All set for Cropredy

I know I haven't blogged for a while but I get frustrated with the slow speed of my laptop - must get more RAM! - so I've stopped using it onboard. Anyway last week, after having a fabulous time at my brother-in-law's 60th birthday party (wild west theme), I started out for Cropredy. I had somehow wrecked my back - I think through some light gardening activity :-) - so progress had to be a little slower than planned. I didn't have a very good trip up Buckby locks as a couple of the pounds were shallow meaning that I couldn't moor in to the side to prep the lock. Instead I tried to keep Olivia in the entry to the lock but of course her fender caught under the gate and she tipped at an alarming angle before the fender chain broke and freed her up.  My lock sharer was very kind and tried to be helpful but he was also single handed and with limited mobility - between us we were a right pair of crocks. I moored at the top of the locks for the night and next morning cruised through to Braunston. The locks here were much better behaved and the journey through the tunnel mostly uneventful. One of the boats coming through had about three tunnel lights, one of which was so bright that I was blinded for a while after we'd passed. Such candle power is just not necessary! I moored a mile beyond Braunston and decided to walk to Daventry and then get a bus over to fetch the car, which I'd left at Weedon. Despite the bad back, walking is something I can do without any painful twinges so I enjoyed it - walking about 8 miles altogether. The next day I cruised up to Napton where I met 2 single-handed female boaters, Mo and Toni. They were out together in Mo's boat to give it a run. They were funny and interesting and we ended up spending the evening together in The Folly pub, exchanging boating (and other) stories about our lives. They have moorings at Braunston and have invited me over when I am next in the area. I moored after 6 of the Napton locks (opposite the field of buffalo) and the space there is peaceful even though it is the choice for quite a few boats. Next day it was the rural cruise through to Fenny Compton and beyond to Claydon locks. It was rather busy with most boats coming along in convoys of two or three and, of course, meeting mostly at bridges. I did stop for lunch at The Wharf at Fenny and finally moored on the rings above Claydon locks. I walked down to Cropredy to suss out moorings and was surprised to find the Cropedy North 14 day moorings deserted (Why?). The towpath telegraph had been reporting "There's nowhere to moor at Cropredy" and "You'll be lucky" when I'd tell them where I was headed. Perhaps it is because I don't think a mile is very far to walk whereas, perhaps others think you need to be moored right in the village centre. Had lunch at The Brase and then thought I'd better clean up the boat a bit. Really pleased to see that the Geoff Amos bus now passes through Cropredy hourly. Very useful and saves a long walk down to the A361 so I hope the change is permanent.