Wed 22 July - repairs completed, we move on towards Grendon.
Setting off in bright sunshine
Dense woodland in this section of the canal
Impressive solar and wind combo on Fingal, though we wonder how much power the small windmill generates
Arriving at Polesworth
Brenda May moored at the Polesworth Municipal moorings. The sculptures on the roof are fashioned from old tyres
Owner of Waimarie, Chalky. The roof and almost every other surface is covered with painted barrels and numerous animal and horse brasses, all impecably shiny. He says "I reckon the boat is 10% pleasure and 90% hard work"
Catnap moored at Polesworth near Limekiln Bridge
The abbey church of St. Editha, daughter of King Egbert the first Saxon king of England
The Gatehouse, the only remaining structure of Polesworth Abbey, founded by Egbert in the 9th century
Leaving Polesworth we encountered two matching boats one towing the other. The owner explained he uses the one behind as a workshop and shed and is considering building a Spitfire in it. We promised to come and see how it was progressing next time we passed
Passing Hoo Hill. In Old English, hoo means a knoll or mound, so this is 'hill hill'
Near Grendon Bridge, an ancient working boat sadly abandoned and almost completely engulfed by canalside foliage
Three female mallards spectating
Between Polesworth and the town of Atherstone there are lots of places where it is difficult to see ahead with overhanging trees, obscured bridges and blind corners. Often one of us steers and the other walks along the towpath to give prior warning of approaching craft. At one point Jan signalled to Denis that a boat was coming and warned the boat owners of our approach. When the two boats met, the other steerer miscalculated his turn and ended up on the wrong side of the canal forcing Catnap to take evasive action to avoid a collision. However, instead of slowing, the oncoming boat kept moving forward forcing Catnap to turn further into the bank and go aground. Denis was forced to use the pole and reverse off. Apologising for their miscalculation the other boat went on its way as did Catnap. Such incidents are rare, fortunately, but we also saw someone going too fast, overshooting a corner and ending up across the canal just 2 days previously. We suspect liquid lunches may be playing a part!
No such drama with this leisurely passing and with no further incident we used the services at Bradley Green Bridge and moored for the night 100 yards further on under some trees
No comments:
Post a Comment