Preambling to Thorne

 

 After a quick trip to the States to sample the delights - of which there were many - of California its time at last to start this years trip.  First thing in the morning the mist came down but the sun was not far behind.

 

 A lovely day and its good to be underway heading for a couple of days in Lincoln.

 One of my favourite moorings in Lincoln.  The little island next to the Siemens carpark and a very short walk to the Archives.

  The river is flowing rather fast today as I enter Lincoln centre.

 A new cafe boat is tied up and with the narrowing of the canal the boat is slowing down.

 By the time I am at the Glory Hole the engine is working quite hard but making a steady speed.

 Its back to the long straights to Torksey.

 Stopping today at The Pyewipe Inn.  A brilliant place to stop for a meal.  Syd and Heidi are coming out from Horncastle to meet us. As usual the meal was spot on.

 The next day and it on to Saxilby to fill up at Tongs ready for the trip down the Trent.  The weather has cooled down somewhat so we stay and extra day til the sun comes out.

 and it does.  Sorted out the tide with Neil at Torksey Lock.  Haven't seen Richard and Ruth of nb Comfortably Numb.  Guess they must have already gone on to Newark.

 

 More lovely weather at Torksey.  Off out on the tide at 0930 ish but not much speed expected as its Spring Neaps.

 To keep on ones toes there is always the possibility of one of the big boys popping up.

The weather last and Gainsborough looks good.  One day I must make use of the floating pontoon.

 Ooh its a bit wide out on the Trent.  Spotted a fin in the water.  Fairly sure its not a shark :-) but could be a dolphin I suppose.

 West Stockwith Lock and a couple of hours in to the journey.

 Its getting cold by the time the M180 motorway bridge comes into sight.

 

 and the old lift bridge is even more welcome with only a mile left to Keadby Lock. 

Into the lock.  Slight problem as I get in.  Lined the bows up spot on and as I swung over to enter the lock the bows rise up.  I have found the sand bar at the lock mouth.  Slightly upstream and I get in.

 

 Moored up across from Phyllis and Spider T. Time to leave the car behind and plod on.

Couple of days and the last bit on to Thorne.  Waiting for the train to pass so we could have the bridge opened for us.

Moored in Thorne for a few days while I finished some of the bits and pieces that needed doing.  The water pump has taken to leaking and taking in air so that will keep me busy for one day. 

Then its off towards Leeds.

Bardney to Barton and Back

Having moored up at Bardney I spent a few days house sitting while Karyn and family took bit of a holiday.

While they were away I got to know the footpaths around the Waters Edge Nature Reserve in Barton on Humber very well after taking the dog out for a walk that would last three to four hours a day. I also found the Waterways channel on the TV which was very interesting.

On their return and after a very late, and I mean late, night that went on to the early or should that be late hours of the morning I decided that it would be best if I stayed another day. This would let Andy get back to normal before yet more travelling.

On arrival at Bardney I went to move the boat down to the lock to unload the car. As seems to be the norm these days - a problem. The batteries are absolutely dead and this with both the wind genny and solar panels up and running.

Still had a couple of litres of petrol in the can so filled the generator and hooked up the charger and away we went. For about ten minutes until the charger read-out started playing up. Another fifteen minutes and the charger stops working altogether.

A kind boater moored astern lend his spare battery - no go. We then link to his engine battery - still no go.

Luck Andy was there. Off into Lincoln for new charger and battery. The traffic is horrendous and it takes an age to get back and evening is coming on.

New battery fitted and the engine starts. Off to the lock with headlight on. All running well until I went to moor. Going ahead was fine but I had no astern gear. The eagle landed but it was bit of a belly flop and a bit harder then I would have liked. While changing the battery I had dislodged the gear cable from its restraint. Easily fixed with a garden tie to make sure it stays in place.

I decided to carry on to Fiskerton Fen in the dark to ensure that the battery was charged and that I didnt upset the neighbours running the engine.

After a day in Washingborough and two in Lincoln to carry out some business which ended up being put back to the 12th I am now making my way to Saxilby to get the new fuel pump.

A couple of days running to make sure that this time it is OK and its off to the Trent.

Success!!

During Fridays visit we finished checking every thing that could be checked. Grr as my favourite hitch-hiker says!

Bob came out of the engine room and this time he started the engine to see if we had done any good. Engine started and I mentioned to Bob that the water under the exhaust didnt move and there was no smoke coming out. I dived into the engine and disconnected the exhaust. Started the engine and away it went with smoke every where. It seems that the exhaust was blocked enough to let the engine run but not enough to speed up.

I dismantled the system and the box looked fine and I could put a pole through all the pipes so they were clear. The only bit that left was the box itself.

Over the weekend Bob picked up exhaust box and took it back to the workshop. Going much further than can be expected of him he then brought it back on Sunday morning for me to reconnect.

The box itself seems to be rather complicated inside and absolutely no way of getting inside to check it out.

Bob cut it up and the problem was the small holes through which gases go. They are not small any longer!! Blown through with high pressure air and welded back together it now works perfectly.

On Sundays on the canal the kayaks come out. As many as four times during the day there are large numbers of children really enjoying themselves. In the picture they are starting to line up for a race to the road bridge.

Monday morning - early - I reconnected the exhaust and all the other bits and pieces. By the time I finished Bob arrived as he was as interested as I was on how it would go. We were expecting loads of black smoke but as you can see there was very little evidence of a problem.

I am now at Saxilby for fuel and water.

I meet a large number of lovely people while I was stuck at the Uni. It became embarrassing when the helmsman of the Brayford Belle would hang out of the bridge and ask about the engine.

The last people to arrive had recently moved to Blue Water Marina - the home of Lady Piper that was.

I hope that I will be able to keep in touch with one or two of the nicest people I know.

Time to move on?

After four weeks of tuition 17 pupils walked away with a hand-bound work of art in the form of a notebook. Guaranteed to last a century or your money back. :-) One of the pupils broke out into verse for the occasion.

Bookbinding

We have folded our papers, and bodged and stitched
Continuing on without a hitch.
We have taped and ruled to all intents, and purposes for,
The right measurements.

We have mulled and stuck and pushed into place,
Cut out the parts for the book to face.
We have put on the cover, the books looking fine,
It’s nearing the end, but we are out of time.

We have pasted inside, it’s the final week,
I think you’ll agree our goal has been reached.
We have a nice notebook, put the finishing touch,
Out tutor is Ifor. Thank you very much.

Jean Bartlett
July 2009

I think I have fixed the leak on the boat engine but now need to see if it is over heating as there is smoke coming of it. This could be from the derv leak but the engine gases are getting into the rest of the boat so I will see if I can fit an extractor fan to help with cooling and ventilation of the engine room.

The lost key on the motor bike meant that I had to hot wire it to get to work. The earth wire didn’t and I think that this blew the lights so another job for the future. Luckily I don’t need the bike at the moment.

Next stop Bardney after a stop in Saxilby to fuel up. I will visit Horncastle from there before moving on to the rest of the canal system.

I decided, what with one thing and another, not to go to Wales this weekend. With so much going wrong I decided not to push my luck with the long journey. I will get a bottle in to toast my brother and sister in law on their Silver Wedding.

Summer is here!

If this is the way that summer is going then bring it on.

I do believe that my knees have a touch of sun today.

I had a trip down to Lincoln just to charge the batteries and the canal is getting its colour back. The Dog Roses are coming out and the Irises are giving a splash of yellow to the banks.

The number of boats traveling up and down the cut was amazing. Some of the larger ones although they might have been doing the requisite 6kph but the wash was as bad as the waves on the Humber.

The nicest part of the trip was the multitude of cygnets and proud parents that are about. The Black swan was sitting next to a nest of five young with the mother actually on the nest with no problem at all it seemed.

I was in Barton when Abz came back from her best friend’s birthday trip to Bridlington. By the sounds of it it was a great success and enjoyed by all that were there.

For most of today my phone has been very iffy. I have changed the tariff and asked to keep the old number. After a number of hours being able to call out but not knowing what number I was calling from things got back to normal and I was deluged by texts to the usual number that were held in limbo.

I am working on the solar panels and do wish that they were on line today. Must knuckle under and get on with it.

The Dashed Cat

A couple of days at Saxilby were very welcome and with a visit from Chris into the bargain – enjoyable. Whittering away and the time flew past and I hadn’t realised that it was 10 o’clock and time that the visit ended. I apologise Chris for having my back to the clock.

Then the weekend and a visit from my favourite mini-mobile disaster area. All the plans were made in advance of what we were going to do and it started well enough. As soon as Abz was onboard we set off for Lincoln. Spotting the black swan who now seems to be the extra help to the parents of half a dozen youngsters. A menagerie et trois which seems to be the thing these days.

Arrived safely in the Uni mooring and went off shopping to spend Abz’s pocket money which we succeeded in doing very quickly. Checked out Lidl and surrounding stores and back to the boat. Then it all started to fall apart.

Dash went off for a walk and we started on ticking off the items of the To Do list. Salt dough came first and I must admit the galley of a narrowboat leaves something to be desired when it comes to an eight year old + flour + salt + water.

Still I got the lumps out of it and most of it off the rest of the galley. :-) then the making of the items. These progress quickly and the fire was lit and the results put on the top to dry out. Computer games and the new acquisition kept us busy for a few hours. Getting close to bed time where is the Dash cat. Still out so leave the door unfastened for him to get in, wake me up so that I can lock up later.

In the morning we are moving on to the centre of Lincoln and then to Stamp End. Wot no Cat!! We are staying until he is found. Umpteen trips up and down the moorings and around the Uni buildings. No Cat. I am persuaded that a tin of tuna is worth a cat so open one up which we rattle and waft about in the search. Early lunch and have bacon sandwiches to use the smell to tempt him back. No Cat. Abz by this time is getting quite upset at the non-arrival of the cat and when the heavens open and the rain is belting down I can only just stop her going out with the umbrella to give it shelter.



During the wait for the cat things are still happening on the canal and off it. We spot the Army going past out on a training session and I remembered then why I joined the navy! :-)

While we were sat there thinking of the next move to get the cat back on board I heard a boat saying it was going full astern – three short blasts – they might have been but it was actually Naughty Cal asking if they could moor up alongside while they went off to the shops.

Even later Andy arrives to take Abz home and brings the inverter with him so that I can be back using the electrics more fully. Abz still worried and upset but its time to go and I have to promise to call the instant he returns.

Its been a funny old day

It all started last night with the view over the bow and the sound of the birds and the solitude. The canal can be an idyllic place to be.

Got up early as the cat had decided that the place for happiness was sitting on my head.

First thing to do was make a cup of tea and the view out of the window was peace.

Left the mooring and headed back to my favourite spot – Saxilby – and picked up the derv and calor gas. That should keep me going for a month or so. People outside with the children having a BBQ and having fun even though it is windy.

Cracked open a bottle of wine to celebrate being alive to some people.

Well it brightened my day

I left Washingborough yesterday and headed up stream to Stamp End. I was over taken on the way by a cruiser that was travelling at about the same speed as me but I thought it would be easier if he opened the lock and I went in first then closed up after he left so I let him pass. It certainly takes a lot of effort out of travelling when this happens.

Just before the centre of Lincoln I moored up and went shopping and booked the bike in for an MOT. To get across to the market area one crosses the road via a foot bridge. From here you get one of the nicest views of the Lincoln Cathederal.

And from the same point the view down the canal shows the mooring which is not as busy as the centre of Lincoln. The centre was crowded with youngsters and they were all very well behaved and enjoying their meetings with friends and the sun. It was nice to see.

I stopped the night at the end of the Uni mooring and visited B&Q to pick up some bitumen paint. I have decided to have the sides to just below the gunnel painted black as it is easier to match up rather than the green it is now.

First thing started the move on towards Saxilby and the diesel at Tongs DIY shop. With the engine on tick over the journey was slow and I let the Brayford Belle through and passed her again after she had turned around at the Pyewipe Inn.

It was then I was hailed by the hitch hikers!! Not really they just wanted to know about narrowboats as they were thinking of a holiday and wonder if they would be able to cope.

I don’t normally pick people up or give them a ride onboard but after chatting for a while decided that I was safe. :-)

Having reached the Woodcocks pub at the other side of Burton Waters I stopped to let them off and after even more chat invited the two delightful ladies in for a cup of tea and by now they are not only thinking of a holiday but ‘Can I live on a narrowboat?’

It made a refreshing change from normality.

Cromwell to Torksey

Leaving Whichwey (the boat with the wood) behind us at the lock a trio of boats moved out onto the Trent at just before 0900. I let the others go first as I was not in any hurry and would most likely go slower than them. With Mucky Duck leading Just Reward we were soon nearing a gravel and sand loading wharf.



The Little Shuva moved off into the gap and I stay behind it. It would leave me on the straighter parts but as soon as a corner came it would slow down to manoeuvre the barge around the bend and I would catch up.



I heard on the VHF some chat from another boat moving up towards us and it soon came into view. I was pleased to be behind the barge as it was then easy to follow his line.

Then things got hairy. A tight bend and the tug couldn’t take the corner. The next thing was that he had slowed right down and I did the same but with the flood with me it made little difference to my speed so I went astern to keep away. Before I knew what was happening he was going full astern and heading straight for me. The barge by this time was taking up ¾ of the river and the only thing left for me to do was to go full ahead and head for the gap between him and the bank. The engine was throwing out smoke and I had never given it that much throttle before. I slipped through with feet to spare.

By the time I reached High Mareham he was catching up so I stopped at the pontoon and made a cup of tea and let him pass.



Now it was a more restful part of the trip. I spotted many Sand Martins digging out their nest holes. Naturally as soon as I got the camera I was left with just a couple in view.



Near Newark there is a firm that digs out the gypsum seam that runs through here for use in plasterboard etc. The veins are visible on a bend as I neared Dunham. Another good place to see it is at Gunthorpe.



Dunham Toll Bridge that is seen today replaced one built in 1832 and the book says that there was one there before that. The river at this point becomes the boundry between Nottinghamshire and Lincolnshire.



Finally I arrived at Torksey. The other two boats were already through and on their way to Saxilby. With the lock closing at 1300 I made it with 30 minutes to spare. Then it is on to Saxilby and mooring up for the night. I was ready for a sit down by the time I arrived.

Saxilby to Torksey

The last kilometre on the way to Torksey is all moorings with the visitor moorings reaching almost to the 1km signpost.

After a very enjoyable long weekend in Aberdare its back on the canal. Aberdare at one time was connected to the canal which ran past Forest Row or as we called it Canal Row in Taffs Well. This was the village I grew up in till the age of nine. The canal played a large part in our lives. Making dams, making rafts and playing with boats. The lock was just a few hundred yards away and here we would catch minnows and bull heads and occasionally we would catch an eel which would be sold for a penny to a man in Forge Masters who would cook it on a shovel. Those were the days. All gone now. The row of cottages is now under the main road from Abercynon to Cardiff.

A bright day which started late as I was still on welsh time. A quick trip to Lincoln to drop off the car at my sons house then back to the boat to fuel up and move to Torksey ready for a get away out onto the Trent for the low water at 1130 tomorrow.

I moved up the canal slowly as I wasn’t in a rush and just enjoyed the scenery. There are always plenty of boats at Torksey many of which are GRP and tend to bob about alarmingly if ones speed is not of the slowest. Other GRP boats on the canal take note. These boats do make rather a lot of wash and many of them don’t seem to slow down at all making even my 60 foot roll.

Busy day on the Fossdyke

I have left Saxilby due to embarrassment. I had spoken to someone from the Waterways and explained the situation and was told it was ok to stay until the electrics were all fixed and running. The fact that I was moored next to the signboard that said 72 hour moorings somewhat rubbed it in. That and the fact that the two boats ahead of me had paid for their winter moorings make me think of a trip away for a while.

Just before I left a rather large boat moored up and I couldn’t help thinking that he would miss the best part of this canal – going through the Glory Hole. He would certainly have to slim down a bit first.

Travelled for a couple of hours then moored up near the Pyewipe Inn. A quiet afternoon so a bit of anti-rust work would give me something to do. Next thing I knew was the arrival of the steam train ‘Sir Nigel Gresley’ on the railway line next to the canal. A brilliant viewpoint but not the best of pictures I am sad to say.

Built for the LNER in 1937, and the 100th Gresley Pacific built. Her Doncaster Works number was 1863. It was originally numbered 4498. It is a 4-6-2 locomotive to the same design by Sir Nigel Gresley as the more famous Mallard.

Sir Nigel Gresley is the holder for the post-war steam record speed of 112mph gained on the 23 May 1959 and carries a plaque to that effect. As with Mallard's record. this was descending southward from Stoke Summit, but unlike Mallard's run which was a special attempt, this was with a full train of passengers returning from an excursion to Doncaster works. The excursion exceeded 100 mph on two other occasions on the same day. Unfortunately, because of a paper strike at the time, the logs of these are not as accessible as for some other workings. Wikipedia

Never a dull moment. I suppose the cat will go for a swim tonight to give interest to the evening.

Visitors

A very nice surprise today to break up the ordinariness of the weekend.

‘Any body there’ was the first that I knew that I had visitors. My first non-family visitors turned out to be Sid and Heidi from Sellwood in Horncastle. Luckily I had had a ‘bit’, and it was only a bit, of a tidy up and they managed to settle into chairs amidst the normal chaos of the boat. And a present of cakes that I would imagine that Heidi had made.

Hiedi’s claim to fame is going from not knowing one end of the computer from the other to the person that managed to write the story of their two sons in a second language, English, on a computer and finally to put the printed illustrated version into book form which she then went on to learn to bind up. A very tidy job she made of it too and the story itself is quite rivetting. Proving the falsity of the adage ‘You can’t teach an old dog new tricks’ for one is never too old to learn.

With a cup of tea and a chat putting the world to rights then a tour of the ‘estate’ and the visit was over. A very enjoyable interlude in the hectic schedule of Saxilby living.

Sorry Abz but I bought a bike that was almost the first I looked at

I am now settled back at Saxilby. It is good to be back here. This must be one of the nicest moorings available on the Fossdyke. All the shops are handy with a charity shop to frequent in the hope of finding that one item that you can’t get anywhere else.

In the last few days I have been trying to find a bike to place on the bows. All the major bike shops here have second hand bikes that are well out of my price range. They all tend to be around £1500 -1700 but I struck it lucky with an advert placed in a small shop in the middle of Lincoln. Who says advertising doesn’t pay.

I arranged to look at it and Michael brought it out to me which I much appreciated. Within minutes a deal was struck and I am now the proud owner of a Honda 185. A well used machine but I hope to get as much pleasure out of it as Michael obviously had.

Bought the timber this morning to build the platform and ended up with planks that were rather thicker than I wanted but it worked.

As the photo shows the wheels over hang by a couple of inches. The view is deceptive and not as bad as it looks.

Its not all plain sailing on canals

Celebrating the return. Ships cat - Dash - off on a banyan


During my overnight stay at Keadby I met a very nice chap on the boat next to me. He was not a happy bunny. During the recent cold spell the canal at Keadby was frozen over. He was moored up and generally minding his own business waiting for the thaw. Then a British Waterways dredger came along breaking the ice as it went. The ice was about 2 to 3 inches thick and was forced under his boat and lifted it up as it went resulting to damage to the propeller and bending the rudder. The tiller is now at right angles to the rudder and unusable.

The dredger was very unsympathetic and the response was ‘Its not my problem’. The BW reacted like any big company and are slow to react to the mishap and no help it seems.

The usual routine. Being passed from one department to another or the manager is away and the person you want is out of the office at the moment.

Meanwhile he is stuck at Keadby and unable to get his boat moving back to his base in the midlands. Spitting feathers as a description of his feelings is putting it mildly.

He is down to a search for wood to keep the fire going now.

When I left Keadby at 0700 exactly I left a number of my logs with him to tide him over for a few days. The lockkeeper (not Mark) was very punctual in his arrival and passed me out very efficiently on to the low tide. This soon had me shooting along at 9 mph and as time went by it invariably dropped to 7.
The Trent was a mill pond compared to yesterday.

Arrived at Torksey after a trouble free trip and handed over the pack about the Ancholme that was given to me at Ferriby. As the Ancholme is run by the Environmental Agency there is little contact between the lockkeepers and subsequently British Waterways people don’t have the gossip to pass on.

I had tried to find out some information on the internet about moorings etc but all I could come up with was bits on the caravan park and a piece written a couple of years ago by someone who had been up to Brandy Wharf with a 60 foot boat and had to reverse back to the lock to wind.

Moored at Saxilby at 1230. I now need to get rid of the car and put the motor bike onto the bows. Life should be easier then without the need to continually get back to the car to move it.



If you get an unintelligable email from me it is not my fault - honest