Moorings, locks n towns (2)

 

It was at the last lock of the day at Marlow that the incident occurred. We had gone forward as in the previous lock but the bow was against the corner of the lock, the gates being narrower than the body of the lock. As the lock emptied the bow stopped going down and the boat started to tip over. I quickly started the engine to pull back as Ann was yelling. The lock keeper also reacted quickly to let water back in, stopping the boat going down further. Suddenly the boat leveled off. After a while we recovered from the shock and the lock keeper came over to investigate. Nothing under the boat but probably the boats base plate had dug into the wooden lock fender. The lock keeper then let us go down slowly as we pushed off from the side. Both boats moved out to the landing and we checked inside. Some crockery had dropped on the floor but not broken. Things inside cupboards had tried to escape!

Then we set off for moorings at Bourne End. An excellent spot with ring to tie to, mowed grass and benches provided by the Thameside Preservation Trust for which we paid £5 for one night.

After a late lunch we all walked along the Thames path past the boats to get to the shops. That evening George n Ann went off to get Fish n Chips for dinner. 

Next day we set off for Maidenhead where we found moorings against a concrete wall. While we had lunch huge boats were passing making us rock with their wake. We all decided not to pay for the mooring here so moved on down river heading for Windsor.

Moorings, locks n towns (1)

We left the Reading mooring heading down to Caversham lock, round the bend past Better Boating and turned onto the Tesco mooring. As usual they were almost full leaving a gap between trees for us.

The rough bank is not really suitable for the popular shop mooring. When we had done the shopping two boats arrived wanting our space. “Sorry, not going yet, but you can come along side.” We helped them off across our bow. They were not long getting back and Rock n Roll was soon to pass by. Within ten minutes we were all off on our way again. Our boat still full of shopping to put away! Carol had worked out a schedule of locks and moorings to get to for the next few days.

The first lock through was Sonning then Shiplake. After that moorings were found at Popular Eyot tucked away among the trees. Rock n Roll had a plank out and Moore 2 Life went along side. Chairs and tables put out for tea n cake on the bank.  Next day we set off down stream heading for the next stop.

Through Marsh lock and passing Henley keeping left to avoid the rowing boaters.

Temple Island reminded us of our first visit here at the IWA boat gathering in 1997. “Must have been strange for Henley to see so many narrowboats lining the bank for a few miles.” The next lock was at Hambleden. It is all new ground for us past Henley. Then several big boats in the next lock at Hurley join us. It starts to rain as we get to Temple lock. The lock keeper asked us to move forward to let other boats in. Almost against the gates! In fact we had to move back to let the gates open. Out we go letting Rock n Roll go first then us.

Cruising down the river

While at Abingdon we walked across the lock and along the riverbank in the shade of the trees. Back at the boat we were entertained by the antics of an incompetent boater trying to maneuver his boat between the water point, weir and lock. It took several attempts as boats kept getting in his way. Next morning all was clear and we pulled Moore 2 Life on to the water point. When our tank was full the lock keeper arrived to open the lock for us.

Had to shoot the rapids to get on our way past the church and beyond.

We stopped at midday when reaching Day’s Lock and were pleased to find a space before the lock by the field.

All the locks are operated by the Environment Agency. The keepers are there to help and offer advice about navigating the river. When they are not doing that they are cutting the grass and keeping the garden flowers looking colourful. We have passed through Kings, Godstow, Osney, Iffley, Sandford, Abingdon, Culham and Clifton, cruising down 20 miles of the Thames. 

 Day’s lock is near Dorchester, a lovely Oxfordshire village with an Abbey Church. It was once the cathedral city of Wessex. In the morning we walked across the fields for supplies.

Geoff rang wondering where we were and suggested a gathering at Beale Park or Reading Park on Friday. So during another hot day we moved on down through Day’s, Benson, Cleeve and Goring. 

Goring Lock

 A further 13 miles got us to Beale before it got too hot. The Thames is very wide here and we watched ‘fours’ and ‘eights’ rowing up and down the river. Sadly the lake here is almost inaccessible because nature has been allowed to reclaim it! Even the Thames path is overgrown with nettles.

Friday was the start of the London 2012 Olympic Games. At 12 minutes past 8 (12:20) bells were rang all over the country. We rang mum’s old cowbell. 

Plastic n metal in Mapledurham lock

 We did another nine lock miles passing Whitchurch and Mapledurham locks. We passed Derwent 6 on the way and found Rock n Roll and Seyela at Reading Park. Del and Al arrived later in the cool afternoon. 

 Then George n Del got out the BBQ kit and we all enjoyed the gathering with donations of food from each boat. The opening ceremony started at 9 so we went into our boats to watch the wonderful event.

Moore on a river

At last we are on the river Thames with the stream decreasing at least below King’s lock. The lock keeper here has to open and shut the gates and sluces by hand. If you do not have a Gold licence he is there to take your money! It has just got too hot now, such a change caused by that jet stream moving north. The water is still moving quite fast as we slip and slide round the bends. We passed quickly by several moorings before stopping past the A34 road bridge.

When it cooled down in the evening we went for a walk along the riverbank to the next lock passing by the abused Godstow Abbey. Pressing buttons now operates most of the locks. They are ‘self service’ when out of hours.

We got up early next day and started operating the lock before 9 am! The lock keeper arrived at 9 and helped us through. She gave us a new cruising guide to the Thames. We were the only boat on the move then!

Two or three miles of wide river follows through the meadows but then enters a narrow tree lined section where the river increased its flow rate. A bunch of rowing boats suddenly came to view and were in my path. It took some stopping and the boat ended up under a tree that swept our satellite dish off the roof! The flowers and DTV aerial stayed put. The low Osney bridge was easy after that.

Sandford lock

When we had got past that horrible Osney weir and lock, several other types of boat followed on our journey to Abingdon.

A mooring above the lock became available as we approached so we stopped there to stay while the day got too hot again to continue. Once again we walked out in the cool evening.

Abingdon weir

Waiting

Thanks to Carol on Rock n Roll who provided a link to an EA Thames page which shows the state of the river. It was mostly Red boards up indicating that boats should not move due to too much rain. A day of sunshine encouraged us to move on down a few locks on the Oxford canal. A mooring near Kidlington enabled us to visit the town. It did not take long to find the shops and a Post Office. As we were forced to wait we decided to have our post delivered here.

A few days later a short hop got us to above Kidlington Green lock. There we met up with John and Rosemarie on Devon Maid. It is not often that we meet people who invite us on board. Our dog Molly just jumped on board almost without asking!

The towpath is slightly better here but is generally over grown and muddy in places. Somebody has taken the trouble to paint some low branches of a tree red so you don’t hit them with your head. “Might have been better to have got a saw and cut them off rather than a brush and a pot of paint!”

The post has arrived, the Thames is decreasing and the sun came out to charge our batteries. While we wait the engine runs for an average of an hour and a half a day. One full day of bright sunshine the engine stayed quiet as the batteries actually gained power.

We were out shopping when Del n Al went past and told our neighbour John. Other friends on the Thames have moved on down so after the weekend we plan to chase after them.

The rivers are up again

The Cherwell follows the canal down all the way from Cropredy. It crosses the canal at Aynho and joins it for a mile near Gibraltar. We wait at Baker’s lock because it is up in the red, an indicator warning not to proceed, but despite that some boaters went on down on the river. Another boat joined us at the mooring and waited while it rained. We are feeling a bit apprehensive about getting down on the rivers during this wet weather. Several of our friends have got up to Letchlade and are slowly making their way back with red boards, or orange boards with stream increasing or decreasing flow rates.

Next day we walked down the river Cherwell and back noting that at the top end it was still in the red but at the lower end it was just in the orange. Several boats were on the move including Derwent 6 coming up. After a quick hello we went on down, going with the flow and sliding round the bends. Back on the canal we stopped at Thrupp. It had been a lovely sunny day for the trip. The Thames is in the red again and we wonder if we will ever get on it.

While we wait at Thrupp, ‘Annie’s Tea Room’ offers breakfast, lunch and afternoon teas. Maffy & Mortimer joined us at our table while we had a late breakfast which we enjoyed. Then we set off with the Sat Nav to walk round the fields heading for the church at Kidlington and back. Ended up at Annie’s for tea during a pleasantly sunny day.

Moving on down the Oxford canal

We got down Somerton deep lock and stopped by a large field. It is a well-known place to see Barn Owls in the evening. We watched two of them, as they were looking for rodents in the tall grass. The sporting events had us watching the Grand Prix at Silverstone in which Webber came first and Lewis eighth. Right after that there was the Tennis at Wimbledon. Our first British player, Murray, was in the final for many years. Sadly he lost to Federa. We were lucky to see the whole match because a rainstorm took away the satellite signal. The alternative terrestrial digital signal was quickly found and we saw the finish.
 

The next day Dusty the supply boat stopped to fill our diesel tank before we moved on. At least it was dry but the towpath was in a sorry state. Being muddy and overgrown. Many bridges are so low that we have now lowered our Bimini. Below Allen’s lock the river Cherwell is higher than the canal as it is well in flood. We stopped above Dashwood lock for the afternoon hoping to find some walks. But the fields were full of cows.

Is this an Orchid?

So we moved on again after breakfast next day to Kirtlington Quarry. Here we found Ian and Allison with their boat and butty together with Sonya on Zodiac.

We then walked up to the village to discover that we were a day late to see the Olympic Torch pass through.

We've been away

An invitation to a family gathering that cannot be missed. There were several anniversaries and birthdays to celebrate at a community hall to accommodate every body. It was an opportunity to meet all of them in one place. We went by car to take some items away from the boat that were no longer needed or had been replaced. We had printed our own tickets to get back by train. Enterprise let us leave the car down south. “Oh how they all rush about!” The time spent with the family was almost like a holiday when we did completely different things.

The train taking us back to Banbury was packed and there is never enough space for all that luggage! Even the disabled space was filled and was cleared when the inspector came, only to be filled again at the next station! So many people standing that the refreshment trolley could not get through. Moving people about during the Olympics is going to be difficult.

We are getting back to a boating routine by moving, yes moving, up to turn round and returning through Banbury. While getting Gas at Sovereign I mentioned our diesel problems with water and the bug. They asked if we had let our tank get too low. “No, I got 80 litres here last time”. They also recommend using Marine 16 to kill the bug and have it for sale. We carried on down to the Tramway moorings where Tesco delivered goodies next day. We had run our stocks down before leaving so there was a lot to put away this time.

The river Cherwell is in the green here at this time

We moved on down the cut stopping first by that farm and then on past Aynho. Enjoying a sunny day before the forecasted deluge. Setting up the TV to watch the tennis in the afternoons.

Thanks to all who helped

Del n Al walked up a mile or so, George n Carol arrived on Rock n Roll and so did Geoff & Margaret on Seyella. The engineer had also arrived with refurbished injectors. Soon the engine started and purred like a happy kitten. The cloud above my head evaporated. Del noticed that no smoke issued from the exhaust and tick over was smooth. Many thanks to John the engineer at Tooley’s who was also pleased that the pump had not suffered. “I can tell you that I was also much relieved.” Del and Geoff helped move the boat to get water.

Carol invited us all for a celebration on Rock n Roll. No less than four sets of Bloggers on board.

Then we all helped each other getting under the lift bridge and down the lock. A sunny late afternoon activity when suddenly several boats were on the move up and down.

Count your blessings

It is nearly two weeks since our engine problems started. Each day I wake to a nightmare. Putting the experience down on paper and in the blog helps me come to terms with the situation. We are in the right place (1) now and most days have been warm n sunny (2). Two weekends have got in the way of progress so we wait with mains power to keep the other systems going (3).

Flowers on the roof are cheering and colourful (4) 

Hindsight is a wonderful concept, ‘if only’ and ‘what if’ is pointless to consider. The road to discovery will be a maze of wrong turnings. What went wrong and why are questions that get answered in time. It was definitely a fuel problem. Air getting in? Heaters? Water? Diesel bug? It has been reported that all the injectors were damaged by water. Whatever it was the engine never actually stopped, just ran rough and smoked. While waiting for the injectors to come back we wonder what else may have gone wrong.

It looks like the public is being told about BW/Trust. A hat is about to be passed round asking for money from us all!

Tank treatment

We are lucky to be in Banbury where Tooly’s Boat Yard offers a tank cleaning service. The kit has two large filters with water traps and a pre filter which catches the large bits that come out of the tank. The first thing done was to stir up the diesel in the tank using a copper pipe blowing air into the diesel while moving the pipe all over the bottom of the tank for about 5 minutes.

Then two pipes, one metal that picks up from the bottom, the other plastic that returns the cleaned fuel.

This picture shows the water bubbles in the diesel.  Taken by Matt Armitage of Tooly's.

The metal pipe had a site glass so you can see what is coming out. During the first 5 to 10 minutes a lot of black flaky stuff came out together with the diesel and water.

The pumping was stopped and the dirty diesel drained out of the water traps. The process continued for an hour and water was drained off several times.

The diesel with water in it is a murky brown colour.

Unfortunately the engine was still unhappy by running lumpy and smoking, even with the cleaned fuel. The injectors have now been removed to be cleaned.

Diesel bug treatment

Ian and Alison are here have had their boat ‘Truro’ and butty ‘Draco’ blacked in the Historic Toolie’s Boat Yard.


Ian and a friend kindly pulled our boat all the way back to the yard so we could have a landline. Our engine and heater cannot be used but thankfully the diesel fire can. We need it to keep warm while it is so cool outside still. With the mains electric and our immersion heater we do have hot water.



Being stuck across the entrance of the dry dock and under that walkway to the museum is a bit depressing and the TV is only just getting BBC from Oxford! 72 hours is a long time to endure the lack of freedom but at least the town and park gets us out.

I suppose there is no doubt where the bug and water came from and I have told the supplier where I last got diesel. Any user of diesel, red or white, is going to suffer from water and bug contamination. The problem has got worse since the introduction of ‘bio’ and low sulfur diesel fuel. The ‘Canal Boat’ magazine for June just happens to have a report by River Canal Rescue on the diesel bug that is worth a read.



The owner at Toolie’s has pioneered a system of pump and filters that can clean out diesel tanks. He has also advised me that our use of ‘Fuel Set’ is not so effective since the introduction of ‘bio’ fuels.



The small bottle has the bug killer and the large bottle is now recommended to keep the diesel fuel clean. It is ‘Marine 16’ Diesel fuel maintenance that contains ‘MAR 71’. It cleans all marine diesel and stops Diesel Bug.

Back in Banbury with diesel bug!

About a week ago the engine was difficult to start, ran lumpy and smoked. We moved up the lock after getting water and found a space near Toolies. They were not open till Noon when we asked for an engineer. He came late afternoon and checked the heater plugs which were OK. We will have to wait till Monday before he could check out the diesel supply.

So we find ourselves in a situation we do not like, a loss of freedom. Need to chill out in Banbury. We went for a walk round the park where there are signs of activity. A fair was arriving, as it is to be the Banbury Show on Sunday. Crowds of people turned up walked round and back out. At least it was a warm sunny day for the summer event. We had a look and saw that the arena was setup for a dog show to happen soon. After walking round the stalls we were told that the next event was not the dogs. Then it got cloudy and cold so we decided to leave. On the way out we saw Del n All on Derwent 6 and had a quick chat before returning to the boat.

John the engineer arrived late in the morning. The water trap was full of water and brown gunge. The diesel filter was also contaminated. It is the dreaded diesel bug. The system was last checked back in October and was OK then. Our last top up was at Sovereign in Banbury a week ago. Anti bug treatment has been put in the tank and now we wait 72 hours for that to kill the bugs. The ‘fuel set’ that we use regularly does not kill the bugs. Now that we cannot use the engine we have been offered a landline for power. Later we will get the tank cleaned out and the diesel ‘polished’.

What a Wonderful Weekend

The Queen’s Golden Jubilee event. The whole nation is cheered up with jubilation and celebration. We remember the ‘Silver’ when our road was decorated. Tables and chairs came out and we got to know our neighbours.

What a marvelous sight it was to see all the boats on the Thames.

Apparently it rained on the Coronation day but that was soon forgotten.

So many people turned out to celebrate despite the weather and they put their heart and souls into their performances. That alone will be remembered.

Are we, as a nation, so in love with our Queen because she is? We have such distrust of changing politics that we look to the Queen for stability. 

                                          Our thanks to Carol for the pictures.

While at Banbury

Got water at Cropredy, moved on to Banbury and got diesel then stopped in the middle of town. After a snack lunch we set off to the shops. Our ‘to do list’ included eye & ear tests, getting finance advice and a visit to the chiropractor. Spec Savers did the eyes and ears for nothing, a good service there then. “Just need reading glasses now.” The bank offered a current account with interest and other cash back offer ‘carrots’. Keep an eye on your investments because after about a year they may not be paying as much interest as you started with! ISA’s are all very well so long as they remain better than other accounts. Then on to the Chiro who checked us both, causing our joints to click as they were realigned. Ann had got a bit out of shape when falling in the water.

The day got hot again and we almost wilted when we got back to the boat. The public seems to lack respect here and one boater had his generator going all-day and evening! By 8.30 pm we had had enough and moved on down the lock to get away. Our intended mooring was full so we stopped short just before bridge 168 near Morrisons. Industry both sides and trees for shade are preferable to that public. But the birds in the tree above us are leaving their marks on the boat!

Now that we are this far south we tried to get a signal from the south. BBC Oxford was found but several channels were missing! The trees prevent our use of the sky that at least has all the channels when you get a signal. We have moved away from Banbury and now get all the channels from Oxford!

Other things missing are several pictures on our website. “I know why and am very busy trying to find them.” There are hundreds of them and I have found many typing errors in the code! The problem only shows up when going on line, which is how you do it after all. When I test the html pages locally on the computer all is fine! Seems that upper / lower case file names are the problem. Thanks to Sue on No Problem who warned me about that problem some time ago. Just need the time to sort it!

OK tis a feeble attempt but we do celebrate the Queen's Jubilee. 

Oh boy, hot, hot, hot

We moved slowly to Fenny Compton before it got hot. The Wharf Inn has a tap outside so we took on water. Then we noticed a Launderette. The Inn also has a small shop inside which sells milk, bread and other items useful for boaters and the campsite. Much of our winter kit, clothes and bedding, have now been washed, dried and packed away. “We do of course have our own washing machine but the big commercial unit took it all in one go for £6.”

The five locks at Claydon are open between 10 and 5 each day. We got there to join a queue of two going down. Several boats were on the way up, which made for an easy trip. There are a further three to get down to Cropredy but with no other boats it took longer. Four hours travelling is enough for us so we settled for the first set of ‘visitor moorings’. “Not ideal with a soft edge and rocks below!” BW issued a ‘Customer Service Standards’ document a few years back but as yet have not been able to achieve it. Perhaps C & R T will refer to it for guidance. It is unreasonable to assign a visitor mooring where a boat cannot stop without problems.

After relaxing over a late lunch we were able to move on to better mooring when a few boats had moved away.

We walked down to the local Spar shop for provisions. We are sad to report that the Post Office at Cropredy has closed. The next is at Banbury.

Napton locks

Next stop for us is near the bottom lock at Napton. During the afternoon we walked up the hill past a few locks. One top gate had been left open and because the bottom gate was leaking the pound level was very low. When we shut the gate the lock emptied quickly! The shop near the bottom lock is worth a look. They sell canal ware, provisions, books, cards, stamps, sausages from the local butcher and even Calor Gas! Apparently the Folly Inn does food now and is so good you may need to book a table.

As we approached the bottom lock a volunteer was opening it. So I just carried on in after Ann had jumped off. The volunteer told me that the pumps were already pushing water back up to the top. He also mentioned that he read this blog. There was a boat going up in front and several behind us heading up.

 Just as many boats coming down made for an easy trip with locks being ready for us to enter. The restrictions are less severe now with only the top two locks at Marston Doles being locked at night.

“When you get to the top you see a TV transmitter mast in the distance.” The canal twists and turns so much that you loose sight of the mast that is near the moorings we are heading for. Although the water level is normal it is still quite shallow and slow going. “Keep to the middle or you may get stuck on the bends.” There are some protest signs against the High Speed Rail Link that may pass over the canal near bridge 128. That is near the mast and the moorings.

Back in the water

It was after the weekend that the boat got pushed back down the slope. It is on top of two four wheeled trollies one at each end that run on rails. Once on the move the boat entered the water stern first, going in quite deep till buoyancy lifted it off. Then we got on, started the engine and moved away to a mooring. We stayed a while in Braunston waiting for post and doing some shopping.

The number 10 Stagecoach takes us to Daventry every hour but it does not follow the old Geoffrey Amos route. When returning to Braunston get off at the Marina or Church because it goes on to Barby heading for Rugby. It does not pass by the Boathouse!

While we stayed in Braunston I monitored the output from that solar panel fitted by ‘Solarafloat’. Over a period of four days not moving the average output was just over 4 amps. The maximum in sunshine was 8.7 amps. During those four days we had one sunny day. We did not run the engine on that sunny day. For the other 3 cloudy days the engine was run for just over an hour. It is certainly capable of keeping the fridge and radio going most of the day. The only problem is the lack of hot water when not running the engine! 

Other pieces of roof furniture is this ‘Parosol’ base from Argos, just the thing to hang the aerials on and our flower boxes made by a friend at Market Drayton.

Oh my was that a struggle getting this new 'improved' blog editor to do what I want!!

Getting a blacking

 We finally got to Braunston after a Tesco delivery at Willoughby. Quite a bit of room for more boats and we found a space near Butchers bridge. Several boats are going up and down the locks. Next day we moved on to Braunston Boats at the bottom lock and waited. A boat is still on the slipway but is not yet ready to go back in the water. Recent rain delayed progress with the painting. We have made preparations by putting loose and breakable items safely on the floor.

While we wait Mike Allen came to check our boat over for its third Boat Safety Examination. After many visual checks and a thorough test of the gas system we were given a pass.

The boat got pulled out a day later than planned and was immediately pressure washed in the morning. A very thorough clean which took at least an hour. Justin recommended that we have it painted with International ‘Intertuf’ which is compatible but a bit thicker than the standard bitumen blacking. Thankfully the sun came out to dry the boat off so painting started in the afternoon.

I looked at the colour bands at the back and realized they needed a make over. Encouraged by sunshine I donned my work clothes, gathered tools and set about scraping loose paint and rust off. Then it rained. “Don’t know if I am happy or sad now!” The sun came out the next day so I managed to get the first coat of colour paint on. The next day after a light rubbing down the second coat went on. “Now I am happy.” Justin applied the second coat of blacking.

Over the weekend while the boat stayed out of the water we sampled the local public houses. Much has changed over the years and the Mill House became the Boathouse under new management. While The Old Plough kept its name it had recently changed hands. We had often enjoyed the family atmosphere at the Plough and found the Mill House too crowded.

We went to the Boathouse on Saturday with our friends Terry n Myra and really enjoyed a good variety of food with the offer of two meals for one! In reality we ended up paying a normal amount for each meal! On our way out we had a chat with Bob n Jane who were also eating there. I have to say that when we went to the Plough on Sunday we were disappointed with the food and the place has become quite run down. We sat out side with our friends Dave n Lyn and Molly under the table among the long grass.