Saturday, December 22, 2018

Happy Christmas to you all



Just a quick note to thank all our blog readers and we hope you have a fantastic Christmas and a Happy New Year! Here's to 2019!

Wednesday, December 19, 2018

Therapy day!

Mmm a bit worse for wear we watched the Strictly final in bed and Al was in a bit of a mess at the end of it with tissues by her side, but Stacey & Kevin were worthy winners..
We surfaced at midday and didn't do too much, in fact where did the day go..
On the Monday we saw Andy and Hilary go with the dogs safely wrapped up in the boot..

Our Christmas cards then arrived from Kent (Care of Hannah) and it was fun opening them all. A big thank you for all of you that sent them, we will have another delivery next week.
 It was then shopping again for us as we had to post a few presents and then Del had an appointment with Julie Hinds, a Soft tissue Therapist, to try and sort out his neck and back problems. She was very good and after an hour of massage Del came out of there aching, but feeling very loose..  He was told it was going to hurt for a couple of days and she was right.. We picked up a few more bits in Sainsbury's on the way back and also stopped for something to eat at the Steam Turbine, where we both had a nice steak.. It was then back to Derwent6, and Del was feeling so achy after his Therapy  he had to go to bed early..
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First Christmas Party

So today we waited for a phone call to say we were being collected by Enterprise Rent a car and was picked up at 10.00am.
It was then shopping time as Al had a list of places she wanted to go to.. Most of these could be picked up round the Rugby area which was handy and we even grabbed something to eat at a Café Nero. It was nice to pick up some Christmas goodies to watch with a good film or just chill on Derwent6..
We got back at 4.00pm so we had a bit of time to get ready for our Christmas Party with some friends in Brinklow Marina..
We were kindly picked up in the pouring hard rain by good friends Andy and Hilary and taken to the Bulls Head in Brinklow village.. We were surprised by a good DJ and Christmas songs were played loud and proud..
All 60 of us got into the Christmas spirit all helped with a few beers and G and T's. It was very well organised and was not to be missed..
 We were lucky enough to grab a lift back by Hilary even though it was only a five minute drive and we could have walked it..
Thanks to Tracey and Adrian for organising, and Eric for inviting us! job well done!

Moving in the cold

The sun was out but it was so cold so the legwarmers and body warmers came out as we untied and set off..
You can now see the progression of the Holden Bridge which has made a mess of the landscape here but I'm sure it will have its benefits.

We had to wait a bit so the guy working under it could get out of the way but it wasn't a problem..

The levels are still down as we still haven't had enough rain and there was even some weed in the canal.
We got past Clifton Marina and then hit some ice.. Del had let a couple of boats go by because we knew it could be icy in places... We followed the tracks of the two boats in front of us so we didn't suffer any damage.
It was quiet at Brownsover and it made for easy cruising to Newbold.
 At the tunnel we could see the two boats in front of us and slowly caught them up..
We got to Brinklow marina where we turned in and our mooring here was available. Because of the time we had spent in here over the last few years we had been invited to go to the Christmas Dinner on Saturday night to start off the festivities.. The weather was so calm and it was easy to reverse Derwent6 onto its mooring marked by Al's Mum and Dad's garden animals..
So back on Shoreline and loads planned, washing, charging, and hopefully sorting out the engine problem of us losing coolant..
Derwent6 is looking very Christmassy so bring on Saturday night!!

Friday, December 14, 2018

Ticking off the list

We woke up today with a beautiful red sky along the canal..
So the jobs today were to try and sort out the new water pump we fitted a few months ago. It was ok but the pressure had dropped in it and even the accumulator couldn't cope with its low pressure.. The shower used to go on and off as you showered so it needed to be sorted..
We first thought it might be the filter, which is fitted before the pump, but this was fine. On removing the pump again Del stripped down the pressure switch on it and noticed the settings were different to the old one, so he changed them over. Hey Presto it worked fine and now is the best it has been with the accumulator pressure a 25 psi.
The next job was the ammeter, which for some reason had stopped working, and Del found a wire lose on the shunt on the fuse board..
Al had spent the day writing all the Christmas Cards and cooking a lovely dinner for us both and Strictly was on the cards for tonight.
Del's arm is slowing improving so he might even be able to do some brasses tomorrow. The engine is behaving itself for now, but is still high on the list of jobs..

Tuesday, December 11, 2018

Birmingham Christmas Markets

We was up early this morning and out by 9.15am. We caught the train at Rugby and went to Birmingham where we did the Christmas Markets to get us in the mood for the festive time ahead.
Its always handy when you step off the train straight into the Bullring shopping centre. We first grabbed a coffee with a full English of course..
Then it was time to do some Christmas shopping..


We did alright and got a few bits but then we thought we would venture outside to the Christmas Markets.


The stalls here are good quality, if a tad on the expensive side, but well worth a look round.
There are also loads of bars on route which Del loves, and it wasn't long before we were into the German beer on offer..
You can buy the two pint glasses and loads of different Mulled wines. Al soon got into the warming rum which Del soon got into too.
After the third we started to feel it and Al was slurring.


We ended up staying till 6.00pm and then hunger took over. We went to one of our favourite Indian restaurants after experiencing it in Liverpool. Mowgli's is an Indian tapas restaurant which is a little different and it didn't let us down. It didn't help that we topped up things with a bottle of wine..
We got the 7.30pm train back and ended up having to get a cab to point us in the right direction back to Derwent6.. It was a bit cold on the boat when we arrived but that was a good thing because it sobered us up a tad. We tried watching some telly, but it was no good bed was beckoning..  It was a great day and started the Christmas Cheer off nicely..

Wednesday, December 05, 2018

Norton to Rugby

It was an early start for us, in fact we left just as there was enough daylight to cruise.. There was frost all over the ground and the roof on Derwent6 was white. We left Norton Junction and crept past all the other boats here.
It has been busy with moored boats due to the lock closures at Watford Locks, but in fact the canal has been very quiet.
We made our way up to Braunston Tunnel and as it was so cold we never got wet due to the fact it had turned to ice..
We never saw a thing as we got to the locks and it was a bonus that it was in our favour as well..
Al had some problems freeing off the paddles, as they were frozen, but she did manage it with a lot of care..
The gates were slippy and treacherous, so we just took our time going down them..

We then went on the water point for a top up of water and did some last minute washing while on the tap, again it was so quiet.
Al popped up to the butchers and the convenience store for some bits and pieces, and when we were full we set off again.. The plan was to stop at the Chandlers, but two boats were already on the moorings so we carried on heading towards Rugby.. It had warmed up just a tad and the scenery was stunning, we never get bored of this section.
It did seem a bit busier here as we passed a few boats, but when you looked at the normal busy moorings they seemed empty.
After a couple of hours we got to Hillmorton locks and we sailed through these with time to help a boat behind us..
We moored at the bottom and felt we had done a good days work (if you can call it work).
We now have time to plan for Christmas and getting this engine sorted. It has still been losing water and we still have oil in the water, but its weird that it doesn't seem to be getting any worse.. It might just be a good idea to go on shoreline for a few days and get it done then.. We'll see!  

Monday, December 03, 2018

Another Happy Boat Birthday!

The weather man was right and we could hear the rain on the roof as we prepared to leave, so got back into bed..
So we discussed what shall we do today? Al wanted to get the Christmas Decorations up as it was another big Birthday today!!!!

DERWENT6 IS TEN YEARS OLD THIS VERY DAY!
It's still hard to believe we have had ten happy years living on the canal's of England and it all started from this:-  and long may it continue.. 
Anyway we got out the Christmas Dec's and Al turned the cabin into a grotto.




Derwent6 will be getting a Birthday and Christmas present in the new year, so watch this space! lets hope we can move tomorrow.. 

Tough, but good timing up the Buckby flight

We don't normally move on a Sunday but we had a window in the weather which allowed us to cruise without getting wet, also it was so mild for the time of year.
Del wanted to see the football which was on at 2.00pm, so we set off at 8.00am.

It was lovely with the sun just coming up and we headed towards Nether Heyford wharf.
Again it was so quiet and the canal was like a mirror as Derwent6 cut through the water. We then noticed that the new link road on the A45 to Daventry was finished.
As we passed under the bridge we also noticed a plaque and a memorial bench for an Engineer.
It looked like someone was killed who was an employee of the company building the bridge, very sad.
We then made our way to the bottom of the Buckby flight.
These are tough locks and even tougher when they are against you. Why? because the paddles are stiff, the gates stick and feel very heavy, and also the gates come open on their own and the pounds are always low.. 
We got to the top lock and the weather turned colder and it looked like there were no moorings.
As we crept along there was a hidden slot and Derwent6 fitting right in.. Phew!
It was 1.15pm and Del did manage to watch the football, seeing Arsenal beat London rivals Spurs..
We then thought it would be good to use the New Inn pub and have a good Sunday lunch. It paid to go a bit later as we got a good plateful of piping hot food. It was then back to Derwent6 for Al's Strictly..
We plan to move tomorrow but the weather looks iffy.. Maybe the Christmas decorations will go up..