcerting when you can remember using things which are now in a museum. It's located in a farmyard and in the farm buildings, and includes an area where little shops have been set up with all the artefacts of the trade--cobblers, butchers, photographers, grocers, etc. There are some wonderful old farm machines and engines, and also a good coffee shop. They don't have a website, but there is a 'phone number:
01295 690258, for details of opening hours. Do go if you get chance. The woman who runs it, Catherine Fox, is charming.
Then we went on down the Claydon Flight, and through another three locks, to moor at Cropredy. In one of the lock gates there was another grey wagtail with a nest. There were four eggs in the nest and the mother was hopping about anxiously as we came through the lock, as soon as we had gone she went back on the nest. In the evening we went for a meal at The Red Lion in Cropredy, and Catharine came down from Solihull to join us and see my brother. The last time she had seen John was about forty-seven years ago!
Friday, 27th April
We went on down to Banbury to moor up so that John could catch the train back to Birmingham Airport tomorrow. It was quite a novelty to be in a town again and I enjoyed having a good shop, whilst Trev and John visited Tooley's Boatyard and the Town Museum. The mooorings at Banbury are really good, right in the town centre. In the evening John treated us to a Thai meal.
Saturday, 28th April
Sadly all good things come to an end, and today John caught a train to Birmingham Airport. We were sorry to see him go. We'd had good fun and he had been easy to entertain. We carried on along the Oxford Canal and moored up alongside Somerton Common. It was an interesting thought that whilst we had travelled ten miles and a few locks, John had travelled several thousand miles and got home to Spain!
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