A Long Stint

We did as we said and stayed put over the weekend watching sport and sorting ourselves out.. The brasses now are in desperate need of TLC as Del still can't polish with his arm. The lump has gone down a bit and now he has chronic tennis elbow in it. So lets hope it heals before the engine gives up the ghost!
We decided to set off on the Monday as the weather was so nice, and do a long cruise.

We soon got to the three locks at Soulbury and got rid of our rubbish at the first lock..

It has been so quiet round here with not much boat movement now winter is upon us. We pulled up on the fast water point at the bottom of the locks and while filling a wide beam came round the corner.

We both walked up to the lock gates and opened them to which they were very grateful.
We then set off to Stoke Hammond and this lock was in our favour, in fact the gates were even open for us.

We then kept going to Fenny Stratford and this lock has a bridge through the middle of it. It was open and the paddles were up with no boat to be seen.. After waiting a bit a boat pushed off about 500 yards away and we opened the gates for him.. During this time another boat had pulled up behind us,  just as the boat coming up pulled out the lock.

It turned out that they both needed water and we left them with boat rage on who was going to get water first. We just went down the lock and shut he gates leaving the bridge open as they sorted themselves out. It was good to see the Red Lion pub renovated and reopening tomorrow.
It is plain cruising from here around Milton Keynes, and apart from the leaves and plastic bags it was easy cruising. We did a couple of washes on route and we now had fresh bedding for tonight.

Our next stop was at Wolverton where Al walked up to the shops to get a few bits while Del waited with Derwent6.

We then went up to Cosgrove where mornings were abundant, so we picked a nice spot that Tooty the cat likes (yes he does rule the roost)

It was a cruise which took us six hours with a couple of stops along the way. It had just started to drizzle and we just got there before it started to get dark.

Recovery time

We had walked a few mile yesterday and had to admit we were feeling it, but that didn't stop us moving.. After some breakfast we set off and thought we would find a spot out in the countryside for the weekend..
Again it was slow with loads of moored boats but who's in a rush anyway..

 We passed one other boat, and a guy who was walking along the towpath who was making more progress.

 We saw that our nice mooring was free and chained Derwent6 up.

 All good signals here so we were set for a weekend of sport.. Tooty however was out exploring and then just settled by the fire till dusk.. We had some catching up to do on the tv and also had a lovely casserole Al had cooked on the wood burner.. Del's arm still isn't good enough to sort out the engine so we are still checking it everytime we run it..

Born in 59 and is 59

It was a cold night, in fact it was minus two, just not enough to make the canal freeze. There had been freezing fog and everything looked so pretty..

It was Del's Birthday and Al had plans as always..
We had to get up early and Del opened his cards, this one summed Del up (as you will see later)..

We then took a pretty walk to the station where we got the train down to London..

We headed for Oxford Street and the Christmas lights were up in all their glory.

Al brought Del a couple of presents he had wanted and then we headed to Hard Rock of course. If we go to London we normally use Hard Rock as we get VIP treatment..

We had the ribs which are sooo filling and we couldn't have a dessert.

They wanted to do the birthday thing and still brought out a small ice cream to share, we did manage that..

We then met up with Paul and Sam (who just happened to be in London), but first Del wanted to see Carnaby Street which had all the lyrics to Bohemian Rhapsody in lights.

 



 It was weird hearing everyone singing the lyrics as you walked down the street, great for a Queen fan!

It was well worth seeing and at 3 Carnaby St they had a 'pop up' Queen shop..

Here you could buy all the merchandise you wanted and they even had the raw lyrics (in a cabinet, of course) and Rogers drum kit.

You could even get a queen tattoo on the spot.. We then met Paul and Sam in O'Neil's at the end of the street and it was cocktails all round for a couple of hours..

We had such a laugh and it was great to see them both..
From there we left and walked over to the Dominion where Al had booked tickets to see 'Bat out of Hell' the musical

As we walked in the stage looked great and what a show it was.

We had fourth row seats and really got into it.

Jim Steinman's lyrics just come alive.. 

A fantastic performance..
Buzzing we then got the tube back to Euston and then back to Leighton Buzzard. It had turned cold again and we were pleased to see Derwent6, and also glad we had made the bed up..  The fire had kept in all day so it was just a nice temperature when we arrived, and Tooty, after being in all day, was out like a bat out of hell!!

Back to Leighton for shopping

We untied from the rings and pushed off into the lock at Grove. Its quite a slow cruise with all the moored boats into Leighton Buzzard.

When we arrived we moored outside Tesco's. Here we needed a few bits, obviously food shopping, and also a new padlock and chainsaw petrol.

We used up our two hour stay with some lunch and then made our way to Leighton Lock.

A boat was coming up the lock as we approached and we slipped in as they came out.. At the bottom we managed to find a mooring under the trees.

We didn't have a tv signal, but we didn't need telly. This should do us for the big day tomorrow..

Pub Markets and Winding

We have still been sitting tight here at grove lock at Leighton buzzard as Del has got to do the engine problem we have with the gearbox oil cooler, but he still has a problem with his arm .. We have been here for 10 days now and have to move soon. Al has enjoyed watching Strictly and Del has watched the Rugby so its not all bad..
On Sunday they had a Christmas Market in the nearby pub and it was a good excuse to pop over for a beer..

On the Monday we went over to Grove Lock Marina and filled with Diesel and water, and due to the expected cold snap picked up a couple of extra bags of coal.. The bonus was we turned as well so we are ready to make our way back towards somewhere where Del can do the engine..
It has been so quiet now as things die down before Christmas, we love this time of year!! AND SO DOES TOOTY!

Out and about with wheels

So we had the car for a day and we intended to use it.. Del had wanted to go gliding on a slope nearby but the weather was a bit gloomy and damp, so that was out. We decided to jump in the car and head to Milton Keynes shops where we popped to the outlets looking for bits for Derwent6. Del needed a new antifreeze tester and also we needed to sort out the Christmas cards for later this month.. Al picked up a new top and also some cleaning products she wanted. Del got some tools he needed to do the gearbox oil cooler which should arrive today at some point..
We got a text saying the parts should arrive with us at 4.30pm and just as we turned up the dpd van pulled up.. We took the box back to Derwent6 and opened it up, all good! just got do it now!

In the evening we've got to admit we were still recovering from Thursday night, so it was an early night for us.

Friends will be Friends!

Today we hired a car from Enterprise here at Leighton Buzzard and made our way down to Kent. We picked up some logs from a farm we know down there and then went to Sevenoaks, a old haunt, and had something to eat on our taste card.
From there we went to another old haunt, the Sydney Arms in Old Perry street at Chislehurst. Many moons ago Del used to work in the garage opposite and this was the after work place to wind down.
We were met there by Paul, a friend who Del used to work with in that garage opposite, and also Zoe, Gregg, Terry, Ron, and Simon.

Then Shipmate's Mark and Sian turned up with the Forever Queen band member's Craig and Mark, which was the whole reason we were all down there.
We went over to the gig at the Beaverwood Club and met up with Steve, Erica, and Tanya who had saved prime seats.

The band came on at 8.30pm and done the business as usual.

They rammed in so many tracks from early to late to a 180 crowd, not bad on a Thursday night. Well done guys!

We came out of the Beaverwood at 11.45pm and jumped in the hire car and drove back to Derwent6. It was a great run actually, and at least the tunnel fees were free. We were hungry again when we got back so it was a bit of toast and marmite and bed..

Back on our own!

It was a nice bright day and Tanya was driving back home in the sunshine..

We had some breakfast and then at lunch time she made her way back to Kent. It was so lovely to see her.

We then ordered our bits for the engine through Beta, and they should be with us within the next few days.. We have had to have a new gearbox oil cooler, a special hose with some dye in it, a new hose for the one we found rubbing on the gearbox linkage, and a new Pressure cap, neck and seal. Not cheap!
It turns out that the oil cooler has a honeycombed centre and must be damaged if oil is getting in the water.. Fingers Crossed!

So we wait for the parts to arrive and hope the engine survives until they turn up..