Ups and downs but still afloat

Following the survey Olivia was booked in for the welding work. When I picked her up I was a bit disappointed that the engine room was left dirty (more than her usual state) and I noticed there was more water in the bilge than usual. After emptying the bilge I moved her on a few miles and left her for a week. On my return I discovered that the bilge was full again and it was then that I noticed that the stern gear was leaking. So this week Rick came over with various tools, tightened the stern gear and repositioned the greaser tube that had split so that grease was not going where it should have been. It's all looking a lot happier now. Alongside this there was also a leak from the stove chimney/flue inside the boat. Copious amounts of sealant have improved that situation. I was lucky over the past few years as Olivia hasn't needed much work so I think all these problems have just been maintenance catching up with me. Hopefully we will be cruising happily throughout 2015.

Surveyed and blacked

I had to get Olivia hauled out of the water for a hull survey to fulfil the requirements for the insurance company (as Olivia is now 30 years old). She wasn't in bad nick but I will have to get someone to look at the weedhatch and do a spot of welding. I also need to attend to the washbasin waste outlets where they exit through the hull. While she was out of the water I had her blacked and very smart she looks now. I have booked her in for a service and then she'll be all set for facing up to winter.

After such a busy weekend in London I spent Monday and Tuesday catching up with friends and doing the housekeeping. On Wednesday I was back in London where I visited the Quentin Blake exhibition at the new House of Illustration on Granary Square in the newly developed Kings Cross area. They are making a good job of the development and it has a cultural vibe (much needed, I must say). I met Caroline for lunch at the Royal Academy where we went around the Dennis Hopper exhibition. He only used his camera from 1961 to 1967 and he captured the era perfectly, especially as he only used black and white film. I would have loved to have stayed to watch his two movies, Easy Rider and The Last Movie but time waits for no man(or even for me)so I jumped on the tube to South Kensington where I was meeting up with Rose before she went to the Proms.

I was soon back on board Olivia and through the Claydon locks after which I enjoyed the rural lock free pound to Marston Doles. One thing that I have noticed more and more is that boaters don't seem to do any preparation before they cast off. Today I had a couple who were reversing back from a lock to the winding (turning) point. As they were all over the canal (as I would be if I were trying to reverse) we struck up a conversation and it transpired that they had decided to turn at this point as "it might be a while before we find another one". I was asked by another boat whether there was "a water point in the vicinity" and another was surprised when advised that there was not a shop for another two hours. Is it just me but I find that a lot of the pleasure is in the planning of the journey? Having said that I had a choice of either walking nine miles or taking two bus journeys. I decided on the latter which took three and a half hours!! Two of these hours were spent waiting for a connecting bus because the existing timetable means that one bus misses the other by about two minutes and both buses run every two hours.

My first cruise on the tidal Thames

I have been lucky enough to have a fantastic weekend. On Friday I was treated to tea at the Ritz! It was last year's Christmas present from my son's partner and included myself, my sister, my daughter and son's partner. We started with a glass of champagne moved on through the finger sandwiches and some fancy cakes and tarts, then onto scones and finished up with a choice of either Bakewell tart or lemon drizzle cake! All washed down by copious amounts of very tasty tea.

After we went our separate ways I jumped on the DLR to Limehouse where I met up with Heather who had invited me to accompany her on a trip on the Thames the next morning. There was a briefing in the evening after which we moseyed on down to Island Gardens where we had a brilliant viewpoint for the firework display which was part of the Totally Thames festival. The added bonus was that after the display a lot of the tall ships started moving to their positions for the next day.

On Saturday we were up early ready to cast off at 07.30. Sixteen narrowboats and one cruiser were to make the journey in a convoy. We took off along Limehouse Cut and down Bow Creek coming out onto the Thames opposite the O2 dome.

The river seemed very calm and just right for a newbie like me. We cruised past Greenwich and across the river to the south side behind a massive cruise liner, Europa, where we found the entrance to Deptford Creek. This is not a pretty creek but it was interesting to see it and we attracted several bystanders who enjoyed seeing all seventeen boats cruising up and back. One little girl had a horn which she "parped" so we really did have to return the compliment :-).

When we got back out onto the Thames, once again crossing the river to the north shore, the water seemed to be quite lumpy and we had several of the jet experience boats zipping around near us adding to the waves. I found this a bit of a white knuckle ride and was happy to hand the helm back to Heather who took it all in her stride and got us back into Limehouse lock. All in all a very enjoyable morning. After lunch we went into Greenwich by DLR but it was absolutely rammed with people visiting the Tall Ships festival events. I gave up and went to stay at Tom's house.

On Sunday we went to the Angel Canal Festival. Luke had a stall there which attracted good interest. There was plenty to amuse a two year old including donkey rides, funfair, creepy crawlies and hawks and owls, boating activities and much more.

Enjoying late summer days

This week I travelled from Banbury down to Little Heyford. The weather was fantastic: warm and calm. Apart from the hire boats the canal was quiet and I was able to find some wonderful rural moorings. One evening, out of the corner of my eye, I saw a bird land on the bow. When I moved to get a better view I saw, for just a fleeting moment, a kingfisher. Magic. At Heyford there is a station which runs about four trains a day to Oxford and, with my railcard, the fare was only £3.05p! I took advantage of this and had a lovely day in Oxford. I visited the Ashmolean, the Modern Art museum, the unique shops in the covered market and had a good old mooch.

The lift bridge at Little Heyford is really heavy and I couldn't fathom a way to tether it up (You need a crew member to sit on the beam). Luckily I commandeered some cheerful and helpful dog walkers on both the outward and return journeys. I wonder if the Canal and River Trust will ever acknowledge single handed boaters (there are more and more of us) and plan to alter how such bridges work. At one of the locks I found a small queue caused by the gate not closing fully. CRT came out and poked about with their rake which located the problem. Apparently it was a bag full of tools and components. I wonder if it was dumped there or whether it fell off someone's boat.

I am heading northwards again now, making my way to my home patch.

Still on the South Oxford

Geographically I haven't travelled very far but I am enjoying just cruising for a couple of hours every now and then. This part of the canal is so rural and, therefore, very beautiful. My plan is to carry on southwards for a few days and then start back towards my "home" territory. I may not be able to travel as far south as I'd originally hoped as I have just heard that one of the lift bridges (# 215) has collapsed into the canal. This year I have to book into a boatyard to have a few maintenance jobs done so that will take care of October.

As I was in the area I went to visit Compton Verney which has (until the end of August) an exhibition of work by Henry Moore and Auguste Rodin. The highlight for me was The Burghers of Calais which is normally to be found outside the Houses of Parliament but at Compton the sculpture is viewed at ground level where the fine detail can be seen and appreciated.

Monday's dreadful weather drove me home where I was able to get on with the decorating that I started in the Spring! I got on quite well so I should be able to finish the room after a couple more days. Professional decorators quoted £600 and £900 and I will have done the work for about £60 and a week of my time. Anyway the weather is looking good so I'm off to do some cruising.

Where I have been hiding for four weeks

I arrived at Cropredy on 19th July and was lucky to squeeze in on the 14 day moorings. Boats were already there saving places for themselves and their friends for the forthcoming festival. As this was my fifth attendance at Cropredy in the last six years I spent some time reacquainting myself with old friends. The weather was fantastic and there was a good pre-festival vibe. Boaters were using the time (and the weather) to fix and/or paint their boats. I had the opportunity to accompany friends on a sailing holiday in the Greek Islands so for a week I said bye bye to Cropredy and hello to 30 degrees plus temperatures in Kefalonia, Ithaca, Kalamos, Levkada and back to Kefalonia. What a great time we had.

I had a couple more days back in festival fervour before enjoying a day in London where 20 of us from the Northants Adventure Club did the "Over the Top" experience at the O2 in Greenwich. My little munchkin (grandaughter, Hollie) came to visit me there and she is so funny.

Back in Cropredy for the run up to the festival, I was accompanied by my grandson, Paris. We went to meet Luke who was cruising up from Oxford with The Record Deck UK, so we were able to help him through some of the locks. When he arrived at Cropredy, he took my space (a very good trading spot, with many other traders close by) and I found a spot through the next bridge. The weather held out and was even hot and sunny for most of the festival, raining overnight on Friday and again on Sunday. Lots of our friends turned up including my daughter, Kate, and son, Tom with Gemma and Hollie (so all my family were present :-)). Luke had his boat signwritten by Ali Hutchinson and most of the traders had a successful weekend. Even Paris made some Loom band bracelets which he was able to sell to customers browsing the albums (entrepreneur or child labour?). As usual the festival was over all too soon. I moved Olivia a little way but with ten boats queuing for the lock and heavy winds I decided to moor up and wait for a few days before heading South for a while.

Beautiful cruising weather

What a lovely few days I have had. It certainly makes a difference when the sun puts its hat on. Everyone that you meet seems to be in a good mood. Since my last blog post I moved up a little way to Nether Heyford to visit a friend who then made dinner for us. After dieseling up I had an evening cruise up towards Whilton ready for the Buckby locks next morning. I rarely cruise in the evening because I am always wondering whether there will be a mooring spot left but it was so nice that I will definitely be doing it again. On the subject of mooring spots I am amazed at how many more boats are now mooring in my favourite places. In another year or so I reckon the canals will be FULL. Weekends in particular are busy with hire boats and marina boats out on the cut.

Whenever I have done the Buckby locks I have had problems: too shallow to moor on the lock landings; too deep so water had to be let out in order to level the top gates; gates that could not be moved so that help had to called out; fender caught on gates when the flow was too strong for reverse; etc. However, this time the passage was as good as it has ever been. I shared with nb Hannah Ruth who were very efficient and friendly and we also had a pair of lockies - the first time I have ever seen any on this flight. Once at the top I moored and went to the New Inn for lunch, a fairly standard baguette. Onward to Welton and a good trip through the tunnel. It was mainly dry and I only met a boat right at the very end. I decided to moor at the top of Braunston locks which was a really quiet spot. I moored next to Steam barge Hasty that I had met earlier this year on the way to London. Unfortunately there was no one on board. I wandered down to the shop for some supplies and just had to treat myself to an icecream.

Next day I had another smooth journey down the Braunston flight which was busy with boats coming up so all locks were ready for me. I had to wait outside the bottom lock chandlery which was not open. After ten minutes or so a girl came cycling up at great speed and full of apologies but she had fallen off her bike into the cut! They didn't have what I wanted but no worries. Braunston was as busy as it always is so I carried on as far as Napton. On the journey I passed nb Pipe Dreams who shouted "Do you remember us? We met you years ago on the Leicester Ring". Wow, what a memory! Now I'm worried that I must have done something memorable on the Leicester journey! Now I need to prepare for the Napton flight of locks although they are usually okay as long as they are filled slowly. (In the early days I was the victim of its rather strong undertow on a couple of occasions). At the moment there is a restriction on the locks with last boat needing to enter by 4pm.

Back on the Water Road

Just a very short post today. I've got my boat back. Yay, new water pump. Had a little cruise and everything seems to be okay. Let the cruising recommence.

Olivia's Troubles

Apparently the water pump is b******d. Getting it sorted next week. Hopefully that will sort us out good and proper.

At the moment I am moored at Stoke Bruerne once again awaiting an engineer. Same problem as earlier which is overheating. Hopefully this time we will get to the source of the problem. Luke has pressed on through Blisworth tunnel and I went along as passenger which I enjoyed so much more than being the steerer. He dropped me at Gayton where I went to speak to Steve at Grand Junction boatyard. He promised to look at Olivia this morning. While at Gayton I ran into Rick who made me a cup of tea and when I got ready for the four mile walk back another boater, Kathy, offered me a lift. This was much appreciated as by then it was getting on for 8pm so I wouldn't have got home until about 9.30. Looks like I'll be in the local area for a week or so now.

Now at Marsworth

I don't know where time goes. We have been cruising five or six hours a day and have moored at King's Langley, Berkhampsted and now Marsworth. We have had brilliant weather, in fact it has been rather too hot at times. We haven't had much spare time but this morning we had a mooch around Berko which had a little fete at the church. I bought 3 books for £1, a home made cake and I won a bottle of wine in the tombola :-).

Batchworth

I'm not only enjoying the beautiful sunshine but it is also good to be travelling with Luke. Both our boats are giving us slight concerns. Mine is getting through pints of water a day in the cooling system but I can't find the source of the problem. Luke's is picking up lots of detritus on the prop. It's great having someone to share locks with (and he is handy at putting meals together too ;-)).

What a busy week! Catching up with family and friends. First I made my way back down the Lea only needing to pop down the weedhatch twice. Luke was waiting for some boat jobs to be finished so I kicked around with him for a couple of days. Had a great chat with Mandy who plays in a band with her twenty something son and also acts in a group with puppets. I would like to try to catch her performance when it returns to London at the end of the month. Luke and I cruised down to Victoria Park where we found a mooring in a perfect spot by the main entrance to the park from the canal. I went in search of fuses (for Luke) and walked about six miles to Liverpool Street and back via the Mile End Road. On Sunday Luke opened his record shop and had a good day's trading. Tom,Gemma and Hollie came over and Hollie enjoyed the playground in the park. Lots of Luke's friends turned up and they had a little music session with guitar and ukes. On Monday Rose, Nick and Mike joined us for the cruise through London to Little Venice. It was perfect weather for cruising. London is a little bit full at the moment. Perhaps someone should think about an affordable marina somewhere. A lot of people I spoke to would love a more permanent arrangement. They are working all week and then have to spend the weekend finding the next place to stay.

Heading South again

On Sunday I met up with Luke at a car boot (I only bought a couple of DVDs). After we had a late breakfast he went back to finish some boat jobs and I hopped on a train to Hertford to have a look around. It seems quite a sweet little town with lots of green space for leisure around the river. I had a look at the castle but the museum is closed on a Sunday. As it was such a nice day I walked back to Ware and visited the museum there. It is quite tiny so I didn't learn much more about the town. I discovered that there was a grotto but alas it was closed. Anyway I walked all the way back to Olivia, a distance of about 9 miles! Since then I've been working my way back towards London. I was invited to share a trip on the Thames (to Gravesend) with Heather, who I met a few weeks ago. Unfortunately it is this weekend and I can't fit it in with my deadlines and commitments.

Lee and Stort

I have been spending the last few days pottering around on the Lee and walking to some of the places that I haven't managed to cruise to. On Thursday I went to the gunpowder mills at Waltham Abbey. It has lots to interest children including a room full of various types of gun. Anyway I now know how gunpowder was made and I was especially interested in the social history. Yesterday I had a look around Roydon on the Stort. Lots of river cruisers up this way, alongside canoeists and little dinghies. Once I went beyond the M25 the river took on the ambience of holiday resorts. Lots of people sitting by their boats having picnics and drinking wine. Today I visited Ware for the first time. It is a sweet little place with many historical buildings. I might go back to spend some more time tomorrow. The train along here is very convenient as it accompanies the river meaning that a longer walk can be taken with return trip by train.

Up the Lee

Today I started off up the Lee. The weather wasn't perfect but it was mostly dry with little wind and I was getting stir crazy. Luke offered to come with me to ensure I was happy with these locks and he stayed until lunchtime. We were going to go to the pub at Ponders End but the guy there was so condescending that we went to a cafe instead. Neither Luke nor I like to be spoken to as if we are children! ! Perhaps he was having a bad day but customer service is everything. After lunch Luke cycled back to his boat,I lit a lovely cosy fire and settled down with a book.

Bit of a soggy day for a launch

I was back on board for a launch today. This was not the launch of a floating vessel but that of Luke's new business, The Record Deck, a floating emporium of vinyl goodies. Lots of very nice, friendly people turned out to support him and trade was brisk. Perhaps he won't starve after all. In fact he made a very nice rhubarb crumble and tasty fruit salad to sustain the shoppers. I hope it will be a little warmer and drier tomorrow.

Lee navigation

So I have made it to the Lee but can't say I like it much. Everyone tells me that the Stort is beautiful so I will have to persevere. Yesterday I moored at Victoria Park. I was lucky to find a good spot and I got help from the lovely Max from the boat in front of me. I walked through the whole park and also had a wander around the Olympic Park. While I was there we had a short lived storm so I sheltered in the cafe by the Big Red Thing. Later I went to Broadway Market to get Luke some coffee beans. Today I found CRT working on the first lock with some rapid drying cement. They said I could go through in an hour so I had another little walk around the park and was ready to go at 10. I find the locks on this stretch a pain as the bottom gates keep opening. Also it was quite windy today so Olivia wasn't as well behaved as usual. However the folks around here are always willing to help so that's a very good result. As I am moored right opposite Luke's marina I know there are two cafes nearby and I am off shortly to get some lunch.

Making the most of it

The engineer was busy until 4pm so I made the most of being in the area, exploring all the recent developments which have transformed the feel of what was a depressed area. I had a wander around Camley natural park that I have,for many years, seen from the train aa it slows into St Pancras. It's an oasis of calm. Central St Martins also looks fantastic and the presence of students milling around is refreshing.

I also went to the Comics Unmasked exhibition at the British Library. My good old Art Pass (plus my seniority) made it an affordable punt. There was enough to interest and inform me and I whiled away a couple of hours.

Lineus arrived and confirmed that the faulty pressure cap was a contributory factor (it had exploded a week ago and I have one on order). He also tightened the V belt which I check regularly and hadn't thought it was loose. Seems it needs attention at least twice a year. I'd have a go at doing it myself but it's a bit awkward. When Lineus went I walked to Islington and beyond (as far as Kingsland basin).

Aren't boaters brilliant

I have had two boats breasted up so I got help from my good friend Rose and middle boat occupant Grace to extricate Olivia. We then had to reverse through the bridge hole and around the cafe boat so that I could turn up thr Regent's canal. This is new cruising territory for me and is of interest throughout. On reaching Camden Locks I discovered that the poor old boat was overheating. We had got through two locks but needed to tie up and let her cool down. We took the opportunity of a short walk to suss out mooring spots. On our return a boat was preparing the third lock so I asked if I could share with them but needed to walk boat through. This is when I reaffirmed that boaters are brilliant because Nick and Carol offered to tow Olivia to Kings Cross where I was able to find a mooring for the night. I've just got to sort out the source of my overheating now.

Paddington Basin - full house

Last week nbChance put on their blog that they were Billy No Mates at Paddington Basin. Well they aren't now, it was rammed full. I was lucky and got a very nice spot at Little Venice although most boats are double and triple moored.

I was joined by Rose for an enjoyable trip down from Greenford. I can't believe how many more boats there are moored on the canal compared to my last trip 3 years ago. Boats are moored in all sorts of random places where no one would ever have moored back then. We found an interesting antiques and collectables centre not far from Lissom Grove and that kept us amused all afternoon.

Two very different days

Yesterday I was FREEZING while cruising. My hands were colder than they had been in December. I had to moor at the end of a string of boats and found myself moored right outside a noisy 24 hour factory. Anyway I had run short of time so had to put up with it. I met Luke on the South Bank and we had a meal before going to Udderbelly to see my niece's hubby's juggling troupe performing "Smashed". It was great fun and well attended. Luke came back with me to pick up some albums for his new venture, The Record Deck (a floating vinyl record emporium). In case you were wondering I had picked up one of his ebay purchases of albums. Today I met friends for a trip to Eltham Palace. Really worth the visit and we were so lucky with the weather. We finished the day with a meal at Cafe Rouge and I went back to my noisy mooring. Might stuff my ears with tissues tonight.

The Colne Valley

The good thing about not needing to rush to London this year is that I can stop and explore the area. Today I walked into Denham, a place I had never been before. It is really pretty and comprises a couple of pubs and an Italian restaurant. Also it has one of the tallest chestnut trees I have ever seen. The walk took me to Denham Country Park and the Colne Valley visitor centre. I only did five locks today and shared them all with Destiny No 2 who are also on their way to the Cavalcade at Little Venice. Warmest cruising day so far :-).

To Rickmansworth

Another good day. I started with a walk to Whippendell woods, which was bursting with bluebells. Met my second batch of Duke of Edinburgh awarders. I met some at Nash Mills and they seemed whacked whereas this group were coping well. I couldn't carry the packs that they have. I coupled up with Zwei,a sea Otter on its way to the Cavalcade at Little Venice. (For my non boater friends this is a boat not some rare wildlife). We shared 7 locks after which I had reached my destination. We met another boat heading into London to live. They had no idea how far London was, how dangerous locks were (one guy was balancing on the front of the boat trying to prise the bottom gates open with his hands), they had no licence and were planning to moor at Camden. I do hope Crt are policing the visitor moorings or we will have no places to stop over! I had a little look at Ricky which has some nice coffee shops and plenty of chazzers.

North of Watford

I'm nicely settled enjoying the evening sun just North of Watford. I've had good company since leaving Cowroast. I have shared 21 locks with Malcolm and Harry on nb Malcarry and another five with others so only four by myself. Apart from the wind on Saturday the weather has been perfect for cruising. I should make good time in order to get to Hollie's second birthday party :-).

Cowroast

I did get to the Natural History museum yesterday and it was packed out with both specimens and visitors. Some of the animals appeared to be either bigger or smaller than the live version of the animal. It's a great place to study the small differences in species. I would be tempted to visit again but I would choose a quieter day. Today I made my way through the Marsworth flight and was helped throughout by the volunteer lock keeper. They seem to like helping single handers like myself. The weather was warm even when we had a half hour shower. I'm still car hopping so walked back to fetch it and as I had no food on board I stopped at The Angel's Retreat for a pizza. It was very good when it came but I had to wait an hour and they didn't tell me that when I ordered A couple of people left and got there money back when told that their meal would be another half an hour. Only eat there if you are not in a hurry.

Tringing

I'm spending the day in Tring today and hoping to get to see Rothschild's stuffed animals shortly. It has felt a bit chilly in the evenings so I had to get another sack of coal this morning. Yesterday I had a great day sharing 9 locks with two very nice chaps on steam tug Hasty. They had her made to the original plans of the old Blisworth tunnel tug of that name, an 8 year project. They not only eased my workload at the locks but also made me a coffee! So thank you Andy and Keith and do enjoy the Tideway on Thursday.

Slow boating is nice when the wind drops

Saturday was pretty cold so I had to ferret out the gloves and the woolly hat. Sunday and Monday were nice, sunny days but a chilly wind remained. But Tuesday, Tuesday was a proper warm Spring day. On Monday I had a lazy day as I was sidetracked by a visit to IKEA. I was moored so close that it would be rude not to and I needed some drawers for the boat so I can hide away yet more of my necessities (aka my dross). I'm going to swap it for the table that I never use. I moored not far from Fenny Stratford (where I have previously had a very nice Chinese meal). On Tuesday I had a much more successful cruise, making up for lost time. The car hopping is becoming a drag and I had to walk another 6 miles or so to retrieve it. No cruising for a couple of days as I have lots of non boat work to do.

I've said before that most people on the cut are thoughtful, chilled, helpful and like minded BUT you always get ONE. While moored close to The Plough at Simpson one oik played his music at a level that was not very friendly. I might not have minded so much but his taste in music was not that special. Why do some people think that they should impose their lifestyle on everyone else? Luckily he had moved on when I got back from my walk. However, he had left a horrible black slick on the surface of the water! Can you get waterway ASBO's?

Two days running at a pub :-)

I'm making my way around Milton Keynes this week. At Cosgrove I got talking to fellow boater, Heather, and when we had drunk our fill of tea we went to the beer and cider festival at the Barley Mow. The music was a bit loud for chatting but the cider was good. The next day four friends came to join me and we made our way to Campbell Park via lunch at The Black Horse. They kindly treated me to lunch as they had enjoyed their trip. Today I have walked about 8 miles. I started with Willen Lake as I'd never been there before. Then I walked to Fenny Stratford where I spotted Mick's boat, Nell, but he wasn't on board. Now I am resting my feet and planning tomorrow. By the way, I did fit the new bow fender BUT I had to do a Heath Robinson with the chains as I haven't got any the right size and I ran out of D shackles, so here it is for now:

My buddy from the Buddhist Temple gardens at Willen Park:

Just a short trip

I went down the rest of the locks at Stoke Bruerne and moored not much further along the pound. The bottom two locks were difficult to open as there was a good flow resulting from activity in the locks above me so that water was flowing down over the gates. I got some help from a very nice CRT volunteer who arrived just in time. Yesterday was lovely and mild but today was chilly so I didn't move on. Instead I had a productive day fitting the new stern fender and then painting the bow so that I can get on with fitting the bow fender. I think I've found the best way to do it and the fenders weren't as heavy as I had expected. I'm moored opposite a field of lambs who are happily playing together and gambolling around. Ahh!

The stern fender:

British Summer Time

When I'm pootling about over winter and moving every couple of weeks, it is difficult to say definitively when I have started the new season's travels. However, this week there have been two significant things which enable me to say that I have started out: the first is that we are now into British Summer Time so it's not getting dark until 8pm and the second is that I've been through my first locks of 2014 and I am pointing South. Blisworth tunnel was very wet this time through, the wettest that I've ever seen it. This weekend the hire boats were out in force including one party that had megaphones to communicate with each other. I needed to replace the glass in my stove which had broken over the winter and I was also going to replace my bow and stern fenders but they are quite heavy and I think I will need some help with those.

Back home I did a little bit of gardening in the hope that I can make an impression before it has it's major growth spurt. I was very pleased to see that I have got newts back in the pond and there were also butterflies and bumble bees in evidence so back to where I started: it is Summer Time :-).