Boat Brain Again!

Christchurch Cathedral

 Dear All

I'm glad to be back on the keyboard, it's been such glorious weather this week and I'm brimming with the lushness of autumn warmth and the inner peace that comes with the gentle pace of life on the canals. Well, that sounds almost too good to be true doesn't it? Of course it is! Life afloat can be just as sarcastic as anywhere else. There is a condition called 'Boat Brain' - it's the kind of dreaminess that makes you push the lock gates the wrong way, leave paddles up and close the gates when your boat isn't even in the lock yet. Seasoned boaters will be nodding and the rest of you will be able to apply the 'Boat Brain' scenario to the same one that leaves you standing in the middle of the kitchen wondering why you left the comfort of the sofa in the middle of 'Overpaid Celebrity on a Train Trip to Timbuktu.' I shall blame Boat Brain for my unscheduled trip into Leamington on Friday. I had planned to catch a bus into Southam, to get some provisions from Tescos which is a mere 10 minute trip by bus from our mooring in Napton. Carl and Tricky waved me off on the 11.08 and I was due to catch the 12.50 bus back. I wasn't sure where to get off the bus, but a young lady in a Tesco's uniform got on the bus with me and so I thought I would get off when she did. We made a couple of stops and then we were dashing along a main road toward Leamington. Gradually, it dawned on me that I had missed the Southam stop and was now committed to the hour long bus trip into Leamington Spa. The lady in the Tescos uniform sat contentedly on the back seat and hopped off when we reached the Parade. Right shop, wrong town! Still, it was a nice day, no harm done and the boat was in a nice sunny mooring spot, so Carl could touch up some paint while he waited for me to come home and the sun would charge the batteries It was half past four when the bus dropped me back in Napton and Carl and Tricky were there to meet me just in case I'd forgotten the way home!

Cathedral Garden

This week we have travelled from Banbury to Buckby Locks on the Grand Union canal. We are making our way to Bugbrooke to get the Eberspacher fixed. It gave up the ghost when we were in Nantwich, earlier in the year and we haven't missed it until now. When the inside temperature is in single figures then it's officially 'too cold' for me and Tricky to get up until Carl has put a match to the kindling in the stove, so I have resumed my 'Pocahontas' duties by collecting dead wood as I wander along the tow-path with Tricky. If I find a whole branch, then I drag it along behind me until Carl can get the boat in to pick it up. I am grateful that there aren't many people about to see me - sometimes I forget to do my hair and the other morning, I got my clothes on inside out - not just my tee shirt but my jeans too. I didn't notice till I went to get a doggie bag and couldn't find my pocket. Boat Brain again you see!

Folly Inn, Napton

We discovered that the trains from Banbury to Oxford were plentiful and cheap, so we left Tricky on guard with Scala Radio to keep her amused and caught the early train. We were hoping to fit in a trip to the Cathedral as well as a flying visit to the Ashmolean Museum for the Egyptian display. The train was packed and neither of us knew about the 'reserved seat' arrangements so we were ousted from 'Reserved' seats twice before we gave up and stood in the lobby. Railway stations are full of stairs - up and down, up and down, queue to get off the platform. I had to avert my eyes as one poor woman collapsed and after all those stairs, I was grateful it wasn't me. She was quickly surrounded by discreet curtains until the ambulance arrives. 'That's reassuring' I mutter to Carl - I like to think my modesty would be preserved if I should pass out in Oxford station. Quick march down the road, past the sleeping quarters of the homeless by the Thatcher Business School - so sad to see such poverty in this city of dreaming spires. We went straight to the museum and down more stairs (to stow my rucksack in a locker) and then into the cafe for sustenance before we dived into the relics of Ancient Egypt. I ordered our coffee and asked for toast to go with it, with marmalade if possible. A blank look attached itself to the face of the young woman serving me. Do you do Toast? I asked again more firmly, in that very British way we have when faced with a foreign person. I felt like Basil Fawlty and the infamous Manuel. Que? Apparently, toast is no longer available in Oxford - you can have any amount of Olives and Humus, Tapas and Croissants but Toast is persona non grata. I grumped off with my coffee and ate a mint humbug that I found festering in the rucksack - it's just not the same.

Ashmolean Museum

The Cathedral restored my equilibrium, it was stunningly beautiful and I sat for a while and found my inner peace again and we didn't even mind that when we came out, it was raining. The Dining Hall, of Harry Potter fame, was closed for lunch (of course!) so we missed out on that spectacle which is a good excuse to return someday soon to see more of this very beautiful city. I'll be sure to eat my breakfast before I set out next time! (Winking Face Emoji)

Christchurch Cathedral

 This morning, we left the South Oxford and returned to the deeper waters of the Grand Union Canal. We paired up with a party of senior citizens for the 6 broad locks of the Braunston flight. They were 1/12th share owners of their lovely boat, which allows them 4 weeks of boating a year. How lucky were they to have chosen this gorgeous September week. The ladies were a bit nervous of the tunnel so Carl agreed to go in front, I've no idea why they thought that made a difference but we were happy to take the lead. I really hate Braunston tunnel - we never get through unscathed and today was no different. We met 7 boats and the first one banged into us and then moaned that our lights were dazzling them. Our tunnel lamp is a polished brass affair, which looks very smart but throws out about as much light as a 10 watt bulb, It was pointing at the roof, the correct position for a tunnel lamp, so I don't know why they thought we were too bright. I'm tempted to get a 2 million candle power torch and floodlight the whole bally tunnel – then we can all see what we're doing! Sorry about that, I went into rant mode (Carl's a bad influence) so I'd better say goodbye and I'll write again next week.

Love from

The Chandlers Afloat


PS Carl stepped off the boat at the Braunston Toll House with a bag of rubbish to deposit in the skip. 'Pick me up at the bridge' he said as he pushed the stern out so I could continue on towards the locks. What happened next defies belief - Carl stepped backwards, bumped into a bollard, fell over and dropped the bright yellow bag of rubbish which exploded and covered Carl with teabags and other kitchen refuse. Carl is fully trained in the art of falling over without hurting himself and bounced up from the ground looking like Stig of the Dump picking bacon rinds off his jumper and hoping that no-one had seen the incident. Don't worry folks, he wasn't at all hurt, which he says is due to his Ninja training.

Sky at Night

PPS We stopped for water at the top lock of the Buckby flight and met a little lad with a home made model canal boat that he had built himself. I was very impressed with how quickly it nipped up and down and envious of his reversing skills. You do meet the nicest people on the waterways.

The Bee buzzing along the water

Christchurch Cathedral

Christchurch Cathedral 

Christchurch Cathedral

Christchurch Cathedral

Christchurch Cathedral

Grand Unicorn Canal Monster

Outdoor Bathing at this Glamping Site

Autumn is here

Sunset at Braunston

Yummy Food at the Folly