Thursday 4^th October 2018

I was wide awake at 4:30 so pottered about quietly. A buggar when that happens. Must have a guilty conscience.

Took the dog for a longish walk and reinstated the fendering on the starboard side. The blackening looks so much better. We set off at 8:30. It was a cold start, although the day turned out glorious.

We stopped at the service point at Kilby Bridge wharf and soon came to the first lock of the day, Bumblebee Lock. One of the worst locks we have ever come across.

It was quite a deep lock and the gate was very heavy to the extent Brenda could not shut it. I had to climb up the ladder to help and even with the two of us swinging on the gate, we struggled. Then the opposite gate opened itself. Then both gates opened. Eventually we had to crack one of the top paddles so that the flow held the bottom gates shut. The next pound was a short one and shallow to

start with. Having to open the top paddle to hold the gates shut lowered the pound, making it difficult to move the boat which was dragging the bottom.

The side wall of this lock was in very poor condition and looked about to collapse. We had to rope the boat to the other side so as not to touch the crumbling brickwork.  

There was a very strange, suspicious looking guy lurking on the towpath of this pound that made the pair of us very uncomfortable.

The next two locks passed reasonably easily although it took the two of us again, to close one of the gates. We will be glad when these wide, double gated locks are behind us, they are hard work.

The canal along the whole stretch encountered today was gorgeous. Stunning scenery, especially with the multitude of colours in the trees.

At Top Half Mile Lock there was a notice stating that CRT “operatives” were running down water and asking boats to wait until one of the staff arrived. It transpired the one guy was running water through the next three locks. However, no water appeared to be running and the notice was undated. So we entered the lock but as soon as we closed the bottom gates, water started pouring over the top gates, making it obvious they were running water. The paddle was extremely stiff so we just waited for the flow over the gates to fill the lock when the operative turned up. We were expecting a telling off but he was OK with it.

The pounds close to Leicester that we had so much trouble getting through were low again and boats were getting stuck. So CRT were running water all the way from the summit, where a feeder enters from Saddington Reservoir 12 miles and 18 locks away from the troubled section.

The towpath had now changed sides so we planned to moor close to bridge 78 to blacken the port side and visit Wistow village. However, there was no place to moor, all the banks were overgrown and the sides very shallow, so we had to travel a further ¾ mile before finding a suitable spot. Even then we had trouble getting alongside and became well grounded. That will be the first problem for tomorrow.

We were tied up by 12:30 and had a lovely lunch of melted Brie on crumpets with plum jam before starting a working afternoon.

The hull on the port side was looking quite sad. Once it was washed it looked better but being re-blackened has improved it much more. The 1 litre tin of paint we bought has almost run out just doing both sides, so it works out expensive at £25 per tin, but we like to keep the boat looking nice. This is the third time we have blackened the sides since the boat went in the water in May. They always appear neglected if the blackening is not kept in good condition. Hopefully hanging fenders on the sides and the wrap-around fenders front and back should protect the sides and make the paint last longer.

Brenda did some admin on a pension that starts on my next birthday and arranging the post to be delivered in Market Harborough. She also painted one of the porthole bungs and has started to crotchet a cover for it. It will look nice when it’s finished.

Lock-wise, it has been a hard day today and the painting has wrecked my back, so it was nice to have a walk before settling in the front cratch with a beer. We are moored in a delightful spot, very peaceful. We have seen just two boats moving all day and three more that the CRT had corralled into a convoy. Just one couple have walked past us here, so we are very isolated.

Interestingly, we spoke to two of the boats and, when asked where they were heading for, both said getting through Leicester as quickly as possible without stopping. What a shame. They will really miss out and all through listening to talk. We have always said that, on the canals, you don’t know if you don’t try. Of course, you have to be careful when deciding on a mooring, don’t moor in areas where there is a lot of graffiti, rubbish or housing estates. But other than that, if you listen to talk, you will never visit anywhere. Leicester had so much to offer and some very safe and secure mooring, it is a pity to miss out.

Weather: after a cold start the day was delightful. There is heavy rain and winds forecast for Saturday, another storm, so we plan to get to Market Harborough tomorrow and stay for at least the weekend.

Day Total: 7 locks; 3 miles; 0 Tunnels; 0 Boat Lift; engine running hours 5.0

Overall Total: 250 locks; 425miles; 15 tunnels; 2 Boat Lifts; engine running hours 263.8