Vandals catch us out... But back on schedule

Today and 12th March – Moored Bulbourne, Grand Union Canal
11th – Berkhamsted to below Dudswell Locks, Grand Union Canal, 2 miles 4 locks

Another email from John on Friday morning told me that the canal at Linslade was now full of water, and the work there had been completed… thanks John

So back to Plan A… and our rendezvous with friends at Milton Keynes was back on… and we would make Northampton by Easter as long as there were no other unannounced stoppages.

On Friday we left Berkhamsted fairly late in the evening looking for a new place to moor as the night before we were disturbed by some yobbish behaviour around the canal side…It’s a nice area in Berkhamsted to moor… parks to the left in the picture and the town to the right.

Mooring just as the light were fading, we had hoped for a quieter night, but in the  evening about 8pm, NP started to list, we were aground.  The mile long pound had dropped by a foot!  Another boater went south to investigate the lock behind us only to find that vandals had opened both top and bottom paddles, allowing the water to just pass through like a river!  The towpath and land to the south on the downhill side was flooded.  We managed to get ourselves floating again, but Chas and Ann did not have such luck.  Pushing and pushing Moore 2 Life, we could hear china falling out of the cupboards such was the list by this time.

Another boater went to the lock above and let some lock fulls of water through into the pound… and luckily there was a pumping station allowing water to flow into the canal… So both boats were floating within an hour, and it took most of the night to bring the levels back up..

The following day we moved up to a really nice spot offside between the two Dudswell Locks.  It was OK there as the lock bottom paddles had to be left open…. there was no way (unless the same thing was to happen again) that we would be aground at that spot.

Well with the news of the extended stoppage now not happening, we moved on up to the summit level of the Tring Cutting.  A cormorant insisted on sharing a few locks with us on the way up… most strange!  He seemed quite at home in the locks waiting for a free ride up the canal.  I guess he can’t fly… but he is doing a grand job of moving about!!

 and so on to Bulbourne for the weekend… we have a nice mooring here

Ooops nearly forgot, I promised a pic of the refitted galley…. here you go then.

 All blood sweat and tears, but it is finished, and I just love it!