Saturday, 19th April
The swifts are back--or are they swallows? I can never remember which is which. However, they were flying overhead today. The way the weather is, they would have done better to have stayed in Spain or North Africa, or wherever they spend the winter. We certainly had a cold and tiring day, the weather just doesn't improve. We went through Pilling Floodlock, which wasn't chained open, I wonder why?

We travelled on through Normanton-on-Stour and arrived at Barrow-on-Soar Lock, where a young boy of about nine showed me how to do the lock! Then we went through Mountsorrel, where there is a lovely old railway bridge, though there is no railway now, and through the lock there. The countryside is very pretty, but I don't think I agree with Peirson's rating of it being in the same league as the Nene and the Avon. The canal and river take it in turn here as the navigation channel.

We were getting nearer to Leicester, and this showed. There was a lot of rubbish in the water and on the banks, mostly plastic bottles and bags. Sadly they don't sink but just keep bobbing along. The waterway is still pretty here, with a lot of lakes and ponds along the sides. We started to look for somewhere to moor before we got too close to Leicester. The last thing we wanted to do was to moor up in the city. Sadly it has a bad reputation for attacks on boaters. Whether this is justified or not I don't know, but we'd heard it so many times, we didn't want to test the veracity of the story.

There was nowhere we could moor and we were getting ever closer to the city when luckily we came to a marina, Raynsway Marina. We went in and they found a space for us and we felt a lot better. Trev fetched us a Chinese take away and we spent a peaceful evening, girding our loins for the terrors of Leicester tomorrow!!

Sunday, 20th April
An early start today. We want to get through Leicester and out the other side to moor up in the country tonight. But also I want to visit a fabric warehouse where material for my patchwork is half price or less. I'm going to make a quilt for my friend Cherry and wanted to buy the material. So we waded our way through the rubbish and oil slick at Birstall Lock, passed the derelict warehouses with broken windows and holes in the roof, and went through Belgrave Lock. We needed to moor up at Limeklin Lock for me to go to the warehouse. Just before we got there, the prop seized up. We pulled the boat into the side and whilst I braved the terrors of crossing the ringroad, Trev stripped to the waist and went into the prop to remove elastic and plastic and heaven knows what else. It took me about an hour and a half to get there and back, by which time Trev had had a shower and was taking the boat through Limekiln Lock.

On we went and the area got no better. The canal was really disgusting here. At one lock the boat grounded and I couldn't move forward. I reversed and tried again, and, giving it full throttle managed to scrape over whatever was lurking in the depths. Honestly, this must be the sort of area that Gollum lived in in 'The Hobbit'. On another occasion one of the lock gates was completely stuck and wouldn't move, but as these are wide locks, we opened the other gate and went in.

At North Lock, Trev leapt off to set the lock and I hovered. But the prop was choked again, and I had to hoot the horn for Trev to come back. Off came the shirt, down the prop he went and this time he brought out an anorak! I went up to set the lock, and a man came out of the little teashop to help me. Wasn't that nice? It quite restored our faith in mankind, well Leicester mankind any way!

On again, and now we were out of the worst of it and the countryside began to reappear. But Leicester hadn't finished with us yet! At a bridge, a pair of eyes under a woolly hat peered over at us, and then a barrage of sticks and stones hailed down on us. The 'boy' who did it was at least fourteen, but obviously going on about eight. Still no damage done, and now our boat is five years old, we're not quite so possessive. And, as a final fling, we had one more prop incident, when Trev had to go down the weed hatch and what did he find? Another anorak. He said he's thinking of starting a boutique!!

At last we were out of it and back in the countryside. We moored up in a quiet spot and were glad to stop. It had been a long day; thirteen miles and seventeen locks.

Monday, 21st April
A much better day today all round. There was a keen wind early on which made steering interesting, but by lunchtime it began to die down and the sun was quite warm. At Kilby, we were back on 'familiar territory' in that we have done this stretch before. We stopped to take on water, but didn't fill up as another boat was going our way and we could share the locks with it. We did the next six locks with them, and those were the first locks where we've had help since we joined the wide locks at Stenson. It helped us on our way, and we did the next six on our own. Then we went through Saddington Tunnel--880 yards--and moored up in a lovely spot where we moored a couple of years ago with friends Jane & Pete when they came to stay for a weekend. The countryside on this stretch is delightful. South Leicestershire is an undiscovered rural dream, quite flat but rolling green fields, little villages and very tranquil. Trev was going to do an engine service here, so he got organised, took everything off the back deck, got the boards up, emptied the engine room and then discovered he hadn't got an oil filter! Heigh ho.

> Tuesday, 22nd April
We left around 10.00 and did the three miles to Foxton, where we moored up and filled up with water. Then we moved around the corner, ready to do the Foxton flight of ten locks--two staircases of five, with a space to pass between each set. Before one starts however, one has to find the lockie, and of course he was at the top! However, he said we could start straight away so I went back to tell Trev only to find he had met Trish, a fellow boater who was at Llangollen with us the winter before last. We had a quick chat but had to get going up the flight. It took us about an hour to get to the top, and we were quite pleased with our progress.

There were no more locks now until the Watford flight and we cruised along for miles enjoying the sunshine, the peace and quiet, the lock free travelling and the pretty countryside. We were hoping to moor at Yelvertoft, but there was no room, so we conitnued on to Crick to moor. In the evening, a friend of Trev's, Alan, came and they went for a drink.

Wednesday, 23rd April. St. George's Day
First thing this morning was a trip through Crick Tunnel--1528 yards-- and then the drop down Watford Locks. These locks are right by the M1--Watford Gap Services, in fact you can nip through the hedge and get yourself a burger if you wish! There is a staircase of four, and three separate locks. Again, they are supervised by a lock keeper, and where was he this time? At the very bottom! So down I went, got permission to start, and then back up to tell Trev. This time he hadn't found himself a new woman! We were down these locks in half an hour, aren't we doing well? And now we were coming to the end of the Leicester Branch of the Grand Union. A couple of miles and at Norton Junction we joined the main line of the Grand Union which goes from Birmingham to London.

What did we think of this new area of waterways? From Fradley Junction to Kilby was all new to us, and we enjoyed it all, even the Leicester bit. It was good to do a new stretch, there aren't that many left for us to explore. I don't think we'd do it again in a hurry, but it was an experience.

We hoped we would be able to moor up at Norton Junction, though that was pure fantasy really, as we have only managed to get in there once before. The situation wasn't helped by four BW work boats being moored up there too. So we dropped down through the first lock and found a nice spot to moor for the night. We wanted to be in this area as Cherry's niece, Abigail, who lives nearby, is coming to fetch some things from the boat to take to Cherry. We went for a drink in the New Inn on the locks, but found it rather disappointing--the dreaded music was thumping away. But I did read something interesting on the wall in the pub. There is a can called a Buckby can, which boaters used to use for their water. They kept them on the roof of the boat and they were gaily painted in the traditional canal pattern. Apparently, they were painted by Matilda, the niece of a much earlier landlord of the pub. He kept her a virtual prisoner and exploited her talents. She was so unhappy she killed herself and her ghost is supposed to sit at table 11. Guess where we were sitting.......

Thursday, 24th April
The weather was unreliable today, varying between heavy rain and warm sunshine. We finished the last six of the Buckby locks and stopped at Whilton Marina to pick up an oil filter for the engine service. It cost about £12--twice the cost of the last one Trev bought at Partco. Perhaps he'll remember in future to buy them at Partco! We set off and it poured with rain, so we moored up and had some lunch whilst it passed over, and then set off again. But it started to rain again so this time we sheltered under a bridge until it eased up. No more locks now until Stoke Bruerne. We moored up at Heyford Wharf, ready for a meal at The Wharf pub, but when we walked round later, it was closed due to a 'change of management'. We're not doing very well with pubs at the moment!

Friday, 25th April
On and on and on! We have to be in London by May 6th at the latest, to meet my brother who lives in Spain. He is flying to join us in London. He wants to do the tidal Thames from Limehouse with us. He must be mad! But we have to keep going to be there in time. We have plenty of time in hand, but want to make sure we have a few spare days to play with in case we have to stop, for whatever reason. So, past Gayton Junction, where the GU branches off down the Rothersthorpe Locks to Northampton, the River Nene and all points east. Then through Blisworth Tunnel--3057 yards long and the longest on the system. Before we got to Stoke Bruerne we passed a pair of old working boats, Arundel and Betelgeuse, which were delivering metal piling to East London. Betelgeuse was a butty, being towed by Arundel.

Just before Bridge 58, there was the biggest load of rubbish we've ever seen dumped on the towpath. But that was nothing in comparison with the load around the corner. It would fill several skips . It was absolutely disgusting and we were so angry to think anyone could do that. I rang BW to report it, and spoke to the lengthsman in charge of the stretch. He said he knew who had done it and was trying to locate them and their boat. It was a "contentious issue" he said. It looked very much as though some boater(s) had been moved on for overstaying and this was their parting shot. I hope they catch the toads.

We moored up early today for Trev to really do the engine service. He finished it in good time and so we moved on to moor at the Navigation pub, at Thrupp Wharf, where we had a nice meal.

Saturday, 26th April
It was a long day today, as we cruised all around the outskirts of Milton Keynes. It's a long meandering route, though no locks and we kept on going to get into open countryside to moor. To be fair, there were several nice spots along here where we could have moored and felt safe, but they bwere too soon, we wanted to get on. We stopped at Cosgrove and washed the top and side of the boat as there was no one waiting to use the water point. We have to look smart for when my brother arrives!

There was a bit of excitement at Fenny Stratford Lock. We moored up to go to Tesco, which is about half a mile away. As we crossed the lock, a woman sitting outside the pub said it had been 'just like WW3 here'! I asked what had happened and she said a boat had been exiting the lock when another boat, with a rather motley crew and steered by a man who was high on drink or drugs or something, had barged straight into the lock before the other boat had had a chance to get out. He had bashed into the boat and generally behaved in a most unboatmanlike fashion. The boat which had been hit asked the man what he thought he was doing, whereupon the man on the offending boat produced a gun and a Samurai sword!

We went and shopped and when we got back, the offending boat had turned round and was moored up by the lock. The language was appalling, and there were children on the boat too. It really was way out of order, and I felt the children were at risk. However, we pressed on through the lock and got away from the situation as soon as possible. We moored up out in the country, at Stoke Hammond Lock, where we had moored a few years ago.

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