To hot last night with the fire lit....to cold this morning because we let it go out. Can't win at this time of year! But oh what a lovely start to the day with the mist rising from the water and the sun just starting to peak out from behind the trees.
As we set off a hire boat came out of Saltisford Arm. Fantastic now we had a locking partner. We descended the Cape locks and had hoped they would become our locking buddies all the way to Bascote staircase but we stopped at Elmscote road bridge for Tesco and they continued on to Lidl. Not being one to browse the shelves preferring to 'get the groceries on the list, pay, and get the hell out again' they were still moored waiting for the ladies to return with the shopping. So we continued to Radford bottom lock, and oh... looks like we are now locking up. And excellent, another boat waiting on the landing...yippee...another boat to share the locks with.
Up two locks but then they stopped at the facilities before the third lock. Blast, locking buddies gone again! Onwards then without them and did a couple of locks on our own before getting to the bottom lock of Bascote. Suddenly Ian spied a boat on the way up in the middle lock. Oh well...have to turn these locks around now as well as the staircase, but wait....the middle lock was being emptied and not by a descending boater. Those lovely boaters had looked back, seen us coming, emptied the lock for us and waited so we could ascend the staircase locks together. How good was that, we couldnt thank them enough!
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| Emptying the middle lock |
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| Waiting at the staircase locks |
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| Looking back from the top of the staircase lock |
Time was getting on and we wanted to stop. Water levels were very low and although we tried on the long pound between the Bascote top lock and Itchington bottom lock it was impossible. We really didn't want to have to go up another 8 locks of the Stockton flight but it seemed very likely this would have to happen. Ian gave it one more try before the Itchington Lock and...yes...result we managed to get near enough to the bank to be able to step on and off. Quite what we will wake up to we will find out tomorrow morning. We may well be listing if the water levels get any lower.
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| A good foot or more down. |
And a few photos of our journey,
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| Amazing |
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| Someone has cut a lovely arch in the Willow |
This was just ridiculous. Welsh road lock and a narrow concrete edge with very slippery moss growing over it. It would have been lethal if it was wet! The overhanging vegatation was of briars and nettles covered the only bollard that a centre rope could be tied to.
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| Slightly overgrown vegatation dont you think? |
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| Moorings before Itchington lock |
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| And sloes picked ready for making Sloe Gin |
And seen on route,
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| Is it enjoying a blackberry? |
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| Highland cattle in with heifers and cows |
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| Could this be the daddy of them all? |
4 comments:
Good evening Irene,
I remember a debate on the canal blogs some years ago about whether the sloes should be pricked before dunking in the gin. Later a newspaper, the Guardian I think, ran a test and conclude that pricking them made no difference to the result - might save you some work?
I remeber that you like to make lables for your gin. Why not use a picture of the actual berries as a base for this year's lable?
And don't drink it all at once!
Graham
Any fruit left on the trees at the top of the staircase?
Thanks Graham, I think I will do an experiment. One bottle without pricking the sloes and one with and if I remember I will publish the result. May have to have both bottles on the go at the same time though (: hic
Do you know Tom, I don't think it registered that fruit trees were even there. Will have to look for them next time we are going that way.
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