Sunday 25th August
2019
A long day today. We are having the roof repainted at Streethay Wharf
near Lichfield while we go on holiday. The boat is booked in for 9th
September but we can be there on 2nd, which is our intention. We
have decided to head there rather than spend time exploring, which is the
reason we have travelled the River Thames and Oxford Canal so quickly, and so
are putting in some long days. Hire speed we have termed it. When hiring, you
set a target and have to go for it, long days cruising no matter what the
weather.
We were moored just before Hillmorton Locks when Brenda received the
news of Peter’s death, so she was not looking forward to passing through there
again. For that reason, we left the mooring early, with Brenda still in bed,
hoping to reach the locks before she stirred.
It was nice to be moving early before any other boats were about and
over now familiar ground. Unfortunately, Brenda appeared just as we reached the
mooring site she did not want to see.
When we arrived at Hillmorton Top Lock, there was a boat ahead of us,
but the pound between the top and middle locks was completely dry and empty of
water. We subsequently found one of the paddles of the middle locks not
completely closed so the pound had drained overnight. The pound is about 200
yards long and 50 feet wide but, with all the top paddles open, it filled
surprisingly quickly and we were on our way having only been delayed for 30
minutes or so.
Over the winter we had been seeing construction work over an area of 2
miles. This is a 20,000 home development that includes infrastructure, schools
and shops etc. In the six months since we had been here there was a lot of
progress with houses already built at the Hillmorton end.
At Clifton we passed a boat we had met with a number of times in this
area last year, indeed, we last saw them in exactly the same place. This led us
to wondering if many boats stay in a certain area and came to the conclusion
that they more than likely overwinter in marina’s and then never travel far in
their cruising season.
We moored at Rugby where Brenda bought new bedding, but not before the
propeller became fouled as we were mooring, leading to us swinging across the
canal in the midst of moored boats and looking like right amateurs.
Once Brenda had returned, with new bedding, we set off. It was a very
hot, sticky day. A boat pulled out right in front of us and then proceeded down
the cut at little more than tick over speed with no intention of allowing us to
pass. After following this boat for over 4 miles, he moored. It had been a
frustrating few hours. However, immediately after passing him, things got even
worse when we came behind two hire boats full of Chinese. Talk about a slow boat
to China. These boats were all over the place and kept stopping every time a
boat appearing from the opposite direction. While we managed to pass one, the
other would not allow us past. It took 1½ hours to travel the one mile to Stretton
Stop. They should stick to pulling rickshaws. After giving them a piece of my mind,
one thing is for certain, there is a Chinese restaurant somewhere in the
country I am not welcome in! At Stretton, these two boats were going to be
winding. We managed to squeeze past the second boat but would have loved to
have stopped to watch their antics in getting turned. As it was, we saw the
boat hooks and barge poles come out and a lot of pushing ensue.
There then followed a long, hot seven miles to Sutton Stop and the end
of the Oxford Canal. I love the North Oxford Canal with its long straight
sections, sweeping turns and tight corners at Ansty. At Hawkesbury Junction, we
were lucky enough to moor right at the end of the moorings before the stop
lock. After putting the boat to bed and feeding Harvey, we quickly walked to
the Greyhound.
We had intended to have Sunday dinner but there had been a music
festival and, with the hot weather, the place was heaving and they could not fit
us in. It was nice to see Vince, one of the staff who had been so good to
Brenda over the time of Peter’s funeral. He gave her a cuddle, almost stabbing
her with the spiky body piercing in his lower lip.
Returning to the boat, neither of us, it turned out, could face a meal
with being so hot and tired so we had sandwiches instead.
Weather: hot, hot, hot.
Day Total: 3 locks; 19 miles; 1 Tunnel; 1 Swing Bridge; 0 Lift Bridges;
0 Boat Lift; Day’s running hours 7.3
Overall Total: 708 locks; 1250 miles; 50 tunnels; 58 Swing Bridges; 11
Lift Bridges; 2 Boat Lifts; total engine running hours 784.1hrs
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