MAY 2013 Cruising in a Narrowboat

We left Perth on Emirates Airline. Great airline, service and food very good and there was plenty of leg room in economy in both the Boeing and the Airbus. We arrived in Heathrow around 7am then loaded up our baggage into the hire car and set off for Paul and Christine’s in Watton, Norfolk.

We got Harry out of storage,  loaded up some of our clothes then off to leave him to get the MOT done .We also bought a new GPS as it was as cheap as getting a new All Europe Map. We took the hire car back with no dings or problems which is always a relief.

This is for Christine and Paul who kept us warm and mostly dry and put up with us for a week in a narrowboat on our trip around the Warwickshire Ring.  

In such close quarters you share every fart and groan as well as the happy times. We stayed warm with the central heating and donning the most clothes we have ever worn at one time. With all written above and below we had a wonderful time with our friends.

Friday  - We drove up to Napton with Christine and Paul where we were to pick up a narrow boat for a week touring the Warwickshire Ring.

On the way we stopped at a little pub called Cherry Tree Siding for lunch. We had a great meal by the fireside for 6 pounds, with sweets for 1 pound. Food here is so cheap compared to WA.

Today is fine but only about 16deg C. We loaded up the boat

After our instructions we were on our way by 2.30pm. The boat is great with two bedrooms with double beds, a bathroom and toilet with plenty of hot water. The kitchen has a stove and oven and a good size fridge.   The sitting/dining area has plenty of room and we have a TV with DVD and an inverter to charge the phones, etc. There is central heating right through so it is very cosy.

NAPTON –  GRAND UNION CANAL ON THE WARWICKSHIRE RING

We start on the ring travelling towards Birmingham and as we had a big lunch we decided to get some locks done.

Chris is sitting up front in the cold. I am inside in the warm.

We cruised about 2km then came our first lock. How do we do these things? 

OK we managed those.

The canals are lined with boats and marinas. Some of the boats look like they have not been used for years and are just taking up space.

A pub for my sign collection.

Many of the traditional narrowboats have piles of wood on top for their heaters. Our boat has great diesel fueled heaters which I have had on as much as possible without cooking Paul and Christine.

The Captains are celebrating. A little too early I think!!

Feeling smug off we went for another 5km and we were into an 8 lock set, we are now finding muscles we didn’t know we had. We do the locks in pairs with a 2 locks turn around. The gates are not too bad to open but the winding gear on the paddles to let water in or out are very stiff and we girls need muscles on our muscles to wind them. The automatic locks in France were a breeze compared to these.

 Oh goody! a pub by the canal side!  The Blue Lias. Time to stop for the night.

The pub sign will be added to my collection. The Dinosaur on the sign seems out of place until we read about the Lias stone found in this area which has dinosaur fossils embedded in it.

TOTAL: for the afternoon 7 miles / 9 km and 11 locks. We are all still smiling.

Saturday,  GRAND UNION CANAL  still cloudy and cool, probably around 17deg. A nice hot shower and breakfast and we are on our way. Kevin on the helm and Paul and Christine on the first lock, I am doing my bit inside. The locks are wide enough for 2 boats.

We pass fishermen trying their luck in a lake beside the canal.

Some of the traditional boats passing us have lovely rooftop ornaments.

We also pass boats whose owners obviously dislike painting but like bright colours.

 

The next lock is Itchington Bottom ( ou can guess the antics the boys got up to, I cant show you here)  then across an aquaduct.

Along the canal we see summer houses for the garden waiting for new owners who are waiting to see if there is going to be a summer before they buy.

A nice ex lock house

More canalside pubs. With great signs

We arrive at the lock as 2 boats come out and we go in with another boat and go down. It is always good to share he lock as it is half the work. See the cute dog peeking out.

We fit in very snugly.

It is very peaceful countryside along here.

Across an aquaduct over the river.

It’s cold today and Kevin is dressed for it. The Dockers Scarf and the beanie are getting a real outing every day.

More swans, more pubs.

We have already done 14 locks and this is the start of the 20 locks in the Hatton Flight. Our muscles are flexed, Kevin has the winder and off we go.

Paul and Christine coming out of a lock. We had just finished complaining about the stiff paddles when we met an 80 yr old woman doing it on her own. She has been cruising for 60 yrs so I guess she has muscles on her muscles.

We do 2 locks each couple. The sky is looking like waves as we get towards the top of the flight.

At last we are at the top. Alongside the old Hatton workshops.

After all that effort it is time to stop, we have been having our main meal around 1pm so we get a rest from locking and driving. The boys tie up above the Hatton Flight and we get the beer, wine and nibbles ready.

TOTAL:   34 locks - 14 miles / 21 km          What a Big Day

Sunday      GRAND UNION CANAL  - We are up bright and early, the sun is shining and we are eager to make the most of it. 

First up Shrewley Tunnel. Aiming 57 feet of boat into the tunnel is a bit daunting.

Now we are into farmland.

The banks along here are covered in bluebells.

It is very calm this morning.

It is a lovely day with the sun shining. Christine and I sit out the front in the sun. There are lots of people walking along the towpath.

Another pub by the canalside. The Herons Nest.  

We are coming into the outskirts of Birmingham as we cruise passed the fishermen. Kevin and Paul were so busy talking to the fishermen they forgot to look for the pub sign so we could have a Sunday roast lunch and were not very popular..

We are coming into the outskirts of Birmingham and the canal here has a lot of junk in it so we have to be careful.

As we passed a small park we saw this fellow playing his clarinet. It was nice to hear the sound down the canal.

We have just passed a waterways barge full of junk taken from the canal. We counted 9 shopping trolleys, a few bicycles, 1 motorbike that we recognised all fished out of the canal.  We are now almost in Birmingham.

We moored for the night at Sampson Road Wharf, a disused wharf which the waterways have turned into a place to moor instead of going right into Birmingham which will save us 13 locks there and 13 back. After asking one of the other boaters if he would keep an eye on our boat we made our way out of the locked compound using our waterways key and walked to the Rose Tavern, a local pub, hoping to get a Sunday Roast.

No luck so after getting directions from the drinkers we got a taxi to Witherspoons pub in Mosley and had a huge roast for 5 pound including a glass of beer or wine, a waffle and cappuccino filled our stomachs and it was time to catch a taxi back. This proved to be a bit of a problem as we had forgotten to get the name of the street we left from and the taxi driver didn’t know where the Rose Tavern or Sampson Wharf was. After a bit of asking around we arrived back to the boat and settled in for the night.

TOTAL:  GRAND UNION CANAL     5 locks - 19 miles / 30 km          Time to hit the Town

Monday -   GRAND UNION CANAL  
This morning we  took a 6 pound taxi ride into Birmingham to look around the city, do a bit of shopping and have lunch with Jill and Ken, friends of Paul and Christine.

Birmingham city has a lovely atmosphere and an interesting mix of old and new buildings and is very tidy. First we visited the Bullring area.

Have you ever seen such good BS’s as these two.

We gave Zara and Hugo Boss a miss and went to look around Marks and Spencers.  Then we walked across town to the Gas Street Basin which is the old wharf area on the canal.  This area is now upmarket with restaurants, The Symphony Hall, a modern library building and lots of shops, another pub for the collection. There is a huge variety of architecture in the new Birmingham City. This is where we could have moored if we did all the locks. An 8 pound taxi ride was a better option than 13 locks.

We met Jill and Ken and they took us to the Slug and Lettuce Restaurant. The food was ½ price on Mondays and we had a fantastic meal with drinks and sweets for 15 pound a person.

Birmingham City is a mixture of old and new buildings. Jill took us to see the new Symphony Building.

We walked to the gas street basin for coffee alongside the canal in old wharf buildings. It was interesting to see a working narrowboat travelling through.

After a cup of coffee we walked over to the taxi rank and would you believe it no one could remember the street we left from this time but fortunately the taxi driver knew where the Rose Tavern was so we arrived back safely.

We now realised that to get back to Napton in time we need to move on.

Although you have not seen much of me so far, I am doing my share of the locks but I am also the one with the camera. The locks now are only wide enough for 1 boat. I am going to try my hand at driving.

 It is quite strange being down in these narrow locks.

We are travelling on the last section of the Grand Union through the Camp Hill Locks then the Garrison Locks, the canal here is known as the bottom road of Birmingham. The canal is crisscrossed with railway lines, warehouses covered in graffiti and floating junk.

After 11 locks we stop to do some shopping then further on we stop for the night. Baked beans on toast a game of cards and off to bed.

TOTAL: for the afternoon 4 miles / 7 km and 11 locks. We are on the homeward run.

 

Tuesday – BIRMINGHAM FAZELEY CANAL 

It is still very cold but it is fine. Before getting up we turn on the heaters to warm up the boat while we snuggle up in bed. Each morning Paul and Christine are always up first and start breakfast, they are much more used to the cold than we are. Kevin and I crawl out of bed as the boat warms up and join in for breakfast.

The canal is very narrow and flows right behind houses and warehouses. There are ducks and ducklings everywhere.

We come to the end of this section and have to make a very sharp righthand turn, the cross shows the exit. We got stuck each side of the lock the first time and could see why the sign was on their wall. I thought they were a bit silly parking so close to the wall when there are a lot of boat drivers like our crew. We had to turn left and go down to another factory canal and turn around there so we could get going in the right direction again.

Another warehouse, this one using the space above the canal.

 

We are starting to see houses again. These ones are situated right under high tension wires.

Lovely bridges, narrow locks.

 

This is a beautifully painted restored working boat. The living quarters were on a separate boat towed behind.

There is a pixie in this lock.

A beautifully painted boat. There are the traditional watering cans on top and the painted doors at the back.

Time to stop for the night . We are now entering the Coventry canal.

TOTAL: for the day 10 miles / 16 km and 14 locks.

Weather if fine but only 14 deg C. Are we having fun?

Wednesday – COVENTRY CANAL  .

 Another day and off we go notice we are still wearing coats hats and scarves.

 

Other than locks and more locks we are seeing some different scenery in between cups of tea, lunch and drinks.

This sunken boat made the boys sit up and pay attention.

They have a backyard canal, we only have a backyard swimming pool.

We passed a boat called Scrumpy Jack with this lovely painting on the side. He obviously enjoyed a cider or two.

 We are now heading for the Oxford canal and definitely on the home run.

We passed a very nice pub with people enjoying the sunshine and a beer.

It is getting hard to find one in between all the moored boats with only a few people on them. Our mooring was in a very muddy patch.

 

TOTAL: for the day 8 miles / 13 km and 11 locks.

Weather if fine and getting warmer. We are definitely winding down!

THURSDAY - OXFORD CANAL

Today the skies are not looking good and it is freezing cold. A big disappointment as we thought warmer weather was coming.  Paul and Kevin are shoved outside straight after breakfast to do their duty by us fair women who stayed in to do our housework. (Never have I liked Housework so much) as it meant staying near the heater.

We are alternating between farming country and houses alongside the canal also a tunnel. This one was unusual as it had lovely coloured lights. Of course this bought out the actors in our midst.

We cruised through Rugby but declined to give autographs saying we were incognito Wallabies.

A traditional scene of boat and swans

There is going to be a big Narrowboat gathering and we are joining up with lots of boats making their way to that. Our sleek bullet looks quite plain alongside the lovely painted boats and the traditional cans are really lovely.

The clouds are coming and still a lock to go.

Where would you get any view more traditional than this scene of a canal with sheep in the fields, an old stone bridge and an English town in the distance. 

 Huge black  clouds are coming in and the blue disappearing fast.

This live aboard boat is nestled into the bank wit the wood fire burning but we have to keep going to get back in time.

The hail starts and Kevin is convinced it is snowing back at his end when the hail stones start to turn flaky.

I brave the cold for this photo opportunity then go back inside to take of 3 of my six layers. Paul is inside thawing out.

Kevin said scenes from the Antarctic could be seen now but I was inside keeping warm so there are no pictures.

We decide to head for the marina tonight instead of the morning.
Paul and Kevin stayed out the back carrying, carrying on.

Once back in the port we had a nice warm shower and found out where the nearest pub was and headed there.

We had dinner in the Folly

It was nice and warm and fulfilled our ideas a English country pubs.

A few beers and hot boat.toddy’s and it was back to our last sunset on the boat.

TOTAL for trip 99 miles / 160 kilometres    94 locks   We are still smiling but Exhausted!!

Renting a narrowboat for a week means starting at 3.30pm  on the first day after our lesson on how or not to. Then it is back off the boat by 9.30 am on the last day so you do not get 7 days of cruising.

Also be warned that the time it states in the books is the time it takes to travel the journey planned by someone in an office with a pencil and scale on a map. It is not from the real world of cruising and going through locks with real people.

Opening the lock gates is the easy part of locking especially when there are two couples sharing the work. The lock mechanisms which have to be wound up and down to let the water in and out of the locks takes some strength and hard work. We came across quite a few couples on their own looking very frazzled especially the women doing the work and the skipper at the back yelling instructions and saying “I have to drive the boat”. Women beware learn to drive the boat straight away!

Regardless of all the above we had a great time.