Lock Up Cruise Week 8

 Monday 24th August - Nelson’s Wharf to Radford Semele

We made a fairly early start this morning as we are going to work a lot of locks today.  The Stockton Locks are all wide locks and quite hard work.

Then to our delight we met Brian, a volunteer lock keeper who helped us through some of the locks, it was quite busy as there is a Kate Boats hire place in Warwick and you see a lot of their boats.  

In this photo I am leaving the lock and coming towards the camera, preparing to pass the boat coming towards me, we only need one gate open as these are wide locks and we aren’t sharing this lock.  

Soon after this we joined up with NbGalene, the owners of this boat are true Europeans, she is from Brussels and he is from Athens, they were very much taken with the Greek flag we are flying.  Their boat is moored at Droitwich Spa whilst they overwinter in Athens, and in spring, summer and autumn they cruise the waterways.  What an idyllic way of life! 

We moored up at Radford Semele and we found a walk along a disused railway, called the Offchurch Greenway, a lovely open view across the fields, spoilt only by light rain towards the end of the walk.

We saw this sign on a bridge, I found it quite amusing, is this an avocado farm?  One wonders....

6.5 miles, 20 locks, 5 hours, 54 mins.

Tuesday 25th August - Radford Semele

Today the forecast has been for heavy rain followed by high winds so we decided to sit the weather out and stay for another night.  

This time we walked into Radford Semele itself and had a look around the church and it’s grounds.  The church was destroyed in 2008 by an arson attack and it took 5 years to restore it and reopen.

Wednesday 26th August - Radford Semele to Hatton Station Bridge

Grape Escape is another Bourne Boat, newer than ours, they were moored up behind us and come from Lancashire.

I was impressed by the quality and colours of this beautiful mural as we came through Leamington Spa, there are quite a few as you come through the town, but this one particularly caught my eye.  

Once out of Leamington Spa we stopped at Kate Boats to buy two new anti vandal keys as we have managed to lose both of ours!  Then we continued on to the first of the locks in Warwick.  Here we met a Black Prince hire boat called Phoebe trying to get into the first of the locks, but they managed to ground themselves on a mudbank on the far side.  The boat was being driven by a very young girl who wasn’t tall enough to see over the roof, so it was hardly surprising!  We pulled over for water after the locks and discovered this boat was going up to the Saltersford Arm, turning round and coming back down again.  When we got to the Saltersford Arm, as I was preparing to turn to the right, I was staggered to see nbPhoebe being driven backwards at terrific speed across my path and in to the bushes just before the arm.  They then spent another 15 mins trying to turn the boat to head back towards the Cape of Good Hope locks, still with the young girl at the tiller and various adults shouting instructions.  I don’t think I have seen anything so frightening in all the years I have been on the canals!  

Dave Is heading towards the lock and as he came under the bridge there was an articulated lorry stationary above him, it did look quite amusing but by the time I got the camera ready the lorry had pulled away! 

Looking up the flight of locks the way we are going, the Hatton flight are 21 in total, all wide locks and we did them all on our own, we passed a few boats coming down but we had no-one to share the lock with.  It was hard work, we shared working the locks, and I managed to clock up my 11,000 steps (4.5 miles) by the time we had got to the end of the day.  We were proud of the 4.5 hours it took us to complete the flight!

The view back down the flight from Hatton Top Lock, and the sun has come out for us!  We then continued on for a little way further and moored up at Hatton Station Bridge for the night. No need to go for a walk today, steps and miles accomplished and we were both shattered!  

8.5 miles, 23 locks, 8 hours 24 mins.

Thursday 27th August - Hatton Station Bridge to Kingswood Junction

The view from the side of the boat as we get ready to set off on the cruise for the day.  A gorgeous sunny morning with no locks until after Kingswood Junction.  So Toby and I cast Dave off and walked along the towpath.  

The canal goes through Shrewley Tunnel, wide enough for two boats to pass each other, there is no towpath and the horses used to walk over the top and down through their own 37m horse tunnel.  Toby and I did this walk and this is the horse tunnel heading down to rejoin the canal.  The tunnel is notoriously wet with cascades of water dropping at regular intervals! 

We realised quite quickly that we were at the end of a queue of 4 boats waiting to go up the Lapworth Locks and with rain forecast we decided to stop and moor up for the day rather than work the locks in heavy rain - we were rather pleased we did! 

Instead we went for a rather wet walk around the junction and as far as the little canal shop where we bought some delicious cake and a lovely rag rug to match the colours of the boat, very pleased with our little purchase.

4 miles, 1 tunnel, 1 hour 42 minutes.

Friday 28th August - Kingswood Junction to Lapworth Lock 5

An early start this morning, with the intention of getting up the Lapworth Locks before the heavy rain sets in again this afternoon.  Bringing the boat round to the first lock of the day, the first narrow lock since the ones on the Northampton Arm after leaving the River Nene.  Very welcome after the wide locks!  

We worked our way up the locks, a line of four boats, and one volunteer, which meant that there were plenty of bodies around to help open and close locks as we made steady progress.  I do enjoy this flight of locks as there are so many twists and turns within the short pounds of water.

We moored just below lock 5 as a deluge of rain soaked everything in a short space of time, and waited for the rain to stop.  Then we went for a walk in Lapworth village to see the church.  

I’m afraid Toby doesn’t like getting wet and was keen to get into his bag and dry off for a while whilst we had lunch.

The church has two unusual features, the first is a passageway through a porch which was originally meant to be a Grand west entrance which was never finished, it has an anti room above the porch which was used to store holy relics.  The second feature was the detached tower This was built to the north of the nave in the 14th century. The spire was added later, and it was not for another 400 years that a connecting passage was built to join the tower to the body of the church.

1.5miles, 15 locks, 3 hours 6 minutes. 

Saturday 29th August - Lapworth Lock 5 to Kings Norton Junction

A bright start to the day and 4 locks in quite quick succession, so Toby and I worked the locks and walked in between them.  These are the last locks before the Tardebigge Flight of 30! 

We then continued walking and worked a further two manual lift bridges, they were very heavy and hard work!  The final lift bridge is an electric one which was done for us!  Very kind! 

Going through the last lock of the day, the guillotine lock which is always left open but dates back to the time when canals were individually owned and monitored the water on their canals.  Hence this one only being a depth of 1”! 

Today we moored up just past the junction and went to explore Kings Norton.  Now a suburb of Birmingham, it still retains its village green feel and boasts some excellent ancient buildings.  This is the Old Grammar School which poses some unanswered questions.

The early 15th-century timber-framed upper storey is older than the ground floor which was built in brick in the early 17th-century.

This building is The Saracen’s Head, originally the bailiffs house and manorial Court, the oldest part dates back to 1450 and was used as an inn from the 18th Century.

On our way back to the boat along the towpath we passed this Wall of Hope created by school children from King’s Norton in May of this year.  A lovely idea, simple wooden plaques with little messages of hope written on them and nailed to a wooden fence.  Originally there were 200 plaques but Passers Byers are encouraged  to add their own message and there are many more now.

11.25 miles, 4 locks, 1 tunnel, 3 moveable bridges.

Sunday 30th August - kings Norton Junction to Tardebigge Top Lock

A lovely bright start to the day, and we set off early to make our way through the three tunnels before the rush.  This is Wast Hill Tunnel, the longest today at 2493m, I had to pass two boats in this one.

This was the last tunnel of the day, Tardebigge Tunnel, only 530m, and I passed one boat, a day boat with twin headlights, this was a little confusing as I only expect to see one headlight! 

After we had moored up and eaten lunch we went for a walk around Tardebigge and enjoyed the beautiful countryside and the church on the hillside. 

Ella moored below the Top Lock, ready for the busy day tomorrow of 30 locks in a 2.25 mile stretch through the Worcestershire countryside.

8.75 miles, 3 tunnels, 1 lock, 3 hours 30 minutes.

Lock Up Cruise Week 7

 Monday 17th August to Wednesday 19th August - Visit to Southampton

A lovely few days visiting Annie, Pete and Alba in Southampton, playing with Alba in the garden, lunch in Lyndhurst and a two hour walk through the New Forest at Bolton’s Bench.

We went into a children’s park so Alba could go on the swings and slide, Toby was not happy!!! 

Thursday 20th August - Northampton to High House Wharf

We made an early start today, left the Marina and headed back up the Northampton Arm and the 17 locks.  The first 5 locks are well spaced but very slow cruising as the water depth is very shallow and very weedy! 

At the top lock is the only surviving lock keepers cottage, there were originally three cottages when the arm opened in 1815, and this one is now privately owned.

We moored up at High House Wharf and went for a walk.  We met Brian, one of two Northamptonshire Recorders for Wildflowers, who was looking for a rare species of Bur Marigold that is currently migrating along the Grand Union Canal.

This is the plant that had caught his eye, but he wasn’t sure that it was the right one. He was going to take a sample of the plant and seed and send it off for analysis, he was extremely fascinating to listen to as he explained how the plants migrate.  

11 miles, 17 locks, 3 moveable bridges, 6 hrs 18mins.

Friday 21st August - High House Wharf Basin Moorings

Today we have stayed at our mooring as there have been winds of over 20 mph with gusts of up to 40 mph, not ideal cruising weather, and we sustained a couple of side on collisions from boats that were cruising.  Instead we went for a 6 mile walk along the canal exploring Flore and Upper Heyford, very pretty little villages.

 A lot of the walk was along the Nene Way which I was a little surprised about, but it begins in Badby and we crossed the river in several places, this one being just as we entered Nether Heyford.  This is a very different river than the one we were cruising on only a few days ago! 

Today is my walking companion’s birthday - Toby is 6 years old today, Happy Birthday Toby! 

Saturday 22nd August - High House Wharf to Braunston Lock 2

Wharf House at Weedon where timber was transported by canal boat, the last time we came past the boat wasn’t there, good to see a boat moored at a wharf!

We moored up above lock 2 in Braunston and went to find the butcher, but missed him by 10 minutes!  When we got back, the boat behind us was playing loud music so we dropped down another lock and moored again in a much quieter spot.  The pumping station (on the left) dates back to the early 1800 and originally pumped water back to the top of the Braunston locks.

It has been a breezy day today, and the Buckby locks were hard work, we shared the locks with a solo boater and Dave did most of the lock work.  We were quite relieved to moor up for the night and have a well earned rest.

10 miles, 12 locks, 6 hours 18 minutes.

Sunday 23rd August - Braunston to Nelson’s Wharf

Woke to a less breezy day and headed towards the final lock through Braunston.  We were fortunate to collect another solo boater and his dog and went down together.  His dog was very well trained to get back into the boat as it exited the lock and went through the bridge, very impressive!  

After filling with diesel, emptying rubbish and filling with water we were good to go and left Braunston leaving under the twin cast iron bridges, we took the first bridge and turned left under it heading towards Napton Junction.

After turning right at Napton Junction we soon came to Calcutt Locks, always an interesting place for us!  This time we collected another boat with a family of four on it.  They had borrowed the boat from some friends and were spending about 5 days on it.  It soon became clear they had no idea how to control the boat, drive the boat or how to operate a lock.  To my horror I saw the stern rope being attached to a bollard and then snap in two as the boat continued to pull away.  We did go down the three locks with them, giving them as much help and guidance as possible, so hopefully they will take it slowly and learn as they go along! 

We moored up and went for a walk up to Birdingbury Wharf and back past Nelson’s Wharf, behind the Willow Wren Training Centre.  The moorings are linear at right angles to the canal with these interesting pods beside the moorings.  

8.5 miles, 4 locks, 5 hrs 18 mins.

Lock Up Cruise 2020 Week 6

 

Monday 10th August - Upwell to March

This morning we left Upwell and cruised steadily through to Marmont Lock.  We met Simon on nbScholar Gypsy, he is moored in Ely and keeps a blog which I follow. Very exciting to meet him for real!  

Crossing the fens was quite magical today, beautiful skies, these amazing windmills turning lazily in the slight breeze. We saw only a few boats moving, and some moored in far out of the way places. We have decided that when we come again we shall explore the other navigable drains on the fens. 

An eye catching display based around the name of the narrowboat, so many bottles painted and catching the light at all different angles, lovely.  

We moored up in March on the Town Centre moorings, very pleasant and much quieter than the mooring in Upwell despite the fact that it was in a town centre.  A walk around the town and a stroll along the river and a lovely evening sitting on the back of the boat as it was incredibly warm inside the boat!  

7 miles, 1 lock, 2 hrs, 48 mins.

Tuesday 11th August - March to Alwalton

At 5.30 this morning, Dave fired up the engine, quietly, and began our days cruise to Stanground Lock, there is very little mooring between March and Stanground and it takes 6 hours and we had the last passage through booked at 12.00, so to allow for delays hence the early start.  

The sun was bravely trying to break through the early morning mist, a few raindrops, and then glorious hot sunshine for the rest of the day.  

This is the Twenty Mile River crossing our path at Angle Corner, one of the rivers we shall explore next time.

A very tight left hand turn in Whittlesey, we came a cropper here, the shallowness of the water meant that the boat didn’t respond to turning and it took several attempts to get her around the bend.  Good job there weren’t any other boats coming! 

We were amazed at how clear the water was as we were cruising along, the size of some of the fish was amazing!  

After our really early start we actually made very good time and arrived at Stanground Sluice at 11.00 an hour ahead of our booked passage through the Sluice.  However, Kev who was in charge came down and saw us through the lock, very carefully and gently.

We stopped on the embankment in Peterborough to get rid of rubbish and top up the water.  It was hot again and Toby and I sat in the shade whilst the water tank was filling. 

We then continued a little further until Alwalton where we moored up once we were through the lock on some Friends of the River Nene moorings beside the lock.  At the lock was a group of 30 or so teenagers using the lock as a swimming pool and jumping off the guillotine lock.  So dangerous, but apparently they have been moved on many times and simply ignore the advice given.  We did treat ourselves to a cool lager in a socially distanced pub garden, which was most welcome! 

Eventually the revellers moved away and we had a very peaceful evening with a bbq and a gorgeous sunset to end the day.

22 miles, 3 locks, 8 hrs, 18 mins.

Wednesday 12th August - Alwalton to Fotheringhay

After a very pleasant evening we began our journey to Fotheringhay. On the way we saw Wansford Pumping Station, which began to operate as we passed, an amazing piece of machinery.  I have discovered that this pumps water from the Nene to Rutland Water!  

The lock at Water Newton is very attractive with this Water Mill overlooking the lock, it was renovated and changed in to a shop and dwellings in 1985.

This is a very upmarket housing development with a select number of properties each with their own mooring in a private Marina, we counted two boats moored, I guess all the others could have been out, but I really don’t think so!  

We eventually arrived at the outskirts of Fotheringhay, you can see the church in the distance.  As it was incredibly hot we stopped at the first available mooring with shade and moored up for the night.  There were several people swimming and canoeing, on the calm waters.

Later in the evening when it was a little cooler we walked to the top of the mound which was once Fotheringhay Castle and could clearly see where we were moored.  We would have been easy targets from the castle in the early 12th century!!  

12.5 miles, 7 locks, 7 hrs 12 mins.

Thursday 13th August - Fotheringhay to Peartree Farm Moorings

We left Fotheringhay under dark cloudy skies and within half an hour the heavens opened and we were into one huge thunderstorm after another.  We waited for an hour at one of the lock landings during a particularly ferocious storm, then set off again but within minutes the downpour started again.  We arrived at Peartree Farm Moorings and had a choice of where to moor but we were so tired and wet we chose the easiest one!!  

The raindrops are still falling and my step count has been minimal today, but never mind, there’s another day tomorrow!  

12.5 miles, 7 locks, 7hrs 12 mins  

Friday 14th August - Peartree Farm Moorings to Stanwick Lakes

When we woke this morning our mooring which was close to the bank was a good foot away with the water level having risen significantly over night, this made interesting getting Toby on and off the boat and also casting off without getting wet feet!  

At one of the locks today we met nb Iron Butterfly from the mooring we photographed on Monday as we were coming in to March.  

It looks as though I am going straight into the side of the boat ahead of us, in fact the boat is turning into a marina hidden in the trees on the left.  As we got closer we could see the boat had Market Drayton written on the side!  Snap!

We moored up for the night at Stanwick Lakes, very pleasant and went for a good walk along the lakes and the Nene Way.  

I have included this because I just think it is fascinating, an art installation representing the railway that used to run through the site that is now Stanwick Lakes.  A 750 acre countryside and nature reserve near the village of Stanwick.

10.25 miles, 6 locks, 4 hours 48 mins.

Saturday 15th August - Stanwick Lakes to White Mills Marina

After a sleepless night worrying about river levels, we woke to find that rather than the river continuing to rise it had dropped dramatically and we were leaning over at a 20 degree tilt, most alarming! This is a photo of the boat behind us who was leaning worse than we were.  It was quite tricky getting off the mud ledge, but with some clever manoeuvring we eventually reversed off and began our journey.

The radial lock at Ditchford Lock, because it is such an amazing construction, I think it is one of only two still working in the country, so that makes it very special.  

We took the decision to continue our cruise to White Mills Marina where we can moor on floating pontoons and get a good nights sleep.  We managed the tricky turn into the Marina after a couple of attempts and some nifty rope work, filled up with diesel and moored up safely for the night, just before the next downpour began!

11.5 miles, 9 locks, 6 hours 36 mins.

Sunday 16th August - White Mills Marina to Northampton Marina

We woke this morning after a good sleep and began the last leg of our journey on the River Nene.

A splendid photo of a heron perched on the signpost showing us which way to go on the river.  We have seen many of these grey heron throughout our time on these rivers, but this one simply wasn’t bothered by us at all!

 

This attractive stone church dates mainly from the 13th century and some parts from the late 12th century.  A friendly couple we met at the lock told us that it was built by the Baron of Cogenhoe who owned the village at the time.

Billing Aquadrome, when we came past here a month ago it was relatively quiet, it was much busier today, although a lot of the campers were beginning to pack up whilst the weather was dry. 

The duck weed as we came through the second to last lock was amazing, it was probably worse than the duckweed we experienced in London last year.  It has an amazing effect on the progress of the boat through the water, making the engine work really hard to make any headway! 

We turned in to Northampton Marina, found a pontoon where we can leave the boat for a few nights whilst we visit Annie, Pete and Alba in Southampton, and went for a walk before the forecasted thunderstorms began.  We have had a brilliant time exploring the River Nene, Middle Levels, River Great Ouse and The Cam, and we leave with fond memories and a desire to revisit to explore further!  

7.75 miles, 8 locks, 4 hours 24 mins cruising time.