A restful day

I am worried. We have to be in Llangollen in 13 days. Canal Planner says we could get there in 6. So what do we do with all those extra days?

We were woken at 6am by the trob throb throb of an old engine in a new boat! Hadar, our near neighbours in Banbury had come off their mooring here in idyllic countryside and sunshine to go who knows where? Now, I do not object to early morning cruising but today we also had the wakening beeps of the invertor telling us it had been left on all night. Our crew slept on but the Best Mate realised that as the engine needed running to charge the battery and the sun is shining and the wind is breezy it is a wonderful opportunity to do the washing.

So we put up the rotary dryer on the back deck. That means that we cannot use the tiller. We are going nowhere until the washing is dry!

I have played the guitar, Piglet has played the keyboard, Tigger has hit the skins and teh brass has been cleaned. The steelwork is too hiot to paint, thank goodness.

A restful day

Of Sheep and lamb

AS far away as Tyrely locks we heard of the fame of the Farm Shop at the top of Adderley Locks. There was a notice on the lock sign of the Top Lock. It advertised home made pies and produce. I decided to buy some lamb for dinner and could almost smell it gently marinating in spice and oil before being roasted in the oven and filing the boat with morrocan aromas.

But Adderley locks are a long way from Tyrely and by the time we got near we had an overnight stop in Market Drayton! Friends in Market Drayton also confirmed the quality of the produce and asked us to return a plate that had supported a cake they had brought from there.

When we got there the next morning we found that they had no lamb! Lamb has such a demand that they sell out almost as soon as the meat hits the shop! We bought some pork steak, sausages (which we saw being made by hand, bacon(dry cured), free range eggs and fresh baked bread.

We moored nearby to visit the shop and PO in Adderley. A short walk over the Hawksmoor bridge brought us to a cross road just past the home of the Hawksmoor herd of Holstein cows. A little farther and I asked a resident for directions to the store. It closed two years ago!

On the way back we met the lamb on its way to market! 54 sheep came down the lane toward us screeching to an abrupt halt when they saw us. They must have known what we wanted for dinner. The shepherd egged them on to pass us and we continued on our seperate ways. The road showed the signs of their nervousness!

Breakfast tasted great!

Penkridge to Market Drayton

The character of the cruise has changed from the meandering of the Trent and Mersey and the Staffordshire and Worcester canals to the Straight and Narrow of the Birmingham and Liverpool (Shropshire Union) Main Line. The character is so contrasting. The cuttings give directness and speed and the embankments may give a better view over the surrounding countryside but we are not in a hurry this time!

We loved the little town of Penkridge with its marvelous Co-op supermatket and its charity shop. Unfortunately that was closed but it did support Katherine House, our local hospice in Banbury. I heard, however that the rioting on nearby Wolverhampton so upset the locals here that they closed the garage and supermarket early in case there was a repeat in sleepy little Penkridge.

The change came at Autherley Junction. Still a 'narrow canal' but this was built for speed. One of the straights on today's criuise was over a mile long and I didn't share it with any other craft, coming or going! A wonderful example of where to find peace in today's world: at the tiller of a narrowboat at 3 mph.


We are travelling slowly which gives time to observe the herons smd kingfishers along the way. A bit of additional birding was thwarted however because the Belvine Reservoir ios managed locally and limited to members and permot holders only. Permits have to be applied for in advance amd cannot be done over the internet. Pre-arrangements like this are difficult when on a boating holiday! My request fro permission by text was refused. Hopefully we will get another chance later in the cruise.

The final leg from Gnosall to Market Drayton takes us through hewn rock cuttings 25 feet deep and across embankments about 40 feet high. The passing is difficukt in the cutting when the oncoming boat slows to almost a stop for no apparent reason and the views are breathtaking from the embankment.

The last flight of locks down into Market Drayton (Tyley Locks) proved interesting only as a ahead amgaged to get itself onto the weir at the entrance to the first lock. The prop stopped as it was drawn in. We helped them rope back onto the lock mooring to inspect the damage through the weed hatch. Fortunately there was no damage and we had the lock set for us!

Into Market Drayton we encountered the 'leave a ring between boats' phenomenon. However as we progressed further on we found a beautiful almost empty mooring on the other side of town. We are no further from the centre but much more pleasantly siuated! We may stay here for the full 48 hoirs. We have time.

The Taft to Penkridge

We left teh safe haven of the Taft in Staffordshire and made our way to Colwen Lock where we were to discharge our precious cargo of Juie and two of her grandchildren.Eeyore doscovered that his moble phone was stil in the car so our Friend Peter took the children home and then returned to Great Haywood lock witthe phone. What a star! We worked up the lock and stopped for lunch on the mooringw by the Junction. After lunch we went to Great Haywood marina for a necessary pump out of the toilet tank and then returned to the water point to fill up. Fully emptied at one end and replenished atteh other we then turnied onto the Staffordshire and Worcestershire Canal and found an overnight mooring.

The next morning we were up bright as buttins and left at 0600 to cruise in sunshine against a blackening sky which highlighted a wonderful rainbow. The mixed weather continued til breakfast time when we stopped. Bacon and eggs are the only choice after an earlyish start and we enjoyed them. Then we made our way on ward until we came to Penkridge.

Here we shopped at the Co-op and decided to stop for the night.

No a meal of Tandoori chicken, lamb burgers, salads and coleslaw with fresh bakery bloomer awaits us.

Who goes there?

Out this afternoon for a gentle 3 hour cruise from Cropredy to the foot of Claydon locks and back with a small group of young people on a friends narrowboat I came across this familiar looking vessel.


My grandchildren love the Muddy Waters books but I didn't know that I would come across the real thing so close by.

A quick look at the website reveals all. They are Oxfordshire Narrowboats in disguise.

I will not decry a good thing. If it gets children interested in boating it will be great. However, we may be at the start of Muddy Waters popping up all over the system like Thomas the Tank engine does at every small steam railway in the country on any Bank Holiday. I hope not.

Cruise Photos

Queuing for a lock! An almost unheard of event considering our usual cruising times. But this cruise we rose late and finished early!


Frances passing Frances


Exiting Weston lock under Bridge 79

A break from a break

Here is a picture of SONFLOWER at their present mooring. We have taken a break from our break. The sun is shining and we have returned to home base for a week or so. The Best Mate has already hung out a load of washing and the plants on the patio have been watered. My mother's hanging basket has also had the treatment and things are tickety boo.

After a wonderful week of sunshine and very slow cruising around Staffordshire, you may wnder why we have taken a break. There are things that need to be done: Mum needs to get to a summer barbecue party tomorrow afternoon, Piglet needs to get to Norwich on Monday, Mum needs to get to the Dentist on Tuesday, Tigger needs to get to a hospital appointment in Oxford on Thursday. Hence the need for a break!

The real problem is that cruising and cars do not mix. Public transport is patchy and takes hours to get anywhere and these things are best done from the home base.

So SONFLOWER is enjoying her end of garden mooring and we are very grateful to our friends for providing it. We will be back soon!

Nice Day in Stone

We don't often just hang around and take in a twon. One town is much like the rest since glocbalisation. But Stone has no GAP or Next or anything looking like it. We had a nozey upthe High Street and found a harware shop that sells everything and several nice looking cafe's. Bakers ships that sell fresh bread and a very extensive Co-0p. We also found an Outdoor Pursuits supplier that sells guitar strings and popped our noses intothe local luthier to see teh wonderful range of violins cellos and basses available in this small market town.

We also reconoitred the eateries. The last time we were here there was a Turkish that we tried out but this has now become a mediterranean restaurant which means it serves spaghetti bolognaise like your mother makes. Quite unlike the Italian rstaurant that we visited on the High Street. Here we had Italian food that could not be reproduced at home! The Best Mate's rissotto al Mare was 'the best I have tasted'. The Carbonara was creamier that anything we have ever made. The Meatballs in Tomato and Basil sauce slipped down Tigger's throat almost without a chew and the grilled Swordfish steak was beutiful. A little too dry for Piglet's taste but perfect for mine. The sweets were good too. Gellatti in an Italian restaurant is always a safe bet and the Tiramasalu was a real pick me up. No room for coffee.

Washed down with a caraffe of House Red this was a great meal. The first meal out of our holiday and one to remember.

Thank You Pizza di Piaza La favorita. I am just popping over to put a decent review on

Getting our Act Together

I have only been out boating for two days bit we have accumulated a large assortment of things for recycling. Coming to Stone I thought that we would be able to discharge our cargo. But no. We have not yet found the approprite place for domestic refuse. Of course I could put it in the bins by the tennis courts but they are already full of other boaters rubbish!

We found the recycling centre behind the Sports Hall. But there they only take paper not cardboard and cans not the full range of gear apart from bottles and glass in their appropriate colours. So we still have our domestic rubbish and plastic recyling.

Why can't the local authority and BW get their act together so that we can dispose of it all responsibly in one place?

Theatre in the Dock

We visited Theatre in the Dock yesterday evening and had a really good evening listening and joining in the choruses to Where the Working Boats Went http://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gifahttp://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gifn evening of song. This was presented by Life and Times, a male duo who presented mostly self penned songs about the canal history from The Duke of Bridgewater to post war nationalisation and transformation into a leisure network. The songs were accompanied by the two musicians on accordion, melodion, squeeze box, mandolin and guitar.

We really enjoyed joining in the choruses.

Such a pity that this acoustically fantastic theatre in Tooleys Dry Dock was only half full (of people, not water silly!)

Well done to producer Kate Saffin

Countdown to the off part 2

Now is the start of the real countdown to the Summer Cruise.

The long awaited holiday boating experience starts on a few days time. First though a few little details.

To start with the boat is 100 miles away! We usually get provisions (dry goods and staples) sorted out and stowed in their appropriate cupbpards before we leave. This gives us all the necessary ingredients to produce our family's culinary requirements if we don't get near to a supermarket for a week or two. All we need is the fresh basics to be added and a meal can be provided from the cupboard. But this time we are having to use a lot of guess work.

We are basic Aldi shoppers these days and we do know that Aldi have opened a new store in Stone and the store in Stoke-on-Trent is in Trentham, a stone's throw from the T & M Hemheath Bridge 106 so we know that we can stock up within a day or two.

We also know that the boat has been cruising for about 14 days so we will need diesel in about a week. The best place to get deisel though is on the Shroppie. I am not sure of prices on the T & M.

Other little problems are getting a car to where we can leave it for a little while. We need to return to home mooring (by car) for the first week in August so we will be meandering around the Rugely area for a week just because we need to be able to return tothe car. Cars and boats really do not mix! We either have to park near a station and moor near one to return to the car or we park near a canal and return to the car by boat. Either way is not easy. We do not like returning by the same way and finding a mini ring is difficult. The former is the most desiraboe. However, trains do not go the same way as canals any more! Planning is made more difficult by the difficulty in finding buses in rural areas too.

So tomorrow I am driving to Rugely and returning by train to see how good the routes are. We will decide which course of action later!

RCR Service: three times over

River Canal rescue came this morning to get SONFLOWER moving again.

The first time, in spite of having a very good description of the problem over the phone, they came to look. Two "young guys" our skipper described them as. They went away to get a new morse controller as the obsolete 25 year old Marine Master was broken as described!

They returned well over an hour later with some tools in a plastic box but had to borrow the right size of screw driver to dismantle the old drive. Offering up the new one showed that a screw hole did not line up. They did not have a drill to make a new one! So off they went off to get one. Another hour or so passed and then the new controller was fitted. But not without dropping a couple of screws (for which they had spares), losing a nut (for which they didn't so fitted a larger size)and losing a grommet that they probably didn't know they had knocked off as they left the hole empty.

However, the new RCR parts insurance scheme is beginning to pay off as all that was charged was the £50.00 excess. Here it is looking the business:


I had assured my relief crew that they would be under way in no time. In fact they didn't get away until well into the afternoon. I caught up with them at Claydon locks and they were them settling into the cruise and were very pleased to be making headway. Here they wave good bye at Claydon Top Lock

Breakdown

The last three things to do today I did not get done!

The crew left banbury on the Summer Cruise at about 4.30pm today but we did not get to do the greaser or the briefing.

So I decided to go to Cropredy to meet the boat after I had been to the matinee of Piglet's school perfomance where he played violin in the orchestra.

I got to Cropredy Wharf at about 5.30 NSD passed a little time on our friend's boat, playing his takemene guitar and sipping his malt whisky while I waited for Sonflower to come and they got ready to go to a barn dance. Sonflower did not arrive before 6pm so I phoned to find that the engine lost power at Bridge 157! Just before Slat Mill Lock. I got in the car and went as close as I could (Slatt Mill Farm) and accessed the canal at Bridge 156 and walked down the towpath past the lock to Bridge 157. There I found that the skipper of the crew had diagnosed the problem as metal fatigue on the Marine Master morse controller. A cable tie was put in place to jury rig the controller enough to get the boat through the lock and I left the crew to navigate to Cropredy Wharf where we called River Canal Rescue.

Here is Sonflower limping toward the wharf with hardly enough reverse drive to stop safely.

This picture shows the cable tie on the controller mechanism.




RCR said they have a queue of breakdowns so we moored the boat opposite the winding hole by Bridge 157 and await their call tomorrow morning.

I left the crew at 9.30pm preparing dinner.

Not a good start to the cruise.

Getting Ready Diary

Yes! It is time for SONFLOWER to start her Summer Cruise. The last day has seen more rain than we have had collectively since March and the sky is full of Cumulo Nimbus clouds ready to pour more delight and pleasure on the helmsman.

We have spent the last week getting her ready. Not that there was much to do but there is always something. I have put some paint on the rusty patches of the roof. In true Bonesy DIY style I rubbed it all down and primed patches of it only to find that I didn;t have any top coat to apply! Tooleys had no Craftmaster Raddle in light grey in stock so I have been waiting two weeks.

MONDAY: While taking a group if children from the local primary school for a short boat trip through town on Monday Tooley's Matt chased me down the towpath woth a pot of paint in his hand as he knew we wanted to be ready to go this weekend! Bless him. A real plus for good local customer service. Visited Sovereign Wharf to fill up with Diesel and change a gas bottle. Also bought a new chimney to replace one that has suffered from impact with Nell Bridge and Aynho Bridge on more than one occasion.

TUESDAY: Weather Rain and Wind Twiddles thumbs waiting for a dry spell!
WEDNESDAY: Sunny Intervals. Dashed down and got on with the painting in a very warm sunny interval. The paint was almost dry before the brush/roller left the surface. So many boats coming by commented that I would makeit rain. It did rain but after the paint was touch dry so I am hoping it will be OK.
FRIDAY: Clearing and cleaning. Removing as much of the clutter that a family leaves on a boat just in case. Lost the vacuum cleaner to find that the last people who borrowed the boat had stowed it in the tinder box! (the from step). Checked engine hole and noticed that the greaser needs filling bit no time to do it today. Very wet rain.
TODAY: Do the greaser, check the bilge. Brief the crew

Spot the Difference

Well done Tesco!

How to increase the price by stealth.

A price increase of 11.1% (if you buy in pairs)at the 'offer' price of 2 for £2 by reducing the weight from 1000ml to 900ml. Interestingly the new 900ml pack is dimensionally bigger!

Blustery Day(s)

We would have liked to be boating on Saturday and Sunday afternoon. It is Summer after all. But. . .

The wind has been quite strong and the only place to go for an afternoon cruise is Cropredy. The wind whips across the fields and hits the boat sideways just above Little Boughton lock. A friend of mine found this out as we approached the lock from the north. I got off at Little Boughton Bridge 158 to walk to the lock to set it. After filling the lock and opening the gate I looked back and SONFLOWER was nowhere to be seen! She was pinned against the bank on the outside of the bend by the wind- just out of sight from the lock!

So we watched the clouds scudding across the sky, dreamt of a cruise another day and went for a coffee on our friends' boat as they were moored in town on their way to the Kennet And Avon from Market Harborough. It was a very pleasant visit. We had not been on their (new) boat before and, as with all bespoke boats, it was full of good ideas. The cassette emptying through the back of a hinged bookshelf was particularly impressive. It may re-appear in our bathroom re-design!

We did visit the boat to replenish bedding and check on a few things. The water tank was still full and the bilge empty which is always a good sign. The fridge inventory was checked and the next provisioning list started.

Maybe we will cruise in the sunny near future. After all June starts on Wednesday!

On Thursday we have a planned trip with some youngsters so hopefully the weather will improve.

A going concern

I told you that I would keep you up to date with All the boaty news. SONFLOWER is now on Sovereign Wharf who have kindly allowed me to moor there to use the electric hook up to run a big vacuum cleaner/aquavac. One small inconvenience of having one's generator stolen is that my inverter is not man enough for really tough tasks.

I could not moor on the Wharf until after closing time(4pm)so while I was waiting I tackled one of the jobs I have been putting off. There was a weep spotted from the seal between the toilet and the holding tank. The fixing bolts were wobbly and closer inspection revealed that the toilet was actually only attached to the tank by one of the four!

So I went to Lee Sanitation yesterday and handed over £30 of my hard gained wonger in return for a genuine Sealand Traveler Seal kit which, thankfully included the bolts nuts and washers.

I had pumped out this morning and Ray at the Wharf had allowed me double the normal allownace of blue so the smell was sufferable as I removed the toilet, cleaned up the flange and refitted the loo with a new seal.

We are fully serviceable again!

Not fast but speedy

SONFLOWER has returned to home mooring.

The crew that brought her home from Rickmansworth left there at 10.30am on Tuesday and were in Banbury yesterday lunchtime. (Sunday) They were at Cropredy overnight on Saturday. They therefore covered 102 miles and 103 locks in five days which means travelling for at least 11 hours a day! and probably in reality nearly dawn to dusk! The crew of three consisted of a rooky helmsman and a young man who had only been on a boat for a couple of days with his school some years back. The 'admiral' absconded for a day as well. I left them at Marsworth Junction on Wednesday evening. I was tired after just two
days at their pace.

Didn't they do well!

They enjoyed every minute! To be out in sunshine and passing through the greenery of Middlesex, Buckinghamshire, Bedfordshire, Northamptonshire and Oxfordshire with peaceful waters beneath the boat was quite a change from London

Continuous Mooring

The waterways press is still discussing the ways and means of preventing those who oversatay on moorings bringing legitimate 'continuous cruisers' into disrepute. All sorts of charging schemes have been suggested. I feel that those who break their license conditions should be the ones to bear the penalty of their actions, not the rest of us whether holding a home mooring or not.

The subject has been at the front of my mind recently as I wrote a tongue in cheek song to share at the 'boaters entertainment' at IWA Canalway Cavalcade. I wrote "Continuously Cruising" last year and this year I looked for those excuses that turn a continuous cruiser into a continuous moorer.

Here are the lyrics I came up with. Any comment or additional verses considered!

Chorus:
We're one step ahead of the mooring warden
One step ahead of the BW man
One step ahead of the mooring warden
Slowing down as fast as we can


We have reasons aplenty for wanting to stay
Our bird-feeder's here and it's used every day
Feeding finches and sparrows, robin and Jay
We'll fracture the food chain if we go away.

Our cat will get lost if we move on today
We cannot go yet as she's mousing away
In the fields where the farmer is cutting hay
That's our excuse so we've nothing to pay.

CH

Some say we're selfish but how could that be?
We damage no banks and harm nobody
We sit in our boat drinking strong cups of tea
Harmlessly watching our flat-screen tv

Our satellite dish is fixed to a tree
Our coal stock's protected by cctv
Were broken down with no battery
We cannot move! Now don't you see

CH

Making fenders and buttons for people to see
We are waterways traders and I think you'll agree
We've been here so long we've become history
For 200 years our moorings were free.


The hedges and verges here glisten with rain
The daffs that we planted are blooming again
It's nice here and moving is really a pain!
If you see what we mean then join our refrain:

CH

We were there!

Proof that we were at Little venice in the Canalway Cavalcade 2011 has appeared on youTube



We are in shot at 0.56, 2.51, and 5.07 Enjoy as we did!

Thank you to photographer SEE LI