Titchmarsh, and Winter Rose departs

Woodford Church overlooking the River Nene

Same hot weather again.    Our route took us through Woodford and Denford manually operated guillotine locks and Islip powered lock.  At Denford Lock we had a superb view of a close by Red Kite  swooping low over the water trying to pick up fish, but the attempts to take a photo were unfortunately unsuccessful.  We arrived above Titchmarsh lock at 12:30.

Here we wanted to stop as we were both tired after the last few days efforts and are ahead of our deadlines.  Also suitable moorings are more difficult to find further on and are likely to be busy with local boaters out for the weeked. Winter Rose wished to carry on so they descended Titchmarsh lock on their own whilst, luckily, we were able to talk to the harbour master of the adjacent Middle Nene Cruising Club who offered us a mooring for the night and a welcome at the club bar this evening.

This afternoon we hope to take a walk to Titchmarsh Nature reserve created around the lakes close to the river.

Today: 5.28 miles, 3 locks, 3 hours 30 minutes travelling

Woodford

Yet another day same again - cloudy early in the morning, blue skies with a cool breeze after we set out and hot weather in the afternoon.

Ditchford Lock

The first lock after leaving was at Ditchford where a unique, for the Nene, radial lower gate is used instead of the more normal guillotine gate.  The lock gate  consists of a horizontal rotating half cylinder and opens by rotating by 90 degrees so that the solid half is above the waterway.

Irthlingborough Bridge

Manual operation of Upper Ringstead Lock

The river then took us by Higham Ferrers and Irthlingborough through lovely countryside to Upper Ringstead Lock where we met the first of the 5 guillotine locks that are still operated manually.  The massive gate is raised and lowered by turning a large metal flywheel, I think about 200 times.  Lowering isnt too bad as the wheel largely turns on its own because of the weight of the gate but raising is another matter!

We moored at 13:20 just outside the large hill top village of Woodford on a FOTRN mooring beautifully located on a bend in the river.  We spent most of the afternoon in the local pub enjoying a chat and some excellent beer with Wunter Rose.

Totals:
8.14 miles, 5 locks, 3 hours 55 minutes

A weedy trip to Wellingborough and beyond

Ther weather was like yesterday - clouds first thing which cleared by the time we set off.  Then blue skies with the heat reduced by a cool breeze, followed by a hot afternoon.

Half the weed removed from Densie's prop

Travelling again with Winter Rose, we passed through White Mills, Earls Barton and Doddington guillotine locks after which we hit thick blanket weed, possibly related to the nearby sewage works.  This stuff  winds itself around and around the prop and eventually bringing the boat to a halt.  There is then no choice but to stop the engine, open up the weed hatch and pull away at te weed until the prop is cleared.   This must have taken 15 minutes during which Winter Rose passed us and was able to continue wthout problems.  Having removed all the weed we joined our partner in Wollaston Lock beyond which there was little further weed.

Entering Wellingborough

Beyond Wollaston Lock the scenery became less interesting as we approached the industrial town of Wellingborough.  We moored there in a riverside park at 12:45 for a quick bit of shopping at the nearby Tesco.

Moored at Ditchford FOTRN moorings

After lunch on board we set off again and after 2.5 miles, with the scenery improving as we left Wellingborough we stopped at the attractively situated FOTRN (Friends of the River Nene) moorings before Ditchford Lock.    FOTRN is an organisation set in recent years to improve the availability of moorings for boaters on the River Nene through agreements with the local landowners.

Now that the sun has cooled we will go out fr a walk around the adjacent lake.

Totals:6.28 miles 6 locks, 4 hours 20 mins on the move.

The Nene to White Mills Marina

The weather when we woke up was grey and damp.  However by 9:45 when we left Northampton Marina with narrowboat Winter Rose the clouds had begun to clear.  The route took us out of Northampton through 3 sets of standard double width locks to the first of the iconic Nene guilotine locks at Weston Flavell.

Descending Clifford Hill Lock

Densie and Winter Rose in Billings Lock

Cruising down the Nene near Whiston Lock

By now the weather had cleared with blue skies and a pleasant cool breeze. We had originally planned to moor here but as the sun was not too hot we decided to carry on to White Mills Marina.  So a further 4 guilotine locks down this lovely waterway with large numbers of damsel and dragon flies and assorted birds.  We were particularly pleased to have a perfect view of a red kite as it flew overhead.

We arrived at Whte Mills Marina and moored up at a visitor mooring at 3pm.

Totals: 7.5 miles, 8 locks, 5 hours 10 min ravelling

 .

Northampton Day 3

Pleasantly cooler today, still pretty warm though with the temperature in the boat at 29 deg C.  This morning we walked into the town centre.  Quite interesting with a lot of small shops and some attractive buildings as well as all the Hgh Street favourites.  There is a small market where we bought some  fruit and veg for the next week but finished off all our shopping on our way back at Morrisons.

This afternoon we had a planning meeting with narrowboat Winter Rose as they asked if they could accompany us on the trip down the Nene to Peterborough starting tomorrow, this being their first visit.

What a scorcher!

Moored in Northampton Marina

We are spending today and tomorrow in the marina in Northampton resting and preparing for our journey down the Nene.  First job this morning was a first pass stocking up with groceries.  Although the marina is a little way from the town centre there is a nearby Motrrisons where we bought some of the less perishable items we will need in the next week or so.  Then at lunchtime Denise started a lengthy wash at the marina's laundry.  We have two weeks worth of clothes and sheets and towels accumulated when we began our trip exactly one month ago.

It has been a very hot day in the boat.  Although our newly painted cream roof ensured that for some time it was cooler in the boat than outside the temperature in the saloon area is now 33degC.  The temperatures will have a significant impact on our plans for the Nene.  Overall we estimate the travelling time to Peterborough to be about 25 hours.  More than 3-4 hours a day could be as much as we could take standing on the exposed back deck so we could be talking about 8 days for the journey, which will make provisioning tight.

17 locks to Northampton

Today was always going to be hard work.  After setting off at 8:55 we travelled the short distance south on the Grand Union to Gayton Junction where we turned left on another on the GUs branches, this one being the Northampton Arm.  Despite connecting the wide-locked Nene to the wide locked Grand Union this is a single width canal as the proprietors could not raise sufficient money in 1815 to do the job properly.

The canal drops about 100 foot in 17 locks known as the Rothersthorpe Flight over a distance of 5 miles. There are few satisfactory moorings on the route so one has little choice but to do the whole journey in one day. We reached the top lock at 9:45 and were in the flight working the locks for the following 4.5 hours.  For the majority of the locks it was necessary to fill them first before we could enter.  The only boats coming up we met were a couple of small narrowboats travelling together on a trip to Oxford each being single handed.  For most of their trip they would be able to share the wide locks but on the Northampton Arm each had to operate every lock individualy.  

Rothersthorpe Top Lock

Leaving Rotherstorpe Lock 2

Denise passing an on-coming boat

Canalside orchid

M1 Bridge shelters Lock 12

The locks themselves were in good condition and the area surrounding them well kept, I believe by local volunteers.  The first 13 locks are closely spaced and the scenery was pleasant with good views over the surrounding cuntryside.  Lock 12 is almost under the M1 where the motorway builders have provided an impressively large chamber for the waterway.  Near here I was pleased to find a few wild orchids growing by the canalside. Beyond lock 12 the locks become well separated and the canal becomes more like a reed-fringed river.  The water is clear and shallow and one can see very large numbers of small fish.

We descended lock 17 down to the River Nene and moored at 3 pm in Northampton Marina where we intend to stay for the following 3 nights.  This will gives us a chance for a rest, wash 2 weeks worth of dirty clothes, and stock up for the next phase of our journey where shopping opportunities will again be limited.

Today: 6.16 miles, 17 locks 5 hours 55 minutes travelling

South on the Grand Union

Pleasant boating weather, more cloudy than yesterday and not so hot.  Today's cruise was non-stop, lock free, with the aim of reaching the Northampton Arm ready for tomorrow's descent of the 17 Northampton locks down to the River Nene.

View from canal of Pendolino about to enter Stow Hill Tunnel

Passing other boats on the Grand Union

Moored Widebeam

After leaving later than usual at 10:30 the canal took us through varied scenery, some wooded and some with wide views over the fields.  We were generally able to maintain a good speed since the canal is wide and reasonably deep. As usual there is little habitation near the canal, except for the village of Weedon, but for much of the journey we were in sight of either or both the M1 and the West Coast Mainline railway though the instrusion into the seclusion of the canal was limited.  Unusually for this year's trip the canal was fairly busy with many moored and passing boats. A couple of the boats were widebeam which seem a little out of place in this part of the Grand Union.

We reached a suitable mooring spot about a mile north of the Northampton Arm at 14:00 and decided to stop here since moorings may have been more difficult to find further on.

Today: 10.3 miles 3 hours 30 minutes travelling

Lots of locks - onto the Grand Union Main Line

A beautiful and productive days boating.   Just over half a mile after setting off under blue skies with very little wind we reached Watford Locks.  We will now be going down hill until we descend close to sea level on the Great Ouse beyond Peterborough.

Waiting above Watford Top Lock, M1 in background

View of Watford locks

View from Watford Bottom lock

Watford locks are a smaller version of Foxton and take the canal off the summit level.  They comprise 3 standard locks and a staircase of 4 chambers located in idyllic wooded suroundings.  Well, nearly idyllic but the M1 crosses the canal above the first lock and the west coast main railway line does the same below the bottom lock.  Despite this I prefer Watford to Foxton because of the scenery, the lack of crowds and the absence of any tourist trappings.  Note that Watford is a small village in Northamptonshire perhaps best known for the nearby Watford Gap Services which can be accessed from the canal.

Looking back at Norbury Junction, Birmingham left,Leicester right at the large willow

We had minimal waiting time and were helped part way down the flight by the volunteer lock-keeper.  Beyond Watford the canal passes through woods to Norton Junction where it meets the main line of the Grand Union Canal joining London and Birmingham.  So we reached the end of our 66 mile journey from one end of the Leicester Section to the other.

We could have moored at this point but since it was not yet lunchtime we decided to carry on down the 7 lock Buckby fight.  These large, double width locks locks were notorious for being difficult to operate but despite us being on our own we had no problems and completed the flight in about 90 minutes.

We moored for the day soon afterwards near Whilton where we had lunch and visited the chandlery.

Today: 4.88 miles, 14 locks 4 hours 5 min travelling.

Yelvertoft, Crick and Crick Tunnel

Filling up with water at Yelvertoft

We delayed our departure as we like to listen to Melvyn Bragg on Radio 4 on Thursday mornings.  The weather was sunny and less windy than yesterday as we cast off at 10am.  25 minutes later we moored near Yelvertoft, the first village close to the canal for some days.  We had hoped to visit the local butcher and Italian Deli but after a half mile walk we found it was closed for the owner's holidays.  So back to the boat and a 100 yards move to tie up again this time at the water point where we filled up before carrying on towards Crick.

Bridge 16 between Yelvertoft and Crick

The nature of the canal is changing. It is noticably wider and deeper, enabling us to maintain a steady speed of 3mph without any feeling that the engine is being strained.  Also the attractive scenery is more visible being less hidden by canalside trees.  By 12:45 we had reached Crick and moored up next to the main road into the large village.  A 10 minute walk took us to the Coop where we bought a few groceries, hopefully, to last us until Northampton, perhaps 4 days away.

Approaching Crick Tunnel

After lunch on board we set off again to go through the 1500 yard Crick Tunnel. It is perfectly straight and from the entrance you could see the trees at the far end with a pair of binoculars.  It is also rather wet with continual drips of water falling from the roof.  For most of the journey through the tunnel there were no other boats around so we were able to travel quickly down the middle. However another boat entered as we were close to leaving.  Unlike our experience at Husbands Bosworth Tunnel we passed each other without any physical contact.

Moored south of Crick Tunnel

We moored up for the day half a mile further on in a pefect sunny location opposite a field of sheep with no other boats in sight.

Today: 4.69 miles, 2 hours 10 minutes travelling

Yelvertoft nearly - in the wind

Another day similar to previous days on our journey south along the Grand Union (Leicester Section).  Pleasant weather, some cloud, some sunshine, but too much wind for a really enjoyable day on the boat.  The canal continues its tree-lined way through the low hills avoiding any signs of habitation.  The only villages near the canal shown on the map are the sites of ones abandoned centuries ago.

The waterway is shallow and progress was rather slow .  We rarely attained 3 mph, partially because of the strong head wind.  As we were getting tired and frustrated by the wind we stopped at lunchtime but after eating decided to carry on for a bit longer.  Fortunately the wind was less of a problem as the canal was sheltered  by  the trees and the meanderng ensured that we did not face the wind for extended periods.

After some attempts to moor which failed due to insufficient depth of water near the bank we found a good spot, sheltered but not too overshadowed by trees, just under a mile from Yelvertoft where we stopped at 3pm.

No pictures as there was little different to see from previous days.

Today: 7.33 miles, 3 hours 5 minutes travelling

Welford

Heron strolling down towpath

 After yesterday's 10 locks we  took things quieter today.  We set off at 9:50 for yet another pleasant day in fairly warm, occasionally sunny weather through the same isolated countryside.  Some wildlife - the picture shows a heron walking down the towpath. In this area they take little notice of the passing boats.

Wsaiting to enter Husbands Bosworth Tunnel

First and only point of interest was the 1166 yards Husbands Bosworth tunnel where we were second in a line of 4 boats passing through.  Entry to the tunnel was delayed for about 1/4 hour as the lead boat did not want to enter because there were boats coming the other way although the tunnel is wide enough for two boats to pass.  Note that in the picture the light in the tunnel isnt the far end.  In the tunnel we met another boat who hit us as we passed.  Shortly afterwards I heard a bang as he also hit the boat behind us.  But no damage was done.

We stopped soon after leaving the tunnel at North Kilworth Wharf to pump out the waste water and for a quick repair.  A few days ago the brass fairline which carries the top ropes over the edge of the boat to protect the paint work came adrift when one of the screws broke.  The helpful guy at North Kilworth drilled out the old screw and fitted a new one for us.

We arrived at the junction with the Welford Arm at 13:00 and moored immediately.  We took Densie to the end of the arm a few years ago and saw no point in going again as there is little of interest.

During the afternoon Denise varnished some woodwork, washed one side of the boat as this was the first convenient mooring where the right hand side was adjacent to the towpath, and touched up some scratches in the paintwork.

Today: 5.22 miles, 3 hours 10 minutes travelling.

Foxton Locks and beyond

After a very enjoyable 3 night stay in Market Harborough we are now stocked up with groceries and filled up with water.  So it is time to move on. We started a bit earlier than usual in bright sunny though breezy weather and made the 2 hour journey back to the main Leicester Section of the Grand Union at Foxton Locks.

Entering Foxton Bottom Lcck

In the Foxton Flight, being watched by 2 visitors

Looking down the Foxton Locks

Here, one of the most popular visitor attractions on the canal system, two consecutive staircases, each of 5 single width locks, raise the canal by a total of 75foot.  The only passing place for boats is a short pound between the two staircases. After reporting to the lock keeper to book a slot we had about half an hour wait at the bottom as 2 boats made their  way down and then a small open boat entered the first chamber ahead of us.  We could then follow directly using the water from the chamber above us they had vacated to fill our chamber.  Help was provided both by a team of volunteer lock keepers who managed the alternating flow of boats and by visitors happy to have the chance of helping open the lock gates.

A pleasant mooring spot but too crowded for us

Beyond Foxton Locks there is a 20 mile lock-free section.  As previously the canal largely avoids the villages as it makes its way through attractive wooded scenery alongside the low Laughton Hills.  We moored for the day at 1:15 in a secluded spot 2 miles from Foxton.

Market Harborough

On the Market Harborough Arm

Saunt's Bridge

Moored outside Market Harborough Canal Basin

 As yesterday's wind had died down overnight we set off at 9:35 from Foxton to Market Harborough on the Market Harborough Arm of the Grand Union Canal.  Just beyond Foxton there is a swing bridge carrying a minor road across the canal.  Sadly although the control panel is electric the rather heavy bridge has to be operated by hand.  Having opened the bridge for Densie two other boats turned up which we let pass through.  Further on is a really delightful stretch of canal, similar in its isolation to the Leicester section but the trees lining the waterway are more mature and when visible the rural scenery is more hilly.  The only downside is that the canal is fairly shallow so we travelled at about 2.5 mph which was really very pleasant considering the quality of the journey.

By lunchtime we had arrived at the terminus of the Arm, the Market Harborough Canal Basin aka Union Wharf, where we turned around and moored at the visitor moorings just outside.  We walked the 3/4 mile downhill  to the supermarkets and 3/4 mile back again uphill carrying as much shopping as we could..  Since the town is interesting with a good range of shops we have decided to stay until Monday and so reversed the boat into a paid-for visitor mooring in the basin.  This is supplied with electricity which means we wont have to run the engine during our stay.

Today 5.1m, 0 locks, 1 swing bridge, 2 hours 15 mins travelling

A windy journey to Foxton

Binley's Bridge neararnowhere in particular

Near Debdale Wharf

The weather forecast showed strong winds decreasing over the day.  So we delayed our departure until 11am and set off south.  In the event the wind wasnt a serious problem as we travelled slowly down the rather shallow and occasionally narrow, meandering, tree-lined canal with gentle hills to the west.  After an hour we had reached the well known Foxton locks, but rather than ascend these today we turned left towards Market Harborough mooring at the little village of Foxton after about half a mile.

Today: 3.9m 0 locks 1 hour 30 mins tr\velling time

Saddington

The weather was warm and intermittently sunny. Having discovered that the boat moored next to us,  "Buccaneer", with its two crew was planning to make the same trip as us, we waited until they were ready to leave and then followed them south on the Leicester Section of the Grand Union.  Throughout the journey the canal kept its lonely course avoiding all villages or any other habitation.

Approaching Kibworth Top Lock

Sharing the ascent of the 5 Kibworth locks (named after the village of Kibworth Harcourt, over a mile away) made progress pretty fast despite the gates and paddles being hard to operate and the wind causing the need for careful steering when boats entered the locks.  At two of the closely spaced locks one person went ahead and set up the next one whilst the other tidied up the previous lock after the boats had left.

Approaching Saddington Tunnel

Leaving Saddington Tunnel

A mile further on both boats moored at the nearest point to the village of Fleckney where we bought a couple of urgently needed groceries and the Buccaneer crew went to a pub for lunch.  We ate our lunch on board and then left Buccaneer to continue our journey passing through the half mile Saddington Tunnel and mooring for the day about half a mile further on equidistant from Saddigton and Smeeton Westerby.

Today: 3.7 miles, 5 locks, 2 hours 3mins travelling time

A day off

Wistow model village

St Wystans

View of St Wystans from the canal

 We have spent the whole day at our moorings as we needed a change.  In the morning we walked to the nearby village of Wistow, well hardly a village now.  There is a garden centre with a tea room, a number of small "crafty" shops and a model village.  I hated it, but Denise seemed to enjoy herself.  There is also a stately mansion, and the partly Norman church, St. Wystans which stands alone surrounded by fields and trees.  Nothing of the village which would have housed its parishioners remains.

Today: 0 miles, 0 locks, 0 hours travelling.

Nrwton Harcourt

After breakfast we moved Densie to the services facilities on the other side of the canal.  Here we filled up with water and dumped the rubbish though unfortuately that had to include our carefully separated recyclables as there as no recycle skip.

Spinney Lock near Newton Harcourt

Approaching Newton Top Lock

The next section of our journey took us above and beyond Leicester into attractive countryside empty of any housing, with trees on one side of the canal and fields on the other.  Just the sound of birds - the distinctive calls of a skylark and yellowhammer were heard.  Although the journey was short there were 7 double width locks which we had to ascend on our own.  The paddle gear required some effort and gates were heavy to move except when they did so on their own accord, refusing to stay closed when we wanted to fill the lock.  Despite the hard work, it was an enjoyable journey helped by the lovely sunny weather.

We arrived at our countryside moorings near  Newton Harcourt at 1:20pm and had a walk around the small village but saw little of interest.

Today: 2.66miles, 7 locks, 3 hours 10 minutes travelling

To the edge of Leicester

First job in the morning after breakfast was to walk the half mile to the launderette in AylestoneRoad to wash 2.5 weeks worth of teeshirts, knickers etc.  We were pleased to find the Coin-op launderette was open, clean with modern machinery.  Nearby there were a range of shops that could be useful in future visits.

Typical south Leicester canal scenery

Waiting at Whetstone Lane Lock at Glen Parva

After returning to the boat we set off at 11:20 in sunny weather wearing shorts for the first time for many days.  At the first lock where the canal left the River Soar for the last time we met up with the small narrowboat "Dodderman", apparently the Norfolk dialect name for a snail.  We cruised together along what was now the Grand Union Canal for the whole trip through really attractive rural scenery around the southern edge of Leicester with only the occasional view of suburban housing,

After 8 locks we moored up at Kilby Bridge and immediately walked to the Navigation Inn for a well needed pint.

Today: 5.1 miles, 8 locks, 4 hours 5 mins travelling

On the move again - leaving leicester

View down Leicester's "Mile Straight" on the River Soar.

We spent the morning visiting the large central market to buy some provisions and then to a nearby Tesco for the remainder. Having filled the domestic water tank from the tap helpfully provided at the mooring we left at 12 :45 and moved towards the southern outskirts of the city.  Initally we went along the impressively wide "Mile Straight" which takes the Soar past the centre of Leicester under some ornate road bridges.  This soon reverted back to the fairly narrow tree lined meandering river scenery similar to that we had met further north.

We were lucky to turn up at the first lock, Freeman's Meadow, behind another narrowboat just as the gates opened to allow two boats to leave.  Unfortunately one of the departing boats took a wide path when leaving the lock and got securely stuck some way from the towpath on an evil smelling mudbank.  I was able to position Densie so I could pick up a thrown rope and attempted to use the power of our boat to pull the other one free.  To no avail.  Next strategy was to pass the rope to Denise and others on the bank so they could try.  Eventually they succeded in pulling the boat back off the mudbank and he went on his way.  And we continued ours on going through the subsequent 4 wide locks together with the first boat, which made life easier.

We have moored for the night near the suburb of Aylestone surrounded by trees and fields with some housing visible in the middle distance.

Today: 3 miles, 4 locks, 2 hours 35mins

Moored in Leicester

River scenery near Birstall

Again the weather was overcast as we set off at 9:25.  Our first stop was Leicester Marina a mile or so upstream where we emptied the waste tank and filled up with 115 litres of diesel which should last us about 5-6 weeks.  Half an hour latrer we were on our way again towards Leicrster city centre.  Despite us being within the city limits the scenary visible from the canal is very rural.  In the photograph the trees to the right hide a row of houses.

Old factory, now flats

Moored in Leicester

Further on the waterside greenery is replaced by old industrial buildings.  We were held up at the final lock by CRT who were undertaking a waterways survey using a boat equipped with SONAR.  The team consists of 5 people who cover the whole country.  By 13:30 we had reached Friar Mills, a new office development alongside the canal where the local council has recently set up pontoon moorings for visiting boaters.  On our journey we had reports that the moorings were full but we were lucky to find one free just long enough for the boat.

We will stay in this area until late Saturday or Sunday.  I have an Open University exam on Friday and also we are in great need of 4-5 days worth of groceries and to rerplenish our wine cellar.

Today: 5.43 miles, 5 locks, 3 hours 55 mins