Glorious Saturday leads to a blog meet on Sunday near Bedwyn..

Today – Close Little Bedwyn to Church Lock, Bedwyn, K&A Canal, 1 mile 2 locks
Weekend – Hungerford to between Little and Gt Bedwyn, Kennet & Avon Canal, 3.5 miles 8 locks

Now you are all going to be disappointed because what I had hoped to tell everyone today did not happen on Friday when it should have.. so I am afraid it is still ‘watch this space’ for a little while longer! . 

Saturday was glorious and we decided to pull the pins to make our way leisurely towards Honey Street and our next source of diesel.  I really did enjoy this cruise along the canal in some stunning countyside, as is always on this canal…

It’s very easy going when in pairs, and with our companions Chas and Ann with NB Moore2Life we make light of the many lock leading to the summit of the K&A after Wootton Rivers around Pewsey.  Vic and I shared the load, although Vic was suffering a bit after slipping on the gang plank a few days before and ending flat on his back.. he is OK, but after those efforts of Saturday he has ended up a bit sore!

I think this part of the canal is my most favourite, lovely names too like Cobblers and Picketfield Locks and close to the canal there is Trindledown Copse.  We are approaching the best named place though, Cuckoo’s Knob.. such wonderful names..

We settled on Saturday between Little and Great Bedwyn.  On Sunday I knew blog reader Dave would probably arrive via a mountain bike.. and when a couple knocked No Problem I wondered where the bikes were.. but it was Tony and Pat who have been reading the blog for a couple of years now and have decided to go for it and retire to the good life of canalites!.. Out and about in June of next year Tony tells me.. It wasn’t long ‘till Dave appeared, but without his pride and joy bike.. injured back again… what is it with the guys!!

We all chatted over tea and some home made biscuits ‘till well past lunch time, when they all left to make for their transport left back at Little Bedwyn.  Both had spied us from the narrow road that runs parrallell about 100yds away from the canal, knowing we would be around somewhere.  It was great to meet you all!!..

Left to right then, Tony, Dave, moi, Pat and Lucy in front!

We moved up today just a mile.. we needed water, and while Vic did that I wandered into the village to do some post and go to the excellent bakery to stock up on a couple of loaves and some delicious eccles cakes.. surely the best in the land!.. “We don’t do scones on a Monday”.. this I noted as their scones are also out of this world.  It’s funny really, I always seem to remember all the good things that villages produce all over England, and for sure Great Bedwyn’s ‘I remember that place’ thing is scones from the bakery!

Managed to put the pins in just above Church Lock this evening.. not an ideal mooring, the plank is at full stretch again, but idealic for walking tomorrow.. absolutely superb walking around here and hopefully a trip to Wilton Windmill which I have not been to yet.  The moorings on the K&A are pretty bad.. I guess that British Waterways want us to use the visitor moorings so that there is some regimentation along this canal.. but I might say “What visitor moorings?”.. For sure, a lot of the ‘visitor moorings’ are taken up with British Waterways ‘Winter Moorings”!.. so where do we moor? 

Makes me smile, but is OK if we can make the long plank reach.. just got to make sure Vic doesn’t slip on it in future!