Water Shortage

We got awed in Cropredy ay after a couple of showers yesterday and arrived in Cropredy to moor a couple of hundred youards short of Bridge e 153 at 10.30pm. The water levels were very low and there were BW craft all over the place. A tug, a facilities craft and a hopper were between the Mill and the Bridge. We could not get the stern nearer than 10feet from the bank but because ofthe hour moored like that anyway.

This morning we found out the reason: a BW man informed us that Slat Mill top gate was leaking badly and there would be a four hour stoppage tomorrow morning for repairs to seals. The water supply from the River Cherwell has been cut to 25% of the normal because of shortage of water for Thames Water at Banbury. Hence the low levels.

We rendezvoused with Matt the mechanic of Tooley's at 0930 this morning and he got 'a bit more' on the injector joint that has been leaking. He left it dry of diesel but asked me to keep an eye on it. If the leak persists the injector assembly will neeed to be sent away for remedial work and pressure testing.

We left at about 10.00am and have made progress but needed to fill every lock on the way to our lunch stop at Claydon Top Lock. We expect to moor near The Wharf at Fenny Compton this evening.

It is great to be cruising. One small problem is that I have forgotten the lead that connects phone to laptop. Pictures will need to be added later!

Setting Off

We should be setting off on our Summer travels now. Unfortunately, the BBC weather site has got it all wrong and the whute cloud that should be here is a few shades darker than that and there is wet stuff falling all around. Why boat in the rqin if in doesn't have to? As I write the sunis breaking through so we may make a move sometime this evening.

Today's trip t the Joh Radcliffe hospital to see Professor P int eh Neurology department went very wel. The patient is doing very well and we don;t have to make this particular trip again until September 2011. While the Best Mate and thepatient were waiting for the good professor, I went for a wander. I investigated the Thresher down the road who advertised a tempting real ale offer and then walked along Marston Road for a little way intending to get a bus somewhere and back. However, I was lured by the mellow tones of a tenor saxaphine that were emanating from a wonderful looking shop that boated brass and woodwind instrument supplies and repairs. I entered and once inside wished that I played a wind instrument and could have a go at teh treasures on display. I spent a wonderful twenty minutes talking about music since the fifties with the proprietor. Once a professional musician, and always a business man, he had played with the greats like Ronnie Scott and now had the business as a paying hobby. One of only two brass speciaists in the country now. I didnlt know such a place exisited. As I left I walked away to the hauntong tones of jazz from the solo sax.

He recommended a guitar shop in Summertown for my next visit to JR!

Intermittent Cruising

Some of our regular readers will be wondering why we are not on our way to Cropredy, Fenny Compton, Napton and all points north as is our usual practice as soon as the schools break up.

We have to delay our cruise this year by the necessity of wafting Piglet to Paradise, aka as Luton Airport, at silly o'clock on Monday morning so that he can fly to Germany for an international youth conference. While there, he will be palling up with a Germam lad who will come back to England via Birmingham International Airport. They then need to be taken to another youth event, Newday, which is at Norwich showground again this year. They will be delivered back by another parent and we will then have some additional crew for a short cruise. The pal will need to return to Germany from BHX.

All this means that the summer cruising, which is usually of the continuous nature, will be intermittent with much consideration given to safe moorings, buses, trains and trips to the car. Consideration will also be given to long pounds and lock free canals.

I will attempt to keep posting blogs of interest. These too may continue to be intermittent rather of a continuous nature.

Pleased to be of service

To the ladies of narrowboats Puddleduck and Digitalis, who were looking for the bus stop in Cropredy to get a bus to Banbury, I just say that I am pleased to have been of service.

I always wonder how these little villages carry on with only two buses a day and, in this case, the return bus leaves Banbury at 2pm which is early in any body's book. To have to depend on the village shop (if there is one) must be diffucult. In the case of Cropredy however, the village store (Bridge Stores next to Bridge 153) is excellent even though it is a bit pricey by supermarket standards.

I just happened to use the luxurious 2pm service to get back to Cropredy this afternoon as we left the boat there overnight. An excellent trip.

She's in Fenny Compton!

Yes, SONFLOWER is in Fenny Compton this evening. We lent her to a couple of friends who took their family for a ride. One daughter was 20 yesterday! She brought along her boyfriend; another daughter was aboard with her husband and tiny daughter; and grandmother came too.

They wrote in the log that they had seen pirates! They apparently only stopped for lunch and Pimms!

I am sure that they enjoyed themselves.

Meanwhile. . . . we were enjoying a barbeque in a friends garden with visitors from Atlanta, USA and spent a lot of the evening comparing little ol' England to the big US! A good time was had by all and quite a few steaks were consumed withthe salad.

Tomorrow we will be boating back!

Lad's Day Out pt 2

A picture of SONFLOWER entering Slat Mill Lock with Alan on the tiller. He had declared that he had no intention of working any locks today. He certainly couldn't from there!

A great day was had by all and both the lads were asleep when the girls arrived!

PREP FOR THE LADS

I have done a little bit if shopping today for a lad's day out on the boat tomorrow.

eggs
bacon
sausages
mushrooms
tomatoes
bread
butter
coffee

Anything missing?

Another wedding today

No boating again this weekend. We are at a wedding. We attended the church service at this afternoon and are now preparing to attend the evening reception.

A lovely picturesque village church setting right next to this lovely and newly restored castle.

However it was not the Manorial family who were celebrating. Quite a large and dressed up congregation however.

For the second week running the bride exited to "The Arrival of the Queen of Sheba"

Dressed for boating?

Here is a picture of the Best Mate, leaning on a balance arm on the Caen Hill flight. No, she is not dressed for boating but for the wedding we were attending in Trowbridge in Saturday. The reception was in Devizes so we had to pop in to see the Caen Hill Flight on the way. The stifling heat demanded a drink at the little cafe on the flight.


This flight is a wonder. It was our first visit. I must say that looking down the flight with locks receding into the distance in an uncountable number from the top is an amazing view. We have not taken SONFLOWER onto the Kennet and Avon at all yet. One day we will. One certainty, according to the Best Mate, is that we will not be approaching from the Severn and Avon tidal waters. So our first experience of this flight will be descending. I imagine that it will be a very memorable day.

We had a lovely day at the wedding of Sarah and Chris (who have borrowed Sonflower last year). I love weddings and hope that they are enjoying this blissful state.

AFTER THE MATCH Pt 2

Only it was a different match! The defeat against Germany yesterday could have led to many a fan jumping in the canal last night. Disappointment is one thing because England played badly but the decision to disallow a perfectly good goal was unbelievable.

Where is common sense? Everyone in the stadium knew the reality at half time. Why didn't the referee talk to the German captain, admit his mistake and award a goal at the re-start?

Where is sportsmanship? Knowing that the goal had been scored, the Germans could have passed the ball into their own net to equalise the game.

But then football isn't a sport any more. It is a business. And on the basis of the decision made, it is just about winning. And that has little to do with goals scored any more.

AFTER THE MATCH

After the performance of the England team this evening it was good to walk along the canal and see this scene. Such serenity, even in the heart of a busy town in a Friday night is a treat that would cheer up the most dejected and downcast soul.

Five live, bless them, have just reminded me of Italia 90 when England did not win their first two games and ended up in the semi-final, going out on penalties to Germany. Apparently there is hope for the hopeless.

Rooney was awful tonight. Why make the same substitutions as were made in the last match. Obviously Cappello believes he doesn't need to change the system. Any fan who watched tonight will know that he needs to put the team out and tell them to play like they do week in and week out for their team back home. As in 1966, they need to do it their way. Hurst, Peters and Moore were playing the West Ham way for England. They shined. Terry, Cole, Cole and Lampard do it for Chelsea, Rooney and Carrick do it for Man U, Carragher and Gerrard do it for Liverpool, and there are six Tottenham lads in the squad. Let them do it for England.

Summertime. . .

. . .and the living is easy! So George and Ira Gershwin's song goes and we took advantage of it for a little cruise down the canal to Nell Bridge and back. Being a Friday there was very little traffic around the town and we passed through without any holdup to enter the countryside and enjoy the irises that are blooming in the reed beds at the bankside.

The birds were enjoying the sunshine and reed bunting, reed warbler, blackcap, goldfinches and a linnet were clearly seen sunning themselves on the margin of the canal and a buzzard wheeled away to a dot against the blue sky.

We were going there and back again just because we can! My crew was new to this pleasure but he very soon came to appreciate how calming a day in the water can be.

We stopped to fry up a luncheon of bacon, eggs, tomatoes and mushrooms (all in the same pan, of course) which was enjoyed moored near Twyford Mill. We were so near the madness of the rushing M40 motorway but it didn't affect us at all. What a priviledge to be able to escape the ratrun of daily life to the peace of the canal. I was reminded of a friar at Aylesford Priory (backing on to the M20, beside the River Medway) who told me in a lovely Irish lilt "The voice of the Lord is like many waters so I thinks of the sound as a waterfall!" Closing my eyes I knew what he meant.

We turned at the Nell Bridge winding hole and returned to town for a BBQ.

The boat stayed at Tooley's for a little more engine tlc.

New Picture

This is a photo of a lovely picture that has just been given to us by a friend who took it. It is called "Wall to wall sunflowers" and was photographed in Kent.

We love it and now have to decide where it can be displayed to reflect its glory.

Thank you both.

Another tow-path problem

Here is a picture of a cow-slip that has been strimmed! These beautiful wild flowers are getting quite rare. If I had picked them I could have been prosecuted under the Wildlife and Countryside Acts. British Waterways' contractors however seem oblivious to the plight of these lovely wild flowers. They should, at least be allowed to seed before being mown down as they would be in a hay meadow.


About 200 yards from the carnage site, discretely tucked behind the hedge in the margin of the farmer's field was a plant that showed all the beauty of this marvel.



Sorry about the blurred image. NO cow-slip was harmed by my bad photography

Marston Doles to Fenny Compton

I asked the barman at The Wharf, Fenny Compton when they stopped serving lunch. He said 9 o'clock. I assume therefore they are open all day.I set off down the tow-path toward Marston Doles where I had left the Best Mate at the tiller. I anticipated meeting her about half way. In fact here she is approaching Bridge 128 so the plan worked perfectly. I got about an hours walking in.


Having taken over the tiller we then navigated to the 14 day moorings at Fenny Compton in warm conditions. As we approached the end of this little voyage the wind turned a little chilly and we decided to stop for a spot of lunch. 'Two for £8.50' seemed a good deal so we pumped for pie of the day (Chicken and ham) & mash and chicken curry & rice. OK for a lunch was the verdict.

That was enough for today.

Bridge 102 to Marston Doles, gently

Today we had to do a bit of car hopping. The boat being at Flecknoe Bridge number 102 on the widened section of the Oxford/Grand Union between Braunston and Napton Junction (Wygram's Turn). Here is a picture taken from the bridge as she sets off, without me.

I had to drive to Marston Doles and then walked down the Napton flight to meet the boat at Bridge 112. We worked up Napton bottom lock and moored for a lunch at the Folly Pub. This is under now management but is still operating the old winter menu. Not a lot of originality there. We have avoided the pub since our 'folly of a meal' a couple of years ago. Seeing the 'Under Mew Management' sign we gave it another go. Ok for a pint of Hookey and a snack but not a lot to recommend it really.

We met 'Tia' on the tow-path and then inside using the pub's wi-fi. Now there is something to recommend it! We didn't need ecover and are away for the beer and folk festival in August that they were advertising.

After lunch, the threatening dark haily clouds had cleared and we had the most glorious afternoon to work up the rest of the flight. Here SONFLOWER rises in Lock 11. We moored at Marston Doles just before school out time and a trip back into Banbury. It was great to be boating!

A thorny problem

I walked down the flight at Napton this morning. The only problem I had was that I forgot my walking boots! I soon picked up a thorny branch in the sole of my sandals.

Inconvenient you may think but not much of a problem. But there were actually loads of branches from the hedge battering that were strewn on the tow-path. The hedges looked nice and are sprouting beautifully and evenly but the tow-paths are a mess.

As fate would have it I met a BW man on a bike. He was not a lengthsman or a lock keeper any more. He is now a Data Collector. I asked him how he could ride a bike on paths like this. I certainly couldn't. He told me that his BW issue bike had solid tyres! Apparently these are available here on the internet.

So BW know about the problem. They can overcome their sloppy quality control on their hedge cutting contractors by expending on solid tyres. A pity they didn't inform the other cyclist I met today who now puts his old holed inner tubes back in as an additional layer between the new one and the tyre, or the man I met last Saturday who is now walking 20 miles a day pushing his bike and trailer from London to Birmingham because he cannot keep up with the puncture repairs.

If BW think the tow-path is a gym, they should take a bit more care to give us a surface we can safely walk, run or ride on.

New Boots!

Inspired by Maffi's shopping trip to Banbury I ventured into the market today and bought some lightweight walking boots. Now I am equipped for lightweight walking!

I hate shopping so this was a real test. I have to but some new trainers too but one thing at a time!

Caution Stream Increasing

Having left Little Venice with the intention of making passage from Brentford to Teddington and navigating up the Thames to meet family in Reading, our friends have reconsidered their options.

I looked on the Environment Agency's river conditions site today to find that from Oxford to Boveny lock (below Reading) there were yellow caution notices in force.
"Caution stream increasing - We advise users of all unpowered boats not to navigate and users of powered boats to find a safe mooring. This is because river flows are likely to strengthen and red boards could be displayed very soon and without warning."

Assuming that the water from Oxford will need to get to Teddington, our friends agreed that a couple of days moored in a safe mooring like a lock cutting was not how they wanted to spend their holiday so they have turned north and are taking SONFLOWER back the way she came.

Far Too Busy

It has been a long time since I have blogged.

SONFLOWER has been to Little Venice again this year for the Canalway Cavalcade. The weather was not quite as kind as last year and we had very heavy rain on Sunday that dampened things down a bit.

Sonflower was taken down to Bull's Bridge by our freinds who had a good time of it, meeting some of their friends on the way.

I met them and Sonflower there and then took her to Little Venice where we moored for the festival. We were not in The Pool this year so felt a bit out of it but we enjoyed taking part in the Saturday night Entertainment and the Parade of Illuminated Boats on Sunday evening after the rain had stopped. Here is a photo of steam working boat President and butty Kildare (slightly out of control) during the parade of historic working boats.

Sonflower is now crewed by another couple of friends for most of the return trip.