Tuesday 27th September
It’s been another cracking day weather wise and one of those nice days which make you feel all contented. We have travelled the full extent of the current navigable part of the canal and it certainly is lovely. It’s very rural and peaceful along here, unspoilt really.
When we got to Maesbury Marsh we had to turn round. The winding hole is 250 yds the other side of Croft’s Mill Lift Bridge, which is quite a difficult one to raise and lower because when you turn the windlass on the hydraulic lifting gear half the time nothing happens! And the lifting part of the bridge shudders and sways dramatically, as if it is going to come crashing down again right on top of your boat. But I have it on good authority, from a lady who lives on a boat there, that the bridge is regularly checked for safety etc by the highways agency and is in good working order!
After we turned round we found a nice mooring near the tea room/shop/self catering chalet at Spiggots Bridge. After some time B and B arrived having had a bit of prop trouble at one of the locks and said they were going to turn round and go back. We decided to stay here and go back in the morning. We took 3 hours to get here, including turning round and mooring up so we should have plenty of time to get to the locks at Welsh Frankton before they close at 2 pm tomorrow! As we are only going to Ellesmere afterwards it doesn’t matter if we’re a bit late but we should be able to get to the locks by 12pm, with a stop at the sanitary station en route.
Unfortunately for George the Navigation Inn, which is in walking distance for him from here, doesn’t open on Tuesdays so he was unable to go to the pub again today. We decided to walk the 2 miles back to The Queen’s Head, which we passed on the way but didn’t like the moorings at. Ken needs the exercise and it was a lovely afternoon for a walk.
On the way back we stopped for a chat with a couple who were fishing. They had another chap with them, who wasn’t fishing but had just joined them there for a while and he was so funny. He said he thought Ken was the spitting image of a detective off the telly but he couldn’t remember who it was. We wracked our brains to think of any tv detectives that look like Ken and in the end he said it was Stratford Johns off Z Cars! Then he said I looked like someone famous as well and that turned out to be Linda Lusardi of all people! I don’t think he was quite the ticket but he was a very nice bloke. In fact he came past the boat later on and stopped for another natter.
This evening we have been indulging in a spot of beer juggling. Firstly I put my pre-prandial Guinness on the bow locker while I popped indoors for something and returned to find Guinness everywhere except in the glass! Now I know George’s blankets needed changing and the cratch could do with cleaning out but I hadn’t planned on doing it today!
Later on I was on the bank with George when there was a crash from inside the boat and an anguished shout from my husband. He had opened the fridge to extract his maggots and a bottle of Speckled Hen had leapt out at him, smashing on to the floor. Now I know the kitchen floor needed cleaning and I had been meaning to get the fridge out and clean behind it but I hadn’t planned on doing that today either!
As I said, tomorrow we are going to Ellesmere.
