Wednesday, September 07, 2016

Hatton today

Wednesday 7th September 2016

No pictures today – I tried several times to get a picture of the Kingfishers we saw fleetingly above Hatton and then got a bit busy for photographs.

After a good night’s sleep G was looking forward to the challenge of Hatton – 21 locks – today. My thoughts are with first-time-locks lady from yesterday as she has to complete the descent at Lapworth before starting to go back up again – so ten more locks than yesterday. She’ll hurt! Fingers crossed we get a share for Hatton.

Five minutes after loosing off from our lovely mooring we came across some hirers all stood around their open engine hatches looking concerned. Problem? How do you know how much diesel you have got left? Don’t worry we replied, hire bases usually ensure you’ve got enough. How long have you been out for? “Only two days” came the answer. No worries. (and where were they thinking of filling up, the next boat yard is their own hire base ;^)

They agreed to share Hatton with us and so started pulling pins. After two locks it was mooted that they would stop at the Cafe for breakfast. I said that they could not do that in the small pounds between locks and got a ‘bossy busybody’ look. I explained, but not as well as the confusion in the fsce of their steerer when he realised that another boat coming out of the lock would need somewhere to go in order for our boats to move locks. I asked him to consider how little room there would be if people stopped for breakfast at the cafe.

The three lads had hired for 4 days to see if they liked living aboard as one was considering buying a boat and living on the canal. So, four days in the summer with no washing to do, no loo to empty and enough engine hours/solar for a phone charger – is this a representative sample? They were bound for the Cape at Warwick – “good pub” said I, “We’d prefer a cocktail bar” came the retort, “is there one?” I admitted the nearest one we knew of was in Birmingham.

They left us after lock 37 as they moored up and walked back up to the cafe for breakfast. The solo boat we had been following had also stopped at the same place so we continued on down the flight on our own meeting several boats coming up. We then went into Saltisford basin where we had booked an overnight mooring in order to be close the nb Uncle Mort as we are sharing the ascent to Blue Lias with them tomorrow.

Once tied up, Graham went of on the Di Blasi for the marathon (30+ miles) rfun back to Alvecote to fetch the car and deliver it to Long Itchington ready for a run home tomorrow to fetch stuff for Cutweb Rally next weekend.

Onto Hirates – I have invented this name for hirers that insist on dressing up as Pirates – there have never been any pirates on the canal that I am aware of.

Brenda

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