Into London (belated)

Yes, the same 'family reasons' kept The Best Mate and Tigger in dry dock on Maundy Thursday while Piglet and I took SONFLOWER the rest of the way to Paddington Basin. This time we took it a bit steady. Only nine locks (and we shared three of them) the first afternoon and we were moored below Cowley lock before sunset.

Just after sunrise on Good Friday morning we were on our way and moored at Bulls Bridge Tesco at 8am for a little shopping. Piglet woke up just as we pulled away and drifted through the flotsom strewn murky waters of the Paddington Arm. We didnt stop again until Greenford Visitor Moorings where we used the water point and winding hole and washed both sides of the boat. Breakfast of bacon and eggs was taken in traditional fashion.

Then on again until Mitre Bridge No6 (Scrubbs Lane) where we paid our respects to my brother with a scattering of rose petals on the surface of the water.

Then to Paddington Basin and a berth next to M & S HQ under the beady eyes of their security guard. After a quick lunch we were off to Trafalgar Square to be tourists and watch the open air theatre 3pm production of a "Passion Play".

Then we picked up tickets for the evening performance of the show "We will Rock You" and ate a pre-show dinner in Meds on Cambridge Circus before resting awhile in the beautiful garden before a very enjoyable evening out. Our Standing Only tickets didn't mar our enjoyement of the music of Queen and the humour of Ben Elton.

Then back to the boat for bed and the return journey back in the morning for Easter: to Rickmansworth by tube and Banbury by car.

18.5miles, 9 locks

A photo

Piglet at the helm entering one of the 103 locks on the recent cruise toward London.

First Cruise of the Season

It is hard to believe but we have got to April without going anywhere apart form local moves to get water, gas or pump out.

But We have just started the cruising season. We left home mooring with a full crew last Saturday and got to The wharf at Fenny Compton that evening. The Best mate and Tigger left us on Sunday morning to return to shore for family reasons leaving me and Piglet to crew the boat "as far as we could" toward Paddington where we hope to enjoy the IWA Cavalcade at the end of the month.

It was a hard cruise with the two of us as the Grand Union Canal is full of heavy gates. The traffic was also very light with more boats moored up in their hire bases than out on the cut during the holidays. We only had company in two of the wide locks during the last week. We achieved a mooring below Batchworth Lock this morning. 101.75 miles, and 103 locks.

The weather stayed fine but cold. We made a couple of connections on the way. I met Mike from Rochester and discovered that the blog has got a reader! He recognised the boat and introduced himself.

We are glad to have a short break as we wait for the rest of the crew to join us again for the next part of the journey.

Happy New year

Yes, happy New Year to all you in bloggerland.

I have been to check up how SONFLOWER is after the long cold spell. The arctic temperatures did cause a little bit of damage to the exposed pipework around the water heater. The joints that had blown out were quickly re-instated and the water system worked ok.

The engine started quite easily and I let it run for about an hour to make sure that the calorifier was functioning and the batteries were topped up. I ran the hot water through the taps and all seemed well.

I lit a small fire to get the saloon warm and checked that the gas was still ok.

So I drained the water heater and wrappedit in a large towell and hope that this will keep off the frost in the next cold snap.

The New Year cruise has been cancelled. She is still surrounded by ice about two inches thick. There is no way we will be breaking out of that.

Brrr and leak or no leak

I am sorry that I haven't blogged for so long. The fact is that there has been little to blog about. All I have done on the boat since the last post is 'winterise' SONFLOWER.

And that is not a lot! I have topped up the engine coolant with antifreeze and drained the gas water heater. Apart from that my winter preperations are on a hope for the best basis. I did take the pressure off the water system and open a couple of taps and switched the water pump off in a hope of keeping frost damage on the water system to a minimum.

One other little bit of news is non news. I investigated a reported leak on the loo flushing valve. Copius amounts of kitchen towel roll had been used to keep the flow of water at bay. However, I couldn't find one! After an hour of lying on the bathroom floor and waggling the valve and checking the connectiona and gland for leaks I gave up. I cannot repair a leak that isn't there! I also cannot decide whether to buy a new valve as a strategic spare and keep it just in case the leak re-appears.

The canal is frozen over and snow lies on the ground while frost hangs pendulously from the branches of the trees above. A few last autumnal leaves flutter down and all glistens brightly in the sunlight. Winter has arrived.

Gone again

I went to the boat this morning to get it into town to handover to a couple of freinds who are borrowing her for the weekend to find that the petrol portable generator has been stolen again! Chained to the boat with two padlocks the chain was just smashed apart.

I have no idea what to do. The police will have no chance of catching the thieves who are probably many miles away and have disposed of the item by now.

If any one is offered a Suburu Robin 1700i petrol generator with broken clips on the front facia please let me know.

Tidying Up

At the end of the cruising season there are always little jobs that need doing. I have been plagued by diesel leaks over the last couple of years and I thought that the engine overhaul would sort it all out. How wrong I was.

In spite of the engine overhaul being carried out by the acknowledged experts on marinised BMC engines for use on the canal, I have had a leak from a joint on the injector. Small but inconvenient as it covers the side of the engine with diesel, making it sticky an attractive to any muck that is around, soaks the absorbent matting in the oily bilge and puts the 'clean' bilge at risk (and hence the canal) should any splash over the side. I do not like leaving rainbows every time the bilge pump operates!

So I have had the faulty injector changed and sent away for repair. Here is a picture of the item and the invoice.

It is hard to believe that £10.00 worth of work could cause anxiety, worry, risk to the environment and heartache!

Tooley's Botyard have been very good, accepting their responsibility in curing the problem even though the acknowledged experts on marinised BMC engines for use on the canal only give a six month warranty which was, effectively, over before the cruising season started.

So my engine bay is clean and tidy once again.

Winter Moorings

British Waterways winter moorings go on sale from today. I followed the link and did a search for 'Banbury' returning one result for Banbury Tramway at a price of £8.66 per metre per month.

I recently won a BW moorings auction for £1070 per annum for an 18 metre berth. That is £4.95 per metre a month. Didn't I do well being the only bidder!

Come on British Waterways: that surely is the market value you should be offering the moorings at.

Little Disagreements

A visitor to the town had a difference of opinion with a canalside business today. Sadly, it ended up costly to him in time and money as the business refused to serve him. I know that the matter will not end there as the towpath telegraph and electoronic communication is a very effective conveyor of the experiences of the disgruntled.

I am a firm believer that the local businesses along the canal need our patronage. Without them we would be left to carry cans of deisel from a petrol station, bottles of blue from the caravan centre, coal from the stockist etc etc. We already have to choose our moorings to be close to the appropriate DIY facility when making repairs or re-furbishments. Getting to a place where you expect a service to find it closed is not pleasant as we experienced during our Summer Cruise but we have usually found a handy next place down the cut! If we do not use them however, the 'next place' could be a very long way away.

So upsetting them does not seem a good idea to me.

"A gentle word tuns away wrath" is a proverb to remember.

More of the same

Here is a picture of the decorous front end of SONFLOWER in bright sunshine.
and here is the back end. She is dressed up for Banbury Canal Day, our annual home waterways festival.

During the Boaters Bash on the Saturday evening, when we enjoyed a beer, food and folk music by Nick Nack Paddy Wack, fresh from their national success at Beale Park, the rain started and it didn't stop until about 3 in the afternoon of the Sunday!

The rigging fell down in the night wind and we lost a bungy in the canal. My sea-searcher was put into employment but passing boats had moved it to a spot unknown or picked it up on the prop! Sorry if it was you who found it through your weed hatch!

We pitched the Boaters Christian Fellowship stall under the Tom Rolt Bridge and kept dry but windblown for most of the day. Appropriately the theme of the day was the Centenary of TCR's birth. The canalside service was held there too.
We had a steady stream of passers by, some of whom stopped to talk or listen to the songs from 1910 which we performed unplugged while children painted roses on paper plates, a skill we had picked up at Little Venice IWA Cavalcade.

Those who braved the weather had a good time. The town council tried hard to put on a good show and we were visited by several notables throughout the day including the Town Mayor, Chair of Cherwell District Council, journalists from national and local press, friends and visitors for all over the country.

Quite a few bloggers made themselves known too. It is good to meet people face to face as well as over the internet.

an ARK!

This afternoon we had a lovely afternoon boating. Well, Eeyore and Piglet didn't actually get onto a boat but the Best Mate spent the afternoon nattering on the cruiser stern of a friends boat as it descended Napton Locks. We offered to do what Granny Buttons calls 'lock wheeling' for them because they are on a tight schedule to return from the IWA National, where they have been part of the set up crew, to Milton Keynes for heart surgery. The heart problem means that they should not be doing more than 5 locks per day. But progress at that rate would be too slow. A little help sped them on their way.

Halfway up we met blogger nb Harnser who was almost home!

Strolling back up the flight we met an aggravated boater who had plainly signalled to a boat descending the locks to leave the lock bottom gates open. They had closed them and the boat behind filled the lock. Why are people so inconsiderate? We were able to make her smile by opening the gates of the next lock.

That's how we will change the world and their 'go faster' attitude; one Act of Random Kindness at a time.

Here is a photo of our friends waving goodbye as they pass Folly Bridge no 113

Navigation?

We had a lovely day out today to this idyllic Tudor mansion in Warwickshire.

Charlcote Park house is not open on Wednesday or Thursday but the out buildings, including a brew house and carriage collection, and the gardens are. The Parterre adjoins the River Avon and the views are wonderful. I noted however that the chub, clearly visible in the crystal clear water, are battling against a current of at least 1 m/sec (2.1/4 mph). It occurred to me that really, this stretch of the Upper Avon is NOT really suitable for a navigation as desired by some.
Can you imagine a 65 ft narrowboat in this picture?
No, I thought not!

The gardens are delightful including a short woodland walk during which we saw young blackbirds drinking at a pond, a nuthatch feeding on a pine tree, jays and listened to a woodpecker hammering somewhere above us. We really enjoyed the latte, brownie and shortbread in the daily open restaurant too.

Pictures

Just a couple of pictures from The Summer Cruise

Here she is going under Ugly Bridge No 52 heading for the seventh lock on the 21 lock Hatton Flight.



This one attempts to capture SONFLOWER with sunflowers in the background. You can just about see a few specks of yellow! I will never make a photographer.

On a Ring (continuing)

More texts from Stuart and Margs who are navigating the Leicester Ring:

Wednesday 1 September:Ahoy Cap'n just reporting in! Another good 2days thro beautiful canal/riverscapes wiv great weather. NOw just south of Leicester at Aylestone. . .praying for you daily. wil check in on Friday

Friday 3 September: We had a pump out today and am not sure how much blue to put in before we use it. [My reply: About a litre from the blue bottle.]

Saturday 4 September Thank you. sori I missed cal. prob goin up Foxton flight. all else is good as well. lv from us X

Isn't it amazing the stuff we take for granted after a while. Although I hired boats on many occasions before buying SONFLOWER it wasn't until I owned her that I had to bother with things like pump outs, blue, gas, deisel and grease. I will have to add more to my briefings!

On a ring

We have left SONFLOWER in the good hands of Stuart and Marg who told us that they would be taking her round the Leicester Ring.

They have updated us on her position by text:

Thursday 26th August: Rain stopped at 3.30 so we motored on - done 11 locks today and moored up by Drayton just as the rain returned. V pleasant afternoon Thank you.

Saturday 28th August: Haqd two gr8 days on S'F- really good weather. O/N yest bout mile short of Fradley; 2nite at Willington. Boat behavin well. Canal today busy.

Monday 30th August Report in for today from just outsiode Loughborough. Nother fine and easy cruising day wiv sunshine all the way. Trent and Soar both v peaceful! No hiccups at all from the good ship SONFLOWER.



It appears that they are having a very good cruise. As usual, if any one ses them give them a cheery wave!

End of the Summer Cruise

Yes, today we ended the Summer cruise in grey wet August skies. The rain, so light that it hung in the air, persisted all morning but we managed our little saunter from the overnight mooring at Minworth Top Lock to a rendezvous at The Kingsley. Once a Beefeater Tavern and latterly styled Kingley Canalside, this pub appears to be no more. There certainly was no life there today at 12noon! There is a notice on the window about an application to the licensing authority to extend opening hours to 0800am to 0300am. Any opening hours would have been welcome on a cold wet August Thursday! Our lunch with friends here was cancelled and we loaded our things into their car, bid them bon voyage and drove away to find some dinner elsewhere. The Toby Carvery in Knowle was en route as we followed the way we had come: Lapworth, Hatton, Warwick/Leamington, and thence to Banbury.

We could have covered in 45 minutes what ot had taken us over a fortnight. But on the way back I did not see a kingfisher, its irredescent blue back glowing in the morning sunlight, alighting on a swaying branch and them swooping low, almost touching the water, as it considered discretion a better option and flew to the safety of an oak tree across a waving hay meadow. No, the Stratford Canal provided something special to remember.

The heart of the country

We had to stop at the Wedge's Bakery shop close to Bridge 20. It just drew us toward it for the elements of a delicious lunch. A cottage loaf, a pork pie and some cakes that didn't last until lunchtime.

After that a disappointment that Simon Goldsborough was not open for business at Warings Green Wharf it was great to Lyons Boatyard at Bridge 3, just before the Brand wood Tunnel. They had everything we needed, Diesel, Gas and a pump out. All efficiently served with a smile and a bit of banter. They gave the impression that they were boating people who really wanted to give a service to boaters. Freat customer service two days running!

We have arrived in the great city of Birmingham. One thing about having an ASD son is that you get to do a lot of the same things. Today we went to Pizza express. Each time we come we go there to watch the man make the pizza bases. I have no idea how he does it. A bit if swish swashing between his hands followed by some knuckle fisting and turning and then a bit of pressing into the edges of the plate and voila! a perfect pizza base that comes out of the oven as cripy on the edges and as soft as you like it in the middle. And not only that. He does it time and time again exactly the same way and with exactly the same result.

We love this excursion to Pizza Express. Two hours of entertainment and good food finished off with Italian Ice Cream or Tiramasu.

We had a wonderful evening and, no doubt, we will do it again next time we come to Brum.

It's Raining, it's. . .

Yesterday we made good process from our overnight mooring at Hatton Top Lock, patting ourselves ont eh back for our previous eveining's work. It was a nice morning and we soon got to Tom o' the Hill moorings water point. Here the condition of the side of our boat was noted. The flanks were caked with mud splattered up to mid window level by the heavy rain during the night impacting on the already muddy towpath. Nothing that a good hose down would not cure, however, and The Best Mate shut all the windows and handed me the nozzle for the hose.

After our ablutions we progressed to Kingswood Junction where we stopped for bacon butties before the ascent of Lapworth flight. The start was good although we were following a Canalclub (ressurrected Canaltime) boat that was slightly impeded by inexperience and low water. The helmsman insisted on leaving his lock before the previous one had let water into the pound above and had difficulty keeping afloat!

After three locks oit atarted to rain lightly. Thinking that the weather man's prediction, conveyed to us by a teacher in the boat behind, of "light Showers" was true we were unperterbed. However, the sky darkened and the rain became a deluge and The Best Mate wished that she had taken up the offer of a coat rather than 'enjoying the cooling sfffect'.

Lapworth flight is not the place to be when a rain storm comes on you. There is absolutely nowhere to hide and nowhere to moor to escape the wetting. After ten locks Tigger decided that inside the boat was the only place to be and reduced our crew by a gate opener/closer. I did not blame him as he could not understand that he could not get any wetter!

By the time we got to the second to last lock (No 3)we were glad to find the rain stopping and to find a very knowledgeable and customer orientated BW lengthsman who was adjusting the water levels in the flight. He had responded to the call of a previous boat and was working to help the boaters in spite of the terrible conditions. Well done Mr lengthsman. He also directed us to the nearest hostelry, The Wharf at Hockley Heath, where we moored to dry out, do a bit of shopping at the nearby One Stop and wait for service for dinner to commence.

We were patting ourselves on the back because of our second successful day having navigated 19 locks when nb Firefly joined us on the mooring. They had just completed 12 miles and 40 locks! They deserved their G & T!

We had a meal at The Wharf and were very pleased with what we received. We declined the offer of a carvery meal and selected meals from the Specials board or the main menu. Prices were good value and we also ordered puddings. Here is the Best Mate's Sundae to give some idea of the generosity of the portions!

Fantastic Crew!

We arrived back at Satisford Arm thanks to our hosts for lunch today. Scrummy full roast chicken dinner with bread sauce and yorkshire puddings and fruits of the forsest marrangue for afters. Wow, thanks Andy, Becky and family.

We decided that the evening was too nice to miss so we paid our dues and slipped the mooring at 5.30 pm with the Hatton Flight before us. At sunset, 2016h, we had conquered it. 21 locks in 2.3/4 hours. Many were set for us but the last four had to be emptied and we met one boat on the way!

Well done crew!

We moored above lock 46 next to two adventure boats full of sea scouts who were coating foil with candle carbon to set track detectors for the night.

The Best Mate set about creating a past and two sauce (tomato and cheese) dinner wich was consumed with gusto and washed down with a Vin Fine de Langedoc.

End of a beautiful day. Only a game of UNO to go.

Onward and Upward

At least the last two locks that we have worked were up! We are progressing steadily toward the hefty incline of the Hatton Flight. The way from Braunston to here was relatively easy as we had a full crew and a guest 12 year old lad from Germany. He was so keen to impress that he would not allow us to wind the paddles on the large Grand Union (Warwick and Birmingham) canal. We also had the delightful company of Karen, single handed, on nb Aitch. One small hitch was going on the cill while waiting (in the lock) for some hirers who had prepared three locks ahead on the Stockton flight. Filling the last lock lowered the level of the pound and lock just enough to nip SONFLOWER on the submerged second step of the cill. I didn't know there was one! Frantic waving and a bit of refilling soon did the trick and the boat was, fortunately, never in jeopardy.

We followed our new found rule of mooring up whenever a dark cloud or other evidence of precipitation was within sight so the way was slower than many would have expected but very enjoyable. We met nice people at Bridge 100 which is now bedecked with posts and chains to stop the wary falling off the edge where the dilapidated parapet has now been removed.

The ritual end of day game of UNO was enlivened by the introduction of many German 'house rules' that found new uses for many of the UNO cards but these were so confusing that our Britannic minds soon reverted to the standard game.

We also had a couple of very interesting sessions of angling. At one mooring, fairly near the River Leam we were shown a place where brown trout have been known to favour. However the bank was so steep that I took quite a prat fall on the recently moistened path. I didn't go there again and am not too sure that I could find it now either. The same informant told us that there were tench in this stretch of the GU and we proved this by allowing two of them to relieve us of some of our light tackle! We did manage to catch the Saltisford carp. Having waited a lifetime for him I am convinced he was the only one in the Arm. This really is a delightful spot to stop and show our guest Historick Warwick, even if the Doll and Toy Museum has closed. The Museum, in the old market building, was very good with excellent displays of wildlife and paleantology. It is also a nice place to wait for some blue sky before venturing up the flight.

Today we had to say good by to the "Admiral Bismark", as he became afectionately titled, as we took him to catch a flight back home to Germany and big rivers. We hope that he enjoyed a short trip in a pretty little boat on a quaint little English waterway.

Another notable event on the way was a meeting with Granny Buttons in Leamington. We last met on the River Nene in Peterborough last summer. Unfortunately, he didn't have much time for gassing as he needed to get on with "real paying work" not blogging. It was nice to see him on his way to the IWA National, although he did say that he may have to do the last few miles by train as he does not want to venture out on the Thames.