Weds 9th July - Berkamstead to Slapton

I left Berkhamstead in a period of lesser rain, let's say, and plodded on. A section of lots of locks, done with sun & company last time, so a bit dull in the rain on my own. I had a decent waterproof for my upper half but was stuck in shorts & deck shoes otherwise - once they were wet, I stayed wet until I finally moored up for the night at Slapton at 8.30 (I thought I may as well move on than cut the day short), lit the stove dried off and into dry clothes. What to bring on such a trip is a bit suck it and see, so obvious wateroproof boots & trousers, and also something easy to keep misc deck kit (guide book, camera, wallet etc) accessible and yet protected. The guide book ended up pretty much sodden on several days, and on drying out is a bit stuck together in places.

I found time for a late trip to the Carpenters Arms and got to meet the locals - nice pub, short walk from the canal but not nearly as far as I'd been told.

In Berkhamstead library, as the eBay treo I got for the trip is proving to be worth less than the postage I paid for it. Carrying on despite the rain; no curry out last night due to a mobile being locked out of a house and the house outside of it, but night pint (or two) in the Crystal Palace with Ledgie, long-time boating resident of B, who has a few stories to tell.

Boat etc going well - quite a few locks have been shared over the past couple of days (stories there for another day), but I've got into the habit of turning off the endine when working trhough alone, as I pull it in & out by hand anyway. This is nice & pecaeful, but I do wonder if the engine going on & off all the time (there's lots of locks round here) is doing it much good - the temperature guage is showing it's not reaching optimum a lot of the time.

I may as well just bung my phone number up here due to lack of nightly email - 0774 0625 073. Use it wisely, ideally to say 'I'm coming to visit'. ;-)

Moored up in Cassiobury Park, just after bridge 167 & Iron Bridge Lock.
Lovely be be travelling properly on the canals again, despite a lot of
showers, some of them pretty heavy. Now drying out by the stove, which I
didn't expect to be running. I should be somewhere near Berkhamstead
tomorrow night - will try to moor nearer a pub next time!

A test post by email from my phone... now have working gas - hot water and
cooker - which is a great relief. Now I finally get to install the nice
kitchen worktop. Still lots of jobs to do, but there'll be plenty of
evenings to get them done in...

(diesel & oil filters changed)

After a weekend of Morris dancers at the Dent Folk Festival, they were really the last thing I expected at green drinks in Brentford on Tuesday night - and yet there they were, closely followed by Jim & Mary of Heebeejeebee. I still fail to understand why a melodeon player should sneer at a piano accordion player (me), but I guess you have to take your pride where you can. ;-)

Meanwhile back at the boat, Tortoise has a nice new instrument panel made out of a plastic junction box tucked under the starboard gunwhale (hence anything pointy being at the sides rather than front). A great improvement, as it was a good opportunity to rewire most of the engine electrics too. Relays for split charging & fridge (on same circuit, fridge only runs when boat is) are yet to be wired, but at least I've found a nice little slot for mounting such things, under the back door step.

They're having a bit of a swap around at High Line, so my mooring was moved from the top end, near the station, to fairly close to the boatyard end. I['m now outside Benbulben, where I was moored for a few months before my 2006 trip. Travelling that 1/2 mile was pretty epic - this time of year the length of the Slough Arm where the moorings area gets pretty clocked with weed, although it's fine beyond each bridge. It's been suggested this is due to the amount of extra organic matter that goes out in sink waste from the boats, but whatever, it's a pain.

In an 'I'm blogging this' momemnt, one well known Iver boat got so clagged on the prop that they ended up being towed by another well known Iver boat blogger. 'This will end up on the internet, I know' is the reported comment - hence names witheld to protect the guilty...

Quick note on schedule - hopefully setting off in a week's time (8th), assuming I've got a few jobs on the boat done (new instrument panel, currently sitting prefabricated on my sofa, for a start), an also the sound system (which won't be on the boat, fear not). I'll be off the cut from around the 24th July to the 4th Aug, due to other commitments, then back more or less solidly until the end of the month. I don't intend to be back by then, but will work my way back in long weekends through the autumn

It's difficult to say exactly where I'll be when, as that's the idea, to see how things go - but if you do weant to come along, chose some dates and be prepared to be a little flexible over location, but I'll do my best to be near a station or accessible point by arrangement. Some bits follow train routes anyway, so it shouldn't be too difficult.

the grand plan

(click map for bigger version)



Map above stolen wholesale* from Jim Shead's excellent site, which I suggest you go straight over to, as the original version is clickable and goes straight to a guide for each individual canal. Yellow is the intended route up, orange the way home (dots are possibilities, depending on how the time goes). It's moderately ambitious for a dawdleathon, but I'll see how the time goes.

Speaking of useful websites, also look at Canalplan - looks a bt daunting, but just put in a start & end point (say 'Iver' to 'Llangollen', hit 'plan journey' (if asked to set your options, just press 'continue') and it'll give you an itemised list of the route blow by blow. More fun is then pressing 'virtual journey', which gives you a slideshow of the route. I hardly need to bother going in reality. ;-)

* with retrospective permission - with thanks.

thoughts

I've got July & August off work (tee hee), for an extended trip, as well as a few other engagments wioth the sound system (see above). Map to follow, but initial plan is up grand union, quick foray up to Leamington/Warwick before North Oxford Canal, Coventry (and possibly Ashby) Canal, Trent & Mersey (inc Caldon), Then a bit of the Shropshire before the Llangollen. Route back will depend on how much dawdling I've done in the mean time (lots, hopefully) but may well include the rest of the Shropshire Union, bit of Brum and Evesham for a course for work late September.

Boat - new engine temperature gauge (that works) from Calcutt - the fuel gauge sender has failed, too, it's like a cistern float. I know what's wrong with it - the sensor resistance wire is broken at one end, and is currently in my work bag for a sneaky look later... lots of misc woodwork, sorting out storage & the like.

Also new(ish) batts via Mike - great to have a pair of domestics. I'm not sure if the donated starter is holding charge that well, but if not my 'old' domestic will replace it.

Currently waiting for for the official go-ahead from Corgi for my Morco to be re-installed - every other boat I see has the same one if not an ancient Paloma, but I know these things aren't as easy as they could be some times.

Other than that, just looking forward to getting out there & travelling, although I must admit the Iver moorings are just getting nicely socialable again - once everyone's outside moor I've spent a lot more time nattering, being vegetarian at barbecues and all that kind of stuff. I suspect every time I leave the boat I shoudl carry some alcohol, just in case, as I keep drinking other people's with nothing to contribute. Also met Neil from Herbie - despite being at opposite ends of the same mooring and heckling by internet, we hadn't actually met before.

Well, post done, although all words and no pictures make Simon a dull boy. I'll try to remedy that soon. ;-)

Little Venice catch-up

The problem with trying to keep a blog as a full record as that the more you do, the more behind you get on documenting it all... anyway, Tortoise is back at Iver after a couple of weeks away in town. Cathi had a course very close to little venice ten days before the IWA cavalcade itself, so I broought Tortoise in as a portable hotel which went very well, including an evening in the Prince Alfred and pizza afterwards at Red Pepper over the road.


Meanwhile I'd been able to do this with a big surge of furniture building; kitchen unit and the three bed assemblies have all been constructed out of 2x2 timber and seem pretty solid - here's a quick view of the kitchen under construction - it's good to have a working sink again (and inspiring cupboard doors on Paul's boat 'Chuggamuffin'), and a view towards the front of the boat with the doors lined, temporary shelves in place, and beds, and even one set of curtains.

The week before the cavalcade, Delaware Terrace filled up; Protea, a 45' shared owndership boat asked if they could moor up outside of me, which was fine by me, although got a little awkward on the Friday when I wanted out and they weren't around - would have been fine only the towpath gap was shorter than their boat...

Friday afternoon (having affixed vinyl name stickers I joined the random melee of boats moving into the basin, after meeting up with a lot of Iver people who'd come over that day. I had a plum position on the east side of the basin, Rembrant Gardens; hardly any distance by water, but a long way round by foot. I was only a few boats away from Jim & Mary, prevous owners of Tortoise, now on Heebejeebe, who'd brought Salad days in for the CC many times. I had a pretty good view from the front, too - in fact Sunday night Jim & Mary joined me for the illuminated boat parade, watching front the front deck. I wasn't too far from this 20' Sea Otter - immaculate inside & out, but you'd expect that for the price...

Sat morning I did a guided tour of Paddington led by Isambard Kingdom Brunel, although he was recognised as 'Andrew' at one point. Highly amusing, although it was sponsored by Paddington development corporation and lingered alittle too much on newer buildings rather than older ones for my taste. he also failed to mention Hadar moored in Paddington Basin - having looked at their posted I realised I'd seen Hadar's crew about, but not on Hadar herself...

Saturday afternoon I was offered a lift on Moontiger up to Camden & back, not realising I was going to be lock monkey; perhaps they thought I could cope with being heckled by goths (in fact very few goths in evidence, mainly just drunk wannabees and a capoeria troupe). Amusing to see a younger passenger being shown the canal traditions, but Foster's? Oh well.

Later than night (after another trip to the Warwick Castle) I spotted that the Pirate Club had pressganged one of the Paddington Arm statues into membership.


Sunday was mainly spent elsewhere; Monday half the boats had left, but that afternoon was my 'open house' day, I think the maximum number of people at any one point was 14, but back down to 9 or 10 when I moved the boat back to Delaware Terrace before I got too drunk. ;-)

Tues I had a short notice day at work (grrr), but came back to the boat late Tues night, and set off first thing Weds morning - left 7.30 and got into Iver at 1pm, including a stop at Sainsbury's; a little quick for 19 miles, but technically legal, thankfully.

So now back alongside Breeze; electrics, engine and domestic, and next, I think, and finding someone to restore the gas. very solid, tangible, progress, and also very usefully cruiseable, more importantly.

(a lot of links above are also pictures)