Moving south

We got a Gold License this year at great expense so we could go on the River Thames and Wey. The lack of rain over winter is causing restrictions to navigation to save water use. These may affect our plans. Our route south will be on the Oxford canal and some reports indicate problems at the summit past Napton. I think locks will be open for limited times. The canal system has its own reservoirs but they are all nearly empty now.

It may seem strange that a hosepipe ban can save on water use. We can understand it because our tank takes less than half an hour to fill and can last us over a week! There is something to be said for travelling with friends who care and help each other. Now we are on our own other boaters seem distant. A boater left his boat at a water point to go shopping. Not a word to us when he saw that we were waiting!

We are making good progress heading south on the Shroppie with plenty of water north of Market Drayton. It was a bright sunny Saturday that we climbed up the Audlem flight of locks. Unfortunately we had lost contact with no mobile signals. Pointing our tv aerial south got a good signal from Birmingham so we just relaxed watching a program about the restoration of a working boat called ‘Dover’ now kept at Braunston.

After some rain we were obliged to move further up the Adderley flight and on towards Market Drayton on Sunday. When we got to Market Drayton we discovered that Les n Jaq on Valerie were not far away. After shopping we moved on to meet them both.

An evening on board Moore 2 Life followed and we played an enjoyable game of cards.

Next day after visiting the market Valerie continued north while we went south to Knighton. The canal cutting through Woodseaves is strewn with fresh rock falls and shallow. We scraped over some rocks under the surface!

BW is actively trying to cut back trees and vegetation through this cutting. Two sunny days later we had got to Gnosall!