Warwick

Here I am Rune

Distance 3 miles

Total 2185 Locks  90 Tunnels

Running total mileage 3114.1 miles 

As stated yesterday, today we have definitely reached Warwick and I think we will be remaining here for a few days. It would have been a bit of a pathetic effort if we hadn’t reached Warwick today since it was only 3 miles and 2 locks, so barely a morning’s work. 

As we passed along the canal the Inland Waterway Association, in conjunction with CRT were having a canal clearing day, if I’d known about it I might have joined in. They seem to have pulled a lot of cycles out of the canal along with a couple of motorcycles and, of course, some supermarket trolleys. Some of the stuff they pull out thought does rather beg the question’ How did that get in there?’, this crossed our minds as we passed and ironing table that they had pulled out. You can try to imagine the conversation, “Well there I was just ironing on the towpath and a gust of wind blew the ironing table into the canal!!”, doesn’t really have the ring of authenticity does it?

Next few days will be spent re-visiting Warwick although I’ve now made an appointment to pop up to Birmingham tomorrow for a blood donor session.

The autumnal scene from our mooring

Leamington Spa

Here I am Rune

Distance 2.8 miles

Total 2183 Locks  90 Tunnels

Running total mileage 3111.1 miles 

OK, so today we didn’t make Warwick! The reason was because we found that the phone signal that we have lacked over the past week or so has been brilliant in Leamington Spa so we remained here to make the various phone calls we have been intending to make, just in case the signal disappears again when we get to Warwick.

Tomorrow we will definitely make it to Warwick!

Radford Semele

Here I am Rune

Distance 4.3 miles

Total 2182 Locks  90 Tunnels

Running total mileage 3108.3 miles 

Despite the best of intentions we didn’t make it to Warwick today, only travelled as far as Radford Semele, so we didn’t even get to Leamington Spa. It’s not as though we are in any rush though so I’m not unduly concerned. The only matter that is a bit of a nuisance is that we still haven’t got to a location with an O2 phone signal, things had better improve when we get to Warwick!

Today’s trip was largely uneventful other than a short delay at Bascote Staircase lock. This was as a result of the boat coming up not having worked a staircase before and not being aware that the top lock needs to be full before you start going through it. In fairness they did quite well to get stuck on the cill between the two locks (they were coming up)since I would have thought that if you take two lock fulls of water out of the top lock without refilling it you’d be lucky to get out of the bottom chamber at all since the cill must be almost uncovered! No harm done and they were soon on their way.

Tomorrow for definite we should get to Warwick (weather permitting).

Long Itchington

Here I am Rune

Distance 7.8 miles

Total 2173 Locks  90 Tunnels

Running total mileage 3105.0 miles 

Today’s cruise was a ‘proper’ mileage (7.8 miles) and a good number of locks (13) so I think we’ve earned our pasta meal! We had the good fortune to meet up with a couple of blokes coming down Stockton Flight of locks and by teaming up with them we whipped through the flight in about an hour which is reasonably good going. The guy working the locks said that when they had come up the flight it had taken them over an hour and a half so we have saved them some time as well. 

We are, however, still away from civilisation here in that there remains no O2 phone signal at all so we still cannot make the phone calls that we want to be making.

Where I’d like to get to for tomorrow night is about 10 miles away and 12 locks so it is debatable as to whether or not we’ll reach it, particularly as we need a supermarket stop and an elsan stop, we’ll have to see.

Sawbridge

Here I am Rune

Distance 2.0 miles

Total 2160 Locks  90 Tunnels

Running total mileage 3097.2 miles 

After a few days sorting some stuff out in Braunston, we are back on the move, now heading in the general direction  of Warwick. The stuff that we have sorted out is we now have the oil and filters for the next two oil changes, we’ve got enough coal to last us until next month and having been given some pallets we’ve got enough kindling to do the same, the battery isolator switch has now been replaced with the proper unit rather than the stand in one we had to get from Oxford Cruisers and I’ve had the regulator on the alternator changed in a vain hope of curing the alarm ‘pipping’ sound that we’ve had all year. 

It is curious that, in the middle of the country here in Braunston, we are totally unable to make any telephone calls using our O2 phones since there is no signal whatsoever. A bit annoying since there are a few phone calls we’d like to be making but we’ll have to wait until we get back to civilisation!

Braunston

Here I am Rune

Distance 2.9 miles

Total 2160 Locks  90 Tunnels

Running total mileage 3095.2 miles 

An hour’s cruise has brought us into Braunston and we immediately found a perfect mooring so, instead of the domestic stuff (empty the elsan, fill the water tank) we just grabbed the mooring and will sort the other stuff out later!

First thing on arrival was a trip to the supplier of our engine alternator back in November of last year. I told the assistant what the problem had been and he stated that he could put the alternator on a test bed they have, he could just fit a new regulator or he could give me a new regulator to fit to see if it cured the problem and if not to then bring the alternator in for them to look at. As service goes I cannot fault them and can’t recommend them highly enough, for reference purposes the company concerned is called Electrostart and they have been brilliant!

A rather sad comparison to this was a visit to Halfords immediately afterwards. This was to replace a worn tyre on my bike and finding the relevant tyre was straightforward but paying for it?... that was a different matter! There didn’t seem many staff working in the shop and none on the tills. I stood an waited for a while and after a couple of minutes was joined by another man trying to buy antifreeze. We both then waited for a couple of minutes and were then joined by a couple of women trying to buy some other product. We still continued to wait, you can tell how long it was since we began conversations with each other about how ‘good’ the service was. There was even an advertising display on the cash till counter in large letters saying ‘DID OUR SERVICE WOW YOU TODAY?’, er, frankly no! After further wait the YTS lad came to the till to eventually serve the now restless queue of people. Did he offer any apology for the delay? Offer any reason for it? No! he just took the money. Not a good sales experience.

The final visit today was to Wharf House Chandlers to stock up on oil and filters so we are good for the next couple of oil changes. 

I was surprised to find that the winter mooring period in Braunston begins on 1^st October so we can stay on the moorings where we currently are for up to 14 days (unlike the 48 hours you get in summer). We shan’t be here that long but will certainly stay until after the weekend although I’m now going to have to manhandle the water to the boat and shift the elsan from it.