Crack on!

We had rain overnight but things were clearing up by the time we opened our eyes.

So with blue skies on the horizon we pushed off. It was lovely skies but the wind was horrendous and we began to wondered if we had made a mistake when we got to Marston Doles.

Al got off to do the lock and Del held Derwernt6 on the centre rope, well he couldn't hold it in the wind, and the stern got pulled round. Al managed to get the gates open in the lock and Del managed to jump on the bow and walk along the gunwales just in time to steer Derwent6 into the lock gates. Phew!
Going down the Napton flight is always very scenic and easy going down, but in the wind it's a different kettle of fish. We saw lots of boats getting into trouble in between pounds but we had learnt our lesson at the top.

With a hire boat coming up at every lock it made things a lot easier. We soon got to Wigrams turn or Napton Junction which is what we like to call it.

The wind had put a lot of boats off and it seemed very quiet along the M25 section of the canal, so we decided to push on further than we anticipated.

We then got to Braunston and you get the feeling of being back in an area you know so well.

We carried on the Oxford towards Rugby and here we met Paul and Lynne on n.b Piston Broke and made plans about meeting up tomorrow for a catch up.

We pushed on to Onley where we spotted this calf trying to get out of the canal, it managed it in the end with a bit of help from it's mother.

We felt we had done enough for one day so we moored up in one of our favourite spots.

After setting everything up Del started on chopping the wood we had left on the roof. We thought we were all set to watch the football in the evening but that was cancelled due to a water logged pitch. It might be another early night then...

Blocked!

We checked out the weather and they said it was going to clear up during the day so we set off early and made our way to the water point. Another boat was already on there but there were two taps so it was slow going for us.

With a full tank we made our way into the countryside. We only got a mile out and we met a boat, across the canal, off it's moorings.

It couldn't be reached from the towpath so Al had to stand on the bow of Derwent6 and then jump onto it's gunwales. It just so happened that a CART lenghtsman (a guy checking our licences) came along, the first we had seen for a long time. He grabbed the centre rope Al had managed to throw to him and he pulled it over.

 At last we were on our way again but our plans to get where we wanted had been scuppered. To make things worse it started to rain as we twisted and turned through this beautiful part of the Oxford.

When we got to Priors Hardwick we decided to call it a day even though the rain had stopped.

The nights now are closing in and we lit the fire and settled down for the night, in fact it was a early night....

A Weekend Relaxing

As we had a nice fourteen day mooring here at Fenny Compton we decided not to move. Also at the pub there was a Folk band we wanted to see as we had heard good reports. On Saturday were up early watching the Grand prix qualifying and then we did some winter preparation jobs on Derwent6. Del checked the central heating and engine anti freeze and also put a bit in the waste tank. It was time to clean out some of the filters and check for any leaks on the way. Al took the time to have a bit of a clear out (more room for shoes) and cleaned the galley cupboards. She also walked down the shops and picked up a few things. In the evening Al sat down to her Strictly Come Dancing and after that we walked down to the pub. We saw a band called Dr Buskers and the Odds and Sods.

It was like a folk comedy show and we thought it was so good.

We laughed all night, in fact our faces ached at the end of it. To announce their breaks they played a song and the lyrics were More Beer, More Beer, More Beer...

We came out of the pub at 12.30am and crashed into bed knowing we were up early in the morning to watch the Grand Prix.
Sunday, a bit worse for wear, we watched the Grand Prix. It was very cold as we had a frost outside so the fire roaring was a priority.After the race Del polished the side of Derwent6 and oiled the cratch boards while Al read her book in the sunshine. Del then went out on his bike for a few hours. It got very overcast later on in the day so we plonked in front of the telly exhausted from our early start.

More music at Fenny

The weather prospect was poor today and after a late night we weren't up at the crack of dawn. In fact we got up just in time to see Doug and James and Stephen and Jayne leave together and managed to help them down the lock and say our goodbyes. By the time we had got ourselves together it had started to rain. Well I'm afraid we were going to stay on our twenty four hour mooring with this fella for a extra day as it wasn't busy here. We had what we call a zombie day!!!

We woke up to rain in the morning but wanted to move, so we got ready to go by 7.30am and as we pushed off the rain stopped.
We spotted the progress on the Cropredy marina which still looks like a mud bath at the moment.

As we got to the next lock we noticed the lock beam was missing, but with a bit of string it caused us no problems and CART turned up just as we left the lock, saying it will be finished today.

We got to the bottom of the Claydon flight of five locks. It was here, a few years ago, that Al fell in at the middle lock, so as you can see she was very careful crossing the gate. Respect at all locks is the key.....

The sun was trying to come out as we went through the flight and by the top lock it was also trying to warm up. It was then pleasant cruising across the countryside towards Fenny Compton, with most of the locks in our favour we seemed to get here quite quickly.

We then stopped at the marina and had a pumpout and a look round the chandlers. We had a walk round the corner and Del spotted a mooring that Derwent6 would squeeze into, and with about six inches to spare, he was right.

Al walked up to check out the pub and the shop and found out that there was a band on tonight and tomorrow night, so we might just stay for the weekend. We watched the first half of the football and at 9.00pm we walked along to The Wharf Inn to watch the band.

It was a shame, because although they were all very good session players, not one of them could sing. We got back to Derwent6 at around 11.45pm and dropped into bed..

Our own Cropredy Festival

After our spending spree yesterday we knew we would be moving today. The weather was kind to us so we set off from Banbury at 9.00am. It was pleasant cruising, as you could see the trees just trying to change colour and there was plenty of water in these parts for a change.

We were lucky enough to have the three locks in our favour on the way to Cropredy, and as we got to the village it was disconcerting to see a lot of diesel on the water. We never found the source.. 

We got through Cropredy lock and were surprised at all the moorings available when we got there.

We planned to meet up with Doug and James on n.b Chance and Jayne and Stephen on n.b Dolce Far Niente and it wasn't long before they came round the corner. After a chat, we were all out cleaning our boats in the sunshine, and we made arrangements to meet up in the evening for a drink and something to eat. We met at 6pm on nb Chance, and Doug and James, as usual, were great hosts and we were greeted with champagne and a lovely selection of nibbles. This set us up for our walk (all three hundred metres of it) round to The Red Lion pub which is now under new ownership. Stephen and Jayne had met up with us as well and we had a lovely meal even though the pub had run out of Steak on Steak night. They did us an extra large gammon instead for a very good price and we got a free drink with that as well.

 

Afterwards we sat in the music room which was full of guitars. Stephen and Jayne played the guitar so it wasn't long before Del, Stephen, Jayne, and the landlord, were all giving us a tune. Del was ecstatic as he could try out the Brian May collection of electric guitars.

We came out of there late and the party continued round Stephen and Jayne's boat where an array of instruments came out, together with cheese and biscuits and more wine.

We staggered home at 2.00am trying not to wake the neighbours. Thanks guys for just a fabulous evening. A big thanks to Doug and James for treating us to the meal, and once again congratulations, we are so pleased for both of you guys, and thanks to Stephen and Jayne for the entertainment and hope we didn't drink all the port! A fun time was had by all......

Spend! Spend! Spend!

It was a mizzy day on Monday so we decided to stay put. Del still had a heavy cold and Al felt bunged up so we shut ourselves away for the day.
On Tuesday however we woke up to lovely sunshine and had the urge to move.

At 9.00am we set off up to the tramway moorings and Al walked over the road to Morrisons and topped up the cupboards while Del wiped down Derwent6 and did some of the brasses.

While we were in there we had four boats pass us (including Dusty the coal boat) and we set off to Banbury town centre lock and had to wait while we all went through.

When we got through we moored up in the middle of town.

Al was itching to go round the shops but Del insisted we had some lunch first. We had to get some bits for Derwent6 like sealers and antifreeze and also picked up some oil at twelve pounds for five litres at Wilko's. Al hmmm brought some new boots in Clarks, and new jeans in Next, while Del picked up some new waterproof trainers for thirty five quid, why do we always just spend money when we come to this place. Note to self........Avoid!!
In the afternoon we were met by Bones walking Boots the dog and she stopped for a quick chat, it was nice to see her again......

Resting for Banbury's Canal Day

Sorry we have been a bit elusive over the last few days but in Del and Al style we have had a lot going on.

We have been moored here sitting tight at Banbury and making the most of the weekend events. We have enjoyed just doing nothing as we both have had colds, and we don't do ill. On Saturday Al walked into town to find out what was going on at The Banbury Canal Day on Sunday, and there was also a arts and crafts fair being set up.

You had to book a mooring to stay in the town. On Sunday we went into town to join in the celebrations and we were surprised at how packed it was. We wouldn't want Derwent6 in the town with all those people walking past and standing on your boat taking photos, we were glad to be a mile out of town.

Al found the crafts a bit on the expensive side, but of good quality.

It was a lovely day and everyone was enjoying themselves into the late afternoon with folk bands playing and the Morris men in action.

We came back to a lovely sunset with this fantastic reflection on the side of Derwent6 and in the canal....

Fully Loaded

Well we won't be mooring here again as the freight trains kept us up most of the night but it did mean we were up early. The weather man said that it would rain late in the afternoon so we set off to make as much progress as we could.

We quietly got through Lower Heyford and twist and turned across the meadows to Somerton.

We then arrived in Aynho which was a bit of a relief as we were running low on diesel and gas. At 92p a litre with self declaration, and gas at twenty five pounds a bottle, we then thought oh what the heck we'll have a couple of bags of coal as well. With a bill of two hundred and twenty seven pounds we left happy and broke. Derwent6 is now fully loaded with water, diesel, coal and wood, gas and food..It's a nice feeling!!!! With Derwent6 low in the water we took it very slowly up to Kings Sutton.

It has been very busy along this section with hire boats, and going down they were queuing at locks.

The weather had started to turn and the wind had got up so we decided to stop just outside Banbury.

It was nice to be back on 3G with telly and the phone back. We watched the football in the evening with the wind and rain howling outside.. Time to light the fire we think!

A Steady Days cruising

We were a bit surprised at the weather today as the sun was shining and quite warm, a good day to move. We had been on our moorings for twelve of our fourteen days and we were also looking forward to cruising. First we had to wait for Mr Tesco as we had booked a 10.00am slot. We are always last in our slot due to the fact we rarely have any frozen stuff, but we do have a lot of heavy stuff though.

Once the cupboards were full we set off through Thrupp and planted ourselves on the water point.

We dropped off a box of chocolates to the mooring warden for looking after Derwent6 while we were away and then popped over to see Maffi on n.b Molly M and he came back for a cup of tea with us, so we could catch up with him and all the local gossip. He is still hobbling around with a stick, but is slowly on the mend and Molly was back to full fitness. Before we knew it, it was midday before we set off again.

We had no problems getting through the River Cherwell section and soon got to Pigeons lock spotting these late little fellows on the way.

One of our favour moorings had been taken here so we carried on to Lower Heyford. The problem here is we can't get a very good phone, internet or telly signal and the trains are so close they feel like they are coming in Derwent6, but we had the pick of the moorings and we were tired.

After mooring up we lit the fire for the first time and within a hour we were being cooked medium rare, and trying to stay awake. We spent the evening reading (and sleeping).