Things didn't start too well last week when we decided to do a few locks....
Whoops, that lock still hasn't been fixed since last time we came this way!
It was 8am, and we thought 6 locks, times 2, because they are single and we have to do each one twice, easy done by about 10am. Nope! The above picture depicts what happens when the bottom lock gates leak like a seive!
Echoes waits patiently below the leaky lock whilst the 'big' boat (in the lock already) also waits for the pound above to fill up
So Richard strode up to the next lock and started to let water down into the pound. Slowly, after about an hour, it was half full and a little while later we were able to fill the lock and let the boat travel sluggishly up to the next lock, trawling the bottom as she went!
A bit better but not quite full enough!
When we were raising the butty up through the leaky lock, the man from Canal and River Trust arrived to say he would let some more water down, and blamed other boaters for the lack of seal on the bottom gates, but hey what do we know!
Quite low levels all the way along the flight
We spent the rest of the morning waiting around after 4 locks for the CRT man to finish being happy with the water levels, to then let us pass. At around 1pm, we managed to get moored in the long pound next to a boat, where the previous day it's occupant had mysteriously drowned.....
Islonian - or the The Vapes Boat with Jim taking pictures of us as we leave
We met up with Sheila and Jim from narrowboat Islonian and had a lovely evening with them before carrying on to finish the flight the next day.
Leaving the water point at the top lock on the Atherstone flight
That's the last time I ask someone to 'hover in the middle' of the canal whilst I moor up to wait for the butty to come up. The boat's steerer proceeded to moor up (not hover in the middle)and then the woman dropped the lock water for the butty instead of putting their boat in the lock first! Completely misunderstood what I asked, thinking we had to pull the butty up in between as a priority. I felt awful for the rest of the afternoon, as the woman didn't see the funny side, that I had called her husband a 'noodle' for not using the water. Oh well, won't give any instructions or requests to anyone this year, unless they are getting on my nerves.........
Old 'moggy' minor!
Bit foggy as we set off from a tranquil mooring in the middle of nowhere, the next day
Looking back at where we had been moored
Cruising past Hartshill Yard
Approaching Nuneaton. we spotted Sue from narrowboat No Problem and shouted our greetings. We pasted each other last year around the same time.
The hire company have moved from Spring Haven marina to the Coventry basin. Looks a bit empty now, but still a lovely location
Nuneaton was, as usual, unkempt and dodgy socially and canalwise, but we dared to moor for about half an hour whilst Richard ran to Jewson to buy some wood for the new cratch (framework which holds the cratch cover on the bow of the boat). Shame really because it would have been nice to 'do' the shops and spend the night. Come Nuneaton clean up your canal!!
Mooring up for the night before Hawkesbury Junction, we bumped into more friends, Dave and Dee from narrowboat Medos (Sod 'em, backwards!) So, we ended up in the pub The Greyhound Inn at the junction for a couple. Looks like it's going to be a year for bumping into old friends!
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