A day to remember.

3 Locks, 9 miles, now moored at Braunston.
Total of 275 locks and 346 miles and 16 Tunnels since 5th Nov 2006

It was an early start to the day with a brisk walk in the rain to the doctors.
Once in possession of our next monthly supply of prescriptions it was back to the boat to fill up the water and get a pump out before heading south.
By the time we got back to Clifton cruisers a courier had already delivered our Mikuni heater.
While waiting for the water tank to fill Dot started the washing machine so it would be full before we had finished filling the water tank. It appears that the modification of adding the hot water to the washing machine has worked because the whole wash cycle seemed to finish much quicker. By mixing in some hot water this has bypassed the water heating cycle saving time and electricity.
When we left Clifton cruiser’s it was still raining but as the afternoon wore on the weather cleared and by the time we reached Braunston the sun was trying to make an appearance.
It was only a couple of minutes after leaving Clifton that we encountered another boat which was a rather low profile boat painted completely matt black. The name on the side was also in gloss black and hard to read. As we passed the lady on board asked if we were from NZ and when we confirmed we were they pulled over and stopped. We followed suit and Dot went back to speak to the lady who turned out to be Jo along with Alan on n/b Valhalla. I had heard of this boat before but cannot recall from where. It turns out that they are friends of Pat and Mike ex n/b Hyperion. Pat had told them to watch out for us as she was sure we would cross paths.
Our second stop was at Midland Chandlery for a few bits and pieces which we always seem to need. It was then on into Braunston to find a mooring and find Mike and Liz on n/b Snecklifter. By the time we reached the final winding hole at the marina visitors’ entrance we had only seen 2 moorings back on the 48 hour moorings before the road bridge. So we did an about turn to return to the first available mooring. Just as we turned we spotted Mike on Snecklifter and gave him a wave and he told us coffee was ready when we were.
Half an hour later we finally came face to face with the couple who were our inspiration for our present adventure. We spent a very pleasant afternoon and evening with them totaling an hour for each year of their adventure (5 years). Eventually we had to drag ourselves away before poor Mike turned into a pumpkin due to the late hour.

Young calves spotted today between Rugby and Braunston