THAT was a very long winter for us, with little boating opportunity to venture anywhere owing to either the weather or the all too often flooded Trent, but cometh the summer once more, it's a leisurely venture to Leek and back—stoppages allowing of course.
It was a Sunday afternoon start with our first problem filling with diesel—a boat securely moored at the pump, not filling with diesel I may add, but with ice cream, that the lady told was more important, and perhaps in the rather hot weather it was. The problem of course is that all the former visitor moorings except one are marked 'Canaltime', even though usually empty, so cannot be used, leaving that crew gasping for ice cream with only the diesel moorings left to tie their boat.
However they were easily ice cream satiated so off they went. It was of course a 60/40 purchase of the red stuff at 93p a litre, noting that had the EU not had its way it would have been just 63p a litre.
Holding tanks
Though far from a political animal, I just have to point out that should we decided to remain with 'that lot', the next thing will be 'grey water holding tanks' with absolutely no liquids whatsoever being allowed into the waterways. As such tanks will have to be fairly massive, God knows where they will be situated in the tight confines of a narrowboat. But it will certainly put a new light on the 'Elsan or holding tank' argument, as the tanks will have to be pumped-out. So those continuous cruisers where pump-out facilities are few and far between or held up with bad weather, breakdown or illness, will be in a mess. Don't expect anyone at EU cares. Though I believe we can have our say in a short while...
So away we went, deciding that we would do the first three of the broad locks so that the dreaded Aston will not be waiting for us in the morning. But arriving at this lock, there was no unbalanced gate swung open, but both firmly closed though the lock was empty. Crickey, it must have been re-balanced at last! But alas, no. All that had happened was that a strut had simply been fitted to the end of the lock beam, securing the gate shut.
Does anyone know?
I really wonder if there is anyone left who actually knows how to balance a lock gate anymore? Surely the 'Jack of all trades' contractors will have little nous. We of course used the lesser of the difficult bottom gates, but this caused poor Jan a struggle, but we did shout encouragement. The picture shows its lean and lack of balance.
Thinking about it, the contractor sent out to re-balance a lock gate at the instigation of Canal & River Trust (well known as Cart—as what we are in) might well have been fitting windows in a new house the day before and involved in digging a trench the day after... So how will he, or of course, she, have knowledge passed down from generation to generation about the balancing of lock gates?
Having had other—and younger—people taking the boat for us through these locks, we had forgotten that as the bottom gate is closed when entering most of these locks, the other immediately swings open, as happened at Weston, but dashing up to open a top paddle had no effect, as by then the gate was fully open. The only alternative is to open a top paddle first. Okay, so then the gate crashes shut by the force of the water—but what else when there is just one person? I expect it will eventually be rebalanced (joke!) More like another strut if enough of you complain.
Unlicenced
My regular readers will know that from once being a dedicated complainer of unlicenced boats, over the past few years the subject has had ner a mention, but alas, it does now, for between Aston and Weston locks there were a clutch of five boats without any licence showing, and even a couple with no numbers either, so this must be an area that is not regularly patrolled.
In these five were two what seemed like brand new boats painted a bright 'Post Office' red. Two crews, methinks that will soon regret the choice of colour, as the pigment in red is very susceptible to sunlight, and will very quickly fade. Anyone who has seen a notice in black with the emphasis in red could not help but notice that if the red has not disappeared altogether is a very faded pink. The blues are by far the best colours for anything constantly in the sun.
Our 6,000th lock
So to the equally dreaded Stenson. Having kept a log of every single one of our boating trips from hiring through our two boats, we had calculated that this was our 6,000th lock—pointing out this is not a Cart statistic but the sum total shown in our various logs over the 20 odd years.
And in those 20 odd years actually being helped by volunteers at Stenson for the first time ever, very much reminding me of buses—three of 'em. They telling that they are there to help but we do it our way, asking what it was. "Open up everything!", cried Jan, at which they thought was wrong.
Secure
However, Thomas kept the boat securely at the back of the lock, with no problems, and one of the volunteers had the decency to apologise to Jan saying that she was right and the boat stayed in one place throughout, even though all the paddles were opened, which they had been taught was wrong. Just wonder how many locks the fella from Cart giving them instruction had actually done? Not 6,000, that's for sure. Six? Possibly.
With a 7.30 start, by noon we had had enough so moored for the day and night by the Dove Aqueduct and took notice of towpath visitors during the time we were there. We saw three cyclists, including the lovely lady from Midland Chandlers and four dog walkers over the nine hours—eight in all counting when we were moving. So based on a calculation of a 16 hours day, and as we could see a good two miles of towpath, where are the missing 519 that Cart tell us are there?
Rain
Then from the lovely hot sunshine of yesterday, today brought the blasted rain—all day. And though we had promised ourselves we would not move in the rain, alas we were not far enough away from base for dear Jan, in her 'She Who Must be Obeyed' mode, so off we went.
Though most boaters certainly do not like travelling by the busy A38, Jan loves it, waving to the lorry drivers to see how many 'pips' on their horns she can get, and doing very well indeed today.
It was a long long time ago that I last saw a black swan on the waterways, but here was one by the Dove Aqueduct, who had obviously picked up its white brethrens' bad habit of begging for bread.
Alas, none of us feed bread to either the swans or ducks, as it is not really good for them, as those at Cart tell us, so the poor sod was unlucky.
Naughty
Very few moving boats of course, many undoubtedly having more sense than us, but one just leaving Tatenhill Lock, with the steerer telling us, by the lock moorings I may add, that he had told the following boater we were coming, but alas the following boater firmly closed the gates in front of us 'pinching' our water by filling the lock. Insult was definitely added to injury when this second boater (pictured) told us 'the man in front (the one who he had told him we were coming) told me you were a long way away so we filled the lock'. Someone telling porkies thinks I.
Then a real surprise at Alrewas—just eight boats moored throughout the whole village from lock to lock! Looking back at the log it was in May 2013 when we last came through on a Tuesday during the same time of the month and counted 28 boats! Even the moorings above both Alrewas and Bagnall locks were completed deserted. Those who tell that it is a failing industry certainly have a point, there are certainly less boats.
Legal?
I see that not only is the boat builder at Hunt's Lock not only still mis-using a trade plate on a boat on the water, but a shell has been added ready for fitting out. It is getting into a lively boat builders' yard. But surely not legal.
Many boaters have told that there are far less boats about these days, which was borne out at Fradley when a boat came up the lock at 2.30 and the next one at 4.10—Fradley, that well known bottleneck on the Trent & Mersey!
It in now 7.15am on a very wet Wednesday morning—to go or to stay is definitely the question. We go!