nb Bridge Street

Wednesday 28 th November 2018 The towpath next to where we are moored is very muddy so we shifted to moor just inside the marina entrance so the side door cover could be fitted from the concrete edge. Fraser duly arrived and fitted the cover in no time at all. It is a neat job and will protect the wood on the inside of the doors from the elements and also provide another level of insulation. The cost should have been £220 but they only charged £180. Once he had finished we shifted back to the mooring on the mainline canal. We had been getting concerned about the battery levels. We constantly monitor them to the extent we have become a bit paranoid. Since arriving in Braunston on Sunday, the levels had dropped from 100% to 68% despite the engine having been run yesterday when manoeuvring in and out of the marina. However, the engine was only on minimum revs for that time so, once back on the canal mooring, the revs were increased to 1200 out of gear for 30...

Although it is very intermittent, we are getting internet in Braunston. Very surprising, even to the locals. Tuesday 27 th November 2018 We had planned to go for a walk through Braunston. Although we have been here a few times now, and for long periods, we have never properly explored the place. We got as far as the church and it started to rain. Only light but very cold and sleety. We called into the shop and headed straight back to the boat. Just as well as the rain became heavy and the rest of the day was miserable. We spent the rest of the day quietly indoors.

Monday 26 th November 2018 Brenda took the bus into Daventry for town shopping and to collect her prescriptions from Boots. The return fare was £3.50. She enjoyed the break from the boat and time on her own. People, on hearing she was going into Daventry, had been saying “oh, you won’t be long then”, and that it was full of homeless people but she didn’t see any and was away most of the day. I called in to Braunston Marina office to see if anybody could look at the sliding hatch and was surprised to hear that they would do it straight away. I had to take the boat to their workshops, it was a very tricky move with all the closely packed boats. While manoeuvring the guy from AJ Canopies was looking for us. Once moored up, he made the pattern for the side door cover while I went to look for Gavin who would be looking at the sliding hatch. The brass runners had been roughly fitted and the bolts were too long, so catching the brass channel bar. Gavin ground and filed the ru...

Sunday 25 th November 2018 Very surprised that we are getting internet at Braunston tonight. We slowly cruised to Braunston where, after watering and emptying the loo, we were lucky enough to moor right outside the marina again. We have been very lucky being able to consistently moor here. Brenda went shopping while I dumped the rubbish and gave the roof tools another coat of paint. I got one hell of a scare when I opened the industrial wheelie bin used for the rubbish. It was a seething mass of rats. I hate rates. We then walked up into the village again to try out the Wheatsheaf. From the outside this looks like somebody’s house. I wasn’t convinced it hadn’t been sold but was assured it was still a pub. Once inside it is much bigger than it looks, going back a long way. It is a proper local’s local. A working man’s drinking den. I felt right at home but Brenda felt a little out of place. Back at the boat we had a home cooked Sunday dinner with roast chicken an...

Saturday 24 th November 2018 There are at least 10 large marinas within a 5mile radius of where we are moored. This morning the boats passing in both directions were almost nose to tail. And the majority going far too fast causing us to rock madly quite often. We had been told how busy this stretch becomes. Napton and Braunston are prime destinations and most of these boats will be held in marinas and only come out at the weekend. I spent the morning in the engine bay. There was water in there from the rain over the last week or so which first had to be bailed out. I then started to take hydrometer readings of the batteries but was getting strange results. It is probably explained because these batteries are constantly discharging and so only have a full charge after the engine has been run. The rear deck area had been looking grubby for a while and so was scrubbed and cleaned and now looks much better. After other pottering, we went for a short walk. Brenda had made a...

Friday 23 rd November 2018 I had become curious over the Stratford-on-Avon District sign and also the number of references to Nelson in this area. There is a Nelson Street in Stockton, a Nelson Club and a Nelson Wharf at the Willow Wren Training Centre whose logo is a cockerel. It turns out that the canal marks the division between Rugby District and Stratford District of Warwickshire County Council. As the crow flies we are just 15 miles from Stratford and 31 miles by canal. The Grand Union heads west and then turns north where there is a junction with the Stratford Canal which goes south to the town. The connection with “Nelson” was interesting. Occasionally on the canal there will be an indication of its past if you know what to look for. At Nelson Wharf there are traces of old walls and scrubland alongside the canal. It transpires that this was the site of Nelson’s Cement Works, with a cockerel as their logo. The site was huge, I found this aerial view from the 193...

Thursday 22 nd November 2018 We were awake during the night and watched a lovely, bright, full moon in a clear sky with a thick ground mist. When we woke this morning the world was white after a hard frost. Apparently it got down to -4 ˚ overnight. The stove has remained light since its first lighting on 19 th October. This morning was no exception and the boat was cold but not overly so, the stove having been damped down overnight. However, we did turn the heating on for ½ hour to warm the boat up while the stove was heating up. We haven’t had the heating on for some time but the times we have, has been when the boat has become cold. We still haven’t yet mastered the regulating of the heating. If it is left on too long, the boat becomes oppressively hot and remains so for a long time.   We went for a walk to the nearest village, Stockton. The walk was along a main road to begin with and was not pleasant with all the traffic and narrow verges to walk on. We w...

Wednesday 21 st November 2018 After breakfast, we topped up with water and left Napton. We had been here a week, arriving last Thursday. We had a slow, uneventful cruise to Napton Junction where we turned off towards Warwick and Birmingham on the Grand Union Canal. We have never been down here before. We passed Napton reservoir that feeds into the canal, before coming to the three Calcutt Locks. Again, we are with wide locks. They are horrible to manoeuvre in and out of when you are working the boat on your own, much easier with two boats. Usually with wide locks, there is no bridge to pass from one side of the lock to the other, and so it is necessary to walk to the opposite end and cross over the lock gates. This is always a balancing act and never looks completely safe. It is also time consuming. So whenever possible, the locks are worked from one side only, only opening one gate which necessitates careful manoeuvring. When moving downhill, because of the nature ...

Tuesday 20 th November 2018 We were still deliberating as to whether or not to move. We reversed down to the service point, took on water, emptied the loo and dumped rubbish. While on the water point we did a wash. The washing machine takes ¼ of a tank of water so whenever possible now, we do a wash while filling and then top-up once the wash is finished. The lock mooring just beyond the bridge at the service point had become empty. This is right beside the pub and on the lane leading to the village so we reversed and moored up. Once the washing was hung out, I walked across the fields to get a closer look at the work they are doing on the lock. One of the side walls had been bulging in and so was being taken down, reinforced and rebuilt. I wasn’t allowed to get too close, Health and Safety has its place of course, but it is a stupid thing sometimes, especially when I think of the conditions I have had to work in. One of the guys on the site though, took my camera and...

Monday 19 th November 2018 We had kind of planned to move on today, but one of us was rather hungover. Harvey got his day off to a bad start. A dog went to nip him and he finished up in the canal. It is not the first time he has been in and it always greatly distresses him. At least this time he managed to keep himself on the surface as nobody was close at the time. Normally he sinks like a stone and you have to trawl for him. In the pub last night, we were talking with some other live-aboard boat owners and the subject of energy management and conservation came up. We had noticed that these two boats run their engines at least twice per day. We came to the conclusion that, since having the electrical cupboard rewired and having the battery bank replaced and increasing the capacity, our electrical supply is about as well managed as it can be. The solar panels certainly help, keeping the batteries topped-up and lights are religiously switched off when not in use. The s...

Sunday 18 th November 2018 We have stayed at Napton for so long as we were told their Sunday lunches were really good. We were also advised to book which we had. Getting ready, Brenda had a top on that had sequins on it. The reflections within the boat always fascinate us. These sequins were catching the sun and sparkling all over the ceiling. Obviously the stained glass porthole always gives a good display but so also does the crystal ware and the oil lamp that Pete and Lynne gave us. Quite often we have lovely reflections off the water playing about the boat, especially at night with the moon light. We duly went to the Folly for our 1:30 reservation. There was a ticket on the table saying it was booked for 2 people and a dog. Unusually, the menu was handwritten in calligraphy. The food was delightful and well worth the visit.     We then got involved with various people...

Saturday 17 th November 2018 Brenda fixed the lacework in the front cratch window. It looks really good from both inside and out. The lace has been starched and had beads sown on the bottom for display and to weight it down. I started to paint the brush and mop stales but there has been black paint dribbled in with the grey white spirit tub so it will all have to be done another day. I removed the rear sliding hatch cover to investigate it becoming harder to slide and the ingress of water whenever it rains. The water ingress was easily identifiable and remedied. The rain is able to run along the angle iron bracket that the hatch slides on, and the wood work around the internal frame is below the level of the bracket. A slot was made in the bracket so the rain can only run so far and then drip through the slot onto the roof. The gaps between the metal frame and the wood has been filled with silicone, so hopefully now, rain should not be able to enter the boat. The...

Friday 16 th November 2018 We are at Napton filling in time until we have to be back in Braunston for 26 th November. Until then we are just tootling around. We didn’t want to have to go through Braunston tunnel, Buckby Locks and Watford Locks are closed anyway. We are going to overwinter on the Coventry/Ashby canals, so didn’t want to travel in that direction, which left the South Oxford. The first locks at Napton are closed, hence a dead end, but there is the Grand Union towards Warwick. The brush and mop stales were given their first coat of grey paint. I do enjoy pottering about outside and watching the coming and goings of other boats. Brenda found a programme on i-player that we had been looking forward to. “They Shall Not Grow Old”. It was a compilation of old film telling the story of the First World War, but had been realistically coloured-in and forensic lip readers had dubbed the speech. Compelling viewing but upsetting and humbling. It was due to be removed f...

Thursday 15 th November 2018 I have the idea of fitting shackles to the ends of the gangplank brackets on the roof to fix ratchet straps to, to secure roof fittings down. Gangplank, boat hook and pole etc for both safety and security. The brackets are stainless steel and my drills won’t touch it. We did housework, prepared the dinner and then left the mooring. We had really enjoyed the peace and quiet here and will return. We had a very slow meander over just 5 miles to the bottom of Napton Locks. It was a lovely day and very quiet on the canal passing just a few boats. To the west the views are over flat, green farmland stretching into the distance, to the east a series of hillocks with small villages gathered around them. We passed Napton Junction, where the Grand Union leaves on its way to Warwick and Birmingham, and the marina’s at Wigram’s Turn and Napton Narrowboats from where we once hired their honeymoon boat, with a bath. Most boats never leave their marina’s ...