Will she or won't she?

We made the journey to the boat on Monday 6 July, after rush hour, really still quite quiet on the motorways, we arrived ready for coffee, soon unpacked and everything stowed away in fridge and freezer, enough to keep us going for 10 days or so.

The boat is filthy, covered in soot from the winter fires on those boats occupied during the winter, a grey film that lingers, but the outside can wait for a clean.

On Tuesday we had some things to do inside before the BSS later in the afternoon, the day as one forecaster had said was 'grotty'.  I vacated the boat after lunch and sat in the car, our first boat safety every, not sure why we were nervous but we were, all done and dusted after an hour with a pass, great stuff, no nasty surprises an some compliments to boot.

We stayed put, due to the weather getting worse, we'd break free on Weds instead, even if there was wet stuff.

Weds dawned and we started getting ready to leave, but then our departure was curtailed somewhat, a dead starter battery! hmm, nothing for it but plug the shoreline in and see what transpired with that, so after coffee and lunch, there was enough in the starter to start the engine, but would it stay charged or would we be stranded, we then tried the generator battery, that was dead too! oops not the best of getaways, but with things tested to make sure they were being charged by the alternator, we left after lunch, turning left and out towards Snarestone.

We decided that a longer run than normal should be done, giving everything chance to recover, so that's what we did.  We passed Derwent 6 and both commented how nice it looked, clean with shiny brasses.  We turned at Snarestone, and headed back to shackerstone and moored on the first bit of arnco on the sweeping bend opposite the long tern moorers, a nice spot and away from the bridge. it has persisted down since.

We move on Friday.

A couple of weeks into lockdown

So here we all are dealing with lockdown, some better than others I would think.  For us it's meant some skype calls with family, our skype dinner party has not gone ahead yet, we need my sister in law to be pursuaded it is a good idea I'm leaving that with my brother, it would give a lighter mood to the situation outside of our bubbles.

We joined a live video over facebook yesterday (Saturday) it was with one of the dance hosts whose dances we attend locally - or did before all of this started, it was great to get some dancing in.  The hour and a half was well thought out, and having gone outside to the patio we danced under the stars and moon, said hello and sent requests, joined in some banther.  The audience varied, but most touching was the older contingent, many having never used technology in such a way before, some without their dance partners but still joining in being able to listen an put in requests or just to say hello to friends, for this group a lot are within the most vulderable age group, it gave them some time to hear something normal and joining in with a group of people they know but cannot be with.  The evening was made a great success by the people who hosted it and those who joined in, we'll be looking out for the next one.

Our days are full, deciding what to do and where to be, either in the garden or indoors, currently due to the weather being so lovely we've spent a lot of time outdoors gardening, and giving the summerhouse another coat of paint.  I've also sown some seeds, some of the hollyhock seeds my dad saved back in 2012 he passed away the year after and I've not had the inclination to do anything with them till now, so fingers crossed they do something, it's right on the end of the time they should be viable, we'll see what happens.  I have gloss painting indoors for cloudy/rainy days, that looks like next week at some point.

And lastly some photos of spring in our garden, take care x

Keeping things normal

We like many are trying not to get too caught up in the panic that seems to be escaling when food shopping, we are sticking to our normal shop, but have an added pressure of making sure Martin's mum is well stocked, at 92 her decision to not venture out of the house was welcome, best stay in and be safe (and away from the madness of the queues and lack of wheelchair capability at the local stores).

Our choice of store is changing though, local smaller shops for bread and milk, people only shopping for what they need here helps, we don't need to use a car for this either so getting some excercise as well is great, going to the larger shops for fruit and veg when needed.

We have no other need to go out at the moment, we are doing some work in the house so that will keep us out of trouble for a while, and it helps with the 'social distancing' we're hearing so much about.

We're due to go on a small uk break in April and so far that is going ahead, it's not been cancelled but that may change.

First outing

Last week we went up to the boat on Tuesday, spying a lull in the rain for a few days, leaving mid morning we got to the boat at lunchtime

We filled the water tank whilst eating lunch and put things back on line for our cruise, we also decided to stay put in the marina for the rest of the day and night.

Early on Wednesday we slipped out of the marina and went out towards Snarestone, some days on our own was on the cards, the sun was out and we were happy to be out making the most of the day, en-route we started our first cruise as we had our last with some kingfisher spotting, one day he'll stay put in a place that doesn't stretch to the limit of my camera zoom, but like anyone will tell you it's such a lovely thing to see.

We took our time and I made the most of the combined engine use and in-put from the solar, using the microwave to cook a fish pie for later in the day and getting hot water, Martin has cleverly installed a recirculation switch which means the water in the calorifier is distributed throughout the tank and circulated to give an even temperature top and bottom, it also stays hotter for longer.

we got to the end of the Ashby and turned, the wind doing its best to sent us sideways in the winding hole, but perseverance ensured we got around, there was one boat moored this side of the tunnel but out plan was to go back through and moor on the 48 hr mooring providing the driest and least muddy option for now. With the batteries at 100% and the afternoon sun getting through the trees they stayed that way till quite late in the afternoon.

On Thurs we were awake early and decided to move a bit further, just away from the trees, past the really boggy part of the towpath, the wind was picking up but there was blue sky and solar to be made use of! 10 mins later we were settled in the open.  

I went for a walk detoured into a field to avoid the bog and then walked through Snarestone to the Alpaca farm, it's relatively new and is a nice short walk, it has a wool store and knit and natter groups if you want to join, but I'm happy browsing through the reduced yarn just in case I see something that interests me.  There is also a tearoom and this is usually well attended, worth a walk if you are in the area.

I settled back at the boat, we had lunch and I continued with some knitting, I've brought a Christmas project with me and want to make some progress with it.

We stayed here till Saturday morning, when we pushed off at just before 7.00 (saw the kingfisher again but photos not great) with the aim of getting back to the marina for breakfast, and really before a breeze picked up which would make in difficult to get back into our berth.  All went really well, tied up by 9 and breakfasted we headed out to Morrisons in Hinckley a short car ride away, with the aim of getting veg for Sunday lunch back at home, it took longer than it should of with so many queues at the checkouts, shopping madness is an understatement, we'll be shopping in our normal way!  On the way back we called into Spinneybank farm shop (bridge 23) to collect our order.  Unfortunately the farm is being given as a delivery address for supermarket deliveries, and while this may seem acceptable to those doing it, it really does have an impact on those trying to run a business and normal day to day life, please stop and think.

On Saturday evening we went to the dance in Stoke Golding village hall, met up with friends we have made and had a lovely evening, sadly it will be the last for a while as like most things now social gatherings of this kind are being put on hold, still we may even get some time to learn some new dances during the next few months.

Sunday's journey home was very wet, with 40mph speed restrictions due to the amount of surface water, but again we got home in time for breakfast, let the fire and settled back home.  We enjoyed our first trip of the season and hope the boating season won't be curtailed too much.

Thank you Jo for your comment, hope to see you at some point too.

Today's the day

A year ago today I lost my mum, so it seems a fitting day to move on and look forward to a new chapter in my life.  

I've been waiting for today for several months now even marking an event in my work calendar as 'today's the day'.  Today is the day I handed in my notice at work, what a feeling that was, at 7am I pressed send on the email that has been sat in draft for months, it's had some small itterations to it during that time, but today it was good to go, such a feeling, mainly happy but a bit of a leap too.

Having worked full time since I left school at 16 this really feels like a new beginning unchartered territory, and one that is full of promise, and I'm really looking forward to it.  I now have 15 working days left till my final day 31 March, I have a lot of leave to get in so 26 Feb will actually be my last working day.

There will be some house jobs to do during March, I'll be painting the kitchen, utility and cloakroom, and Martin has his no.1 little helper back, it appears some jobs will need four pairs of hands not two.

Depending what the weather is up to during March we'll think about when to go back to the boat, we also need to think about what our cruising plans will look like for the year ahead, no more time constraints put on us by annual leave, but at the moment we are happy here at home and have plenty to keep us occupied untill then.

Spring is really around the corner with the weather being so mild this winter.

Caroline

Winterising....

This weekend has seen us winterising the boat, and heading home for the winter, no more weekends away till next year. I'm hoping next year to write a few more posts, this year has been manic trying to sort out mums affairs, work for me (himself being a man of leisure). But next year we have some plans so we're looking forward to that, and I'm a tad excited!

Happy Christmas!

Boat jobs for the weekend

We've been to the boat several times since February and mum passing, it's recharged our batteries, chilled us out and meant I'm not constantly worrying if we don't have a phone signal.   I must say I'm not missing the driving to Exeter, which was proving to be taxing, tiring and at times traumatic.

This Easter break we've decided to stay put in the marina, we don't do that very often, but due to the weather forecast we figured it would be less than quiet, we have plenty of times when we can go out and not join the crowds.

So this weekend my plan was to wash and then re-proof the front and back canopies, no mean feet on your own, they're huge! having the safety of the pontoon along one side of the boat made it a little easier.  Martin has been doing some bits inside the boat, which meant the inside of the boat being in total upheaval, along with the back steps being removed, he's fiddling with the calorifier and looking at how he can recirculate the hot water to make it more efficient. 

With plenty of solar being produced not the clocks have changed we have been back up to 100% by about 9 in the morning, it means we can solar dump into the hot water tank, cook jacket potatoes in the combination microwave, boil the electric kettle whenever we want amongst other things.  We don't use the shore power at all even in the winter which is a money saver!

Today (Saturday) having finished the canopies yesterday I've turned my attention to the outside of the boat, giving it a thorough was down to get rid of the soot from other moorers winter fires. I only put polish on once a year at the end of the season, glad to say though the boat always benefits from a good clean.

Hopefully the blog will get a little more attention now things are settling down and time appears to be more our own.

Rest in peace Mum

Early hours on 3 February my mum slipped away peacefully following another stroke early in January. What a strong loving mum.  So grateful my brother and I were so involved with everything about her, even at the end, no regrets at all. Love you lots mum xx

23 June 1934 - 3 Feb 2019

Pootling around

For The last few weekends we've made it away from home on a Thursday after I've finished work.  Having prepared a meal to re-heat from the day before, it's great to be on the boat, unpacked and eating our evening meal, giving me the feeling we've made the most of our get-away.

The weather has also been great, and we have been fortunate to be out of the marina in some glorious sunshine.

The bank holiday weekend saw us making the most of the sunshine and a good mooring at Shackerstone.  This enabled me to get on with touching up the paintwork along one side of the boat.  I've been really apprehensive about tackling this, but it's not turned out too bad at all.  I'd been researching some paint makes to understand how I could get a paint that would be a match for our awlcraft 2000 two pack as this is only something that can be sprayed, I've ended up getting an epifanes custom colour, this really does match our original paint and was really easy to apply, I feel confident in tackling the other side, when we have the time to do it.

This past weekend saw us arrive again on Thursday early evening, giving us time to get out of the marina and motor down to Stoke Golding, having made tea again before we came away the smell of cottage pie warming through followed us along the canal. We walked to the Dog and Hedgehog for evening drinks on Friday, and decided to book for lunch on Saturday, the staff are always very attentive, and we had some good banter from the bar staff.

Saturday afternoon we headed back to the marina, rain was forecast for the evening and as we were going to a local May ball we didn't fancy getting drenched before the event, instead we drove, which turned out to be a good plan as within an hour of our return the rain started. 

We're now back home and planning for this weekend, we'll be welcoming a special guest who is responsible for our boating adventures.  We'll also be thinking about the week after as I have some leave booked, we will be getting off the Ashby canal for a while, and that will involve some locks, that'll be the first since last October.

Space for ballgowns required!

Winterising and seeing how things have faired over winter.  We were last on the boat on 10 December, Martin had been busy lagging many of the water pipes to help protect as far as possible against any hard frosts.

The last engagement of this year was to the local Christmas dance, avid dancers (ballroom, latin and sequence) with varying degrees of execution we've had fun going along to a very welcoming bunch at one of the local village halls. So when you have a boat built you normally don't allow for ballgowns to go in your wardrobe, hmm not me!

On the Sunday morning we woke early (5 ish) I looked outside to see what the conditions were - no sign of the forecast snow yet, at 7 am it was a different story, it was leave now or get stuck for a few days, not really an option that was open to us.

After clearing the car a few times in the space of half an hour the car was loaded and we were making our way out of the marina home, 4 - 5 inches of snow by now made the trip the longest so far.  One lane of just passable motorway does not make for quick travelling, but sticking to following lorries proved to be the best policy, although Martin's stop at Hopwood Park Services could have been a different story (I'm packing proper grippy outdoor shoes for him next time, as I ended up being the one to push the car out of the car park and onto the service road)

This weekend saw us back at the boat, fingers crossed everything would be ok and certainly dry when the water was turned back on, it was, should we have doubted it? anyway all the preparation to winterise was well worth it, this year we may well do it a bit earlier, weather and forecast dependant I think.

So exactly 3 months from when we were here last, I went for a 6 mile walk while Martin pottered, we had a good bit of snoozing and on Saturday night we were again at a dance, greeted like long lost friends, the weekend has started our boating season, and oh have we missed it, it's good to be boating again.

Through Banbury to Claydon top lock

We woke to a misty drizzly day, so for the first time this holiday we donned wet weather gear, having moored quite close to Banbury we were soon approaching the outskirts, and the permanent moorings before we got into the centre and Banbury Lock.

The moorings here are plenty but as we crept passed the rather full lines we could here talk of very loud music and people not having much sleep, we had a little smile as we'd had a perfect night, out in the countryside. 

At Cropredy there were no cues like we'd seen on our way down so we made short work of it

At Broadmoor Lock the heavens opened, but snug and dry in our wet weather gear this did not deter us.  I picked up some cooking apples again by the lock side to go with some more blackberries we'd gathered, apple and blackberry crumbles seem to have been a staple pudding this holiday.

The first Claydon lock we worked through on our own but at all of the other locks there were 4-5 boats waiting to come down, this should have meant our progress was swift but it wasn't.  Boat crews were just too eager to turn locks in front of us and for them to join the large cues above each lock, so selfish, in fact one hire boat crew of all men couldn't even acknowledge us.

At the top lock we were again on our own, so worked through the lock, and moored just beyond the bridge, and chilled for the evening.

Retracing our steps

We're heading back towards home now, knowing the river section of the Cherwell is just the other side of Thrupp we decided to make another early start, to see it at its most appealing, still and mirror like, we weren't disappointed, here we are before 8, and the promise of a good weather ahead.

We'd thought about mooring up for the day at Pigeon lock again, but as you can see the from the photo above the day was too good to stay still, perfect cruising weather, so instead we put in a longer day.

When we reached Somerton deep lock, we had time to take in the prettiest setting I've seen so far on the canals.

We had a lunch stop a little way passed Somerton Deep lock, and continued on our way. Along passed Aynho and it long line of boats, and through the odd shaped Aynho weir lock.

After working through Kings Sutton lock we decided to call it a day and enjoy the evening, so sat out on the back deck in the sunshine before having our evening meal.

A day in Thrupp

We spent the whole day here, pottering, going for walks (mainly to the pubs - as you do) me knitting, Martin catching up on afternoon nap times.

I also got rather excited when I spotted a flash of blue, so most of the afternoon was spent trying to capture the little so and so, this was done in varying degrees of blurriness! sadly with one with him fishing and knocking the fish out on the side of a boat was not that good.

So some of the failures below.

But the best and last one

maybe next time I'll have learnt a bit more about my camera!

Into Thrupp - before anyone else is on the move

We left our mooring at pigeon lock very early before 7, and enjoyed a mist filled cruise with the sun working hard to clear the skies and the mist rolling off lock I found the lock in our favour, we were soon down the lock and onto the river section where the Cherwell joins, lovely deep water.

At Shipton Weir lock I found the lock again in our favour but the lock gate was so heavy I found it really hard to get going, it did eventually and again we were soon out the other side.  We were now approaching Thrupp, long lines of moored boats greeted us.

As we approached Aubrey's lift bridge we could see the services were vacant so we tied up to fill with water and dump the rubbish, taking the opportunity to ave breakfast while the water was still filling.  This was all done and dusted by 8.30

We were soon on our way working through the lift bridge, well thought out here for single handers with controls on both sides.  We spotted several moring spots on the way past the Boat and the Jolly Boatman, time to decide what to do, as we would be turning below Dukes lock to start are return journey we hoped the mooring back in Thrupp would still be free when we got back.

Having gone through the long line of moored craft leading up to Dukes lock. I set the lock and waited worked the boat down and stayed at the lock waiting for Martin to wind and come back in, nearing completion of the turn a boat appeared from the Oxford direction , Martin explained he was winding and going back up the lock, having worked back up the lock I could get back on board and enjoy the cruise back to Thrupp.  We got to a moorning just outside the Jolly Boatman at lunchtime, having tied up for the day we decided a pub lunch was on the cards, as well as a well earned drink, the sun was again getting very hot so this was most welcome.

Relaxing back at the boat, sitting in the cratch with my knitting it was lovely to sit and watch the world go by.

Time to get the blog up to date - A short day to Kirtlington

We had a really lazy day, we didn't move till gone 10. a short cruise today as we had made up so much time, it is a holiday after all.

A total of four locks to do today, and due mainly to our late start queues were formed at each lock, the boat behind us seemed to think he'd be able to hurry everyone along, it didn't work. It was good chatting to other boaters and helping them through locks before it was our turn.

At pigeons lock our last for the day another boat had got in front of us, with four crew on board I held back and stayed with our boat thinking they would be able to help the crew of two going down in front of the, it was not to be they just stood there. 

I walked on to see what the mooring situation was like below the lock, and was very pleased to see it was empty.  On my way back to Sonia Louise I helped at the lock by closing the top gate for the boat that had been in front of us till this point, we made comment about the lack of willing helpers from the boat behind, and wished each other a good onward journey.

We spent some time Blackberrying once we'd tied up below the lock, and soon put the boat hook to good use.

I want the blackberries at the top please!

After lunch we walked back to the bridge over the tail of pigeon lock and turned right and followed the track along past the quarry and Janes enchanted tea garden and into Kirtlington, a very well kept village, it has a village store, a pub (the Oxford Arms) and the Dashwood a hotel that is popular for food alfresco eating.  We had a drink in the pub and then on our return at the Dashwood. both would warrant a further visit if I didn't fancy cooking.

On our walk back down the track we sought shelter from a big chestnut tree, the outer edge of a thunder storm was passing, and dumped a sudden heavy shower, but the tree provided us with the shelter required to keep us bone dry.

Flapjack currency alive and well

We left our mooring at Cropredy by 8.00 a little cloudier than of late, and headed down through the lock in the village, out passed the long line of moored boats and into the sticks for a while.

At Banbury we stopped for a late breakfast, and decided to shop for fresh fruit and veg at Tesco, via Spiceball Park and the keep fit machines, what a laugh they were.  The noise of the traffic brought us abruptly into modern day life.  This Tesco is massive, I soon wizzed along the isles with my list filling the trolly with essentials whilst Martin visited the clothing and homewares upstairs, we swapped places after that and returned to the boat within an hour. After a coffee we decided to move on again, through Banbury.

We cruised on through the countryside and the many lift bridges, thankfully most are left open nowadays.

We soon arrived at Somerton Deep lock, it looked busy with people on our approach and a thought crossed my mind that something may be wrong.  We pulled onto the lock mooring and I went to investigate. The crew from the boat in the lock had had difficulty winding the bottom paddles up, and there were several children with their mums watching too, checking that everything was ok I got chatting with the children and their mums, it turns out they were out for the afternoon and had just had a ride on the boat going down in the lock, they were learning a little about the canal and the lock in the process.

When it was our turn to come into the lock I'd enlisted some very willing volunteers to help with gates and paddles, 5 really interested and bright children, who worked really hard on their day out, had asked some interesting questions and were now walking along the towpath at our pace, still chatting away to us, at this moment I spotted the mini flapjacks in the galley sat there looking out the window, we were close to another bridge so arranged a flapjack giving.  Many a 'thank you' was heard, and they were soon divided and devoured. That made our day, and actually it made my holiday, they were great.

By now the warm weather was turning cloudier and rain could be seen in the distance, we were making for one of the Helford's and had decided to moor at the first decent bit of Armco.

Just before Allens lane bridge and the bends to the next lock we found a good stretch of straight Armco and moored, overlooking fields and a farmer working away collecting bales.  We put the canopy up too as it had started to spot with rain, with more forecast overnight. 

We also decided to have a meal out tonight, so ventured along the towpath over the bridge and up the hill, quite a steep hill where we reached the Barley Mow, Upper Heyford a friendly welcome and a good meal was had, local banter and we stayed put for drinks after.

We deserve a short day!

Today again there was no plan, but we thought a short day would be on the cards.

Working our way down the Claydon flight I was told by a lady that the two last pounds were very low and she wouldn't be surprised if the summit was closed, for us it didn't appear to shallow, we could still get the boat to the side without grounding out, unlike places on the Ashby.

We reached Cropredy by mid morning and ventured out for a paper and a walk around the village, walking back along the canal from the service point, checking out the water tap location we could see we'd be in the bridge hole if we needed to fill here, still having over half a tank of water we didn't need to try this out.

A lazy day was had. (in brilliant sunshine, again. (how lucky are we?)

A flying start

Today we had a plan, start early and make the most of the coolness the morning air provided.

So we were off again before anyone else stirred.  Passing a long line of moored boats, and no vacant spaces leading to the bottom of Napton Locks, being the bank holiday weekend it really was still very busy.

We passed around the hill that Napton village nestles in, and got our first sight of the windmill.

View of Napton windmill

By 07.45 we were ascending the locks, where the views got bigger and better.  We were soon at the top and looking at the water buffalo grazing in the fields nearby.

After the two Marston Doles locks we were at the summit, suncream applied we were ready for another hot day. 

We were also celebrating out wedding anniversary and really relaxed into the day enjoying the summit views, wedding bridge was very appropriate to cruise under.

By 3 we still hadn't stopped for lunch and by now we had reached Claydon locks so we moored on the Armco above and relaxed in the shade for the rest of the day. 

New ground

We left Hillmorton by 7 am. Another warm and sunny day for us to enjoy and no plan for where we were to finish. 

We've never been to Braunston on our own boat we had an idea that we would visit Midland Chandlers for some additional bits and bobs.  As we approached the junction the customer moorings outside were taken, so we made the turn R towards Oxford and moored up on the visitor moorings. 

Having a leg stretch is getting to be a daily routine so we made our way back to the twin bridges on foot and walked up to the road bridge and into Braunston itself, it was still early and the pub wasn't yet open.  We looked at the produce on display at the butchers and although there was a good queue for the meats, the fruit and veg outside looked well over its best. We walked back through to Midland Chandlers had a good old nose and picked up some of what we had planned to, then it was back to the boat.

On leaving Braunston the Saturday hire boat rush to and from the junction had subsided, and we mad our way past the Napton Hire base, all the boats bar one were out.  We used to hire from here but never turned left from the base, so going past it saw us covering new ground.

We stopped for lunch shortly after, overlooking fields of crops yet to be harvested, enjoying the shade given by a small tree.  I also took the opportunity to pick some blackberries, cooking apples sometimes need a seasonal accompaniment.

Some welcome shade during a long lunch

With the heat subsiding a little we moved on, enjoying the twisting canal until we reached the moorings that run up to the Bridge Inn, Napton, we secured the last mooring, a 65ft space.  After our evening meal we set off up the hill to the Kings Head, the road leading to it is fast.  We sat out and enjoyed the busy garden area along with many others.

Putting in the miles while the weather is so good

We left Hawkesbury Junction at 6.50 with mist on the water and blue skies above, we were soon through the stop lock, and onto the Oxford canal (northern section).  As it was such a nice cruising day that's just what we did, having made a rough plan with the aid of canal plan we were already up on our hours for the day.

Hawkesbury Junction stop lock

Another glorious day, looks like there is a theme going on here, I'm on holiday and the starts are early, but oh so worth it.

We finished for the day just around the corner from Hillmorton Locks, ready for the off the next morning.

After dinner on board we went for a walk into Hillmorton, looked at the Stag and Pheasant - from the outside and decided it had seen better days, so we didn't go in, the walk back took us through the church yard before re-joining the canal path that led past the locks and back to the boat.