Milford to Radford in the sunshine

Milford to Radford Bridge, 3 miles 0 locks, Staff & Worcs Canal

We moved over from the towpath side to the opposite side where there is a not well known water tap at what they call Milford Wharf, not only to pick up water, but to also pic up a Tesco delivery.. that Meg sure does eat!

Seven months old now she is, and she gets through two good bowls of food each day.. she does look good though, her coat is really shiny.. mind you so is Lucy’s.  I have noticed a big difference in her coat since changing her over to Tesco’s food.. you would think it would be not so good really, but it seems to suit them both well.

After Mr Tesco arrived and we put all the groceries away, I took the two dogs for a shortish walk along one of the bridleways here at Milford before returning back for a homemade soup lunch.

Pins pulled, we set off for Radcliffe Bank just outside Stafford, well it is the closest place for Stafford, the bus leaves every half hour at the bridge and takes just 10 minutes.  We are off tomorrow to Argos, our radio has gone up the shoot.  Annoying really as it is not that old, but old enough to be outside the guarantee. 

Although there are some houses opposite, they stand well back and I am pleased we are here as there is some shelter from them and the hill behind and also there is a bank.. (well there would be at Radford Bank!!) to protect us from the other side.  I guess we are in for a rough day tomorrow…

Gorgeous day today though for cruising along.. the back canopy protecting us from the cold wind yet allowing the sunshine to pour through warmly..

Marmaduke escapes, and Cannock Chase is a delight

Today, Moored Milford, Staff & Worc
Monday Tixall to Milford, 1.5 miles 1 lock, Staff & Worc Canal
Weekend Moored Tixall Wide, Staff & Worcs Canal

While we have been enjoying No Problem, our blogging mates John and Cathy with their new build narrowboat Marmaduke have had the ultimate fright when their builders went into liquidation.  Thankfully, as John reports, they have their boat and it is not being snatched by the liquidators, now though, they have to fund up front to get her finished.  I am sure John and Cathy will be getting all the help and support they need from the boating fraternity, who tend to pull together hard when this sort of thing happens as can be seen on various websites on the internet that John links to.  Good luck John and Cathy

I suppose everyone who has a new build must have some worries about this happening to them.  I know it did happen to Chas and Ann with their earlier boat Moore To Life. It is documented by Chas in his book in chapter 5..

“….By the end of February work had stopped and the proprietor had left the business. Aynho Wharf Boat Builders was no more…”

Like John and Cathy, Chas and Ann managed to get the fitters and workers from the boatyard to finish their build.

We were lucky enough to find the type of boat we wanted, not particularly liking the new almost white timber now put into boats, we like the older type of boat design, and therefore have gone for second hand on both occasions that we have purchased…

We pulled the pins on Monday morning from Tixall Wide.. I couldn’t believe it, it was so calm after the last week’s wind and rain.. but we had to move on to get some water and a Tesco order from Milford about a mile and half away..

Ha more molehills to count.. (see my last blog), these beside of Tixall Lock!  I wonder how many moles are under that lot..

It didn’t take too long to get to Milford, but we stopped for timber on the way.. a huge fallen branch that we cut into large rounds.  That’s the way I like to collect the wood.. we can split them as we need them later.. and so to Milford..

Tim Salt of Staffordshire Canopies came over today, well we are moored just along from him at the moment, and he replaced a tiny strap that we use to hold the screen back while going along.. Lucy chewed it would you believe!.. Well she goes mad when I go to start the engine, a collie moment I think and she grabs what she can to bit on.. usually it is one of the ropes!

He also put on a couple of turn clips instead of the poppers that are on one bit of the canopy.  For the life of me, I can’t seem to get the strength in my thumbs to close those poppers, so that will make things much easier when I go to close the boat up.

I have been walking the countryside all around this area, and since Friday I have walked 23 plus miles with the two collies Lucy and Meg.  Today it was over to Cannock Chase, a fantastic area.. But I have put on a pound this week.. gawd knows why, I have been sticking to my 1000 calories a day and lots of walking.. ah well as my old teachers used to say to me “Must try harder”

Oh, and I still don’t have a British Waterways Gold Licence disc.. I sent off well before Christmas, in fact it was about the 19th.. I did phone last week after reading that Bones had not received hers and they told her they had not had the application form.. Well they told me that they had mine OK, “It is being processed at the moment.. it takes up to 15 working days from receiving the forms..” Ho Hum, I wonder then, how many days they had off not working since I sent my form!? ..

Gotta mind the molehill at Tixall Wide now..

Moored Tixall, Staff & Worcs Canal

When I let the dogs out this morning I started…..

One, two, three, four, five, six… *yawn* seven, eight.. I thought “Hey that is enough of that!” 

The reason for all the counting was because The People’s Trust for Endangered Species is looking for volunteers to take part in a national count of mole hills!  Well there is no point in counting moles is there, because you never see the damn endangered creatures.  Well I did my bit this morning, but gave up the count due to the fact I was falling back off to sleep again..

Farmers and gardeners I guess won’t be joining in the count, nor, I suspect, will all the garden and DIY shops that sell hundreds of products “That definitely get rid of moles”.. so we are to save them are we?  I wonder how many moles there are to a molehill?  Ho hum, this survey is for future research.. I wonder what for.. soon we won’t be allowed to walk where there are molehills in case we disturb them eating worms!..

I didn’t do a lot today apart from counting molehills.. Oh but I did walk of course.. going via the Post Office at Great Haywood through Shugborough Park and the woodland on the far side. The lakes over there were full of wildlife..

Out of the Park through the beautiful gate houses at Milton Milford and back along the towpath from Tixall (Beep Beep) Bridge.  Tomorrow the weather looks good, and I might go over to the east of Great Haywood with the collies and have a look at the area around Tolldish and maybe come back via Little Haywood…

I hope Havant and Waterlooville do themselves proud tomorrow, but moreso, I hope they all enjoy themselves, not only the players but the 4000 or so ‘fans’ that have gone up there to watch.. I know a few people who have gone, I bet they have a great time..

Portsmouth play Plymouth tomorrow in the Premiership Football, the battle of the Dockyards.. guess what, the referee for that is a Mr Mariner!!

Tax Return Day, but time for I spy too...

Moored Tixhall, Trent and Mersey Canal Staff and Worc Canal

The title says it all, and I always leave it to the last minute to do the Tax Return.. well it’s not as late as I do it sometimes!

Having done that and also incorporating a bit of a spring clean of the ‘filing cabinet’ it was well into the afternoon that I tidied up for the day and grabbed the dog leads.

I had a reason to go out today.. to go find a narrowboat that I had passed without noticing the other day.. I can’t believe I did that.  Not only have I done it once, but twice, passing it just before the Christmas break in the other direction!.. No it is not this boat…

Yet another surely to be removed by British Waterways.. but it was this one I was after spotting…

So I spy 4Evermoore

This is the new narrowboat of Kev and Ann, has already done a lot of miles travelling, starting in Staffordshire, where the hull was built by Tim Tyler, then craned and taken on the back of a lorry to Higher Poynton on the Maccy to be painted and sign written.  Once that was done she was on her way back down the motorway to be moored here at Great Haywood for Ben Harp Narrowboats to complete the fit out!

Their blog is very informative and shows a lot of pictures of 4Evermoore at the various stages of build, and as I walked along the opposite towpath today I saw a guy getting aboard with some wood, so things are happening, which I know will please Kev and Ann.. when it’s finished they will continuous cruise..

Looking at the Ben Harp Narrowboats web page I see they are a small company, but obviously very proud of what they do, not afraid to show off their wares.. they even have a link to the 4Evermoore blog on their website!

Back to No Problem at just after 5pm.. it was still light hooray!  

Everything full again at Great Haywood

Great Haywood to Tixall Wide, Staff and Worc Canal, 0.5 miles 0 locks

Lots of litres of diesel needed today, the last time we put diesel in was at Turners Garage at bridge 69 the Shropshire Union Canal.  That was two months ago to the day, and since then we have done 130 hours running the engine.  Not all actually moving of course, but the engine has to be run for at least one hour a day when moored to keep the batteries fully charged for all the electrical uses on No Problem.

As well as that, the engine heats the water.. our woodburning stove has no back boiler, so the only way to heat water is by running the engine or, in fact, by using our diesel powered boiler which lives in the engine bay.  But we have not had to use that this year.  The boiler also heats the radiators but the woodburner is managing adequately to keep the boat warm.

Anyway, as a matter of interest, we took 158 litres of diesel to fill the tank at 59p a litre, and with the two week break at Christmas that worked out at around £15 a week for all our electric and water heating.  Our actual heating for No Problem comes almost for free because we burn wood only, using coal only as a standby.  The only cost involved is a small amount of petrol and oil to run the chainsaw, plus pennies for the tools to keep it up together such as chain sharpening files.

We could not moor outside the boatyard today through the bridge in the picture.  It is the holiday base of the Anglowelsh Hire Fleet, and all their boats were moored there, I counted over 20 of them, so we moored where you see, on the Trent and Mersey Canal.  From there they can make their pipes reach from the yard and through the gap between the bridge and the building for filling up with diesel and pumping out.

While that was being done, I went off to the village butcher to put some dinners in the freezer, only to find that I had left my purse aboard No Problem.. so a return visit was needed.

Then a trip to the Farm Shop with an empty bag to fill right up with fresh fruit and veg.  The prices there are generally cheaper than the Spar in the village by the way. 

With water on board and the rubbish duly dumped, I reversed No Problem, and as I did the wind kindly took the back end over to the other side of the canal.. very handy, then it was just a matter of full forward throttle and turn into the Staff and Worcs Canal.

Tixall Wide was the destination.. and so many boats along the half mile to the wide open expanse, some look as if they have been here all winter….. Ummmmmmm

Oh, and I received an email today from British Waterways, Wales and Border Counties after I questioned why boats are mooring for more than 14 days..

“As we have two Patrol Officers to cover nearly five hundred kilometres of waterway regrettably the lengths do not get checked as often as we would like.”

*Sigh* Says it all really dunnit? …  Sheeeesh?

To Great Haywood in the dark..

Salt to Great Haywood, Trent and Mersey Canal, 4.5 miles 2 locks

Oh my back!  Oh my legs!  Oh my arms!

Still it was worth it!  …….

Earlier, it was a quiet and dry when we pulled the pins mid morning..

Lucy and Meg were quite happy to trot along the towpath while Vic and I cruised the 4 plus miles we had planned for the day.. What with all the talk about the Association of Pleasure Craft Operators (APCO) balloting their members to see if they thought continuous cruisers should pay a higher licence fee, I decided to have a look to see if any of the narrowboats we passed on our way to Stone a couple of weeks ago were still moored in the same place, thereby breaking the continuous cruising rules of 14 days only in one place.

In the four and half miles we did today, there were 5 boats that had not moved!

Now these people don’t help our cause do they!… I do believe that it is because of this problem that we are being targeted to pay a higher licence fee. But where are the British Waterway Wardens or Linesmen to check out our towpaths for overstayers?.. They just don’t have the man power.. “Oh we will just put up the licence fee for them” is their attitude I am afraid

We stopped under Weston Bridge to collect some eggs from the first house by the towpath.. the chickens are always running around here, some even go up onto the road.. we had a couple of eggs for lunch, and they really sat up in the pan, I guess they were laid today!

So after lunch we set to and cut all the wood into lengths before carrying/trollying it back to No Problem moored about 50 yards around the corner as we could not get in close to the fallen tree.. and once we had done that, it was cuppa time before cutting it all up into rounds…

Look at that, the steam is even coming off the cuppa!.. Anyway by the time we had finished, and got it all put on the roof and into the front cratch, we were both knacked.. but we couldn’t stay at that mooring, it was too silted, and it took a good push to get the narrowboat free.. still just about light it was.. very unusual for me to be cruising in the dark!

Vic adjusted the front headlamp, and soon I could see exactly where I was going, passing a line of moored boats on the left, it wasn’t long until we came to Great Haywood Junction, and looking hard into the distance I could see that it was full of boats, with no obvious gaps, so I decided to turn right into the Staffordshire and Worcester Canal and hope that the mooring where the lady sells her canal ware during the summer was free.. Yep it was!  Phew!

Vic squared over while I put the dinner on, and after a hearty meal of gammon steaks, we both collapsed in the chairs well satisfied with our day..

Settled at Salt on Trent and Mersey Canal

Moored Salt, Trent and Mersey Canal

A quiet time for us moored near the small village of Salt.  It has been raining a lot just as it is everywhere else, but the towpath is draining well and is not at all muddy, perfect when there are two collies as members of the crew of No Problem.

The temperature has been warm though, and I have done a lot of walking.  I don’t mind the rain when walking, in fact I rather like it as long as it isn’t freezing cold and blowing a gale.  Over the weekend I suppose Meg and Lucy have enjoyed as much as me some beautiful Staffordshire countryside both to the south and north of where we are moored..

This to the south of our mooring and below to the north in Sandon Park.  Here a view from the top of the hill in the park, zoomed in to see the Power Station at Rugeley some 9.5 miles away as the crow flies..

In between times I have been working on a mapping project, and even at my age I find that I am learning a lot about one thing or another, it certainly keeps the ol’ grey matter active!

We may move on a bit tomorrow, I spied some wood a few miles along the canal, and if the weather is OKish we will have that bit.  We need water, gas and fresh provisions soon, and also a pump out is due sometime at the end of the week, so we will make our way to Great Haywood.. no plans as to what after that though..

Gusty again as we move to Salt on Trent and Mersey Canal

Burston to Salt, Trent and Mersey Canal, 2 miles 0 locks

Mr Tesco was not late and nor were we for our meeting at Salt Bridge.  Trouble was he spilt a whole carton of glorious double cream on the roadside by the bridge.. not that it bothered me too much, it wasn’t my cream.. nor for the fact that it would be a definite no no on my low calorie diet! But it did trouble Meg!

She fancied that, and it was only after two occasions she had gone missing and when I called her she appeared from the lane above the towpath my brain clicked the reason she had gone there.  She must have a really good nose because I tied her to the railing by the bridge while I went to pick up the shopping from Mr Tesco about 10 yards further down the lane.

We had settled for the evening too, and I didn’t really want to have to move from here.. so I thought the best thing to do was to sacrifice my washing line to the mud and tie her to that.. better that than have her inside getting bored or worst still getting knocked down on the lane..

But a quiet day for us apart from Mr Tesco.. I made some marmalade.. with very low calorie sugar, and took a brief look at Sandon Park very close to where we are moored..

Absolutely gorgeous the parkland.. well I only had time for a quick look today as it was getting a bit late, but tomorrow I hope to be able to walk 4 miles or so around this place.  There is a huge monument of William Pitt that can be seen from the canal.  It is a column, in fact, of some 22 metres high, and was erected in 1806 by the then resident of Sandon House, the first Earl of Harrowby, on the death of the Prime Minister William Pitt the Younger, under whom he was the Under Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs..

See I am full of useless information!..   But the column is magnificent, I took a walk up to it high on the hill today.. well panted my way up to it anyway.. more calories burned!

Good spot here where we have put the pins in, the towpath is dry, although earlier just after lunch the towpath under the bridge was flooded due to the workmen trying to lower the pound (stretch of water between one lock and an other) above Sandon Lock to do some work on the sluice.. that flooded this pound.. I honestly don’t think pushing water from one pound to another is going to do any lowering of water.. there is just too much draining in from everywhere else at the moment..

Collie Meg's training is going well at Burston

Moored Burston, Trent and Mersey Canal

It's been wet today, but I spent most of day roaming over the countryside to the north of the Trent Valley.  The valley itself is really flooded at the moment and there is no way across the footpaths in that area.  So I went up onto the downland, which is of grass pasture, and although it was a dank day, the colours seemed vibrant..

This was one of the nicest walks I have done for a long time, the land was undulating and I enjoyed not only the scenery but also the calorie burning as I stepped out up the hills!

It gave me a great opportunity for some serious training for Meg, now 7 months old.  Many of the fields had sheep or young cattle in them, and today was the first day I left her off the lead crossing them.  She walked to heel all the way, not deviating one bit to go chase.  Even here she is just about happy enough to pose for a second to show how good she is!..

Not done much else today apart from sorting some pics out on the computer and having a browse round.. and on my browse round I saw on the 2 Ds blog Gypsy Rover that Liz and Mike of NB Snicklifter have decided after 5+ years to become landlubbers once again.

Like Derek of Gypsy Rover, the Snicklifter site was one of the first sites I read.. before I was retired too, but I have never met Liz and Mike, and that was the first thing that upset me a bit when I read the news that Snicklifter was for sale.  I have always been keeping a watchout for when they are near us, but they never have been near enough.. fed up now I am!

But of course if you are reading this Liz and Mike, we wish you well with you next turn of life, and hope you enjoy that as much as you have enjoyed your time afloat.

Just going to move a couple of miles tomorrow to pick up a Tesco order, we only got a tiny one last time because of access, so need to top up on veg etc.. Looks like more rain for that little cruise, but that doesn’t matter to us, the pram canopy on the back, also known as ‘Wigwam for Whimps’ will keep us dry and warm.. so here’s this whimp signing off for another day!!

Hey it's a new year on the Trent and Mersey..

Moored Burston, Trent and Mersey Canal

This morning I spotted this while taking the dogs for a walk..

Primroses and bulbs bursting through.. then this evening on returning from Stafford this!…

Goodness it was very dark when I took this one, but I got the shot of the little lambs running to mum!.. I wonder if anyone else has seen any yet?

In between it’s just been a quiet sort of day, I made some soup before taking the dogs for a walk this morning, then after lunch Vic and I found the bus stop..

And spent the afternoon in Stafford.  Vic at last has his bridge fitted by the dentist after it arrived back wrong last week from the techno people.  He is chomping away on apples tonight, so all is well. 

WOW Half time at Havant and they are beating Swindon Swansea (edit thanks Sven!) 3–1!!!!

My local club that just up the road from where I used to live! I think I will publish this and listen the the second half from the BEEB on the net.

Edit… EEK 4–2 So far Liverpool here we come!!

Edit again… They won!!!!!!  

Mind the bridges near Burston, they are a bit low..

Car House Bridge (49) to Burston, Trent and Mersey Canal, 1 mile 0 locks

The towpath had got a bit muddy and the level of the canal had risen enough to tighten our mooring ropes, so we decided to move just a mile to a mooring I had noticed while walking yesterday, the towpath was completely mud free..

I went out to pull the pins and looking across the fields grabbed the camera before pushing No Problem away from the towpath..

We found bridge 87 quite low on the way to Stone in the other direction and wondered if we would have to remove anything in the other direction today, and the answer was…

Yes.. but no, I didn’t aim No Problem at the bridge at this angle, I have already stopped in time, realising that there is no way the new satellite dish was going under, so had to reverse up and give it another go.  The chimney cleared with inches to spare on passing through like a snail, and it was all stop again straddling the bridge hole while Vic walked back along the gunnel to put the back cover partially down to squeeze under!

I took Lucy and Meg for a stroll round the village of Burston just to the north of the canal.  What a lovely village it is, the houses all situated round the village pond.  There is also a pub, with the biggest car park I have ever seen for such a small place.. surely the locals don’t drive to it!!

Then I took the girls walking in the other direction hoping to cross the wetlands in a different direction than I did yesterday, but….

I think they thought I was wearing my bikini!!.. “Ha, I KNOW it says footpath this way, but no chance girls!!”

We will walk away from the Trent Valley tomorrow perhaps

Higher BW licence fees for continuous cruisers - AGAIN?

It’s reared it’s ugly head again.. they want to charge us more for being retired and able to move, use and live on our narrowboat for 365 days a year..

It seems the Association of Pleasure Craft Operators (APCO) held a ballot or petition among their members, one of the questions asked was..

“Yes I agree that Continuous Cruisers should pay a higher license rate equal to the cost of combining the average linear mooring fee with a private boat licence fee”

“No I don’t agree”

Well the ‘Yes I agree’ people were 93%.. but I wonder who the members are?  Well this is who they are from their website..

“APCO: the Association of Pleasure Craft Operators is the main trade body for Inland Waterway Businesses, representing over 140 independent companies offering River and Canal Holidays on Hire Boats, Day Boats, Hotelboats, Passenger Trip Boats and Business Services on the 3500 miles of navigable canals and rivers in the UK.”

They are absolutely nothing to do with private boating, so why on earth are they asking that question of their members?

I guess it is more than likely because of our dreaded ‘tar em with the same brush’ continuous moorers friends.  Those boaters who stay in one place for 14 days (allowed) then move to the next bridge and stay there for 14 days more (not allowed) then back to the same place as before (not allowed). 

These boats can often be found at visitor moorings for weeks on end, therefore annoying hire boat yards as their customers are not able to use the visitor mooring quite often.

They are going to submit the results to British Waterways, who they hope will do something about it. Mind you this Association have been trying their best to get us continuous cruisers to pay more for ages, they tried hard in the last round of consultations back in 2005 when we were threatened with a rise of 2.5% in our licence fee.. here is their reaction then..

“..felt that the boat licence should reflect the intensity of use that a boat makes of the waterway because of wear and tear and demand on rubbish disposal, sanitary facilities etc…

Because of the stoppage season, they suggested that continuous cruisers might be granted free winter moorings within the higher rate fee”

Ha a free winter mooring?.. But I don’t want to moor for the winter, I like to enjoy the waterways while the APCO’s members boats are all moored up!

During the summer when their member’s narrowboats are on the move I don’t go anywhere near visitor moorings except perhaps to get some shopping if needed.. I like to steer well clear of ‘narrowboat asda car parks’!

Sorry APCO, I think your petition stinks, it is highly one sided, your members all being from the trade.. of course you want continuous cruisers to pay more, if only to get the continuous moorers off the prime moorings! Oh and don’t forget, your members use more of the canal during the summer than we do all year!

Not my fault, I do continuous cruising properly and moor as remotely as I can by choice.

I spy in Stone, and No Problem moves away from the mud

Today Moored Car House Bridge (49), Trent and Mersey Canal

It continues to rain today, but I took the collies across the wetlands that are owned by Severn Trent Water.  They also own the close by Aston Hall Farm.  They have made major changes to part of the farmland making new habitats for wildlife.  As well as the wetlands there are is a lot of grazing marsh, and it is home to lapwings and snipe. 

When I walked the trail today there was a flock of plover on the water.  Mind you it was very, very wet underfoot, and if it wasn’t for my good walking boots and protective over trousers I would have been soaked.

There is a warning at one end of the walk about the danger of flooding and mud, but that was at the other end of where I walked… bit late by then!.. But they will be installing walkway boards across this flooded area.  Access to this is at Br 86 for anybody interested.

But the weekend saw us in Stone.. Our satellite dish had gone past it’s sell by date and had weakened enough for the arm to snap in two when Vic turned it to find the dot in the sky on Friday evening.

We pondered on what to do, and in the end decided to go for the expensive option of getting another kerstan dish.  A phone call to Midland Chandlers, “Yes we have a blue one in stock and if you pay for it today we can give you 20% off”.. Jumped at that offer, and on Saturday morning I had caught the bus from Stone to Penkridge via Stafford, bringing the dish home by lunch time.

I left Vic to put it up while I took Meg and Lucy along the towpath to Roger Fuller's Boatyard where I knew Hadar was moored.. I heard Hadar before I saw her, Keith had the engine running. 

Unfortunately my worst pic of the year with the sun in the wrong place.. but it was lovely to meet Jo and Keith.  I still am amazed at their patience waiting for the final completion of this magnificent narrowboat.. I was invited inside and met the collie cross Paddy the most friendly of dogs I have met for a long time, and the delightful cat, Marmite.

I have been watching the build of Hadar from the very beginning, and I wondered whether I could cope with living in a boat such as was designed by Jo and Keith, I had doubted it, but once inside it really was quite airy and bright, and certainly very cosy.  I think I could live with that!

Thankyou very much you two for showing me around your lovely boat, and of course the coffee and company for an hour or so, I really enjoyed.

By the time I had got back to No Problem, Vic suggested we staying one more night in the mud.. so Monday morning I nipped to Morrisons to pick up some fresh veg, and we reversed back to wind (turn) at the winding hole to find a dryer towpath mooring a couple of miles to the south….

‘Tis remote here, I like it..

Our Lulu died today..

Stone to Car House Bridge 89, Trent and Mersey Canal, 2 miles 1 lock

It started out a good day, just like any other day really, then a phone call to say that one of the family’s beloved ponies had died.

Our Lulu, or Ovington Lucretia her full and official Welsh Mountain Pony name.  She had taught all my children how to ride. She arrived in the family in 1981/82 when she was 8 years old.

She was never easy to ride, and at the shows always had her own ideas about having to stand still so judges could look over her as a lead rein pony.. Sometimes she would end up at the bottom of the class when she just kept showing her rear end to the judges no matter how much the judge moved round, round would come her bum again!

So we decided that maybe a perfect lead rein pony she was not, and we trained her from that to a gymkhana/mounted games pony.

Now she was in her element!  She taught the children balance, how to hang on, how to vault on and how to gallop flat out with or without a saddle, a perfect riding start for any child.

It culminated in 1985 with a 6^th place at the Great Britain Mounted Games Championship for under 10s at Great Malvern and a team member of the Prince Phillip Cup Mounted Games team.

Also in that year she managed to win 34 gymkhana championships out of 34 entered, and that was in under 10’s, 14’s and opens.  She was awesome!

Once all the children had learned to ride her they grew bigger and went on to other ponies, and Lulu was retired, only to come out of retirement just to let my grandchildren get the feel of riding, just walking round the field.

Now the grandchildren have their own pony called Whinney.

We will miss her a lot.. she was a bit special was Lulu, one in a million.

Ovington Lucretia (Lulu) 1973–2008 35 years

Grrrrrrrr a mud bath at Stone, water is fenced off..

Weston upon Trent to Stone, Trent and Mersey Canal, 6 miles 2 locks

Both dogs had to have a bath in the canal tonight before even being allowed on the back deck!

Stone canalside is in a right mess.  They are doing up the towpaths along here I presume, and for about quarter mile south to the water point there is a red plastic fence between the ‘doing up’ towpath and the canal…

But earlier we had pulled the pins at Weston this morning with the promise of no rain from the forecasters the night before.  I went below to do washing.. well I had let it pile up a bit because I knew we would be short of water if we were to take a leisurely time travelling from Great Haywood to Stone.

Anyway I looked out and saw rain drops on the cut (canal), and before long it was tipping it down, and that’s the way it has stayed since.  We sure were glad of the back pram canopy, and stayed dry for the cruise, except of course, when Vic did the two locks between Weston and Stone.

Here the famous mile post at Aston Lock showing 46 miles to Preston Brook and 46 miles to Shardlow, this point being the central one on the Trent and Mersey Canal…

Oh but it was wet, dark and miserable today..

I wished we hadn’t plan to move, we still had a few days water left in the tank.. huh, I shouldn’t have believed the weatherman!.. Never mind.. *sigh*

The two collies were happy to do most of the 6 miles on the towpath, so I knew I didn’t have to exercise them this afternoon, mind you that meant that I would not be burning any calories myself though!!

I think this boater had had enough today, stopping on the lock landing making it difficult for me to get Vic off to work No Problem through the lock..

It didn’t bother me really, just makes it a bit more difficult to get this 67ft narrowboat in a position to let Vic off safely and then get into the lock without too much paint off.

And so to muddy Stone.. deary, deary me.. the waterpoint was fenced off with that stupid red plastic fence stuff, and so were the bollards to tie up to for goodness sake.  If BW didn’t want you to get water then there should have been some notices at the boatyards and marinas just like there is about the lengthy stoppage at Yard Lock further along the other side of Stone.. but we managed to climb over/through the fencing to tie up.

Home made soup for lunch while the tank filled, but by then we too had had enough, so we just pulled No Problem back in her own length and put the pins in.  I went out and ‘dunked’ both dogs into the canal much to Meg’s annoyance!.. “But you are a canal dog Meg, you have to do these things!”  Lucy just jumped in to order.. bless her.  I left them to drip dry on the back deck for an hour..

At last it looks like waterscape have got their head round their website a bit.  I received my first emergency stoppage notice this evening after many months of receiving nothing. 

Pelsall Road Bridge

Monday 14 January 2008 - Friday 18 January 2008

There will be a restriction to the navigation while the bridge beams are put into place. There will be 30 – 40 minute delays to boaters during this work. British Waterways apologise for any inconvenience caused.

Enquiries: 01827 252000

I subscribe to emergency stoppages you see, and it is very handy sometimes to know what is going on around our cruising area.

There are still a few gremlins on the waterscape website, one which really annoys me, and which I have written to them about is the maps they are using on the individual waterways, such as The Trent and Mersey Canal, the little map shows the Grand Union Canal and not the Trent and Mersey Canal, and that is the same for all of the canals.. wasn’t like that when Richard Fairhurst was the editor, and even now you can write to him about the maps at waterscape..

“If you would like to comment on the maps or any other aspect of the presentation, please

contact richard.fairhurst@waterscape.com”.

Trouble is he is now the editor of Waterways World and not Waterscape! 

John and Fiona of NB Epiphany are into extreme sports! I am going to give this a go, I think it will help burn calories while the rain falls!! 

A day out in Stafford..

Moored Weston Upon Trent, Trent & Mersey Canal

Didn't take too long on the bus, and we got some mug shots done of Vic so that I can send off for his bus pass.  This I have to send to Hampshire for, and didn’t bother applying until now because we just are never in Hampshire to be able to really use it!

But next year the bus pass will mean that he can use the buses all over the country with his pass.. and hey so will I!

But that is NEXT year, got a bit to go yet!

The dentist was a waste of time because the bridge he has had made had not come back from the technicians exactly as the dentist had requested, and as it only arrived this morning the Dentist himself had not had time to check it until poor Vic was in the chair!

No worry, we have another appointment next week, and we needed some bits and bobs anyway.  Picked up some new toys for pup Meg to keep her happy while we were there and sent off a couple of birthday cards too.

We were really pleased when we got back to No Problem, Meg had been as good as gold, and had not even taken a shoe off the rack or taken anything off the shelves.. phew she is growing up at last!

So lots of praise for her and both she and Lucy got presents for being good today.

After lunch I took them out for a quick stroll over the fields here at Weston, and on through the churchyard I had to smile at what I saw…

“Keep clear Paramedics Base”

Off to Stone tomorrow to get some much needed water.

On the move again to Weston upon Trent

Ingestre to Weston upon Trent, Trent & Mersey Canal, 1.25 miles 1 lock

I couldn’t believe it this morning when I opened the curtains.  Not a cloud in the sky, and no wind to speak of at all.  We knew we had to move to Weston today because Vic has a dental appointment in Stafford tomorrow, and had planned to do the short cruise this afternoon.. But the pins were pulled after breakfast, we guessed the bad weather which was forecast, would arrive soon.

Just the one lock to do, and in just under 45 minutes we had put the pins back in the ground.  Ha, and within half an hour the rain was tipping down!

I waited till the weather passed over before going to the post office this afternoon.. I wasn’t sure if it was open or shut beings it was Wednesday, the website I use to find out these things was down when I looked today. 

It is a great site that, especially for finding Post Offices and the opening times.. UK Villages .. Have a look at it, it claims to have every village in the country covered, and I find the information about Post Offices is very accurate.  I needed to post some letters anyway, so didn’t bother to phone to find out.  If you put the name of the Post Office into google it is easy to find the phone numbers.

In any case it was shut, no worry, so I just posted the letters and made my way back.  I met a fisherman close to No Problem.  I had been watching him while we had lunch.  NP is on a bit of a bend, and I could see him through the dinette window round the corner a bit.  He just kept catching fish after fish after fish.

Anyway I enjoyed a good chat and banter about Boaters v Anglers, such a jolly fisherman.  He is competing in a match here on Sunday and was getting some practice in.  I was amazed at the amount of gear he had, and he showed me round his ‘stool’ which was packed full of floats of all sorts ready hooked up with various weights also attached so that he could just attach them to his line.. blimey and there is me with just a hook and a rod when I have a go!

Look at that, over 100 fish in just 4 hours fishing.. Steve guessed the total weight was about 6 and half pounds. 

Bit blowy to say the least near Weston

Moored Ingestre, Trent and Mersey Canal

It sure is rocking NP tonight, the wind is blowing broadside very hard, but we are OK, there are no trees around although I wonder if the logs on the roof are going to end up in the cut.  I suppose I should have taken them off, but the wind has only just got strong.  I will go rescue my little watering can though in a minute. 

We watched this little fella stalk a moorhen this morning..

Up the tree was this mink looking down on the local moorhen.  But she was aware that he was stalking, and when he made his move she was off in a flurry of noise!

I note that the Challenger Syndicateships have called in the receiver… I don’t think there is a lot of surprise up and down the towpaths with the owner Ed Rimmer apparently having run businesses before that have ended up the same.. Ho hum, I guess as all the boats are owned by their owners there will be no real worries, but a forum has been set up here to help answer questions by those wanting information.

Blimey the rain is really coming down now, tis a bit scarey.  I am not going out to rescue the little watering can, if it goes, it goes.  We have lost the signal on the sky dish now.. lets hope that does not end up in the canal too!..

The lock is shut at Stone, Yard Lock that is, and there are boats around waiting to go through.  We are also waiting, but at least we don’t need to go through like some others.  I walked the dogs this morning expecting the weather to close in earlier than it has done, and passed this boat..

 

I wonder if Liz and Steve read my blog.  They got engaged on December 31^st at Tixhall Wide, Awwwww.  Anyway this narrowboat has already passed us and I didn’t twig who it was until today, but nobody about to say hello to unfortunately.

Salt Bridge itself is a work of art..

On closer inspection there is some damage..

But notice the rope marks from long ago when horses used to pull the narrowboats on the way back to London from the potteries at Stoke. 

The towpaths themselves are in really good condition in this area as you can see.  It is a pleasure to go out walking and not arriving back with mud all over me and the dogs.  Next winter we will spend in this area I feel sure.

The wind abated for a short time just now, and I just let the dogs out for a quick wee and look at this!…

Now the weather man did not mention this in his forecast this evening!!  And there was me sitting inside thinking it was pouring with rain!

It all began for me at Hixon on Trent and Mersey

Moored Ingestre, Trent and Mersey Canal

This is the place where my Mum and Dad first met.. The Cock Inn at Stowe by Chartley

They were both stationed at the nearby, what was, RAF Hixon.  Now it is just a huge open space with an industrial estate taking over the perimeter and some of the old buildings.  Some of the buildings have been restored and adapted with offices which is nice, and the centre of the airfield is now planted with winter wheat.  I wonder what they will do with it in years to come…I don’t know if anyone is interested in old RAF bases, but I have put together some pics for my Dad with maps to show where each pic was taken from.. linky.

The runways are still in place there, and I walked all the way round and up to the village of Stowe by Chartley where my Dad was billeted.  “I am 18 again!” says he on the phone after he looked at the photo gallery!

Mr Tesco came this morning, what a nice guy he is bringing our groceries right up to the boat along the bumpy lane.  We had walked to the main road thinking that there would be no way he would fetch his van to the boat.. but nope, bumpity bump.. “Better check your eggs” says he passing them to me with a wry smile!

Walked the other way today to the village of Weston upon Trent, there were loads of chickens running loose on the towpath.. Meg has not seen chickens on the loose before.. phew just about stopped her from culling the small flock.. here too she would have liked to have been able to go play with the local sheep..

I am glad I am not the only one without a licence disc.  It seems there are quite a few.. Mo and Ness on Blamahahaha don’t have one.. nor do they have a blog that is working at the moment!.. Although if you follow this link through technorati you can see a bit of the latest posts.  Time for a change of blog software me thinks Mo?! The two D’s don’t have a Gold licence disc on NB Gypsy Rover.. either

“Don't worry Sue, we are also members of TUBA (Technically Unlicenced Boaters Association) despite personally presenting ourselves for a new Gold Licence on 22nd November at BW headquarters at the Grange in Watford.”

And hey what about this grumpy boater who commented on the last blog “All boats not showing a licence should be scuttled”!!! 

I jest, but as Les says, at least the wardens normally carry their hand held computers to check up on licence dodgers.

Hey, all these Gold Licences.. does that mean it is going to be a mass bloggers exodus from the canals to East Anglia for the summer then?

Finally.. look at the left hand column, my weight chart – not one pound dropped this week!

A seemingly unlicenced continous cruiser near Stone - Tut tut

Moored Ingestre, Trent & Mersey Canal

No Licence, From the towpath it looks like I don’t have a licence for No Problem!

Well I do, I think!.. I paid for one, but British Waterways have not taken my money as I saw when I checked my bank balance this morning after err, ahem, a ‘heavy’ Christmas when the budget went right out the window.  Well what do you expect with 3 children and 4 grandchildren.

So I am going to get a knock on the door when I get to Stone I guess.  I sent the old licence discs back along with the form for our Gold Licence for this year.  I will get a refund, you see, if I send back the old licence disc because that does not expire till April.. Ah so I am licenced really then!! .  Just I don’t have a disc.. and no refund.  Yep that makes me legit! (I think)

It’s complicated, the system they use for Licencing boats.  I think that if you pay by direct debit then you don’t get your licence disc until the end of the period that you have paid for.. so if you get a 3 month licence on DD, then you don't get the disc till after the three months when it will be run out anyway!  Someone will tell me that isn’t right surely?

Just one boat past us today while I was clearing my filing cabinet of things that I have put off for a week or so.. and with that done off I went with the two girls canines, Lucy and Meg to explore the lanes around Ingestre..

Here a bridge a short distance away from No Problem, and underneath is the River Trent.  I didn’t stay out long, the rain started coming down and I really didn’t fancy a soaking this afternoon.  I took the pic above on my mobile phone, and when I took that off the phone, I saw there was another one on there.  This is a very interesting pic.  I took it the other day while waiting for the bus when we left to return to No Problem from ‘dan’saff’..

Look at that bush, covered with green leaves, it was a small willow I think, certainly it was not an evergreen tree, some of the leaves were turning yellow.  I wonder why it didn’t shed it’s leaves.. anybody know?

Oh yes, and when I was sorting out the pics I noticed one from the week before Christmas…

Always great to meet my blog readers.. Hey, Hi Sarah!  I managed to get a quick pic of Sarah’s narrowboat Greyhound as she waited for us to lock through Shutt Hill Lock on the Staff and Worcs just before our Christmas break.

New Years Resolution on the Trent and Mersey..

Cruising Trent and Mersey Canal to Ingestre

There were some tears yesterday!  Some doubt creeping in about my decision to spend my retirement on the canals was it?  I am not sure why the tears flowed when I said goodbye to the two labradors of Wendie and Danny.. They had gone to work an hour or so before and the two grandchildren, Kiera and Niamh (pronounced Neeve) had been taken to their other granny for the day..

Vic re-assured me as we locked the door behind us and led Lucy and Meg along the road to the bus stop to start our journey back to No Problem.  Of course Christmas and the New Year had been the same as years gone by, just one heap of enjoyment with the children at the centre of everything we did..

A quiet moment as I crept down on Christmas Eve after hearing some bells ringing and Rudolf’s hoofs landing quietly on the roof, this is what I found downstairs…

I have never crept downstairs before, although all through my life I have sometimes heard the bells and hooves on the roof on Christmas Eve I have never been brave enough to do it … funnily enough this picture number in the December Album is number 24.. how odd!

But by boxing day a much busier scene..

As everyone tucks into Wendies traditional buffet.. while in the kitchen Buddy the lab takes Meg the young border collie as his girlfriend.. sleeping together is accepted in the canine world isn’t it!!..

New Year we all spent together this year, usually Vic and me babysit while the boys and girls go out, but I think they got a bit fed up with having to pay a fee of £15 just to get into the pub that they use for the rest of the year for free.

I can understand why pubs want to charge because they want to keep the street drunks out, but they should give tokens or the like to their regular customers so they can get in for free at New Years and a thankyou for their custom..

Train was busy on the way back.. the mainline from London to the Northwest was shut due to the over-running of works at Rugby.  Everything was being diverted through Birmingham.  Our route from Southampton went the other way and at Birmingham station there were people waiting 10 deep on the platforms all trying to get on our train of four coaches! 

I opted for first class travel this Christmas, well if you book up cleverly you can get it really cheap even at Christmas time, but you have to search hard for the cheap bargains.  The two dogs were quite comfortable even though the train was jam packed, thank goodness we were not in the other carriages, the dogs would have been stressed out completely as well as us! The train was so full that they were having trouble shutting the doors, people were standing in the loos as well!!  I wonder about the safety of it all sometimes.

So filled the fridge this morning, and the bread bin and veg racks and fired up the engine.. Yep no problems there, water working, fire on the go and a kettle boiling away, we pulled the pins for the first time in 2008 and headed north towards Stone. (Look out Hadar here we come!)

These two were keen to get on the move again too.. and so was I.  It was nice to realise that I have made the right decisions to retire to a narrowboat, my tears of yesterday were just goodbye tears rather than tears of doubt..  

Gonna be a bit stuck for a couple of weeks, there is a lock at Stone that has an emergency stoppage “There is a hole in it” was the answer I got when I asked why the closure, and I wasn’t in the mood to ask for a long explanation.. just wanted to get away really.. and the other way, there is a couple of locks to the south shutting next week for their winter maintenance..

Oh the title of the blog!  My New Years Resolution – To lose 2 stone in weight before 31^st July.. EEK I have just made a public announcement!.. Note to self – “Hide those chocs!”

It’s great to be back writing, and I want to thank all of you who left such wonderful comments on the last blog, It really was so very nice of you all.  I hope you all had a wonderful time over the holiday period.. and hey how about letting me know what your New Year Resolutions are then? Teehee!