Lee navigation revisited

Sometimes places are not so nice as you remember them and as we set off up the Lee for the first time since we brought Herbie home that way after buying her, I had no great expectations. That journey home has been on a grey, bitterly cold day in March, and the lower half of the Le as it passes through Tottenham and Hackney etc is not known as a beauty spot.

Today in glorious sunshine it all looked rather splendid, and I have revised my opinion. The navigation passes alongside the new 2012 Olympic site and I can report that at present they are still just clearing the gound. Of course they’ll be ready in time. Who ever heard of a British Stadium being late.

The only downside today was having to operate Stonebridge Lock manually. This lock is built for electro hydraulic use but that bit was under repair so I had to wind the stiff old hydraulic gear on the paddles and the gates in the blazing sun. Opening gates this way is a real pain believe me. I must have been winding hard for a good twenty minutes solid all told, and now my back aches.

We also took time out to stop at the tiny Anchor and Hope pub, a little gem. Now that was just as good as we remembered it, and just as friendly. Visiting this pub is fun because you have to climb over the riverside railings to reach it. When we get older we'll just have to bring a set ladder.A pity we couldn’t stop longer although we did carry out three plastic pint mugs of Fullers Discovery to keep us going as we cruised.

We were planning to reach Waltham tonight but unexpectedly we found some very nice moorings in Enfield three minutes walk from the Greyhound Pub, which we are about to explore in the interests of sampling McMullen's beer.

I hope this weather keeps up, it's brillant!

Down to Limehouse.

How different the Paddington to Limehouse run will look in a couple of years time. Big new building projects are being started at umpteen places along the canal. It'll be in danger of being posh here and there. Perhaps the most interesting is near St Pancras where they will build an apartment block inside the frame of an old gas holder. Not only that, but they're moving the gas holder from its former position half a mile away!

Most of the way we were joined by a South African couple in a hire boat from Lee Valley boats . The boat seemed to go alright but it was about the scruffiest looking hire boat I ever saw. I hope it was cheap! The couple had intended to go up the Thames as far as Reading but the dreaded red boards had limited them to Walton, where they were stuck for a few days. Still they seemed cheerful enough. I expect its nice enough not being shot at.

Once at Limehouse we had a quick meal at Booty’s before Peter and Kath retired to the Grapes while I ran off to get a train to my monthly meeting of the Lowland and Border Pipers Society where apart from playing along with my Guru Jock Agnew, I met an amazing Asturian bagpiper. Most pipes are loud , but these were especially piercing. Nevertheless he was brilliant, although my ears are still ringing.

Moored opposite us in Limehouse was this sailing barge. Now there’s a proper boat.

Busy going nowhere - and when is a cat a cat?

An active day although we’ve only moved a mile or two. This morning another visit to Camden market for some more material for the sofa. (backing material we won’t actually see).

Then we set off through Regents Park to Paddington with me at the tiller and Kath on the sewing machine. After mooring up, I did a bit of varnishing while Kath completed the sofa bed cover. In the photo it loks a lot more OTT than in real life. She got so enthused that she is now making a pair of curtains out of excess material!!

When we moor up in busy places nowadays I often put our ship’s cat on the roof. A really lifelike “model”, it catches out loads of passers by who stare at it long and hard trying to decide if it’s real or not. When asked “Is it real?” I now answer “It depends on your concept of reality!”. Well it keeps me amused.

Peter arrives by train tonight and we’re off to Limehouse tomorrow.

By the way, Saltysplash has done a couple of spiffing write ups of the Slough Festival on his blog. Take a look.

A cover up

Here we are at Camden visitor moorings. A rare privilege as they are usually full up.

Kath is busy sewing up some material we bought at Camden market for covers for the sofa bed cushions. I think we might have made a brave choice! It’s a sort of patchwork with squares and diamonds in shades of blue and terracotta. The diamonds look quite narrowboaty,so although it’s a liitle bit “in your face” I think it will liven up the saloon in a traditional sort of way. Pictures when it's finished.

Sorry no pictures yesterday so here a couple to make up.

When the gravel barges at Hayes come at you through a narrow gap, its best to give way!

Grace was pleased with her new bike when we gave it to her at the Slough festival.

Slough Festival day 2

Dear me, what a shambolic organisation of a nice event this is. Lots of people roll up and have a lovely time, but, for boaters at least, the organisation leaves much to be desired. Information is in scarce supply, probably because decisions haven’t properly been settled. A band was booked to play in the beer tent tonight, but no-one had been told and the beer tent had no beer at that time. Finding out at the last minute the boaters rallied in support of the excellent little trad jazz band and a good session was had (by candle light and gas lamp).

We had a lovely day anyway, lunching on locally made samosas and lolling around on the towpath greeting local strollers. The festival was moderately busy with the fishing tuition doing a roaring trade with local kids. A trip boat ferried passengers to view the dubious delights of Slough basin, and we answered the usual questions from passers by. “Do you live aboard.” “Where do you go” etc etc.

Our polypin of Tring brewery beer is gently emptying with stalwart support from Geoff who, with Laura, treated us to a fine barbecue this evening followed by a generous and tasty whisky mac to help us to sleep.

What more could you want?

A jolly day

People sometimes seem amused at my antics. Arriving at the boat today I lost no time in informing everyone how optimistic I was about the weather for the weekend.

Once we were ready to move off I waved goodbye to the bystanders and turned the starter key. Herbie's trusty BMC burst into life and at the same instant it started raining. People seemd strangely amused by this, but undaunted I directed my gaze down the canal and pulled away smartly from the bank. That's when the propellor picked up a plastic bag and an armful of weed. Herbie ground to an immediate halt causing some merriment to Geoff on Lady Elgar who cynically offerd me a tow (to which I stoically replied "NEVER!!").

Anyway, half an hour later we arrived at the Slough Canal Festival (in bright sunshine, I might add)and nudged Herbie into the bankside rushes. Lady Elgar arrived a little later and tied up in front. A pity Geoff had spent sometime washing his boat, because the rushes are so thick and high that the paintwork can't be seen from the bank.

Then followed a period of bunting erection culminating in the ceremonial hoisting of two large flags between the two boats. The Union flag I can understand, but quite why we are jointly sporting an Ostend flag is more mysterious. The best bit though was being passed by another boat. Herbie and Lady Elgar, in the usual fashion, slid back and forth as the undertow from the other boat took hold. The upshot was that the two flags graciously dipped onto the water surface as if in deference. Lovely!

The festival starts in the morning.

Earwig O

We're off today on the Autumn cruise. Well 30 mins cruise to Slough festival, but after that we're away. As an act of meteorolical defiance I am wearing my shorts today!

We installed our new sofabed cushions yesterday and carried away the heavy old futon mattress. The idea is to make the business of converting from sofa to spare bed much easier and quicker - and it works!!

Three separate cushions (two behind your back and one to sit on) replace the one futon mattress. There was a lot of careful measuring before ordering, but it all fits and seems comfortable. Without any covering yet, it looks naff though. Kath is on the case.

On entering the boat I was pleased to see that for the first time in a long time, there were no splashes of rust on the stove top. That means my epoxy filler round the chimney collar has cured to problem. We've certainly had enough rain to give it a good testing.

Our internet dongle is charged up with airtime or whatever they call it so watch out for posts as we go along. I'll try to do one from the festival site tonight.

Things can only get better.

I hear the red boards are out on the Thames, and now I've got a cough, a cold and a headache. I even missed a lunchtime visit to the Anglers at Marsworth today. We need to go up that way to collect our beer for the weekend from Tring brewery. Kath had to go without me.

On the positive side, this cold might pass by the weekend and we have nearly a fortnight from today until we hit anything you can properly call a river, so we may be OK as long as the wet weather eases off. The forecast for the weekend looks OK. Grace will be one year old on Saturday so we'll be having jelly and ice cream with our samosas at the Slough Festival.

Whip the grip

Apologies if the new look to the blog startled you. I get bored from time to time and fancied a change. You probably think I'm meddling and should stick to the knitting.

I've always enjoyed whipping. Before you accuse me of a penchant for S&M let me hastily say that I refer to binding with cord. Oooh that sounds just as bad! Anyway the picture explains all.

It's the handle from Herbie's tiller which I have just re whipped as the old stuff frayed off. It needs to be comfortable to hold and not hold water. A bit of neoprene would probably be ideal but that wouldn't look very boaty so I used some cord and rubbed beeswax into it. I think if I did it again, I might try shoe polish instead to keep the colour. Come to think of it, I might put some on anyway. Stay tuned.

I'm sorry to say I didn't do the turks head knots at either end, although I do know how to do them.

Preparations and portents

Only a week until we are back on board. If it rains all weekend at the Slough Canal Festival, we plan to console ourselves with a polypin of Tring Sidepocket which we ordered today. No doubt Saltysplash will help us to polish it off before it spoils! It's a tough job but somebody has to do it.

The worst of the weed in the canal has gone now although enough remains to warrant care in staying in the middle lane. Now I hear that they are having a big weed problem on the Lee up at Hertford which is where we'll be with Herbie in a fortnight. Out of the frying pan and into the fire. Rick is bringing his elbow length rubber gloves in anticipation of regular visits to the weedhatch.

Autumn cruise - the master plan emerges.

The weeks of stakeholder consultation and delicate negiotiation are drawing to a close and hazy plans for the Herbie early Autumn cruise are beginning to emerge. You'd think that as retired people we could come and go as they please, but we still have to fit in with friends and family.

Outline plan:(subject to possible/probable disruption)
The basic plan is to attend the Slough Canal Festival on 13/ 14 September and then (probably with a hangover) to head off through London (with a day or two city break) and then up the Lee navigation to Hertford, then to come back a bit and turn off up the river Stort to Bishops Stortford, and then return home. At 5 hours a day that should take 11 days cruising plus days off to rest or explore. Meticulous planning will be carried out and then ignored as wind,weather and public transport issues for crew intervene.

Potential highlights:

• Visits to The Warwick Castle at Little Venice, The Grapes at Limehouse, The Anchor and Hope at Upper Clapton, The Old Barge at Hertford and other fine hostelries.
• The Royal Gunpowder Mills at Waltham Abbey ( a museum, not a pub!)
• Potential meeting with Roy and Val - Herbie's previous owners now believed to be up the Stort on nb Phoebe
• Getting stuck under a bridge (see Risk assessment below)
• Revisiting the New River
• Charting unvisited waters i.e. the Stort - reputed to be charming

Crew:
Peter will be joining us from Paddington to Limehouse and then a short way northwards. Rick and Marilyn have been seduced by promises of uncharted (to them) waters and will join us for a few days on the Lee and Stort, and Pete may join us on the return from Limehouse to Paddington.

Risk assessment:
One possible big problem will be the height of the river Stort, as it has some notoriously low bridges which are sometimes impassable.

I sent in an information request to Canal World Forums to ask other people's experience. Would Herbie's water heater chimney get under Roydon bridge? After several replies I suddenly recalled that Herbie's previous owners lived aboard the boat up the Stort!! She must fit up there sometime then. So long as we don't get too much heavy rain we should be OK.

It'll be a miracle if it all goes smoothly, or at all, but I can dream.

Boaters show the way in energy and water conservation

People on boats could teach the rest of the population quite a bit about not wasting energy and water. When you depend on batteries for power and have a finite quantity of fresh water aboard, you don't waste. I was told the story of the boss of our boatyard getting incandescent with rage at some poor young official who came round to suggest that efforts were made to reduce water consumption. Apparently the young chap went away with a flea in his ear. Quite right too. I would be surprised if the 40 odd resident boats used a quarter of what 40 land dwelling would use.

They've just installed new pay meters for electricity for us non residential boaters, and now we can see how much we're consuming. Over a 24 hour period at the weekend using the fridge, the battery charger, the radio, the lights, and the water pump, we spent 15 pence!