To all our Readers!

Well it is that time of year again when we take a break from the Blog, and we just want to say to all our followers on here......

We wish you all a very Merry Christmas and all have a fantastic 2020 New Year!

 



See you all next year, when we will be going north (and then south!!)

Out and about

So we are now in the marina, so rather than blog everyday about what we have done we thought it best to just update you with a brief summery of what we are doing..
We are just loving having the car and being able to go to different places to pick up the Christmas vibe.
We have been gathering Christmas presents and the car allows us to store those big ones which get in the way on a narrowboat.. We went to Stratford on Avon and did some shopping.

Tooty has been helping us with the wrapping again.

Also Al has made new friends whilst out and about..

So we have been getting out in the evenings and we went to see Eric from the marina on his Tuesday night open mic bash..

We had a great night singing along to some of the Christmas songs with the folk from the marina and also the village..

Also while we are here we have visited the doctor's and Del has had his routine check up's now he's sixty..
Blood tests have been taken and more tests to follow in the new year.. finger's crossed..  but for now Cheers!!!

Our First Christmas Party

We are back in the marina now and have hired a car for Christmas.. It is a very pleasant treat for us not to have to walk everywhere, but we do have to remember that someone has to drive.. lol
So it is join the crowds and get all Christmassy, coffees, mince pies and mulled wine, what could be better..
So Derwent6 is back on shoreline, another luxury, and again we are away from the mud..
So we have now done all our Christmas cards, and they should be winging their way to you shortly..

Even Tooty helped...

Del has been doing some small jobs, like repairing the satellite dish after it got blown in the winds, also he cleaned out the drains from the sink as they were starting to smell. Also the water filter needed changing and it is a simple task of just unscrewing the cover and replacing.

We do this every six months..

We were also privileged to be invited to the marina Christmas party and funnily enough the whole day seemed to be planned round it.. We were picked up by a six seater cab at 6.30pm and taken to The Bull in Brinklow where there was 50 of us enjoying ourselves..

 It started with a few drinks and a good catch up with everyone around us.. We chatted about where we had been this year and the trials and tribulations of the cut.. But one thing that we all have in common is that we all still love it!!

We got the cab back to the marina and was back by midnight.. Thanks guys for a great evening with some good food and drink, and our kick start to the festive season..

Gifts and Gigs

We haven't blogged much because we have been busy with Christmas shopping, getting taxis, trains and buses everywhere..

We have arranged a car (which we always have as a Christmas present to us both) for next week till after Christmas for all our last minute bits, and to be honest we use the car as a bit of storage as it keeps Derwent6 free. Tooty is now counting the days.

We did go out treating ourselves to a Sunday roast dinner over at The White Lion, which was a short 35 min walk from the boat..

We always have a fantastic meal here as you can see.

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One of our big highlights was going to a gig in London with David and Hannah who treated us with the tickets for Christmas. David had introduced this band to Del back in 2004 and they had never toured in the UK as they always toured in the USA.
Oh the band, yes they are called SKILLET. They are a rock band, two guys and two girls and they are amazing..
We met David and Hannah at Oxford Circus and then went straight down to the venue and found 10 people already in the queue at midday.

We were starving so we grabbed a bite to eat in a pub next door and had a few beers and some lovely burgers served in a slightly different way, they were delicious..

Del kept checking to see how the queue was getting on and when it reached thirty people we joined in the fun.. David had even brought a shirt for Del fit for front row viewing.

Luckily the weather held off and we all took it in turns to go off for a bit.. The girls went and did some shopping and came back with coffees, while the boys went back in the pub and had a few rum and blacks to keep warm watching the football..
This worked well till it was 7.00pm when the doors opened and we got to the stage just three rows from the front after the VIPs had gone in..

Skillet were even better live, and blew us all away, We were so close we even got to shake hands with the band members..

They played for a hour and 45 minutes and we were exhausted, sweaty, legs ceased, voice broken and throat croaking, but we loved it!!

We just managed to get back to Oxford Circus where we split, and just managed to catch the last train back to Derwent6. We got back a 1.00am and crashed into bed..
So we are now finishing off the Christmas cards and recovering really, now in the mood for Christmas joy..

Derwent6 is Eleven years old today!

Can you believe it, Derwent6 is now eleven years old, and it still feels like the first time we set sail in her.

Where has that gone? She first went in the water at Debdale and then we had the launch party at Foxton where Derwent6 got its first taste of beer..

We turned up in a large white van and unloaded our boxes into the saloon and were mega excited..  We can still remember when Derwent6 was a drawing and here we are still living the dream..

We are still working on the snagging list even though Fernwood don't exist any more.. But Derwent6 has matured and now has a lot more character and has been lived in, loved and travelled the country..
Yep she's a little older, with battle scars and the odd rust spots from dealing with our adverse weather, but in general she don't look too bad..
Here's to the next eleven years (raise a glass) Cheer's!!

Deck the Halls

"Come on everybody! you know what time it is, It's Christmas time!!!"
So with the Christmas songs playing on the radio and the decorations pulled out of every nook and cranny on Derwent6, we proceeded to put up the all the festive fun to turn Derwent6 into a grotto..

On the inside things were put up on the side panels and the tree went into its normal place in the corner (one of Tooty's favourite places).

We then decorated the outside with the stencils we put up in the portholes, and of course the mouse's ears on the cratch board..

So we are ready, are you?

Recovery Period

It was lovely to be back on Derwent6 which was now warm and snug again..  We took the time to recover after what had been a bit of a whirlwind week..

Del stuck all his birthday cards up as we always do... Thanks again for all the cards and presents Del received.

We did a manual pump out and also went out and grabbed some coal. But this is Del and Al, and we noticed that a guy we like was playing in The Merchants in Rugby town centre.. So we set off at around 8.00pm and got a good seat to see Kent Duchaine, a great blues guitarist.. You might have seen on this blog before that he has a steel guitar called Lead Bessie and it goes everywhere with him.

We had a great night with a few beers and even had an extra treat of a guy who played the harmonica getting up with Kent for a few tracks. We got back to Derwent6 and into bed at 1.00am

The following day we went to Del's Mum and Keith's as they had said they wanted to see us and take us out for a meal..

Del's mum still can't believe she has a son of 60!
We had a lovely time at the Grey Goose in Gilmorton and the food was amazing. Thanks both for a smashing evening ..

On the Thursday, Al had her hair cut and we did a bit of winterising on the engine. We have this problem with the starter switch which means we have been hotwiring  Derwent6 when it happens.. We ordered a ignition switch from Beta marine and were given a hour slot in which they said they would deliver.. Guess What! it never turned up and unfortunately went to the wrong delivery address so we now have to wait till tomorrow.. We then had just enough time to do a bit of shopping and got back in the dark after picking up the picture going on this years Christmas cards..
Some of you have been asking how the batteries have been coping during the cold spells we have already had.
Well the small 40w heater we bought has helped to keep the batteries nice and warm and it has been on constantly while we are on shoreline here in the marina.. Not sure if it is doing the batteries any good always being on float, but time will tell..