archivesepttooct06

September 1

Rain kept us pinned down above lock 10 of the Atherstone flight for an extra day - this was no hardship - but this morning we were able to continue with our planned progress to the north. Two locks and two miles further north, in fact. We left our mooring at 8 am as the dark skies were clearing to show white billowy clouds and sunshine on their way so we descended the last two locks of the flight without any delay other than having to fill them first. Moored just below the flight were two boats that had passed us yesterday. We had first met Chris and Porky Mitchell on Die Fledermaus at Coole Pilate on the Shroppie when they were travelling with older friends, Janet and Joseph Cresswell on Barleyfirth - older that is in length of acquaintance! They were able to bring us up to date with personal news as they hovered alongside yesterday but this morning there was time for only a cheery wave through the window. Much the same for the other boat, All Seasons, with Cath and Les Jackson aboard. We had first met them at Branston during our first winter at Barton Turns and have been regular "friends in passing" ever since. Les had a brief chat with me yesterday. Cathy was out cleaning brass this morning.

We pulled in at the Grendon facilities, emptied cassettes, got rid of rubbish and topped up the water tank before continuing on for half an hour to one of our favourite moorings, just above bridge 50 and within walking distance (if you're feeling fit) of Polesworth. Here we will stay for the weekend. I'll get a second coat of black on the side of the boat if it stays dry, Liz will do the walking to pick up a Saturday newspaper - the only one during a week that we bother with. The crosswords and sudoku puzzles keep us mentally occupied through the weekend.

Next week we head for Fazely and top-up of supplies of diesel and gas.

Update: An hour or so after posting the above report our good friends from our winter at Barton Turns - George and Kate Harper on Lady Kate - turned up at bridge 50 and moored for a couple of hours which we spent happily over coffee and conversation. They were heading for Burton on Trent where they'll leave the boat in a marina while they join family to celebrate George's 70th in October. Kate was never happy with the photograph I took of them at Tixall Wide (featured in Well Met) so I was able to take another that demonstrates that both of them seem to be growing younger by the year. This can be seen on Latest pictures.

Some sad news, however, in a text message from Kate Roche who we met on the Ashby in November 2004 with her husband Pat on their boat Shotley Shuttle. She told us that Pat had died in April from an asbestos-related lung disease and she was now living in Heanor. We have nothing but fond memories of Pat, a lovely man, who like me, had served in the Royal Navy and did his basic training at HMS Ganges near Shotley, and of Kate who passed us some paperbacks as our boats came alongside each other briefly - and then had to fish out the bagful that I tried to pass to them in return but dropped in the cut. She dried them out in the boat's engine room.

Kate wrote :"At Pat's funeral we celebrated his life. No-one wore black. Arry went too. Over 90 people came from all over the country. The HMS Ganges Association provided the White Ensign plus two bearers. It was lovely."

September 5

Our long weekend at bridge 50 turned out to be a little shorter than expected. The first few days were as enjoyable as ever, with several familiar boats passing, including Even Balance with Julia Cory and Steve Bacon waving as they fought the high wind and rain, and a relaxing hour or two with surprise visitors Sarah Levick and Andy Jury who had decided the weather was too inclement to venture out from Streethay Wharf on their boat Arcadia. Andy brought with him a couple of bottles of Adnam's Broadside which I put away for later and he was happy with the Pedigree and Old Speckled Hen I was able to substitute.

The problem that eventually made us decide to leave early on the Monday morning instead of Tuesday or Wednesday can be deduced from the previous paragraph. Sunday began with high winds and rain and although the rain cleared by midday the wind did not and we were bumped or hit by other boats five times - eventually we moved on from our favourite spot to a safer place a couple of hundred yards further up the canal. I became less than sympathetic, however, with the errant boaters blaming the wind because a couple of dozen had passed us without problem by taking the right line through the bridge below us or the bend above.

Anyway, I was up at dawn yesterday and had passed through Polesworth by 7am, reached Glascote locks by 8.15 where we found no boats waiting ahead of us for a change, and reached this superb spot below Curdworth bottom lock by 10.30am. We winded before the locks, of course, and then backed into the mooring, watched by Jack and Anne Day of Jalizcazane, who we last met on the Macclesfield the day before we set off on this season's cruise. As soon as we had settled and the Days had set off towards Fazeley to top up on supplies of bread and milk, we walked around the nearest of the large pools that form the wonderful Kingsbury nature reserve flanking us on the right. The dogs had to be kept on the lead but they didn't seem to mind and the flocks of Canada geese and common terns and the innumerable coots were clearly grateful not to be hassled. This mooring, recommended by Ian Harley of PEM No 6, is turning out to be just as enchanting as he promised - though not that restful. After breakfast today we are setting off with the dogs on a four-mile walk described in a map displayed by the bottom lock and will then take some sandwiches and spend an hour or two, without the dogs, in one of the excellent hides that are only a few hundred yards away from the boat.

Tomorrow we will cruise back along the four miles of this canal to Fazeley and turn north again for Hopwas, Huddlesford and Fradley.

September 6

We spent a lovely day at Kingsbury yesterday, walking with the dogs early in the morning before sitting for an hour in two of the hides overlooking one of the hidden pools in the nature reserve. Liz enjoyed it as much as I did though she was happy to get on with painting her cards etc in the afternoon while I returned for another hour on my own. Hundreds of greylag geese, dozens of lapwings and cormorants and the occasional snipe, great-crested grebe and tufted duck could be easily seen among the huge numbers of Canada geese, mallards and coot on the water or one of the little islands. The second, Skan hide, had a notebook in which regular watchers had jotted some of the more interesting sitings and I noticed several mentions of Little Egret coming to roost in the evening just before dusk. As I had never seen one before I returned for a third session about 7pm, sitting with one of the regulars and staring hard at the section of trees across the pool where he said the egrets would eventually fly in, showing themselves only briefly before dropping behind the trees. And he was right. It was almost dark when two of them arrived but their large all-white bodies were pretty clear for about 30 seconds or so. Worth the wait.

This morning we set off reasonably early, watered just outside Fazeley Mill marina and moored at Fazeley junction long enough for Liz to pick up bread, milk and other supplies before we cruised to a good mooring at Hopwas. Here we will stay until Friday morning, catching the bus in to Lichfield tomorrow, and collecting mail from Whittington post office on Friday before ending up at Huddlesford or nearby for the weekend. According to Canal Planner we have 66 hours of travel to get back to the Macclesfield by the end of October. That's little more than one and a half hours per day so we will be in no great hurry.

September 10

Our plan to spend the weekend at Huddlesford or Fradley was changed by a meeting and by unexpected noise. Coming through the bridge at Whittington we spotted Ronnie Slater of The Robert Mylne, who had been such a good Samaritan when we had engine problems at Huddlesford three years ago, so we pulled in to the official moorings opposite the school and sat for an hour over coffee and cake, catching up on his life since we last saw him about a year ago. He warned us about the railway expansion work at Huddlesford and about the traffic lights that controlled a one way flow past the entrance to the Lichfield canal but didn't say much about the noise. We stayed at Huddlesford just long enough to enjoy a pint of Old Speckled Hen and some delicious ciabatta with garlic and melted cheese with cheesey chips on the side - couldn't miss this excellent pub completely - before starting off again towards Fradley. By this time, however, it was early afternoon and discretion urged us to pull in near bridge 88 (we had stayed here once before) rather than risk a very busy junction. It has been so quiet here apart from passing boats that we have settled for the weekend and will brave the junction early tomorrow morning.

E-mail update: Two messages worth quoting from at length, the first from John and Elizabeth Bolton on Helen Louise who spotted us at bridge 22 on the Ashby and pulled in for a chat. They had been following the website, come over last year from their home in Blenheim on New Zealand's South Island for a holiday on a hire boat to see if they would like the life, decided they would, and bought their own boat. They sent this email: "Since our surprise meeting on the Ashby Canal, we have been continuing to really enjoy our life on board Helen Louise. After a few days back in the marina to rest due to Elizabeth cracking a bone in her foot (I will get used to the narrowness of the boat) we set off again. As we weren't in any hurry we once again enjoyed a few days moored at Rugby, John finds the DIY shops very handy. It was on then to Braunston, on through the Watford locks cruising until we reached the Welford Junction, we moored there and next day cruised down Welford Arm for a few provisions, water etc. We proceeded on to Market Harborough, finding the experience of the Foxton locks interesting. Really enjoyed our time in Market Harborough, we stayed in the basin for two nights. On our way back we couldn't resist staying at the Welford Junction for a couple of nights, and used this opportunity to polish and touch up the boat. We had a quick trip down to Gayton to fill in time while waiting to meet up with our son Richard and his friends in Rugby

"We had an interesting experience in Rugby with water in the diesel and after calling out RCR finished up dumping all our fuel and refueling. The condensation apparently was caused by previous owner not keeping level of diesel up. The weekend was quite wet, but the young ones really enjoyed the weekend. We dropped them off in Warwick on Sunday so they could get back to London. We stayed on in Warwick for a few days. From there we went down the Grand Union to London and moored at Paddington Arm. We took the train to Beale Park to the IWA boat show. Found this very worthwhile. We enjoyed the Notting Hill Carnival, and caught up with many people while in London. At present we are moored at Fenny Stratford having been here for five days we are moving on towards Hinckley over weekend. We are leaving for Chicago on the 29th September and will be in time to welcome our newly expected grandbaby."

The second comes from Dave Lane of Plodder, who regular readers will remember from our many meetings with him and his wife Sue : "Just thought I'd drop you a line after reading about your trip. It looks and sounds as though you had a fabulous time and so all the planning and effort was well worthwhile. Your writing specially moved me, being so descriptive of your family, friends and events that I felt as though I was there with you. The photographs also portrayed good times were being had by all.

"But there are some questions that I feel it is my solemn duty to ask:

1. How was there time to sleep with all the drinking and eating?

2. Were the mosquitos as bad as the Scottish Midge? (they're really tough up North you know).

3. What's this about seasickness? Last time we met you assured us you never suffered?..my hero?.. aura now shattered.

4. But now, methinks - what was that story about Samson?"

He's right, of course. I told Liz I should never have had my hair cut just weeks before travelling abroad.

And finally - I see that after being relegated to division C of Andrew Denny's Granny Buttons boat-roll (presumably because this website does not meet the criteria of a weblog) Snecklifter has now been dropped entirely. Ah well!

September 13

By our standfards we have put on a bit of a spurt since Monday, leaving our lovely bridge 88 mooring early in the morning and locking up through Fradley before anyone else was on the move. Another favourite out-in-the-wilds mooring about half a mile south of Handsacre was free so we pulled in there by about 9am, walked in to the village in time for a pint and a sandwich and then relaxed for the rest of the day. Yesterday we moved on to Rugeley where we did a fairly serious shop at Morrisons and then arrived at bridge 69 to moor up in front of Ralph Freeman on Grey Nomad (an old friend from before, during and after our Barton Turns days) and Kath and Dave Salt on Water Dragon, who we also met at Barton Turns. Naturally, we all sat out over tea (mashed by Liz) and cake (provided by Ralph) and in the evening Liz (guitar & vocals) joined Kath (mandolin) and Dave (ukelele and vocals) for a musical hour or two.

This morning we made a slightly later getaway but with only one lock between us and our present mooring we were in no hurry. My memory of the long open stretch overlooking Shugborough was being able to get in reasonably easy but today we failed in four attempts because of the silt. So we cut our losses and came into the official moorings below Great Haywood lock where we intend staying for a day or so. Shortly after our arrival Ralph appeared - moored up where we could not get in - so we will enjoy a pint with him at the Clifford Arms at lunchtime. On their way from Tixall as I write are Jeanne and Rob Boulton onTywardreath so if they can find a mooring here we'll be spending most of the day socialising.

E-mail update: Received this from Julia Cory on Even Balance (see September 5 entry) : "Nice to to see you through the howling gale and lashing rain that accompanied us last Saturday. As you probably gathered we were heading back to the Ashby and Hinckley following our month long trip doing the Four Counties and Llangollen. Looking back over the last month I think I can speak for both of us, and say that it was fantastic. It has re-affirmed our belief that eventually we will spent the majority of our time afloat. As ever, when travelling the system, we met some great people and saw some interesting boating and towpath based mishaps, including the lady who cycled off the towpath near the Shroppie Fly at Audlem. She was all right by the way, and when hauled out the water, was still attached to her bicycle! The Llangollen Canal was amazing although quite busy, but we expected that, as it was August. We managed an overnight on the Montgomery and would like to return to visit again at some point and spend longer. The only downside was the weather, which was appalling after the hot July we had experienced. We did not bbq once in the evening and it was only warm enough to sit out on a handful of occasions. The finale of our trip was 3 nights at Tixall to allow Steve time to polish the boat (both sides) and touch up the blacking. This was also the longest time Jess (the Cairn terrier) had spent on the boat. If I had a pound for every time someone said 'Look at the cute little dog' as she poked her head over the side of the boat, I'd be a very rich woman!"

September 15

A small engine problem has kept us at Great Haywood longer than we had planned but Ralph Freeman on Grey Nomad is only a hundred yards or so astern of us and his company has lessened any anguish over not reaching Tixall Wide by the weekend. We've met up the last two lunchtimes for a pint at the Clifford and started working our way slowly through the half-dozen real ales on offer. I have tried to resist but Ralph has developed a very effective arm-lock. (For his own version of these events have a look at his website http://www.greynomad42.blogspot.com/, which I have added to our Links page.)

The small engine problem (I'm hoping it's small) is the stripping away of the rubber sealer on the radiator cap. After an hour or so of running, the water is gradually boiling out through the top and I have to keep stopping the engine and adding more cold water and coolant. Fortunately there's an Isuzu agency at Anglo Welsh on the junction with the Staffs and Worcs so I will try to get a new cap from them. If they have to order one we'll stay put for a few more days. Fortunately, we have at least 40 more days before we have to be back on the Macclesfield canal for winter.

And finally, an update on September 10. Snecklifter is now back in Andrew Denny's Granny Buttons boat roll.

September 20

We've made rapid progress to Brewood so that Liz can get to a doctor for a repeat prescription - and she found one within an hour of our arrival at our usual "rural" mooring just south of bridge 15. We also topped-up on fresh meats and cheeses from the excellent butcher in the town but Liz has to return today to collect any forwarded mail at the post office. Other than that, nothing presses us hard so we can stay here a few days before progressing up the canal next week.

The trip from Cross Green was pleasant but uneventful until we reached Autherley junction - we were early enough to get through the narrows before the junction without meeting another boat - and for once I made the turn into the stop lock without touching the sides. It can sometimes be a bump and thump experience. Once into the lock we were asked by two young schoolboys if they could help so Liz got them to open and close the gate before they raced off in high excitement - not from aiding us but because they were on their way to school for a free trip to London, including a theatre, as reward for a 100 per cent attendance record. What a great idea!

The blustery wind did not help, however, and the journey took us a little longer than usual. We passed only a couple of boats on the move but there were plenty still moored on both the Staffs and Worcs and the Shroppie. We've been expecting the Cut to quieten down as the season comes to an end and, of course, it has but there's still some competition for the better overnight moorings.

September 25

Despite running the gamut of English weather, from sunshine to torrential rain via thunder and lightning, we enjoyed our stay at Brewood as much as we always have. Liz was able to wander into town each day for a newspaper and to top up grocery essentials while I stayed aboard and waited for ideal painting conditions to develop. They didn't.

This morning we left early and watered up at Wheaton Aston before filling up with comparatively cheap diesel at 41.5 per litre - we only needed a quarter of a tank but it was the principle that mattered. We should have enough fuel to take us back to the Macclesfield. Three hours later we pulled in to an excellent mooring at Norbury Junction, just 100 yards away from the new laundrette facilities where Liz has camped out ever since our arrival, getting heavy washing like duvet covers through the BW facility. I still want to get on with my painting but full sunshine through the afternoon has made the side of the boat too hot. I'll content myself with sanding down and preparation. Tomorrow we hope to reach Market Drayton - my printer inks have almost run out and it's not easy finding a supplier. If not there it will have to be Nantwich or Middlewich (where I know there is a specialist supplier).

September 27

Market Drayton was a great success - we had a brisk walk into the town in warm sunshine, mopped up the charity shops, bought essentials at Morrisons and walked back to the boat via the Talbot Arms and an excellent pint of Pedigree. Our plan to move straight on after lunch was abandoned, however, because the one shop that sold Canon printer inks had to order ours for next day delivery. This morning Liz walked back in to the town (while I cleaned up in the boat after watering and dumping rubbish) and returned just after 9.15 with our inks. We can use the printer again!

Within five minutes of her return we were on our way towards Adderley locks, reaching them within the hour and negotiating all five by 11.15. We might have been quicker if it had not been for two holiday hire boats in a row that turned locks that should have been left for us - Liz made a polite comment to the first boaters but the woman was so abjectly apologetic we just kept our mouths shut when it happened again at the next lock. We have offended ourselves in the dim past when we could not see the next lock in a flight but at Adderley there was really no excuse other than the obvious one - the holidaymakers had no idea that waiting a little longer is not only courteous but better use of water resources.

And talking of water there's a good possibility that it will rain tonight. If it continues into tomorrow we will be quite happy to stay here at this lovely mooring near the village of Adderley, with its splendid view across open meadows. A dry day will encourage us to continue, of course, with our next stop planned for Audlem.

September 28

The rain held off, we set off from Adderley at 6.45pm with another boat just a few minutes behind us, and came down through the last of the 15 Audlem locks around 10am. Locking was a pleasure, a complete contrast with yesterday's descent of the Adderley five. For a start we didn't meet any other boats coming up the flight until about five from the bottom and those we did pass were friendly and helpful. Only at the last two locks could there have been any doubt about "right of way" when we waited for a boat to come up the last of the flight and into the next. They left the gate open for us in the last lock and it was only when I was steering between the locks that I realised that a moored boat, Grey Heron, had been waiting for about 10 minutes for us to descend. They could easily have shot into the readied lock and been gone by the time we reached it. There are still some gentlemen (and women) boaters on the Cut!

We are now moored in our usual spot a few hundred yards below the locks, with a view out over the small man-made lakes below us. We could see several swans and ducks by the water as we hammered in our pins so the ponds are clearly growing in popularity. After an hour or so to gather our strength we walked to the charity shop at the edge of the village and then retreated to the Shroppie Fly for a pint of Old Speckled Hen. Unfortunately the Flowers IPA which I have enjoyed so much on previous visits was temporarily off. I may have to return tomorrow. No hardship if it's not raining, because Liz wants to stay here until Saturday so she can get her usual weekend newspaper fix of crosswords and sudoku puzzles. We may then cruise on to Coole Pilate. But we may not.

E-mail update : The latest message from Vicki Harley on PEM No 6 is worth sharing. "Hi. I just felt the need to send an email, so that I don't feel so much like a stalker! I read your website every time I go on the internet & it feels a bit voyeuristic! I love seeing where you are & what you have been up to. I feel like joining in the conversation, so here I am! I don't know if I have ever mentioned it, but I LOVE BEING ON THE INTERNET! I feel like I am part of something. Sad, I know, but there it is. I am going to Huntingdon next week for a few days & have just looked up my train times on the internet. It makes me smile - what would my mother think if she could see me now!

"We have been back & forth to Braunston and had various friends visit. Nephew Gary & family came to Rugby on Saturday. I thoroughly enjoyed that. Matthew has just started secondary school and I swear he is the most handsome boy ever to be in a school uniform. Gary had done the decals for the boat for free, saving us about £300. All we have to do is get them on now. I didn't like being nameless!

"We have had yet more problems with batteries & have just come from Rose Narrowboats after having four new ones fitted at a cost of £320! So, what comes in with one hand, goes out with the other. My life is ruled by batteries. When I go on Mastermind it will be my specialised subject! Hope all is well aboard Snecklifter & that the girls are OK. Bella's spirit continues to get better."

Doesn't it cheer you up to see other boaters so full of the joys - batteries notwithstanding!

October 1

Coole Pilate leisure area is almost the perfect weekend mooring at this time of the year - although there are at least half a dozen boats on the stretch to the next bridge we are not hemmed in nose-to-tail as you can be when local boatclubs arrive for Saturday-night barbecues and children's sports days! We stayed at Audlem on Friday as planned and were delighted to have a 10-minute chat with William and Pam Pughe who were passing by on Chickasaw en route the Gloucester and Sharpness canal. We first them at Tixall Wide (see Well Met on the Cut) when William helped me when we had the first signs of a fuel problem (cleared later when we discovered tiny amounts of air getting into the supply). William is recovering after chemotherapy for bowel cancer but he looked well and was in good spirits. We caught up with the last couple of years news until another boat hove into view and they moved on to make sure they got first through the bottom Audlem lock.

Yesterday Liz walked Bess and Molly the two miles to this lovely mooring and by 11am we were settled for the weekend. We've still got 25 days left before we hope to be above Bosley locks on the Macclesfield so if the rainy weather continues we can afford to stay on an extra day. And we have good company nearby. One of the boats ahead of us is Enchantress with which we have been playing leapfrog since Norbury Junction - we've been getting to know Paul and Jean Morris a little bit more each time we have stopped near each other. Paul's main career (like Jean's) was in the RAF but many on the Cut will know him as a boat safety examiner - he did thousands of them until he packed it in this year.

Email update: Since quoting from Vicki Harley's happy thoughts about the internet (see above) this follow-up arrived from Jeanne Boulton on Tywardreath : "Having just read the web site I felt I must also say I am so pleased that with your encouragement we have internet. Sometimes I feel like throwing it in the cut but the positives far outweigh those days. Plus your friend mentioned what would her mother think? I must say I email my 76 year old mum a photo most days and an update of our journey every day we have a signal, She emails me late at night when she's got my dad in bed and she's enjoying some peace. We are at the top of Foxton locks and our son John has just arrived for the weekend, after 2 weeks parachuting, Hard life in the RAF!"

And this from Judith and John Duckett on Nutwood : "We spent the summer on the Thames and the K&A. Met up with old friends who really made the summer. We also worked on the RBOA stand at Beale Park. It was hard work, and we have decided that is the last show we shall do. I had hoped for a good chandlers to be there, but there was nothing, and quite a few of the usual stands were missing. The music is going very slowly, at the moment the concertina is minus its B natural reed. It went out of tune which means metal fatigue in the shoe and is now with the repairer. I have also bought a Bodhran, which will be the winter project. It has such a lovely tone - if I can ever get the hang of it. At the moment I am searching the web to see if there are any local people I could contact for help. Unfortunately I can't make the concertina course this year -my lift is not going! However, we have made a date for next year.

"John is fine, busy doing his favourite turks head knots, and making walking sticks for people. I think I shall give him a year's subscription to the Knot Tyers Guild for Christmas! Haven't been doing much embroidery as tatting has taken over. Also I have eleven porthole covers and 27' of cabin crochet to do for friends. It will keep me out of mischief or drive me barmy! Getting the right size for the portholes is quite tricky I have discovered.

"Megan is fine, thoroughly enjoying being the only dog. I don't think getting another would be a good idea. Her only downside is she will chew the corners of hardback books that are on the bookcase. I think I shall get some Tabasco sauce and put a little on the corners to deter her!"

Isn't it marvellous to hear from so many people who love their lives on the Cut - people who give proof positive that there's plenty to keep the mind as well as the body active.

October 4

We are tied up in a prime spot overlooking Church Minshull, in almost exactly the same mooring from which I took the pictures that were "sewn" together to make the panorama in Latest Pictures. This morning's cruise was little more than 30 minutes from yesterday's mooring below Nanny's Bridge - and we'd have stayed there another day or so if the nearby fields had not just been treated with an unpleasant-smelling slurry. But this will do very nicely and we'll stay here until the weekend when we have to reach Middlewich by Monday for a vet's appointment for routine treatment for Bess and Molly.

The cruise from Nantwich to the Middlewich branch was fairly uneventful apart from a visit to Venetian marina for diesel and gas. In the upstairs room of the main shop there (dedicated to second-hand goods being sold on behalf of other boaters etc) I found a special edition of the Narrow Boat Game produced by British Waterways to celebrate 200 years of canals in 1994. It was in excellent condition and a bargain at £5 - Liz and I look forward to playing it on the long winter nights ahead.

From Coole Pilate to Nantwich the journey was a little more fraught. Within minutes of casting off, the engine overheating warning light went on, I pulled in to the side to check things out and removed the radiator cap slowly with a heavy cloth to protect myself but water still boiled out over the smaller of our two alternators which charges the engine starter battery. When we got under way again I noticed the revs counter was not working and according to the dials inside the power going into the engine battery was much lower than that into the six residential batteries. By the time we stopped at Nantwich for shopping the dial indicated the engine battery was fully charged but I was still worried so I walked over to Nantwich Canal Centre and asked how much it would cost for an engineer to check over the wiring. The chap there quoted £35 an hour and I thought that little enough to pay for peace of mind so arranged with the engineer, Matthew, for him to come over to the boat later in the afternoon. He duly arrived, confirmed my feeling that the output from both alternators was fine and spotted that a wire pulled out of its crimp was the reason for the revs counter failing. He walked back to the centre, ran up a small length of wire, returned to the boat, fitted it with stronger crimping and then charged us for half an hour's work plus 50p for the bits and pieces. Marvellous value and a heartening antidote to the tales we boaters hear and repeat about overcharging by some marinas.

The rest of the afternoon at Nantwich was spent catching up with our good friends Fred and Julie Boreham on Wingletang. They were among the first boaters we met in our early weeks on the boat when Fred helped me moor away from a winding hole at Gargrave (I didn't know any better then!) We've met up several times since then, of course, but not for about 16 months, so I chatted with them while Liz finished a pile of towels in the laundrette and she later had an hour with them while the engineer was with me. They are heading on much the same route as us for the next couple of weeks so we hope to meet them again soon.

October 9

Rain and wind marred our first couple of days at Church Minshull but two groups of visitors in a row gave as an excuse to stay another 48 hours to enjoy warmer, sunnier weather. Apart from us, the long stretch of official mooring was completely empty on Friday and Saturday nights so we felt little guilt about overstaying. On Saturday David and Chris Owen-Roberts who moor their boat Isis at Henhull on the Shroppie drove out to see us for afternoon coffee and cake - Liz baked some biscuits and Chris had cooked some brownies for us. The next day old Derbyshire friends Ken and Mary DeVille brought their two grand daughters Chloe (6) and Abby (11 weeks) to see us. They were well laden with a meat and potato pie, cauliflower cheese and some desserts all prepared by Ken so today we are still enjoying the second half of the pie with brownies and chocolote chip cookies to follow. We're very lucky in our friends - especially in the culinary department!

Before he left on Saturday, Dave took a splendid picture of Liz, Chris and me with Snecklifter in the background and that can be seen on Latest pictures. Mary also took several pix on Sunday afternoon as we cruised the one and a half hours to bridge 26, especially of Chloe at the tiller, so one or more of those should appear in these pages as soon as she sends them.

This morning the rain was heavy again, making us feel very pleased about leaving Church Minshull yesterday, even though it was principally to give our visitors their first taste of canal-boating on the move. We were able to delay our departure until the weather improved and still be tied up at Middlewich in plenty of time for the dogs' routine appointment with the local vet. Tonight we'll stay here and set off southwards down Heartbreak Hill in the morning. We should be back on the Macclesfield by the weekend.

PS. We've just received an email from Roger Hill : "I think your year counter's got a bit out of synch! Still enjoying the site though - keep up the good work." Oops! Well spotted, Roger. Now corrected from year 7 to year 5.

Wheelock was quieter than we've ever seen it and we were able to find an excellent mooring about half way between the BW facilities and the bollards approaching lock 66. Even overnight there were only four boats around and one of those turned out to be Judith and John Duckett on Nutwood so we soon decamped to the Cheshire Cheese for an early meal and a couple of hours of catching up on each other's travels. By the time our visitors arrived next day Nutwood had moved on and there was nobody within 100 yards of us in either direction.

We had met Lucy Sendall and Steve Clark of Serendipity and their three dogs Mary, Dinah and Paddy when we were briefly at Lyme View marina last winter and they had been so helpful and friendly when we came out of the marina on to the towpath for the second half of our stay on the Macclesfield. When we bought our new batteries at Middlewich I telephoned Steve and asked if he would help me fit them when we got back to Adlington in a couple of weeks time but he immediately offered to drive over to us on either Wednesday or Thursday, which are his days off. Luckily we opted for Thursday because most of Wednesday was washed out by heavy rain.

The sun shone for us yesterday and we got on with the battery changing while Lucy whisked Liz off in their car to shop at Waitrose in Sandbach. Three hours after their arrival, all six batteries were in and working and we were charging our own batteries in the Cheshire Cheese where we had discoved a sausage egg and chips that rivalled most versions of this unbeatable English delicacy (especially at £3.25). Our guests had scampi at little more than £4 each and the beers - Hyde's original bitter and Mr Jekyll's stronger ale - were equally low-priced and excellent tasting. Steve and Lucy stuck to soft drinks - she was driving back and Steve would be back to work next day as an HGV driver. They left promising to help us up the Bosley flight next week if they were available - and with Liz promising them one of her marvellous home-made pizzas when we reached the top!

Today an early start in light fog/heavy mist brought us up 12 locks and four miles to another of our favourite moorings half-way between Pierpoint locks and Chell's Aqueduct. You have to use pins here (two forward, two aft and one centrally placed) but the canal has quietened so much in the week that we shouldn't have them pulled out too often. We were amused by a recent letter in a waterways magazine that Dave and Chris Owen-Roberts passed on to us which reckoned that the reason so many boats were disturbed was not down to fast (i.e. inconsiderate drivers) but because the boaters had not moored their craft properly. The writer should moor here or at several other places like bridge 15 at Brewood where you have to drive pins into soft ground and no matter how well they are placed, whatever the angle of the ropes, fast passers-by mean constant re-pinning. And even on hooks or rings, if the water is taken away from you suddenly, your boat can heel over enough to cause discomfort.

Ah, that's better. Rant over!

October 15

It's funny how quickly normally slow movers like us can move when we have the scent of "home" in our nostrils - home for us this winter being the Macclesfield canal. Even though we were very comfortably moored above Chell's Aqueduct with excellent television and phone reception, we knew yesterday morning that we would ignore the fact that today would be a Sunday and leave early to break the back of the 12 locks left between us and Red Bull Basin. In fact, we were off by 7.45 am (the darker mornings holding us back a little) and by just after 10 am we had moored on the long stretch of rings in the shadow of Church Lawton. We'll crack on early tomorrow again, get through Kidsgrove at a sensible time (i.e. when school has started), and head for Kent Green to moor until Tuesday. We'll slow down again so we can stop at Congleton and will then moor for the night on the aqueduct above the town before tackling Bosley locks on Wednesday.

Now, to relax for the rest of Sunday! (P.S. I have updated Sienna's page at last.)

October 19

Our proposed timetable for the Macclesfield canal turned out to be spot on. We came through Kidsgrove without incident on Monday morning and moored overnight at Kent Green where we enjoyed an excellent early evening meal and pint of Pedigree at the Rising Sun. Tuesday morning was spent at Congleton and we reached a quiet mooring above the town by early afternoon, setting off next morning to meet Lucy Sendall and Steve Clark who had offered to help us up Bosley locks - they had driven out from Lyme View marina at Adlington, parked at the top of the locks and walked down to meet us with their three dogs. The ascent was not surprisingly our fastest ever : less than 90 minutes for ll of the 12 locks. We always stop between numbers two and one because there's an excellent mooring spot where we can get Snecklifter right into the bank.

Steve and Lucy did most of the actual work at the locks, with Lucy staying behind with Liz to let me out of the gates while Steve went ahead to prepare the next. In fact, we passed boats coming down the flight in each of the last three so life was made even easier for us. After mooring we drank tea and coffee until Liz had finished cooking a couple of large home-made pizzas which we all happily devoured and then Steve and I went back into the engine space to add some new cables to the recently fitted batteries. Again, Steve did most of the work, just as he had done with fitting the batteries.

This morning, despite threatened rain, we came up the final lock and cruised to the official moorings at Gurnett Aqueduct where we'll stay until moving on to the Stumps (above bridge 20) tomorrow. We have to be in that area for Sunday when Lucy is driving Liz over to Derbyshire to pick up a new second-hand car donated by a friend to replace the Polo that was laid to rest in April. As you can see we have more than our fair share of good friends with Lucy and Steve proving to be indomitable!

Canal footnote : Although we had an uneventful passage through the Kidsgrove area, it's worth mentioning that there were no boats at all moored near Red Bull basin - the first time we've ever seen it without nose-to-tail overnighters on the stretch by the BW facilities. Not until we turned on to the Macclesfield did we find four of five of them on the 48 hour moorings above the boatyard and opposite the car reclamation site. Even Gurnett is quiet, with only two other boats here at 10am.

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