July 2009

In July we travelled to Liverpool via the New Liverpool Link.  A must for all boaters.  We had a fabulous time and wished that the 14 days we spent there had been longer.

Looking Back over the year

The cat that we rescued from drowning at midnight at Etruria in June. We heard back from the Cat Protection League that it was doing well. It had been given a clean bill of health from the vet and would be sent to a new home to hopefully see out the rest of it’s life in a happy environment.

London Calling!

0 Locks, 2.05 Miles. Now moored at Brownsover Park.

We had all good intentions of staying at Hillmorton for the week-end and then moving to our present position on Monday for shopping purposes. Unfortunately Tracey has been unwell and back in hospital so Nurse Dot is off to London tomorrow to see the patient to help out for a few days. Brownsover is the easiest place from which to catch a bus to the railway station. It will give me the opportunity to get some work done without having the foreman looking over my shoulder and getting growled at for making too much mess.

2028 locks, 4017.16 miles, 76 tunnels, 130 swing bridges and 54 lift bridges since Nov 2006

A Rare Sighting!

0 Locks, 7.5 Miles. Now moored at Hillmorton.

Today we made the final run into Rugby stopping off at Clifton Cruisers for a new gas tank and pick up our mail. Just out of Newbold we spotted a Heron which from a distance looked white which we just put it down to the way the sun was glinting on it’s feathers. When we got closer we were surprised to find it actually was a White Heron.

White Heron at Newbold, Oxford Canal.

At All Oaks Wood contractors are busy repairing half a mile of towpath which has been long overdue for repair. Placing sandbags along the top of the original wall they are now able to build the towpath up to it’s original level. It will probably become quite popular with walkers in the summertime as there are always cars in the nearby car park.

Contractors at All Oak Wood Repairing the towpath for half a mile.

Passing through Newbold and Brownsover we found the moorings to be full so we hope that this situation changes in the not to distant future otherwise we may have to rethink our plans for the next few weeks. As we are boat sitting for Derek and Carrie at Christmas we want a mooring close to where they can get their rental car. After calling in at Clifton Cruisers we carried onto Hillmorton where we watered up, winded below the locks and cruised back half a mile to a mooring. Now the temperatures`are dropping we need to keep the water tank full in case we get frozen in as we did last winter.

A bit of unscheduled demolition at bridge 66, Oxford Canal.

2028 locks, 4015.11 miles, 76 tunnels, 130 swing bridges and 54 lift bridges since Nov 2006

Back on the Oxford Canal

1 Lock, 8.09 Miles. Now moored at All Oaks Wood

A sure sign that we are back in the great metropolis was the constant drone of the M6 motorway right through the night. Our travels over the last 8 months have been positively devoid of this part of modern day living.

Birthday dinner last night at The Greyhound pub was very nice. It was the first time we had stepped across the threshold of this establishment and we were not disappointed. Dot was cursing that she hadn’t taken her camera with her.

Bringing Gypsy Rover round from the Coventry Canal to the Oxford Canal in blustery conditions. Sutton Stop, Hawkesbury junction.

This morning the wind was still blowing but again a blue sky as we moved off from Hawkesbury junction. I was expecting problems with the strong wind making the sharp turn from the Coventry canal onto the Oxford canal but it all went very smoothly without making contact with anything. Nothing much has changed since we last cruised through this area but there are still boats on the move.

Agricultural workers caravan? It looks in good condition.

Bridge 15 at Ansty is looking definitely decrepit with great cracks and the centre of the arch showing signs of sagging. Too many heavy vehicles over it and I cannot see it lasting much longer. The other problem which we will report to BW was a tree down across the towpath below bridge 19. Partly in the water it doesn’t pose a problem to navigation.

These cow's and calves were making a hell of a mess of this paddock and the canal edging.

2028 locks, 4007.61 miles, 76 tunnels, 130 swing bridges and 54 lift bridges since Nov 2006

Sutton Stop

0 Locks, 5.68 Miles. Now moored near Hawkesbury Junction.

Yesterday we met up with Derek and Carrie on Nb Uccello who we had met several times previously. We put on morning tea and Derek who is IT literate had a look at our computers to try and get them networked. After many hours he finally got the system partly operational and the Vista computer can view the files on the XP computer but not vice versa.  Never mind Dot will keep working on this as we still only have internet on the Vista.  We assume that this is a Vista security issue so Dot will keep working on it bit by bit.  In the meantime it is a great start.  Otherwise it looks as if we may have to purchase a router to complete the job. Thanks for all your efforts Derek, as well as thanks to the many other messages we received concerning this issue. In the meantime Carrie had been slaving over a hot stove back on Uccello and came back with a delicious date and walnut cake. Yummee!  It’s a great life on the cut.

As we had decided to stay put for the day due to high winds and more threats of rain Carrie invited us over for dinner with Curry on the menu. To square off the meal Derek (GR version, bit confusing with 2 Derek’s) whipped up an Apple Crumble for dessert. There wasn’t much left at the end of the evening I can tell you. A very enjoyable evening.

This morning was still windy but bright blue sky so we said our farewells to Derek and Carrie, we will meet them again in Rugby next month, and headed off towards the Coventry Canal and Hawkesbury Junction. The plan is to visit the Greyhound pub for a bit of a birthday bash. Cooks night off.

2027 locks, 3999.52 miles, 76 tunnels, 130 swing bridges and 54 lift bridges since Nov 2006

Happy Birthday Derek!

Hope you have many winter hours of enjoyment viewing these.