Kennet & Avon III (Great Bedwyn to Dundas Aqueduct)

Where was I? Ah...

(these concrete things are on quite a few accommodation bridges, presumably part of WWII invasion preparations, along wth the pill boxes along the route. I like the message on this one...





Fri 29th July - Great Bedwyn to Bridge 130

The Crofton locks above Great Bedwyn are the last of a constant stream since Teddington, climbing the Thames, Kennet and then Dunn valleys to a relatively short summit (and a tunnel) before starting to drop down again.

Speaking of tunnels: I never manage to tweak the camera to get a non-blurry tunnel shot, but this was worth posting to show the shadow of the bike, writ somewhat large on the tunnel roof:

K&A's locks go out of their way to be single hander unfriendly - yes, a bridge across the throat of the lock is very handy if you don't want to be crossing lock beams all the time, but means that there's very few I can use my usual technique of pulling the boat in or out. Going down in a lock just means climbing down to the bat to drive it out, rather than climbing out after having driven in... hey ho.

However after a few locks down there's the long pound through Pewsey - lots of moored boats; I even spotted Mick Atkinson's workboat - Mick replaced Tortoise's cabin sides a good few years ago. Also, amsuingly on I think the first downhill lock, I spotted a flyer adverting Dan Hollands - another of the people who have helped to keep Tortoise going over the years who's moved west.

There's many stretches of heavily overgown vegetation on both sides - the GU's clean towpath edges and piling a distant memory. That doesn't stop people mooring up though, often several feet out from what may or may not be a bank. Tortoise came with a gangplank, but I think got used once on the Oxford canal, and wasn't replaced when it became a liability. I haven't needed one yet.. just past Bridge 130 I found a perfect spot, 30' of relatvely clean bank that allowed me to get in, and apply a few power tools to the boat. The middle of nowhere stops being the middle of nowhere when another boat moors a short distance away, but it was lovely & quiet, and indeed dark in the night...

Sat 30th July - Bridge 130 to Sells Green.

A short amble into Devizes, where I ambled around for a bit (and found the eer-useful Wilkinson's) and largely put off the fateful moment when I'd have to start the Caen Hill flight. I'd forgotten there are a fair few locks before & after before the main flight with the lock side pounds... thankfully at about the 4th down, a hire boat caught up with me - with nine people on it, largely a random collection of able children. It ended up being easiest for me to open the left hand paddle and then get back on the boat, and thanks to them, we got down relatively painlessly. Whether I have the same luck on the way back remains to be seen... the pound at the bottom of the flight was around a foot down, with with moored boats hanging at scary angles. If my boat I would have run some water down...

I got caught out at one swing bridge - I'd pulled in & waved the boat behind me through, only to find, unlike every other I'd encountered on the K&A, the wasn't mooring bollards on the other side, only a winding hole - I was about to do something nefarious with my boat in the winding hole to get round this, when a watching moored boater came to my rescue...

Sun 31st July - Sells Green to Dundas Aqueduct.

A few more locks, dropping down to a long pound all the way into Bath, with only one lock in Bradford upon Avon. The locks were almost alternated with swing bridges; I was more or less sharing with another hire boat, so we'd take turns on getting the swing bridge open while the other sailed through.

One fly in the ointment was a very indignant day boat's occupants who claimed they were 'told' they could stop on a swing bridge mooring. They tried to tell me to stop somewhere else, and failed to understand that there was a sodding great piece of metal across the canal, so I'd need to stop there to move it.

At Semington, I think, broken left hand paddle gear and plenty of people around the lock waiting to come up meant I was in the rare position of being n my boat rather on the side - which meant I noticed that the hire boat next to me was a little too far back, so suggested they move forward, but they couldn't, as they were jammed on the cill... just when I needed to be on the side... ;-( Anyway, a lot of issuing orders without explanation from me (rare, but sometimes necessary) while standing on Tortoise's roof got the boat floating again. Lots of people around the lock, but all hire/day crews. Could have been a lot, lot worse. I think the crew (especially the rather timid driver) were more shaken and they let on. After that of course it turns out one of the top paddles (hurriedly raised, of course) hadn't been closed properly, the guy with the working lower paddle gear had closed the paddle before opening the gate, and we were in that far longer than I wanted to be. I was so glad to get away, I forgot to look for the bricked up mouth of the Wilts & Berks...

It does strike me a little daft for hire companies to supply such long boats - I know that's were they make their money, and can sleep more people - but another 5' of leeway might prevent the inevitable hire boat cill hangups everywhere year.

Bradford upon Avon was in carnival mode - a hot Sunday, a floating boat market beyond the lock and, a civil war reenactment just off the canal. I squeezed on to the end of what might have been a reasonable mooring, had a quick look around and risked sunburn watching people in heavy wool ht each other with sticks. I left after a bit, on the way out one of the stewards (in the inevitable hi viz jacket, but labelled 'Civil War Staff') asked me what I though - and I said what was on my mind, that it was a bit strange to celebrate battles, and death... I know it's a much loved hobby for a lot of people, but... up to them. I guess.

(civil war reenacters assemble in surrounded by Barrett homes - sums it up)