Spring is in the (windy) air

It was a nice sunny morning, with strong winds, but we decided we would move as we needed to have a pumpout after having visitors on board....

We set off with all the locks in our direction, so we got through Claydon very quickly... well in a couple of hours anyway.... The strong winds meant it was full steam ahead to get in to the lock and then full reverse to stop Derwent6, but we got the hang of it after a while. You could just see the beginnings of spring with the trees smelling sweet and starting to blossom. We then got to Fenny Compton marina and had out first go at a D.I.Y pumpout. You purchase a token at the marina for £10.00 and then set up the pump out and rinse hose. You then put your token in and you get eight minutes to do your pumpout. With a clear hose you can watch it go up the pipe and then rinse until it goes clear. (WE DON'T KNOW WHY BOATER'S ALWAYS TALK ABOUT TOILET'S) While we were there we filled up with diesel as we like to keep it topped up, so as to reduce condensation in the tank.

So all that was left was to fill with water, so we moved up to the water point at The Whalf Inn which took about a hour, so we had lunch.

We then reversed up and moored for the afternoon... we then looked out our bow doors and there was n.b. Harnser (http://nbharnser.blogspot.com/) with it's brand new shiny paintwork, it made Derwent6 look second best.

It was great to see Brian & Diana on their way down to Bristol on the K & A. Brian didn't like being a shiny as it wasn't his scene, but the boat does look fantastic.. Let me know if someone see's him polishing it..... and good luck both of you, on your trip.