More bad weather was expected yesterday, but not until 1 pm as mentioned on the Beeb. 8 am and quite a shock to the system considering neither of us these days are early risers, we started off toward the last of the wide locks of the day, Stenson Lock. On route, I almost destroyed a fishermen's pole. Why do they insist of hiding behind vegetation, boaters can't see them and he certainly couldn't see me!
It's a good 40-minute cruise to get to that lock and a slowish boat was caught up well before we got there. Now Stenson lock has always been my nemesis. For as long as I can remember the bottom gates have never fully gone back in the recesses and on one memorable day I got FS wedged fast trying to enter with another boat already in the lock. Check it out by clicking HERE so I was very glad to see new gates had been fitted. Now it was a pleasure to enter with the knowledge that nothing untoward would happen. No photos as I was too busy chatting to the other boater. He mentioned Derwent Mouth Lock. Apparently he moors linear side just above the lock by the marina. He, as well as all the boats in the marina, had been sitting at an angle for two days when the water disappeared. Not the first time either! Those leaky gates are a bane to the lives of those mooring there. But he did mention the fury that everyone felt when the padlock was cut off on Sunday. Even with plenty of water in the canal, he felt CRT should be there to monitor the situation, so when this act of vandalism occurred, the word lynching went through like wildfire. The marine moorers were up in arms as was he and his words. "If ever we get our hands on him......." didn't really come as a shock.
From now on we leave not only the broad locks behind but also wide beams! The very next lock one gets to was Dallow lane, a single width lock for boats not greater than 6ft 10 inches wide. Those wide beams ranging from 10ft 6 inches to a massive 14 feet, are now too big to proceed. (this photo from Sunday)
At Willington our locking buddy moored, we continued to the facilities and then headed off to the Morrison moorings near Burton. As we cruised past Shobnall fields Ian mentioned getting diesel. A little further on was Shobnall Marina ideal to replace our gas bottle as well. I was at the helm and to get to the diesel pump I had to reverse in but this manoeuvre went horribly wrong. My excuse was the wind caught me and pushed FS of course. Also, the entrance is the same width as a single lock, takes some good reversing judgement to get in without touching the sides (I have done it in the past but all conditions then were perfect) so trying to get in sideways as I tempted to aim for the entrance was not a good look! And of course I was watched, not just by gongoozlers but by good friend Fred off Nb Chyandour. They moor at the marina and it was just at that moment he decided to go to the diesel pump. Anyway with his help and Ian fending me off the brickwork, I eventually managed to reverse in.
Gosh, I was shocked at the price of a 13k gas bottle. £41.50 and Shobnall was one of the cheapest around. The diesel though was not too bad a price. At 95p a litre this was more acceptable. At Sawley marina they wanted £1.34!
Having had a long chat with Lisa and Fred, we set off just as the rain started and well before the 1 pm stated by the Beeb weather forecaster. Morrison moorings were about 10 minutes further along the T&M and we both looked forward to stopping there. A groan went up when the moorings appeared full but one gap looked suitable for us to squeeze in. Just finished tying ropes when the rain got really heavy. It was a wait until the rain eased before the trek to get provisions. I suppose we could have stayed on that mooring but the call of Branston Water Park was much more appealing. Only another 30 minutes cruise including one lock and we found the perfect spot right outside the park. Here we will stay for the allowed 48 hours. Our daughter will bring the solar panel controller here when it arrives. It's the ideal place as she is about a 25-minute drive away.
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| For some reason this lock took forever to fill. The offside top paddle didn't work very well, only letting in a trickle. It took the effort of both of us to open the top gate. |
Seen on route
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| So sad to see this. We saw a very burnt portable generator next to the boat and wondered if this had been the culprit. |
And wildlife
A stowaway appeared last night. Not a usual stowaway, never had a snail in the bathroom before!
2 comments:
Hi Irene,
I can see the moorers' point of view re vandalism - it was pretty cavalier. At the least, they could have called CRT and told them the water was way up, and asked for one of the volunteer lockies to come and check the situation out and release the padlock.
And I also understand the frustration that led to removing the padlock.
David did wonder if there was any other reason CRT had for waiting till MOnday. I still reckon it could well be the ban on overtime payments.
See you soon, Mxx
I'm also unsure as to why. I still say that whatever the reason, leaving boaters without any update for as long as they did was totally unacceptable. There are no facilities at Derwent Mouth, the hire boat was almost out of water and provision low. With 4 people on board you can imagine hygiene probably went out of the window. No, overtime or not, someone should have come. If volunteers can be at Aston lock on Sunday then someone could have come to Derwent Mouth. Still, it's over and done with for now and hopefully, won't happen again.
See you in a few days
I&I
Xxx
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