Morning Campers,
I'm writing today from the first available mooring past
Kibworth Top lock, which any self respecting boater will tell you, is
the last of the broad locks until we rejoin the Grand Union at Norton
Junction. Every time we do the Leicester Ring, I forget just how
many locks there are and I'm thankful to be relaxing in a comfy chair
with the hard work behind me.
We left Sawley on Monday morning in bright sunshine.
The volunteer on lock duty told us that they'd had over a hundred
boats through that pair of locks on Sunday and I was glad we'd waited
so we could enjoy the peace and quiet of this lovely stretch of
river. We found a one-boat mooring on the Soar, with a lovely view
of the power station across the water, and a handy willow tree in
case the promised heatwave arrived to turn the boat into a sauna.
The clouds hung around stubbornly and, although it was warm, we had a
nice cooling breeze, so we decided to risk a walk over the fields
into Kegworth before it got too hot. At the third stile the sun came
out and roasted us all the way to the Co-op and back. I was glad of
the shade when we climbed the last stile and found the boat
sweltering in the full glare of the hot sun – Tricky and I sat out
on the bank until the boat cooled down a bit.
Tuesday was another beautiful morning and the river was
sparkling and burbling in the sunshine as we pottered along down to
Kegworth Deep Lock. On the other side of the lock, a fox sat waiting
patiently to be fed. It showed no sign of fear as I crossed over to
close the gates behind Carl and it followed me as I walked back to
open the paddles. That wily fox was making a good living posing for
photos and being fed scraps by the passing boaters. I doubt it would
have been impressed with a cheese sandwich which was about all I
could muster up at short notice. The temperature soared as we moored
in Zouch cut, waiting for our boating friends to arrive. Terry and
Liz live close by and we were hoping they would fancy a cruise into
Loughborough so we could get a bit of breeze through the boat and
maybe find some shade. Luckily, they had the same idea and we ladies
settled in the bows with a cool glass of pink stuff while the boys
had a beer on the back. The extraordinary heat continued and we
moored in Loughborough Basin and departed to the 'White Hart' where
there is a shady garden, cool cider and scrumptious food – what
better way to spend a hot afternoon. We took advantage of the balmy
evening to cruise out of town and moor in the countryside, leaving
the noisy town mooring to a pair of visiting Canadians, who were
staying for a few days to visit the Bell Foundry. More of them later.
The mornings continued to be misty and cool and I
relished the coolness as I trotted along the tow-paths with Tricky.
The hot nights have made it difficult to sleep and I've thought
longingly of those crisp, cold mornings that I know are just around
the corner. The River Soar is so very lovely through Barrow and
Mountsorrel and we shared the locks for a little while with a couple
who were only out for the day, taking strawberries and prosecco to
their favourite mooring, to celebrate the last of the summer in
style. We loitered outside the Hope and Anchor and met our old
friends Keith and Jan for coffee. We found a shady spot and set out
our tables and chairs in the middle of the tow-path. We had to
shuffle about sometimes to let cyclists and walkers through and I
dare say they might have mumbled a bit under their breath, but we
were too busy talking to take any heed. Later that afternoon, we
arrived in our old home town and moored once again on the Water Park,
ready for the long slog through Leicester. We'd decided to take a
day off on Thursday to visit our friends and restock our provisions –
the Co-op do really well out of us! The day was overcast and muggy
as we walked through the village and up the hill, passing by our old
house and thinking how different our lives would have been if we'd
stayed there. We visited our friends and came away loaded down with
home-grown tomatoes, cabbages and apples – no scurvy on this boat
with those lovely goodies! Thanks Jan and Keith – we'll be back
soon.
There was no time to put my feet up and play scrabble on
my phone. As soon as we arrived home, I had a message to say another
visitor was on their way. We tidied the grass cuttings and assorted
spiders out of the bows and made ourselves presentable and very soon
the lovely Celia arrived to see for herself what this boating lark is
all about. We swept her off along the Soar for a mini cruise in the
late afternoon sun, the weather was perfect and the river looked
beautiful as we swept under the ring-road towards Belgrave. Finding
the winding hole was a little tricky, but Captain Carl didn't let us
down and we chugged back to Birstall in time for Celia to join the
rush hour traffic back to Lincolnshire. Come back soon Celia.
It was raining Friday morning and I'd almost run out of
dog food so we decided to stay put and I caught the bus into town for
Minced Morsels and came back with a Panasonic Lumix camera. I know,
its not going to be any good for Tricky but I'm really happy to be
able to take decent photos at long last. I'm hoping for Kingfishers
but so far I only have a pair of Canadian Lovebirds. Do you remember
the couple who were visiting the Bell Foundry in Loughborough? Well
we met them again, coming up through the lock in Birstall on Friday
afternoon and they were having a bit of trouble with the heavy gates.
Shirley-Ann and Mike are taking their hire boat around the Leicester
Ring from Sawley (their boat is called Sawley Tempted – how cute!)
It was half past one in the afternoon and Shirley-Ann told me that
they were carrying on through Leicester that day. I was horrified –
those locks are hard work, I have to gird my loins and take a run at
them and Carl and I are a good few years younger than them. So we
cast off our lines and set off with them, the sun came out and
Leicester did its best to look welcoming as we struggled through
Belgrave and along the Mile towards the Football Stadium. We arrived
at Kings Lock in the early evening and collapsed into their boat for
rum and coke before returning to our boat for a hasty chicken curry, leaving Mike and Shirley-Ann to their tinned beef and veg pie. It's
been a pleasure to spend time with such lovely people and we'll miss
them tomorrow as they go up Foxton locks on their way back to Sawley.
I am totally in awe of their amazing energy and spirit of
adventure; they're sailors, mountaineers, skiers and naturists – I
didn't enquire too much in to that last one, but Mike had a twinkle
in his eye when he wore his 'Nudists are Cool' sweat shirt to the pub
last night!
After all this excitement, I'll be mostly resting
tomorrow – I might wander over the fields to the Fleckney Co-op,
just for a change.
Love as Always
The Floating Chandlers
PS I have taken loads
of photos with my new camera but I haven't worked out how to download
them yet. Maybe next week!
