Facing the Guillotine

Saturday 30th May 

As we left Northampton behind and moved onto the River Nene, pronounced Nen hereabouts, the sun was shining, the river wide and the scenery beautiful. 

Leaving Northampton behind us.

The locks though were a different story.  None of us had encountered Guillotine Locks before and to be honest were all a little scared of them. The name alone was enough to put us off even before we caught site of them.

Guillotine lock in the closed position.

We were travelling down the locks and all guillotine locks had to be left in the UP position. That meant that at every lock we had to lower the guillotine, raise the paddles at the other end to fill the lock to the level of the river where the boat approached the locks (as in picture above), open the gates & drive the boats in, close the gates, lower the paddles and raise the guillotine, to let the water out so that the boats would then be the same, lower level , as the river the other side.  

Open & all ready to drive out

Now the really scary bit where we had to drive the boat out under the raised guillotine!  Most of the guillotines were electrically operated but we still had to hand wind the gates, with some taking 75-80 turns to open or close the paddles and we did 10 of these on the first day!

Next day, Sunday, started wet so we had a late departure and travelled on our own.  We had earlier read a blog by another boat, No Problem, who mentioned an old customer of ours at The Thatchers, Chop Wales, who we knew moored his boats (yes he has two) in these parts, so Tony sent him a message on fb and arranged to meet him at Ringstead where we had a cuppa with him in the Woodford Mill Tea Shop, and he told us of his involvement with 'Friends of the River Nene' and recommended a mooring for the night in Woodford.

Chop & Tony in the Woodford Mill Tea Rooms

Chop & his unconventional mode of transport

We took Chop up on his recommendation & moored up at the FOTRN mooring at Woodford. We had trouble getting alongside the bank as it was very windy and blowing us across the river, however we eventually managed to get tied up.  The bank was very uneven but it had all been mown, we had it all to ourselves & the views over the Northamptonshire countryside were picturesque.

Woodford mooring

We followed the footpath from the mooring which took us through the very pretty village to the pub The Duke for a drink.

Woodford 

Woodford from the river

Monday 1st June dawned bright and sunny, a beautiful morning if a bit nippy.  We only had a short journey to our next stop Thrapston where we were to meet up again with Aria & Teezy. The town moorings were located just before the Medieval 9 Arch Bridge and very tricky to see let alone negotiate. 

Thrapston Town mooring

Soon Teezy & Aria joined us and we all moored up securely as the weather forecast was for 52 mph winds the following day!  By the evening there were 5 boats rafted up, all battening down the hatches against the strong winds.

All three in

 Later a friend of mine, Maureen, who lives nearby came by for lunch & we had a good catch up.

Maureen & Jan

Tuesday we stayed put while the winds raged and went for a walk along part of the Nene Way taking us round Islip and Thrapston and dined at The Woolpack in the evening.  The following day, having used up our 48hr stay at the Town moorings,  we moved just a short way to a mooring just below Islip lock which .we had spotted on our walk. Here we had our first BBQ of the holiday, sitting on the bank in the sunshine & enjoyed the sunset.

Tony G,Teresa, Jan, Tony A, Karen & Martin

Sunset at Islip

Thursday was a beautiful warm sunny day & we made our way to Fotheringhay, another picturesque village with a very imposing church overlooking the river.  The farmer here allows mooring  against his meadows for a very reasonable £4 a night which he collects in his old Treacle tin and assures us all goes to charity.
There once was a castle nearby ( only the mound and earthworks remain) which was the final place of imprisonment of Mary, Queen of Scotts who was tried and executed in the castle in 1587.

Moored at Fotheringhay

Friday dawned dull & wet but it brightened up later and we made our way to Alwalton where we moored in a by-water, beside the lock, overnight ready for a final push into Peterborough on Saturday morning.

Friday 5th June

Since starting this journey at Hallingbury Marina we have travelled 184 miles and done 167 locks.  It has taken us 4 weeks and we could probably get home by car in about 2 hours!

Milton Keynes to Northampton

Saturday 23rd May 2015

 Aria & Teezy caught up with us while I was still at the workshop & set off again before I got back to the boat so we left immediately I returned. We had one lock then a very long stretch of lock free cruising.  Who'd have thought it would be so attractive through Milton Keynes, there are so many parks & lakes it could even be called tranquil in places.

We met up with Aria & Teezy,  all mooring together for the night between Wolverton & Cosgrove where many runners passed us.  We discovered they were on a charity run from Birmingham to London, over 150 miles, and running through the night with torches strapped to their heads.  Now that is dedication for you.

Milton Keynes  -  Who'd have thought it?

A rather attractive mural in Milton Keynes

Stoke Bruerne was our next stop, a popular tourist attraction with a set of 7 locks, a pub, shops and a museum.  It is always a very busy spot for boaters and we met up again with Paul & Margaret on Pussers Rum.  It happened to be Martin's birthday so we all had a meal in The Boat (pub) to celebrate.

Jan, Teresa, Margaret, Paul, Karen, Martin & Tony G at The Boat Stoke Bruerne

Before we left on this journey we had a new Axium prop fitted to improve performance & stopping power.  During our travels Tony had become increasingly worried because the nut kept working loose, so he had contacted a boat yard who agreed to have a look a it.  We arrived at The Grand Union Boat Co. yard Monday evening and Stan & Beryl on nb Rosedale let us raft up next to them.  Next morning the yard decided Aylmer needed to come out of the water.

Putting the straps on ready for the lift

16 Ton up and away!

There she goes

Our berth for the night

Having got her out of the water the engineer deemed the nut damaged.  Apparently it was brass and the thread inside had stripped so a new one was needed and as they didn't have one of the right size it had to be ordered.  It would be delivered by post.  Nothing for it but we had to spend the night on her on dry land, the second time in her short life, see 

DELIVERY OF AYLMER Dec 2011.

The problem NUT!

Luckily the postman was kind to us and the new nut arrived the next morning.  It took the yard no time at all to fix it & have us back in the water and on our way.

We were now on the Northampton Arm of the Grand Union Canal & had 17 locks to do in 5 miles!  At the second lock we gave a ride to our own 'Rosie & Jim' in exchange for some help through the next couple of locks by the adults accompanying them.

'Rosie & Jim' with Mum Jane

This short stretch of canal links the Grand Union to the River Nene (pronounced Nen in these parts) and the beautiful, tranquil scenery makes the passage through these obstinate, heavy and difficult locks, all worthwhile.

Eventually the old Express Lifts testing tower comes into view heralding the town of Northampton our next destination.

The redundant Express Lifts testing tower

Arriving at Becket's Park in Northampton we were welcomed in by Stan & Beryl on nb Rosedale who we'd last seen at the boat yard.  The boys discovered a blues night at the local pub, the Malt Shovel, where I'm told they had great beers.  We spent a couple of days in Northampton whilst the heavens opened, interspersed with a few sunny periods when we nipped into town for the shops, market and a bit of sightseeing.

Tony Outside the Guildhall

Friday 29th May

Wind, Rain, Sunshine & Excitement

Saturday 16th May

We managed to get our favourite mooring opposite the 4th Green at The Grove with Aria & Teezy.  Karen & I spent the afternoon sitting on the roof of Aria, with Pimms & Pringles, in the sunshine while the rest of them watched the golf.

Aria, Aylmer & Teezy at The Grove

The following afternoon all six of us took a walk up to The Grove and after a walk round the extensive landscaped grounds, retired to the golf club terrace for drinks in the sunshine.

Teresa, Jan & Karen on the terrace

The following day Monday started off very wet so we had a late start travelling to Boxmoor where we ended up mooring on our own as too shallow & windy for us to get in with the others. We dined alone at the Seattle Steak House where we could see Aylmer  across the cricket ground through the window. If you look carefully you can just see her to the right of the flash light. It was a lot clearer with the naked eye.  Fabulous steaks!

from the Seattle Steak House

We then had a couple of windy & rainy days travelling along the Grand Union and climbing to the Chilterns.  We moored on our own, in a very isolated spot, between the Ivinghoe Locks, overlooking the beautiful Dunstable Downs, where we could clearly see the Chalk Lion, carved out of the escarpment in 1933 to advertise Whipsnade Zoo. 

The white splodge just right of centre is the Whipsnade  Lion

We left the others behind as Tony was on a mission to get to Soulbury Three Locks, near Leighton Buzzard, where he had been promised a game of golf if he could get there for Thursday.  On the way we shared locks with a party of nine Bell Ringers (ringing their way at many churches along the Grand Union) and Margaret & Paul on Pussers Rum out of our home marina at Hallingbury.

Sharing Grove lock with the Bell Ringers

Pussers Rum pulling out of the lock ahead of us.

We made Soulbury Three locks in time for Tony to have an afternoon game of golf with Mark and the game was halved (a draw for the non golfers amongst you). Later we joined Mark & Malou for an enjoyable evening at the Three Locks pub. What a wonderful end to a lovely day.

Jan, Malou & Mark at Three Locks  pub.

We managed to stop the Fuel Barge before we left Soulbury & filled up with diesel at 72p a litre.  They often travel like this, two barges roped together facing opposite ways.  One is the fuel carrier the other the living quarters.

Fuel Barge.

The next highlight, for me anyway, was Fenny Stratford.  We had decided to stop here to wait for the other two boats to catch us up.  We wandered up into the village & found a nice little pub, the Bull & Butcher, which did a great fish & chips for two for £9.95.  Great value.  Taking a different route back to the boat I spotted a Patchwork & Craft shop.  Needless to say Tony opted to return to the boat leaving me to browse the treasures inside on my own.  To my delight I found they were running a workshop the next morning on Free Motion stitching, something I have only recently started to learn, so I signed up.

It was a brilliant workshop, taught by owner Sally, who has a very relaxed and informal style which suited my holiday mood perfectly.  Sally started by telling us not to expect anything pretty at the end of it as we would only be doodling, but I'm quite proud of my doodles which I'm sure my crafting friends will be interested in.  The best bit about this experience is that I discovered the new marina we will be mooring the boat at after our summer trip, is only 40 minutes from the shop (www.threadsandpatches.co.uk ), so I will be able to go back to this Aladdin's cave in the future :). So excited!

Free Motion Quilting doodles by Jan Adams

 Saturday 23rd May

2015 Summer Journey on the Waterways

Saturday 9th May

It was with mixed feelings that we left Hallingbury Marina on Saturday.  Excitement at setting off on this years summer jaunt and sadness at leaving the marina which has been home to Aylmer since we bought her back in 2011.  After our summer journey we will be mooring her in the Midlands, giving us new cruising opportunities.

We joined friends Tony & Teresa on nb Teezy and Martin & Karen on nb Aria who are to be our travelling companions for the summer.

Tony A, Teresa, Karen, Martin & Tony G

On Monday we took a short walk along the towpath, from our mooring at Waltham Common Lock, to the Lee Valley White Water Centre. We spent a pleasant hour or so sitting on the terrace with coffee & watching the German canoe team practising the slalom course.

Teresa,Karen, Jan.

We couldn't resist the podium!

Sav, Martin, Tony G, Tony A, Jan, Teresa, Karen & Briony

Tuesday afternoon we arrived in Limehouse and that evening went to The Grapes, a lovely old pub right on the river (literally, the waves lap against the cellar when the tide is up!). Sadly it's illustrious owner was not about. Briony, Martin & Karen's daughter, & her partner Sav joined us for a very enjoyable evening.

The following morning Mitch & Sarah joined us for a very sunny day through London on the Grand Union & Regents canals.

We made them work!

Hi!

London can always be relied on for the weird, wonderful & simply BIZARRE!

After leaving Mitch & Sarah at Paddington Basin we set off to meet Aria & Teezy again on the Paddington Arm of the Grand Union.

 These poor cormorants were waiting to be rescued by CRT (Canal & River Trust) after their feathers got clogged with oil. Apparently some moron had emptied gallons of used cooking oil down a road surface drain that fed into the canal. CRT had already spent two days syphoning off the oil & rescuing birds.

Aylmer & Aria at Bulls Bridge

 Thursday was a very wet & windy day but because of the oil spill we decided to make a move to the junction where the Paddington Arm meets the Grand Union proper at Bulls Bridge. There is a very convenient Tesco here with 24 hour mooring where we were able to stock up with supplies.

The 'Ricky' (Rickmansworth) Festival

On Friday we set off in mixed weather. Lovely when the sun was out but quite nippy when it clouded over. We had a long slow journey through the 'Ricky' Festival site. About 150 boats were already moored, some 3 & 4 abreast, ready for the festival which started on Saturday.

We managed to find a reasonable mooring just above Common Moor Lock where we were pleased to stop after a very long day.

We passed this boat last year. At that time the car was just sitting on the back, how strange we thought!   It has now been welded on. Not sure it looks any better or what the point of it is. Does the car steering wheel steer the boat? Love to know WHY!

Friday 15th May

The homeward journey

Tuesday 9th September

We soon turned onto the Paddington Arm & had an uneventful journey down to Little Venice where we turned into Paddington Basin & were lucky enough to find a good mooring.

Mooring in Paddington Basin

We stayed a couple of days in Paddington & had a great time doing the touristy things and meeting up with Mitch & Sarah for a pub crawl around Soho.  The last night we were rudely awakened at 3am to find the boat had been set adrift by some inconsiderate reveller & we had to haul it back to our mooring in our PJ,s!

We left Paddington and set off down the Regents Canal to Lime House.  A quite depressing journey with miles & miles of double & triple moored, scruffy 'liveabourds',  We spent a night in Limehouse and had a pleasant meal at the clubhouse setting off to Waltham Abbey. Martin & Karen, from nb Aria (our companions from the beginning of our journey) cycled out to meet us at Enfield Lock and helped lock us through to Waltham Abbey. We moored overnight and had a great evening with Martin & Karen at Spice.

Next day Tony & Teresa, other friends from our marina, walked along the towpath to meet us at Fields Weir just before we turned onto the River Stort & travelled with us to Hunsden Mead where they had moored their boat. We all walked into Royden for a meal at The Crusader.

The following morning was bright and sunny, if a bit breez,y for our last day on this jouney & we travelled in company with Tony & Teresa back to Little Hallingbury Mill.  Nice to be home but what an incredible journey - 753 miles and 513 engine hours.  Can't wait until next summer.

Sunday 14th September 2014