Oh.... You're still with us then.......???

“Phew.... I'm exhausted!” herself declares as she drags herself to the windy summit of Snowdon,...... and looks back to the train standing at the station a hundred yards away (that's 91.44 metres to the imperially challenged).. But then a girl does have problems with the little red jobs that supply the oxygen. “Now hang on!” they cry, “last time you deigned to communicate you were waiting for the tide in Teddington. What you doing on top of a Welsh mountain? There's no canal up there!”

“You have a point” he shamefacedly replies, realising that it's just past the Summer Solstice and he last put finger to keyboard at the end of April. All I can say is, time does fly when you're having fun! So, Snowdon? Well, folks on a constant boating holiday need a holiday from time to time. A hire car and week touring North Wales while our son has a boating holiday and takes Avon Rose (and Toby dog) up the Llangollen Canal, while herself hopes that every place we stay has a bathtub so that she can luxuriate in gallons of hot water and bubbles; the one thing she misses in this boating life. The scenery was stunning, the weather was beautiful. Himself fell in love with Port Merion and has now added another “must do” to his list, a midweek break in one of the houses in the village. “We like North Wales”, herself has decided.

But what about the boating? Well boating down the tidal Thames was interesting. When we first arrived at Teddington lock it dropped the level a good five feet or more to the lower level. When we entered for our decent we dropped a few inches. It was a high tide. In parts the towpath was flooded and walkers were considering removing shoes and socks to wade back to where they started from. As we sailed through the open sluices at Richmond, bypassing the lock, we noted the river lapping at the door of a riverside pub. By the time we reached Brentford an hour later the tide had turned, the river level had already dropped by eighteen inches and there was a good flow downstream as we turned into the Grand Union canal and made for Thames lock and our appointment with the lock keeper.

Now we seem to have a knack this year of turning up at places just when they are having an IWA (Inland Waterways Association) boat festival. The first was at Little Venice so we spent a weekend (with free electric hookup) at Brentford Basin until it was over and the visiting boats moved out. The trip down the Paddington arm to Little Venice and Paddington Basin was a delightful surprise; a green corridor into the capital in many places, with much regeneration of the urban environment where it touched the waterway. Paddington Basin itself a remarkably quiet mooring, sandwiched between the new extension of Saint Mary's Hospital and M&S corporate headquarters. A short walk to the number 15 bus stop and a free ride (hooray for bus passes) into Trafalgar Square. It's the eve of the General Election (as postal voters we had cast our vote a week before). A matinee performance of “Blood Brothers”, a visit to the V&A, a trip on the water-bus to Camden Locks Market (in the old canal horse hospital and stables) and Sunday Eucharist at Saint Martin in the fields rounded off a very enjoyable visit to London by canal.

Then we move northward on the Grand Union main line and hit another canal festival, at Rickmansworth this time, but we get through before it starts and before the majority of boats have arrived. A friend joins us here to spend a few days with us. This is the waterway of his youth.

Now heading forth on the GU we must pass through Braunston, so himself decides this is a good opportunity to get that broken porthole fixed and makes the calls to arrange for it BUT.... its the week before the Crick Boat Show so everyone in Braunston is busy preparing for it. It is arranged however that the window supplier will bring the replacemtn glass to the show to repair the window.All seems straightforward, we arrive at Braunston, boatyard remove porthole and blank off hole with wood and take to Crick for glass to be fitted. Glass arrives at Crick, Glass gets broken, Will be several days more before replacement is ready and fitted. Problem is we cannot wait as have to be in Birmingham by 8th June. In the end our daughter meets us in Warwick, drives us back to pick up the repaired porthole and himself re-fits it. Why are simple things never straightforward,

But you're free spirits. Why the deadline for Birmingham? Well it's Founder's Day at the Royal Hospital and relatives of In-Pensioners who have died in the last 12 months get invited once more. Our nephew kindly came to look after boat and Toby dog as we take the early morning train from Birmingham New Street. The Duke of Gloucester was the Royal guest this year. It was very strange being there without Dad. A visit always entailed a visit to the cafe in the Army Museum next door, so it seemed appropriate to go there for lunch after the parade and then come back and walk through the colonnade once more; disappointing that the Royal Hospital Museum was not able to be open as planned so we could not see Dad's Polar Medal ( bequeathed to the Royal Hospital) on display.The end of an era, odd to contemplate that you are now the oldest member of your immediate family.

But we are ahead of ourselves. We haven' t reached Birmingham yet! The Grand Union north from Napton Junction through Warwick and Lemington is blessed with huge ground paddles and associated worm gears as a result of the 1930's modernisation, when the single locks were replaced with broad gauge locks designed to fill and empty very quickly. The narrow chambers are still in place but no longer gated. Water enters the broad chamber at two points along the length of the lock. Navigating a single narrow craft uphill you open the ground paddle on the same side as the boat, the water rushes in, hits the opposite wall, bounces back and pins the boat to the side of the lock. So no need to hold the boat by the centre rope to stop it being bounced around and you only need to open one paddle and can get out through one gate, the gearing makes raising easier so not such hard work as a conventional broad lock. The twenty one locks of the Hatton Flight is therefore not as daunting as it might seem,

We had good weather and some brilliant sunshine but as we pause at the Black Boy at Knowle for Sunday lunch before moving up the Knowle flight for an overnight stop at Catherine de Barnes the rain starts. As an aside it seems the pub name “Black Boy” refers to King Charles II – it was his mothers nickname for her dark complexioned son (shades of Michael Caine - “Now not many people know that”). Now himself is in heaven; Kate (old boaters' name for C de B) marks the end of broad locks, from here on in we're back to narrow gauge locks and lighter gates and paddle gear. In our travels so far, in the over 1,000 locks we have negotiated, we have worked twice as many broad as narrow. If you'd told him that would be the case, he wouldn't have believed you. This summer he hopes to redress that balance. Camphill and the environs of Birmingham, more industrial archeology than you can shake a stick at. Herself excited as the services at Camphill have washing machine and drier. The small washing machine on the boat is fine, but for bed linen and towels a laundrette is useful not least because of getting stuff dry. Her joy is short lived. The services are new, clean and very nice, but his is urban Birmingham. The machines have been nicked!!! We are back to the land of anti-vandal locks on paddle gear.

The journey from the Digbeth branch up he Birmingham and Fazely Canal to the BCN Mainline (Birmingham Canal Navigations) is fascinating. Truly the “Hidden Waterways” as we pass between Victorian factories and wharves, tunnels bridges and under buildings, some new ones on stilts over the waterway. Your average Brummie has no idea that we are here. A sudden clunk, engine straining, all stop, himself head down the weed hatch to remove a sheet and plastic bag tangle from the prop. This is the only time, we remember when in Birmingham this was a frequent occurrence. At Old turn Junction we are on the mainline and the utterly transformed water scape with the redeveloped Brindley Place, National Indoor arena and Sealife Centre. What would those old boys say if they could see Gas Street Basin now!

Our trip to London from here to Founder's Day. Founder = Charles II – hence his gilded statue (represented as a Roman General)in the Figure Court where the parade is held is covered in oak boughs and we all wear a bunch of oak leaves (kept mine this year to press). Royal Oak, battle of Worcester, do a runner etc.. wait till they've had enough of old Nobby....you know the story! Well at this point I'll take a pause as time is going on and it,s a long time since the last post and we're not up to date yet! Part two will be posted within a week if you can contain your excitement that long.