Now THAT'S my kind of party.

Last night and on a recommendation from Marilyn (WaKa Huia) and, I might add, as a birthday treat to me by my wonderful hubby, a fabulous meal was had at the Cape of Good Hope pub situated at the top lock of the Cape flight of two. Run by two Kiwis (who unfortunately were away in India) their menu was way above average pub grub. Needless to say, homemade Venison Pie with Swede and carrot mash and crunchy vegetables were to die for. So I too would recommend this place as a fab eatery.

The Cape of Good Hope on the right.

 Now for a bit of bad news. Due to unforeseen circumstances, our plans to continue with our journey to the Lea and Stort have had to be cancelled. We will now be heading back to Langley Mill for the foreseeable future and I very much doubt if we will be cruising on FS again this year. That's not to say taking the Beast out is out of the question, small journeys could be planned. Anyway, it's not something we want to elaborate on just yet, let's just say the news was unexpected. Anyway best foot forward and all that and of course the journey back via the Soar will also be blogged about. We may well be travelling over pastures known but every day is one of an adventure and no doubt plenty of tales to tell will come out of it.

Today then we left Saltisford, turned right toward Cape Locks and with only these to do today and no rushing involved, having to wait to fill the top lock gave me time to bask in this glorious sunshine. No warm coats needed for us today! The second of the two locks were full as a small cruiser had not long exited and awaited our descent from the top lock.

Leaving the Saltisford Arm

Creeping past the cruiser I caught a glimpse of a small garden on the right. Wow...that must have been some party. A few sore heads the next day no doubt?

Approaching bridge 49 and the congested part of the canal with Kate Hire fleet taking up most of the water, it didn't help matters that a pump out was being done to another visiting boat considerably reducing the channel width. That boat's tiller was sticking way out toward the bank and I had to shout to the lady on the stern to move her tiller out of the way as I had visions of catching it with FS.

Crickey...how did we squeeze past that?

 Having negotiated the fleet what do we spy coming under the bridge 'ole? A hotel boat and one of the bigger wide beams on the system! How on earth will that get past?

 Having stopped at Tesco for lunch and shop we made it to Radford Semele, the same place we stopped at on the way to Warwick. This time we kept well away from that underwater obstruction! Plenty of the afternoon left for Ian to check the batteries and me to make my soup. Still very warm outside so maybe time to get the chairs out and soak up the sun.

 And today's wildlife,

Ruby Tiger Moth caterpillar??

Female Blackbird

 

Prepare to be scared!

Just love it here at Saltisford. Everyone is so friendly and welcoming and this spot in the winding 'ole is just perfect for being nosey watching the world go by.

 Friday evening we walked to the race course to meet up with No 1 son and family in their caravan. A great spot on the campsite overlooking the course and which would have been ideal for watching the horse racing. Shame then that the next race meeting wouldn't be until March 28th but we did get to see some running and racing, joggers making use of the track!

Saturday and the plan were to meet up at Warwick Castle for midday. At 13.30 we had tickets to see the dungeons so first a walk around the castle walls and all the 500 steps that entailed. With a one way system, there was no going back! Going up was exhausting but... oh my knees on the way down...  Anyway, we arrived moments to spare for the dungeons. Now, this wasn't just a walk along dark corridors to see the underground prisons. Oh no! This was a 'full on and try to be scared sh*tless for 50 minutes' experience! This is what was said in the literature. 

"Warwick Castle has witnessed some of the darkest, bloodiest and most frightening times in history. This new experience is set to echo part of the Castle's past, taking you back to 1345, when the town was gripped by the plague. In true Dungeon style, gore seekers will be greeted by decaying bodies, chanting monks, torture implements, execution and ?the labyrinth of lost souls? - a fantastic scary mirror maze. 
 
We found the whole experience not so much scary as highly amusing. Unfortunately, the two grandchildren (10 & 8) WERE scared out of their wits and after 5 minutes Colin and daughter in law Iwona had to take them back outside. Still, the Bird of Prey demonstration was enjoyed by them all and partly made up for missing out on the dungeons.

One of the actors

How did our son Colin get so tall????

Daughter-in-Law Iwona with Oscar and Oliver

Sea Eagle

Condor

Peregrine Falcon

We have another couple of days here in Saltisford before heading off back the way we came. I hate the Hatton Flight and will do anything to get out of having to do all those locks so instead we are reversing the journey to continue South along the GU and London. It's off to do the Lea & Stort for us having only done it once before.

And seen at the Saltisford Arm

This cheeky chap on FS's bow.

At the nest boxes

Moored in a winding hole...with permission!

How nice was it to actually sleep in this morning? With only 5 and a bit miles to do and 2 locks, it stood to reason that we could take our time. Therefore it was nearly 9am before we set off, but then...ah...hang on a minute... The breeze had picked up pinning us to the edge. Ian gave the bow a good shove, raced to the stern to get on whilst I put the power on to drive her away. But best-laid plans and all that 'cos we stopped dead. Bow swung back to the towpath and no matter how much wellie I gave FS all she did was pivot. Somehow we had got ourselves wedged on something unknown beneath the water. After a bit of head scratching Ian jumped off with the pole pushing the stern with all his might. I put on the revs and slowly she backed off. The bow had by now swung in again so back he went to give that a good shove as well. It worked but I had to leave Ian behind on the bank. 👋   Never mind it's not really that much further to the bridge😄

Stopped to do a Morrison's shop between bridge 41 and 42 and was amazed to see a huge washing machine outside the store. We first encountered these machines in Ireland and thought what a brilliant idea that was. Great if you're a boater without a washing machine on board.

This machine was in County Clare Ireland

Outside Morrisons Warwick

Groceries packed away we headed off to ascend Cape locks the final two locks of the day. Ian was lock wheeling and judging by the effort he had to put in just to raise the paddle, I'm glad I stayed on the boat!

Difficult to see just how hard he was winding the paddles up.

Decided to stop for lunch at the top before turning into Saltisford Arm. Ian (manager) was expecting us but not until the afternoon. By 2 pm we did the left turn into the arm and, as soon as FS was under the bridge, I wondered where exactly we would be put. Looked to be chocker block with boats on either side. True to his word though he beckoned us toward the far side of the winding hole and a lovely spot it was too. Three more boats turned up after us. They have had to breast up where they can. Lucky that we arrived when we did.

View from the Port window.

And seen on route,

And the wildlife,

Nesting Canada Goose

Its a wonder she doesn't drop off.

And when there is no road link....

Groan....another VERY early alarm call, not by the ducks pecking away at the hull or by cars, lambs trains etc being particularly noisy but by the water pump suddenly springing into life waking us up from a deep slumber. Talk about giving us a shock! Only 5.45am why should the thing start now! A ridiculously slow drip from the galley tap was the culprit! Took all night for the pressure to drop low enough for the pump to kick in. For heaven's sake...couldn't it have waited another hour? Anyway needless to say we didn't bother staying in bed so by 7am we had got underway.

Stockton locks came up all too soon. Here we met several workmen carrying all manner of building material along the towpath. Me being nosey asked why carry all that gear. Turns out the lock house needed some work doing to it and with no road link, they had to trundle everything along about 1/4 mile of towpath. Bit of a B if you happened to forget the screwdriver!

Ian and I took it in turns to lock wheel and boy did I realise how unfit I was. That paddle gear on all of the locks on this section of the GU is of a 'worm gear' type which requires at least 21 turns of the windlass to raise the paddle. Hard work or what! Exhaustion doesn't come into it. More like bl**dy knackered after I had finished my stint. Now I know why I hate the Hatton flight of 21 with the same paddle gear needing at least 25 turns. So glad we are not going back that way!

 

I hate this type of paddle gear!

 Another staircase lock to do at Bascote. This time only two chambers making it easy and quick. Follow the instructions posted and you won't go wrong.

Having arrived at Radford Semele we stopped for lunch. Tried the TV with thoughts of possibly staying the night and found not a single channel on either the main aerial or the Omni aerial. I need my TV so we upped stakes, travelled a further mile to open countryside and tried again. Success. All the main TV channels and one very happy girl. Not far now to Warwick and Saltisford Arm. Ian phoned Ian (manager of the moorings) who told us space would be found even if we had to breast up. We need to stay until Wednesday 'cos NHS calls for check-ups again!

And wildlife today,

Low rise and....

High rise!

No wonder this bee crash-landed on the Solar Panel. Look at what it's having to carry!

About to nest build?