Spring Cruise - Day Seven

Cloudy but dry when we set off from Newbold at around 8.45, just behind another OwnerShips boat which had been moored in front of us. Passing through Rugby, we said a quick hello to Del who was looking out of Derwent6's side hatch, and then waved to Ernie on Ten Bob Note a bit further along.

At Hillmorton Locks there were plenty of boats on the move, but we made rapid progress. As we headed towards Braunston, I had a phone call I'd been waiting for: my sister has had a little girl, so I'm an uncle!

We stopped just before Braunston for lunch, just after a shower passed through. By the time we started moving again it was dry, but still cloudy and quite cold. But soon we could see the edge of the cloud, with blue skies beyond, and before long we were in sunshine. We turned right at Wigram's Turn, and moored on the water point at Calcutt Top Lock. While the tank filled, we washed on side of the boat. When we were ready to go down the locks, a boat was coming up. It turned out to be Chris and his crew on Slow Pace, who've been blogging their build. It was good to meet and have a chat, having followed the blog.

It was turning into a lovely sunny evening as we went down the locks and carried on to just before Stockton Top, where we moored up for the night and washed the other side of the boat and the roof.

19 miles, 6 locks. (120, 14)

Christmas Cruise - Day 8

Boxing Day dawned as the brightest, and coldest, day of the trip. The fire also proved to be more difficult to revive! Porridge for breakfast, then we slipped away from our mooring just after 8.30. it was a beautiful morning, with clear blue skies and lovely sunshine. We arrived at the top of the locks at Marston Doles at just after 10, and found ourselves following a hire boat down. The pound below the top lock was very short of water, and the boat was only just afloat. There were quite a few walkers on the tow path, and it reminded me of Boxing Day last year, when we did exactly the same trip. I even seem to have taken exactly the same photo!

We passed a couple of boats coming up, including one in the bottom lock. At the end of the flight, we stopped at the water point to fill the tank and visit the little shop. They had no fresh bread, but did have some part-baked rolls. Once the tank was full, we moved round the corner and moored up for lunch. We put the rolls in the oven, and filled them with turkey, cranberry, and onions. While we were there, we spotted Ten Bob Note coming towards us and Ernie pulled alongside for a chat.

After lunch, we set off again, turning left at Wigram's Turn onto the Grand Union. A boat was just leaving the top lock, so we had to turn it. Once it was ready, a boat arrived to share; then it turned out that the single boat ahead was waiting in the second lock for us, so we shared the next two locks with them. We recognised the boat, Prairie Crocus, as we'd met the Canadian owners at Braunston a couple of years ago, and noticed a few weeks ago that the boat was up for sale. Today, it was in the hands of its new owners, taking the boat to its new mooring at Knowle.

We ended the day moored up just before Bridge 21 and Stockton Top Marina, ready for our departure tomorrow. No doubt there'll be more leftover turkey to eat tonight.

11 miles, 12 locks. (77 miles, 40 locks)

September Cruise - Day Fourteen

Thursday 25 September

We knew we had quite a long way to go today, so we were up early, slipped out of the Saltisford Arm at 7.30, and had tea and toast on the way. The first locks of the day were the two at the Cape. The pound between them was extremely low, thanks to very leaky gates in the lower lock. Then it was the long journey through Warwick and Leamington Spa, although we did make a quick stop at the Warwick Tesco, which is right by the canal.

Just before Radford Bottom Lock, another boat pulled out behind us, so we shared a few locks with them until they stopped for water at Fosse Wharf. By mid morning the sun had come out, and it was turning into a lovely day. We stopped for lunch once we'd completed the Bascote Locks, and washed the roof and the sides of the boat. Two more locks before we filled the water tank opposite the Blue Lias pub, then it was up the eight Stockton Locks. We were following a pair, but even so the flight took only an hour. It's a really pleasant area, and the locks were looking particularly good in the sunshine.

We arrived back at Stockton Top at around 4.30, and moored on the outside of the marina. We fancied a drink, but found that The Boat doesn't open until 6pm. Some Kate Boats staff were taking the tiniest narrow boat I've ever seen, Mumble, for a spin -- literally.

It's been a great two weeks, covering plenty of new ground, and the weather has been much much better than expected. In two weeks, we've had only two wet afternoons. Adrian will be back on boat for a few days in November, and we're also due out at Christmas. Next year's booking chart has also reached us, and we've managed to secure a three week trip next September. We won't be able to start planning until we know where Debdale will be based next season.

11 miles, 22 locks. (Totals: 133 miles, 222 locks)

Spring Cruise - Part Four

Day 6 - Wednesday 19 March

We woke to blue skies, bright sunshine, and birdsong, although it proved to be still cold. After breakfast, which included the fantastic bacon from Welford, we left our moorings just before 9am.
First stop was Yelvertoft, where we made use of the water point just before Skew Bridge. While Adrian grappled with the hosepipe, I walked into the village to continue our policy of using local shops. The little Post Office and Store had all the veg we needed, while the butcher further along the main street provided the meat.

Back on the move again, I got off the boat at Bridge 17 to walk up Crack's Hill. At the top is a beacon and a plinth with a brass plaque on top showing the direction and distance of nearby places. It turns out that Rugby is much much closer than I'd realised -- from the top you can see a big Royal Mail depot, and the masts at Hillmorton. The canal looks tiny, and it took Debdale ages to come back into view. I got back on board at Bridge 13.

We stopped for lunch at Crick Wharf, then went through the tunnel and on to Watford Locks. A boat was just coming in the top lock as we arrived, so we went straight down followed by Mad As A Hatter.

As we got to the bottom a construction boat was wanting to come up, but they were too late. Well, it was actually 2.40 and the last entry into the locks is supposed to be 2.45, but the lock keeper had already started padlocking the locks at the top of the flight. The crew didn't look too disappointed at knocking off early.

We turned right at Norton Junction onto the GU Main Line. Before Braunston Tunnel, several working boats were moored. I suspect they were on their way to the Easter Boat Gathering at Stoke Bruerne. At the Braunston end of the tunnel, the land slip which happened last summer has been cleared of vegetation, but still looks very unstable and is still blocking half the channel.

We moored at the top of the locks. Mad As A Hatter went past us, and continued down the locks, and were surprised by the width of them.

15 miles, 7 locks. (71, 45)

Day 7 - Thursday 20 March

Rain had been forecast to arrive overnight, so we were pleasantly surprised to wake up in dry bright conditions. We set off down the locks at 8.30. The first three were against us but then we started meeting boats coming up, so we completed all six in little over an hour.

We moored up and went for a look at the boats for sale in the marina. However, we can't afford one, and even if we could none of the ones there at the moment appealed. By now the wind had got up, and it was bitterly cold. The next part of the journey was hard work. Sometimes we seemed to be making very little progress thanks to the head wind, while turning a corner meant we were being battered from the side. There were waves on the canal. We stopped for lunch in a sheltered spot just before Napton Junction.

After lunch, we turned right at Napton Junction and battled the wind to get onto the waterpoint at the top of the Calcutt Locks. Another OwnerShips boat, Goosemoor, arrived and asked if we'd like to go down together. So we packed up the hosepipe and joined them in the lock. The wind made the exit from the bottom lock rather difficult, and a boat waiting to come up was pinned to the side by the wind.

Back at Stockton Top, we moored on the front of the marina at the foot of the steps to The Boat Inn's car park. Later in the evening, we made the most of the proximity of the pub for our dinner.

9 miles, 9 locks. (80, 54)

Day 8 - Friday 21 March

It was just a matter of packing, cleaning, and leaving. Unfortunately it'll be a while before we're back on board Debdale. we have a fortnight booked for September, when we hope to do the Avon Ring.

October Cruise -- Part Two

Monday 29 October

As the car was close by, and I needed to move it into the marina car park anyway, I drove into Southam to have a look round and buy a few supplies. There's a reasonable selection of shops, including a Budgens supermarket, and a free car park.

Back at the boat, I cleaned out the stove and polished the tiller arm white I waited for my parents to arrive. Once they'd loaded their things onto the boat, we set off in the direction of the Calcutt Locks, which we shared with a Canaltime boat doing the Warwickshire Ring. We turned left at Wigram's Turn towards Braunston. The weather was fantastic, bright sunshine and warm for the end of October.

After a short lunch stop, we reached Braunston and turned right. We embarked on the locks, with my father doing the work, and made good progress despite being on our own. There were several boats coming the other way which helped, but we met nothing through Braunston Tunnel. Not wanting to mooring in the cutting immediately after the tunnel we carried on, but the banks along that section are in a poor conditiona and not very good for mooring on. We ended up going round the tight turn at Norton Juntion and using the visitor moorings at the start of the Leicester line. It was cold by this time, so we lit the stove and ate on board.

13 miles, 9 locks (19, 15)

Tuesday 30 October

It was a bright sunny morning, and we were on the move at 8.30 after a cooked breakfast. There was only a brief wait at Watford Locks: one boat ahead of us, and one boat just finishing its descent. The lock keeper said it had been the busiest October he could remember, presumably because people were making up for the poor summer. The only problem came right at the bottom of the flight. The piling there is falling apart, with the top piece sticking well out. As I pulled away, a pipe fender caught on the metal and broke the eyelet on the roof that it's tied to. As the fender was jammed in the gap, I was able to rescue it. We were soon at the top of the locks, and moved over to the water point to fill up, and dump the rubbish.

Crick Tunnel proved to be extremely wet for the northern few hundred yards! The extension to the marina there is well advanced (and huge). We tied up at Yelvertoft for a lunch stop, then continued north. But conscious that we needed to be back down the Watford flight the next day, and the winter opening hours mean they close at 3.30pm, we made the decision to turn around before mooring for the night. We made use of the winding hole just before bridge 36 and began to retrace our steps. On the way we passed a bridge which appears to be on the verge of falling down. It's no surprise that this stretch of canal is to be closed over the winter for bridge repair works.

We moored up for the night in a nice spot just before bridge 27. The boat was beautifully warm, as the stove had been alight since lunchtime.

17 miles, 7 locks (36,22)

Wednesday 31 October

Thick cloud had been forecast, so we were pleased with the sunshine when we woke up. We slipped away from our moorings at 8.45, and during the hour journey to Yelvertoft saw no other moving boats. We tied up at Yelvertoft Wharf and walked into the village. There's a useful shop with a post office, and a little further down the main street an excellent butcher.

We stopped for lunch just before Watford Locks. At the locks themselves there was no queue, so we were allowed straight down. It was the last day of the season for the lock keepers there, and the one who'd been on duty the day before was just setting off in his own boat. The already fine weather had become even better, with plenty of sunshine.

We stopped for water at Norton Junction, then continued through Braunston tunnel to our chosen mooring for the night at the top of the locks. Another OwnerShips boat, Aylestone, was attempting to go down, but there seemed to be a problem. My father went to investigate, and the crew told him they'd been waiting ages for the lock to fill but the water was leaking out the bottom gates as fast as it was entering. He pointed out that they might have more success if they opened the ground paddles as well as the gate ones, and they were soon on their way!

13 miles, 7 locks (49, 29)

Thursday 1 November

Another forecast of thick cloud for the midlands, and another bright sunny morning.

Excellent bacon from the butcher in Yelvertoft for breakfast, then off down the Braunston Locks. We shared with an Ashby hire boat with three enthusiastic guys on board, which meant we had someone to go ahead to set the next lock. At the short pounds, I suggested to the steerer that we leave the lock together, stay close through the pound, and go straight into the next lock. He said he'd never done it before, but was impressed at how much easier it was (and seemed to think it looked quite impressive too).

As we approached the bottom lock, a boat which had just winded went in, quickly shut the gates, and started going down. My father was ahead at the lock, and discovered that the boat had just come out of the paint dock, and the owner was keen to go down alone as he had no fenders and wanted to preserve his new paintwork for at least a few minutes. I'd like to know what happened when he came to exit the lock, as the dry dock there was being emptied and the flow of water pushes you right over to the far side. I suspect he didn't manage to get away without touching the wall.

We tied up in Braunston and I got a replacement attachment for the fender from the chandlery. At Tradline Fenders, my parents bought a new doormat. Then we filled up with water, and set off for Stockton. There were lots of OwnerShips boats heading for Braunston. The boats which are having their winter maintenance this side of Christmas will be based in Braunston while the canal is closed at Shuckborough. We stopped for lunch before bridge 103, then turned right at Wigram's turn. We shared the top Calcut Lock with a Calcut based OwnerShips boat returning to base, did the middle one on our own, then waited in the bottom lock for Aylestone which was just coming down behind. We moored before bridge 21 (meaning I'd spent four of my seven nights on the boat in almost exactly the same place), and ate at the Boat Inn.

9 miles, 9 locks (58, 38)

Friday 2 November

After the final clean of the boat, my parents packed and left. I moved the boat the couple of hundred yards to the marina, mooring up alongside two other boats. Fortunately, the journey home was much quicker than on the way up.

October Cruise - Part One

This was a week of two halves (albeit unequal halves). Friday 26 October I had a slower than usual journey to Stockton Top, on my own, thanks to the M27 being closed. But once I was there I collected our Tesco delivery from the OwnerShips office and loaded our things onto Debdale. She was moored outside the marina, outside another boat, and was, of course, facing the wrong way. After turning around, I set off through Bridge 21, and promptly moored up after just a couple of hundred yards.

It was 7.30 before Adrian arrived, having come straight from work. Fortunately he'd remembered to bring a torch.

0 miles, 0 locks. Saturday 27 October The day of the annual owners' meeting. We set off in the car at around 8.30 bound for Birmingham where the meeting was to take place. It was good to meet the other owners of Debdale (ten of the twelve owners were represented), and I was impressed at the way decisions were made. Nothing had to come to a vote: on each issue there was some discussion before a consensus emerged. Among the decisions made was that Debdale will spend another year at Stockton Top, but we hope to move her for 2009. On the way back to the boat, we stopped for something to eat at the Two Boats at Long Itchington as we hadn't been there before. The meal was rather ordinary, so we won't be rushing back.

0 miles, 0 locks.

Sunday 28 October Having changed our clocks, we set off in grey and gusty weather at about 9am. By the time we reached the Calcutt Locks it was raining and the waterproofs were on. There were plenty of boats coming down, but we had to go up alone. Noticed that Silhouette was among the Calcutt based OwnerShips boats going unused this week.

Once up the locks we crossed to the water point, where we discovered that part of the hose attachment was missing. Presumably, the bit that screws on to the tap has been left on a tap somewhere. The chandlery at Calcutt boats doesn't stock the plasic fittings, so instead I bought a brass one and a jubilee clip to fix it to the hose pipe. It works well, and has the added advantage that nothing can be left behind!

Turning right at Wigram's Turn, we found the steam boat Adamant coming towards us, making good use of its whistle.

We winded by the Bridge Inn at Napton, moored up, and went for lunch. Strangely they don't do a Sunday roast, but the food was pretty good nonetheless.

On the return to Stockton Top, we shared the top Calcutt lock with a returning Calcutt hire boat, and the bottom two with a single handed man who'd just picked up a boat he'd bought from the brokerage there. It has to be said that he didn't seem to have much idea, and appeared to expect us to do all the work. But by now the rain had cleared and the sun had come out and it had turned into a lovely afternoon.

We winded the boat in the marina entrance and moored up in almost exactly the same spot we'd left that morning. Adrian packed ready to return to home and work. Before he left, we had a quick walk down the Stockton Locks (where the single handed boater from earlier was working down in the gathering gloom, apparently unaware how many locks were ahead of him), and enjoyed the sunset.

6 miles, 6 locks (6,6)

First week on board

Friday 10 August

This was our first sight of Debdale since the OwnerShips show, way back in February, and was an unexpected extra week on board. The boat happened to be free, and some rearranging of shifts meant we could have an extra holiday on board.

Having arrived at Stockton Top marina on the Grand Union on schedule at 3pm, we quickly unloaded the car and began to unpack. We were then shown how everything on the boat worked by one of OwnerShips' "Dirty Hand Gang", Guy.

We were concerned that the Tesco shopping we'd ordered online didn't seem to have arrived at the marina. No-one seemed to have seen it. We resigned ourselves to not having much to eat that night on the following morning, and decided to set off. Leaving the marina proved to be quite tricky, and involved reversing out onto the canal and then turning. Halfway through the turn, a member of Kate Boats staff said they thought they'd got our shopping -- so we moored up to the service point and took three crate loads of food and drink on board.

Once properly underway, we spent the time getting used to the boat. The three Calcutt locks were shared with a private boat, and we then turned left onto the shared Grand Union/Oxford Canal section. We carried on until around 7pm, when we moored up in a quiet spot just before bridge 101 and cooked on board.


6 miles, 3 locks.

Saturday 11 August

This was the day of the naked man. He was walking along the towpath just before Hillmorton Locks, wearing nothing but a rucksack (and presumably some shoes, but I wasn't looking at his feet), and carrying two divining rods.

Hillmorton itself was chaotic, with lots of boats, most of them going down. We had lunch on board, then stopped at the water point in Rugby. While Adrian filled the tank, I took the three home delivery crates back to Tesco as we didn't want them on board. There was a queue of four boats at the Hawkesbury Junction stop lock, and it took almost an hour to get through -- madness for a lock with a fall of less than a foot. I was annoyed at making a bit of a hash of the turn, but felt slightly better when I saw others do worse! We moored up shortly after the turn, and had dinner.

Later in the evening, we walked down to The Greyhound for a drink, and saw the motor boat GLASCOTE with a butty, GOSPORT, coming through the lock in the fading light. Returning to the boat, we found them slotting neatly into a space which had just been vacated right behind us, and marvelled at the crew getting a 70 foot boat into a space of no more than 72 feet.

24 miles, 4 locks (30, 7)

Sunday 12 August

After two hot sunny days, we were prepared to believe the forecast of heavy showers. However, the only one was mid-morning and lasted all of twenty seconds. There were lots of boats going our way down the Atherstone flight, so the going was slow. The locks were exactly as I remembered them from a couple of years ago: attractive, but very frustrating. They empty quickly, but take an age to fill -- and as we had to fill many of them ourselves, the whole thing took a long time. With a brief lunch stop in the long pound after lock 5, the flight took around four hours.

As it was a lovely evening, we decided to keep going, aiming for Fazely Junction. When we got to the Glascote Locks, I feared we'd be frustrated just short of our target. The bottom lock has a problem with the bottom cill, which means it takes 15 to 20 minutes to fill. The woman who lives in the cottage alongside the lock said BW had been providing a lockie during the week, to help smooth boats through. Part of the problem is that each lock load of water coming down into the middle pound adds about 5 minutes to the filling time.

We weren't delayed unduly though, and were all tied up just before bridge 77 at Fazely Junction by 7.30. We discovered that the pub by the canal doesn't do food on a Sunday evening, so we tried the Peninsular Chinese Restaurant, which turned out to be excellent.

19 miles, 13 locks (49, 20)

Monday 13 August

A lock free day today. Normally, this would be my idea of a boring day on the cut, but this one had two redeeming features: it would be virgin territory for us (the stretch between Fazeley and Fradley being the only part of the Coventry Canal we hadn't done); and Fradley Junction is a favourite place, and always worth a visit.

It turned out to be a lovely stretch of canal, and very busy. This made some of the bridge holes interesting, particularly the ones on bends. We cruised through Hopwas and Wittington, enjoyed the busyness of Streethay Wharf, and were fascinated by the work going on to make the Trent Valley railway four tracks, which has involved building two new bridges over the canal: one for the two new tracks, and a temporary one for access for the contractors.

We arrived at Fradley at lunchtime. Adrian turned the boat in the junction and we moored at the start of the Coventry. The BW cafe had virtually nothing on the menu actually available, so we went up to the Kingfisher Cafe instead, and had an excellent lunch, followed by a few purchases in the junction shop before heading back to Fazeley, where we moored just before the juntion.

20 miles, 0 locks (69, 20)

Tuesday 14 August

Excitement in Atherstone. Not at the locks, which took a long while as usual, but at the Co-op. We'd left Fazeley straight after breakfast, and made slow progress in heavy rain through the Glascote Locks, Tamworth, and the Atherstone Flight. It was 4pm before we got to the top, moored up, and went into town in search of somewhere to buy a late lunch. We discovered a big Co-op, complete with a cafe serving soup and a roll, where there'd just been a crash in the car park. It was the talk of the store, and clearly the most exciting thing to happen there for some considerable time!

Back at the boat, we made the decision to stay put and lit the fire to help dry ourselves out. Then of course the rain stopped -- until we decided to go out for a walk in the evening, when we got drenched!

9 miles, 13 locks (78, 33)

Wednesday 15 August

Very wet again today, with torrential rain and thunder. Adrian's turn to try to get round Hawkesbury Junction in one: a better effort than mine, but we still need more practice.

We made a stop at Ansty for lunch, and another at Rugby for water and a dash to Tesco. It was here that the engine wouldn't turn off with the ignition key. A phone call to Guy helped us locate the lever which stops the engine manually. We continued a bit further, mooring below Hillmorton Locks.

25 miles, 1 lock (103, 34)

Thursday 16 August

All the Hillmorton Locks were in our favour, and there only boats we saw were coming down, so we were through quickly. Adrian polished the mushroom vents while we were on the move. Reaching Braunston at about 11am, we moored up before the junction and walked to the Gongoozler's Rest for tea and fruit cake. We bought bread at the shop by the bottom lock, and a tin of grease for the stern tube at the chandlers on the other side of the bridge. Adrian had a lesson from the man in the chandlery on the best way to fill the stern tube, which he did on our return to the boat while I cleaned all the windows I could reach. The sun was out, so we had lunch on the well deck.

We'd only been going again for a few minutes when the rain came down again -- not for long, but heavy enough to bring the waterproofs into action. The rest of the afternoon was a mixture of warm sunshine and heavy showers. We filled up with water at Calcutt, then went down the locks in a huge convoy of boats. We arrived back at Stocktop Top just too late for services, so were asked to moor on the services point ready for the morning. Then it was just a matter of cleaning the outside of the boat, packing up, and loading the car. To avoid the worst of the traffic, we went for a meal at The Boat next door to the marina before heading home at the end of a great week.

11 miles, 3 locks (114, 40)