Who Fancies A Tettenhall Dick Pear?

Stunning Skies

Morning Jotters,

Can I interest anyone in a Dick pear? Apparently this old variety has all but died out but has been chosen by the Canal and River Trust as one of the many varieties of fruit trees they will be planting to create a record breaking orchard, stretching 50 miles along the canal, from Wolverhampton to Worcester. The community orchard will be maintained by volunteers and anyone will be able to help themselves to the fruit, although I think they're being a bit optimistic planting peach, apricot and figs even with the prospect of global warming raising temperatures. Hopefully, there will be plenty of damson and plum – I do look forward to the lock-wheelers privilege of picking the ripe fruit straight from the tree and eating it, without benefit of even a rub on my trousers. When I've gathered the persimmon, loquats and pomegranates what shall I do with them? Will I need a master class with Nigella and a Mikrowarvay? (Sly wink emoji.)

Looking back from Duck Corner

Our mooring today has the What3Words location of bolt.bats.tricky - very appropriate don’t you think? Our very own Tricky is snoozing by the stove and sniffing the air every few minutes as the scent of chicken chasseur wafts from the casserole dish on the stove. We have kept the fire in today, in spite of the warm sunshine, as it keeps the cabin warm enough to air the washing that is draped over an indoor line. I hate to live in a laundry but needs must when the sheets need washing. We’re eking out the coal with branches that we collected along the Ashby after Thursday’s Great Wind, which kept us moored up for a whole day. We weren’t idle though and had a ‘Housekeeping Day’ sweeping and washing the floors (where does all the grit come from!) I cleaned the brass curtain rods while Carl varnished the window surrounds and then I cobbled a make shift meal together from some old potatoes, a wizened carrot and the last few Alrewas sausages that I had squirrelled away in the freezer box for just such an emergency. I have my list ready for a ‘Big Shop’ and when we reached Rugby this morning I was into Marks and Spencer's Food Hall like a rat up a drainpipe. At last, some nice fresh fish and the makings of several of our favourite meals. Back to the boat and then I set off with the big trolley for the madness that is Tescos on a sunny Sunday. It was heaving and no-one was wearing a mask, I felt like an alien in mine. I got everything from my list and quite a lot that wasn’t on the list (as usual) I noticed more empty spaces on the shelves than usual and the fresh veg was almost sold out. The prices have soared in just a few short weeks since I did the last big shop. Times are definitely changing, thanks Bob Dylan for that great song, it seems so appropriate at the moment.

Spring blossom

What a fabulous week it’s been on the delightful Ashby Canal. We skipped past Market Bosworth on the way down and arrived at Snarestone Wharf mid week. The visitors centre has had a very swish makeover and the old portakabin is hidden by a clever canopy, built to look like an old railway station and it transforms the utilitarian building into something worthy of the surroundings. The inside is still a charity shop with a help-your-self coffee machine and some outside seating for the ramblers who might pass this way. A delightful spot for the nosy boater, and I combed through the mismatched china and pub themed glasses looking for treasures that might be worth a trip to ‘Antiques Roadshow’. Carl bought two bags of coal and the very nice man on duty chucked in a book Carl wanted for free - mainly because we were scrabbling in our pockets for 25p to pay for it and I think he took pity on us.

Snarestone Wharf Visitors Centre

The Boat (I had to look twice but yes, it was called ‘The Boat’) was moored behind us in Snarestone and, noting the array of cameras and gear on the roof, I asked if they were Vloggers - not doggers dear, that’s something entirely different. Vloggers are people who make films about their life afloat and post them on YouTube and very interesting they are too. If you want to follow their boating adventures then look them up on a site called ‘Making New Memories’. I was inspired to try a bit of Vlogging myself but quickly found that, remarkably, I don’t have anything interesting to say once I switch on the camera (silly billy face emoji)

Selfie against a Blue Sky

Shall we talk about the weather again? It’s been very Aprilish, showers and sunshine for most of the week. We had the brolly up as we approached Market Bosworth on the return trip, in spite of the gusty winds. We were lucky to be chugging through a sheltered, woody bit for the worst of the showers. Carl closed the back doors behind us and slid the hatch almost closed so that we were standing in the narrowest possible opening, sheltering us and Tricky from the worst of the driving rain. By the time we moored up, it had stopped and the sun came out. Then we spotted the fuel boat coming along and we hailed him to come alongside to fill us up with diesel. By the time he had roped us up and got his diesel pump to our filler cap (I swear it’s as complicated as a mid-air fighter refuel!) it was pouring again. We stumped up the cash and thanked him for the privilege of paying £1.47 a litre - we were expecting it to be more. Last year we were paying half that. Still, mustn’t grumble - at least we have some and must now ration it out so that we can continue cruising for a while longer.

Fuel Boat Callisto

The last 3 days have been perfect cruising days so we have made the most of them, managing to miss the showers and we've enjoyed blue skies and sunshine. We saw the first ducklings on Friday while still on the Ashby and minutes later, a water vole swam busily across the canal and along the bank beside us, we had a great view of him but I forgot to take a photo.(Embarrassed face emoji). Carl spotted a big old fox trotting through the fields later that evening, I was just in time to spot him too - a good day for the ‘I Spy in the Countryside’ Ladybird Book

Market Bosworth - Such a pretty cottage

That’s mostly it from the floating launderette for this week, next week I will be back on the locks as we travel from Hillmorton, through Braunston and the dreaded tunnel towards Watford Locks again - we do seem to go round the Leicester ring rather often. I hope you’re not bored!
Love from
The Floating Chandlers

It made me smile

PS Chugging along the canal by Duck Corner (can you guess why it's called that?) a fellow boater called out ‘ Nice Tickover’. We smiled and waved, as we thought he was complimenting us on slowing down as we passed his boat, but afterwards I said to Carl’ Do you think he was being sarcastic?’ We’ll never know.Pps I signed up for Spotify again - I found a 3 month free trial. So far I’ve only listened to stuff I already have on my iPod so I think I need a bit of a shake up. Anyone got any recommendations?

First sighting of Ducklings

Still a long way to go to reach Meacham

Snarestone Wharf

Work Boat Ram

What a fantastic 'shed'

Sticky Buds bursting

Topiary but what is it?

Rain in Market Bosworth

Whirlwinds and Snow Showers

Blue Skies on the Ashby

Morning Jotters

This week we have travelled from Kings Orchard Marina on the Coventry Canal to the delightful Ashby Canal. Tonight we are moored by bridge 38 (What3Words location organist.mash.stew) in a very quiet location by a farm with interesting gables and chimneys.  

Peaceful Mooring

Carl has been outside all afternoon polishing his sliders and repairing the solar panels. Remember the last day of March? It was the day I was due to catch the bus/train from Hinckley to Leicester to continue my love/hate relationship with my dentist. (I’m sure I am single handedly putting his sons through university!). We opened the curtains to find thick frost on the hedges and snow flurries beginning to throw a chilly coat over the nodding daffodils. I stepped out into the icy wind, loaded down with my rucksack and dressed for the arctic in boots, gloves and woolly hat. The bus was late, and I was very glad to climb aboard, with the other masked ranks of card carrying pensioners. and sit on the sunny side of the bus for the hour long journey to Leicester City Centre. I struck off towards the next bus stop and the short ride to Birstall and I was very happy to see our friend Keith waiting for me at the bus stop. He whisked me back to their house for hot coffee and a sandwich and a catch up with Jan before running me down to the surgery for my appointment. I did apologise to Dr Ghadiali for breathing fishy fumes at him while reclining in his chair, just in case that tuna fought its way through the minty toothpaste I use. He was charm personified as always although it's slightly worrying when the instructions are and I quote ‘ If I drop anything in your mouth, whatever you do, don’t swallow’(surprised face emoji) Anyway, it was soon over and I skipped out of the door with a light heart and caught the Airport Flyer back to town and eventually, the Hinckley bus arrived and I shuddered and jolted back to Hinckley. Carl and Tricky came to meet me and the icy wind was blowing hard as we trooped back to the boat. That was the cause of the small disaster that happened while I was out. A gust of wind suddenly sprang up out of nowhere and it was so strong it picked up our solar panels and tried to hurl them into the water, they hung over the side flapping in the breeze until Carl managed to rescue them. Thank goodness they didn’t break, although the metal frame gouged (that word popped up in Quordle and flummoxed me - what a ridiculous word!) a big chunk out of the handrail. I was soon smouldering in the heat from the stove and drinking copious amounts of tea while Tricky ignored me, to punish me for going out without her.                          

Tricky Sulking

The rest of the week has been quite relaxing compared with that eventful Thursday, we had a couple of long days chugging through Tamworth and Atherstone. We did the first two locks of the Atherstone flight, then moored for the night ready to tackle the remaining 9 the next day. We set off in the early morning mist, chilly and overcast and made good time through the first 4 locks and stopped there so we could wander into town for provisions. First stop Aldi - the green light was on over the door so we approached the door but it refused to open. After a few minutes of waving my hands trying to wake up the sensor and ramming my trolley at the glass doors without any luck, I hammered on the door until a tall person arrived, with some sort of magic wand and hey presto! We were in. I whizzed round with the trolley and then we played a game of ‘hunt the cashier’. I’ve been caught out like this before, you join the queue and then you hear ‘ we are opening till number 3’ and everyone does a mad dash to the (as yet) unmanned till. We unload our shopping and wait - no cashier arrives. The queue we were in clears but we are still waiting for a cashier number 3! I am tempted to leave my shopping on the belt but just as we decide to do that, she arrives and swipes it all through as if she’s going for the Guinness Book of Records. We load up the rucksacks with lots of pensionerish grumbling and moaning and wander off into town in search of more bargains. Atherstone is busy in the bright sunshine and we wander around with our shopping list looking for oddments and find a cute little coffee shop in a side street. We came out loaded down with goodies - home made bread pudding (Carl’s favourite) and a Chicken and Leek pie for tea. I was looking forward to that pie all the rest of the day - I popped it in the oven after we moored up that evening and it smelled divine as I prepared the veg and gravy to go with it, Imagine my dismay when I cut into it to serve it up and found it was a steak and mushroom - not something I can eat. Carl managed 2/3rds of the pie and Tricky helped out too but I had to make do with the sausage that I’d saved from yesterday for Tricky’s dinner. Very disappointing after a hard days boating.

The Coffee Shop, Atherstone

We moored overnight at Sutton Wharf and walked up to the Battle of Bosworth site through the woods. Tricky, who has been reluctant to walk for a while now, was suddenly rejuvenated and went bounding ahead, sniffing every tuft of grass and tree trunk in absolute ecstasy. Carl popped into the gift shop and bought a book while Tricky and I wandered around the Exhibition Centre and found the stocks - always good for a joke photo! We returned to the Centre this morning to visit the craft market, full of treasures to tempt the money out of your purse. I succumbed to a pricey packet of wax melts and a burner (for the nights when Tricky’s perfume is less than sweet!) and a ginormous Scotch Egg for Carl. The sun came out and we hurried back to the boat and set off to travel the few miles to this rural mooring and a peaceful afternoon with my book (another Nicci French).

Not putting my head in there!

That’s all from me for this week my friends. I'm looking forward to reaching the end of the Ashby to see if they've reclaimed any more of the old canal. After that, we turn and start making our way back through Hinckley and then it's a steady chug to Market Harborough. Take care everyone.

Love from

The Floating Chandlers

PS Spotted our first Kingfisher of the year this week, always a delight.

PPS Are you boating along with us vicariously? Let me know if you are. I had to look it up! Thanks to my learned friend for that scrumptious word - you know who you are!

Tithe Barn, Bosworth Exhibtion Centre

Donkeys in the Daffodils

Bad selfie

The Captain

Stoke Golding

Cold day on the tiller

Cowslips

Early butterfly

Waiting to be reclaimed

Beautiful blossom

Spring Sunshine

Tattenhill Lock

Morning Jotters

What a glorious week of sunshine we’ve had. The hawthorn has greened up and the blackthorn blossom is startlingly white against a backdrop of bare branches and briars. A mallard pops out of the reeds, his brilliant male plumage shimmering blue and green in the sunlight and a pair of swans are billing and cooing in the reed bed, patting the strands into place ready for precious eggs to be nurtured. The robin, wren and blackbird accompany us along the way, singing their spring songs, so I join in and add my voice to the chorus, singing along to the radio and a man walking by called out ‘Nice voice’. I was mightily pleased with that compliment and so I’ve continued warbling all week. Carl says he likes to hear me ‘twittering’ - not sure how to take that!

Daffodils at Wychnor

Since we left the marina last Friday, we’ve been hanging around all our usual haunts, waiting for a visit from the Inspector to grant us a new Boat Safety Certificate. Iain came along on Friday morning and after a quick cup of tea, disappeared into various cupboards and delved down into the engine room to make sure we were ship shape and seaworthy. It’s always a relief to pass the inspection and after another cup of tea and a good bit of boaty yarning, we set off back the way we had come and moored in solitary splendour on the river at Wychnor. I looked back through my photos and, almost without exception, we have moored in this spot, at this time of the year, in bright sunshine. We mourn the loss of our favourite mooring spots as houses are built where there were once only fields and factory units spring up to fill in the spaces between canal and road, so we treasure the spots that remain unspoilt. The little church at Wychnor winks down at us from the top of the hill and the daffodils nod as we pass by and squeeze through the narrow bridge on our way to Alrewas. We come up the lock and Carl gets on the water point while I walk along the towpath to find us a mooring for the day. The towpath is thronging with walkers and cyclists and I chat away to an old chap and his ageing Labrador , both of whom are crippled with age and they stop every few yards to rest. Everyone is cheerful in the warm sunshine, smiling and passing the time of day and, once we are moored up, I start the onerous task of scrubbing the cratch cover again. It is looking slightly more respectable now and I have a firm commitment from a manufacturer in Kinver to make us a new cover, if we take our boat to him, rather than him coming out to measure us up. That isn’t at all what we were planning for this year - we had several thoughts, Leicester Ring first then maybe down to the Thames and finally a trip up the Witham. I wonder where we’ll end up - sometimes its nice just to set out and see where you get to.

Magnolia in Alrewas

My daughter had planned a Mother’s Day surprise visit - the whole clan were coming over from Shropshire to spend the day with us but Claire was struck down with a bug on Friday and couldn’t come, so we had all the fun of a day with the grandchildren while Claire had a lonely day at home in bed. Missed you Claire - come and find us as soon as you’re better. They(the grandchildren) arrived in skimpy summer clothes and sandals only to find that the sun had deserted us and the day was overcast with stubborn clouds. Undeterred, we set out from Alrewas and chugged up the locks to Fradley. I had threatened them with egg sandwiches but was over ruled and we trooped off to find food in The Swan pub. Of course, it was heaving! What did we expect on Mothers Day! We found sanctuary in the cafe on the holiday park and wolfed down burgers and paninis and massive slices of cake to celebrate the day. Carl and I haven’t been able to face anything else since then although I’ve been drinking gallons of tea from my new Mothers Day mug, which could double as a paddling pool if the weather turns hot again!

Crowded Boat

We waved the grandchildren off down the towpath in the late afternoon and immediately cast off and chugged up to the Junction Lock, as the sun, at last, came out. We turned onto the Coventry Canal and had an evening cruise and moored as dusk was falling. I’ve been looking for my slippers all evening, where can they be? Once you’ve looked under the chairs and in the steps, there’s really no place for them to hide. I suspect a practical joke by those pesky grandkids!! Will I find them in the oven or under the duvet? I’ll let you know where they eventually turn up.

Alrewas House decoration

Carl is putting Tricky out for her final sniff along the towpath before bed, while I finish this week’s missive. We have all been sleeping really well since we got back to the boat. This morning it was 9.30 before I surfaced. I threw back the covers and leapt out of bed thinking I had so much to do before the visitors arrived and then Carl reminded me that the clocks went forward and it was really 8.30, no rush then! It’s the same every year, I spend the first week translating the time back and saying to Carl ‘but it’s really only 9pm’ when he starts shutting down the fire ready for bed at 10pm. Is it just me?

Sunnies and Sandals in March!

I hope you’ve all had a good week and enjoyed the sunshine. I’m afraid that the coming week is looking less inviting and my big coat is still hanging ready in the wardrobe rather than banished under the bed till next year. I’ll get off to bed now although its really only just 10 pm, I have a good book and the double duvet is till on. Night Night everyone

Love from
The Floating Chandlers

ps Not many photos again, I'll try to do better this week (embarrassed face emoji)

pps We seem to be eating in most of the photos - I must find more interesting subjects to photograph!

Brunch at the Marina

Swans enjoying the sunshine

Tea in Burton

Tricky hugging the stove

New Boat by Kent Bridge

Grandchildren

Double Duvet Deployed!

Tricky is pleased to be back.

Hello again

Phew! A heatwave in March! What a terrific start to the boating year. After a whirlwind of packing, we set off well before coffee time and by mid afternoon we had unloaded the car, watered up (filled the boat tank with water) and without a care in the world, we reversed out of our mooring to begin our spring cruise around the Leicester Ring. Well, that was the plan – more of that later. The Lady Aberlour looks well after her long winter sleep although Carl is already itching to start the long list of painting jobs that are necessary to keep our Lady looking regal. The cratch cover has had a battering and looked very sorry for itself and it's gone crinkly which is a very bad sign for a vinyl cover. It should be black but the green algae has spread along the gunwhales and the side panels have shrunk even more so that the zip won’t close. The rain has driven in through the gap and poured into the coal box making a revolting black soup. Carl grimaced when he saw it and said he would deal with it later. Luckily, there wasn't anyone around to witness Carl wiping the coal and replacing it in the dried out coal box. Inevitably, someone would have asked him why he was washing the coal!

First lock of the year

So there we were chugging along in the sunshine, Carl on the tiller, me in my usual spot, leaning on the hatch and Tricky peering out through the back doors. It feels good to be back afloat! We made a brew and I just had time to drink it before we reached Wood End, the first of the Fradley Locks. Someone has made a great effort to welcome boaters to this very picturesque lock - teapots decorate the lock bridge wall and planters filled with daffodils line up along the lock side. It’s a nice easy, narrow lock and we are soon chugging along towards Fradley Junction and the Swan pub. The canals are still fairly quiet but the tow path was busy with walkers and runners. The tables outside the pub in Fradley were full and there was the usual audience watching us locking down and I was embarrassed to realise that I had forgotten to pick up the locking leg when I tried to open the gate. After several attempts to move the stubborn gate, it dawned on me and I tried not to catch anyone’s eye as I quickly slotted the leg into the retaining hooks and the gate swung open by itself - just to make it really obvious.

We had planned to moor in Alrewas on Friday night but we abandon that idea when we are held up by a ‘Skipper in Training’ who just couldn’t get her boat into the next lock. I tried willing her in but it took an age before, finally, the bows lined up and the boat slipped through the narrow entrance. Anyone who has tried steering a narrowboat will remember the frustration of trying to get to grips(literally) with a tiller- even after all these years we still can’t always get through a lock without scraping against something. That’s why there is always painting to be done.( Downcast emoji with sweat) We followed on slowly through another lock before giving up hope of reaching Alrewas before dark. We pulled over and Carl bashed in some mooring pins. We put the kettle on and called it a day.

Frog by moonlight

That evening there was a full (Worm) moon, tinted rose as it hung low in the darkening sky. The tow path was alive with amphibians (I couldn’t decide if they were frogs or toads) and we shut the doors against the chill creeping in with the dusk and retired to the warmth of the cosy cabin, where the stove was already glowing. We cleared a space so we could get to the bed and made it up ready to crawl into later on. Moving day is always the same, cram all the bags and boxes in anywhere and sort it out as we go along. I did wonder if we needed a thicker quilt but I was too tired to look for it. I regretted that decision when we woke at 6am feeling decidedly chilly. The stove had gone out and Tricky came to tell us what she thought about that by trying to jump up on our bed. Carl to the rescue, my hero! He soon had the stove going and both kettles steaming on the hob.

We set off after breakfast to complete our journey into Alrewas. It was another brilliant morning, breezy and sharp with a hint of warmth to come later. We chugged up to the next lock and once we got through, I closed the gates and walked along the tow path with Tricky, following Carl towards the church. Our favourite spot by the churchyard was free and here we still are, enjoying the beautiful blossoms in the gardens around us especially the magnolia and camellia. The Co-op is just a short walk away and our cool box is still delivering up the last of the freezer meals from home, spag bol, beef casserole and chinese chicken curry. By the time they are gone I'll have replenished our stores and got back into the swing of making something that resembles food from 2 withered carrots and an out of date tin of spam. I’m just joking folks - we do have a fridge and tomorrow I will be stocking up with sausages from the famous Coates Butchers.

Last night was another cold night so I made up the bed with both duvets and revelled in the luxury of a double duvet – we won't be cold under that lot although I could hardly move with a ton of duvet on top of me. Just to be absolutely sure of keeping warm, I’ve been in the ‘big drawer’ under the bed and found my warmest PJ’s and searched high and low for the hot water bottles, which I found eventually tucked away in a box under the sink.

It does take a while to remember where things are after so long away - I found my friend, the collapsible bucket- so useful when you need a bucket that folds flat. I refilled the chubby chrome sugar bowl and popped the salt pot on the trivet to dry out. The butter melted to oil on the stove before I could rescue it but Carl must have bread and butter with his Sunday egg so he didn’t complain. We forgot a few important things, in spite of my excel spreadsheet entitled ‘Going Boating’ which has a matching one called ‘Going Home’ which is equally comprehensive but you cannot completely rule out the need to actually remember to look at it - which I didn’t because Carl packed the laptop! Best laid plans etc... I shall write a song about it called ‘Isn’t it Ironic’ - a dozen tea towels when all you need is a comb. I doubt it will get much airtime.

Speaking of plans - we have already had to change ours as there is a stoppage preventing us from reaching the River Soar and Leicester so we have invoked Plan B - a trip up the Ashby to Hinckley so I can catch a train to Leicester for yet more dental work. It’s not a hardship - we love the Ashby and its a while since we last went that way.

I only meant to write a short note to say ‘Hello’ after all what is there to say when we’ve only just set out?(cheeky wink emoji)

I'll write more next week. Take care everyone

Love from

The Floating Chandlers

ps Not many photos yet - not had time to take any.

pps please send me a hug, I've missed you all 

Bats and Stick Insects

 

Stenson Deep Lock

Morning Jotters

Can you believe it? The dratted sun is out now!! After the greyest August on record, we are finally bathed in the warmth of glorious sunshine just as we decide to head for home. We’re dragging our feet down this last stretch, visiting our favourite moorings and lingering through the villages, reluctant to reach the marina and moor up after our long trip.

Ratcliffe Flood Lock

This week we have travelled from Loughborough to Wychnor and tonight we are moored on our favourite river mooring just outside Alrewas We ventured into Loughborough on Bank Holiday Monday and reached the basin to find that all the pontoons were full. Carl squeezed us onto the quayside, which is not really a mooring but he managed to tie up to the railings while I nipped here and there to get our supplies. I was disappointed not to get a mooring as I was looking forward to wandering into town for coffee and cake but Carl went off for milk and came back with flowers for my birthday and the day was saved. Onward towards Zouch, along the river which looks so pretty when the sun shines but is just steely and grey under the cloudy skies. We moor up and watch the wind whipping the trees along the bank and light the stove to banish the chills. A typical English Bank Holiday.

Up the Trent to Sawley

We shared the journey from Zouch to Ratcliffe with a young couple, out on their boat for the first time. They had bought the boat for a song and were gradually doing it up. I hope for their sake that it isn't a cold winter this year - it can be tricky to get the hang of keeping your stove going through the night and without that, you will wake up with icicles on your nose. Still, they are young and will soon get the hang of it or, if they don’t, the boat will be back on the market come the spring. We lost them after Ratcliffe Lock - I worried about them as we turned onto the Trent, in case they had broken down but they chugged past after we’d moored for the day at Derwent Lock and waved so I guess I’ll never know what happened to them. That’s the thing about boating partnerships, some are fleeting and leave you wanting more and some make you sigh with relief as they chug off into the distance. Today, our peace was shattered when a boat moored close by with Fog Horn Leghorn aboard. In fact, everyone on board had their volume turned up to 11 and we felt like we knew them intimately after just a few minute of listening to them discussing their boating day. We pulled the boat back several boat lengths to escape them and diluted their conversation with our music player. It was a massive relief when they set off again and our peace was restored. Their loud voices were audible long after their boat disappeared!

Sawley to Shardlow

We were up early on Wednesday and met a boat at every lock as we left Shardlow and tackled the last of the remaining broad locks up to Stenson. We stopped for coffee and cake at Swarkestone Garden Centre and while we were there, a message popped up from our friends on the Naga Queen to say they were on there way. Hurray! We celebrated with Prosecco (thanks Jean-Bean) and a nice bottle of red wine later that evening and put the world to rights while Tricky perfumed the air, overcome with joy at seeing her best pals again.

Paired up at Stenson

We planned to eat out at Stenson on Thursday night so the next morning we had a pleasant chug for all of 3 miles and one lock to the moorings by the Stenson Bubble. There was a bit of confusion about where we could sit, all the doors were open downstairs and at first we were seated in a draft by the door. I went off to check out the gin stocks and when I enquired about another table, they found us a cosy spot upstairs - I must have looked like I was going to spend my pension on their gin! It’s a few years since we visited this pub, we had our works leaving party here in 2008, and I can’t help reflecting on the happy times we have had boating since that time. We ended the night back on the Naga Queen and had so much fun we decided to have one last night with them before they had to go home. We arranged to meet the following night at bridge 25, a favourite mooring spot for them and us. 

Dinner at the Bubble

We left Stenson and chugged onward the next morning, still under grey, drizzly skies. I left Carl watering up at the services in Willington, while I trotted off to the Co-Op for supplies. There was a drama occurring outside the shop - a car had gone into the ditch and an elderly chap who was driving the crashed car was sitting on a bench, looking traumatised. The street was blocked with emergency vehicles and police and fire crew milled about while paramedics attended to the driver. A recovery vehicle turned up and as I walked back to the boat, an ‘Incident Support’ vehicle arrived with his sirens blaring, he was a bit late but maybe he was bringing the refreshments. It gladdened my heart to see that, in an emergency, the 999 response can still be relied on. 

The Captain Looking Serious

We were very sorry to part company with the Naga Queen as she slipped onto her moorings next morning and they waved us off towards Burton. The narrow locks are a joy and a delight after so long on the broad locks - a bit like taking your boots off and finding your slippers after walking a marathon. I was a teeny bit hungover after our three nights of carousing with Pat and Malc - I might have got a little carried away with the Baileys (glum faced emoji). We had planned to walk into Burton but after we’d backed onto the diesel pump in Shobnall Marina and loaded up with coal and gas supplies, we just wanted to get to Branston and call it a day. I was really looking forward to an early night but a boat arrived in after dark with searchlights blazing and immediately struck up his generator. The noise was magnified as he had chose to moor under a bridge and I hung out of the hatch listening to the racket and hoping he would soon switch off. Then the fireworks started somewhere over Branston Village so I gave up and went to find my earplugs. As I closed the hatch, I glimpsed a bat swooping along the canal, caught in the headlights of the boat behind us – wow! I wish I could capture that image – it was spooky! Every cloud, as they say.

Leaving Naga Queen on her moorings

I think this will be the final Jotting for this year and I'm looking forward to taking a break from talking to you via the blog and to be meeting up with you in real life again. See you soon, I hope.

Love from

The Floating Chandlers


ps Almost mown down by the rush of pensioners in the garden centre, we arrived just as lunch was served. Some things never change.

is this a Stick Insect?

Pps On the nature table this week is a thing that looks like a Stick Insect. It hopped aboard and kicked the ornaments off the bookcase before Carl ejected it. Have a look at the photo – what on earth is it??