Hard Days Work

31/03/12

Batchworth Lock 81, Rickmansworth - North Grove Lock 71, Abbots Langley

12 Locks - 4 Miles

Today was a really busy day so only one photo.  We spent the day on the boat and were pretty tired from the previous evening, so today was a really long, hard slog.  

Definitely harder without me going ahead on the bike so deffo bike for me tomorrow.  We ended up stopping for the night right next to Junction 20 of the M25!

Not all Locks are made Equal

30th March 2012 
Cowley Lock 89 - Batchworth Lock 81 - 8 Locks - 9 Miles - 3 miles Cycled

Never seen the Like??

Started early today, arrived at Uxbridge Lock by 8am. This would be our 2nd lock today, at the previous lock we passed a couple on NB Mr Peter who were making their way to the Thames.  They had been chosen to take part in the Jubilee Celebration! They needed to get there for rehearsals and would need to pay for VHF radios and helmsman training. They said it would cost apx £300! Still, what an event to be part of. 
BW were also at the lock that morning and kindly sorted it for Yogi, while I cycled ahead to the next one.  When I arrived the lock was in our favour but I noticed that one end had 2 paddle mechanisms?  One on the gates and one behind?  
I needed a good few minutes to look at and ponder said slush's and decided that I would stay well away from the ones on the gates until I had spoken  to someone who knew what they were doing.   Luckily, later today we would be meeting a friend and very well seasoned boater Michael, so I could ask him. :0)

Narrow Paddle Boat 

We carried on through Uxbridge and towards Denham Deep Lock which is the deepest lock on the GU at 11'1".  

We were hoping to catch up with Kev of Chinese Med there,  but he was at work and we didn't have time to stop unfortunately, so we missed him. :0(


We did see this rather charming paddle boat on the way though... 

After Denham Lock we had a good while before the next lock so I got back on the boat for a cruise with the man.   All the locks are so pretty and the countryside between them is beautiful.  Its a lovely day, that's for sure.  
The approach to Springwell Lock (aptly named as the water was cascading over the bottom gates like a waterfall) made us wonder when we were going to be effected by the water shortage we had heard so much about?

Spot the tree growing out of the boat.

There are LOADS of inline moorings along the river and the boats range from the sublime to the ridiculous.  We saw some real messes as well as some really cool stuff that boaters had made.

Cool Stuff on Long term Moorings 

We arrived at Rickmansworth at apx 4.30pm just in time to see Marie and Michael heading back from shopping.






We moored alongside them and spent a lovely afternoon aboard NB Illusions having a drink and a chat.  I shared a bottle of red with Marie while Yogi and Mike tested the cider.  I didn't realise Marie and I had so much in common, we had the same books and interests and while the men were off getting extra supplies we had a really lovely chat.  Was almost a shame when the men came back lol!!  The evening was spent with us.  With more cider for the men but just tea for the ladies, us being far more civilised lol.  Mike and Marie were telling us stories of their travels and giving us pointers for the journey ahead. It was a really lovely evening and a perfect end to the day.

Des Res for the discerning duck

29/03/12
Bridge 16a, Northolt - Cowley Lock - 8 miles 0 Locks

Posh Moorings for Free

After yesterdays diesel fiasco, we decided to stop at the next available Boatyard to fill up with EVERYTHING!! So last night we headed for Highline Yachting in Northholt.  I made sure that there would be no hiccups by calling them first and checking they were open, they were till 4.30pm.  So we went hell for leather to get there in time arriving at 4pm.

Captain Nasty keeping watch

The place was deserted, not a person in sight, and the offices all locked up, so I called back and spoke to a very apologetic man who was very sorry that he had given me the wrong information and there wouldn't be anyone there till tomorrow at 9.30am!!  

He realised that I was quite cross about this and offered to let us moor there FOC for the night for our inconvenience (is normally £8 per night).  

The next morning was bright and sunny and the man arrived right on time.  We filled the diesel tank to the top and it only took 107 litres.  Now, the tank itself is supposed to hold 225l so the mark we thought was the empty mark was actually the half a tank mark so we had all that aggro yesterday for no reason really lol Hey Ho, lesson learned.


We topped up the water tank and gas reserves and Yog spotted a nifty gadget for showing you how much gas is left in your bottle.  it cost £4 and is magnetic so you just stick it to the bottle.  Cool, as soon as we can work out how to read and understand the damn thing!!

Check the bank, there are 2 Herons

Flying Heron

Heron in Flight

The scenery is starting to get a lot more picturesque now, and even though it is hard work at the moment the environment is much nicer than it was in London and that makes things a lot easier.  At least we are moving again now which is a big relief for both of us!!


As we passed the Slough Arm of the GU it marked the point for us where we really started to head North.  


The going was slow as we were passing a lot of moored boats in marinas or on in line moorings. Far more than there are on the Lee, they go on for miles!!


It was good for getting ideas for what (and what NOT) to do with your boat though lol!! 






My favourite sight for the day was this floating duck house, tied to the back of a large dutch barge at the marina.  


What a pukka des res for the discerning duck about town!  


When we passed the marina, we started to look for somewhere to pull in with a decent landmark as Nip and Terry had called us wanting to visit for a catch up and a beer.  We found a place, right next to The Malt Shovel Pub, right next to a large park for the puppy.  That was us for the night, all I needed to do now was try and avoid a hangover!!

Running On Fumes

28/03/12 - 12miles - 4 Locks 

Islington Tunnel - Bridge 16a 

We started early,  wanting to get through Camden before the place was heaving with tourists and gongoozlers.

Yog had been putting off dipping the tank to see how much fuel we had, but after nagging from me he did.  We were at the bottom marker on the dip stick which we thought was in the crap at the bottom of the tank!! Stress levels started to rise.....so I checked the Nicholson's and St Pancras Cruising Club was just around the corner and they sold Diesel so we were saved.  Or so we thought until we got there and rang the number to see what time they opened, to be met with a very polite answering machine advising us to leave our number so they could ring us back to make an appointment to purchace diesel!!

Constance - We saw her being named :0)

So onto plan B, check iphone for the nearest petrol station so we could at least get a 20l jerry can to tide us over.  Nearest one was at Camden so off we head on a wing and a prayer.  On the way, we passed a cute little tug called Constance.  We remembered her from when she was re-named at Stanstead Abbotts Marina a couple of years ago. I had a video somewhere of her owner running round her backwards and christening her with a can of stella I think it was lol If I find it will post it on here, with the Islington Tunnel Video.

Taken in Camden

Arrived at Camden by 10am and was on my bike with bungeeed jerrycan off to queue up for a can of diesel.  Quite a surreal experience standing in a line of cars, holding my bicycle with a Black Cab in front of me and a transit behind.  

Had to walk back with the can on the bike as it was so heavy I didn't fancy what would happen if the can fell off and splurted Diesel all over Camden High street.  Yog was already through the second lock when I got back.  Quite huffed that he had had to hang about AGAIN in London, his least favorite place. His mood was not improved by the fact that every time I waved at kids they waved back but when he did it they hid behind their mum!! lol

Well, at least we had some diesel now.

Maida Hill Tunnel

Camden now behind us, we had a lock free 27 miles ahead.  Through Regents Park and London Zoo, (which was a bit of a disappointment, no lions or tigers to be seen from the canal).  Through Maida Hill Tunnel and onto Little Venice.  Stopped at Ladbroke Grove Sainsbury's for supplies then on past Wormwood Scrubbs. We were more interested in getting some distance under our belts than taking too much notice of what was around us so we pushed on till it started to get dark again.   

One Lock, One Tunnel and One Impatient Swan!!

Pedestrian Swan

27/03/12 - Sturts Lock - Islington Tunnel


At Sturts Lock the mood immediately lightened.  We were making our way through,  when up the slope behind us walks a swan.  Bold as brass, making his way around the lock. Peoples faces were a picture! Particularly the lady in black who didn't see said swan till she came round the corner!  It was quite a surreal few minutes as he mingled with all the workers on their way home from work as if he too was on his way home after a hard day at the office.  The lock being against him wasn't a problem and for those few minutes everything went back to river time while busy commuters allowed him to make his weary way home.

Anyone for a massage?

This stretch of the canal had a couple of other interesting sights for us.  The first riverside shops came into view, with a cafe and a lady giving neck and shoulder massages. 
Being 'country bumpkins' we're not used to seeing shops at the side of the river, or on boats in the river for that matter.  Apart from the lovely Liz on the coal boat and Les the Icecream Man.  The other thing we noticed was how people had banged their mooring pins in between the paving stones or concrete.  Suppose its the only choice there is, but it did surprise us a bit, wasn't expecting that.

Doom and Gloom Approaches

At City Road Lock it loomed.  Islington Tunnel. 960yds of dark drippy wetness. Ironically running under HMP Pentonville.  Neither Yog or I have ever been through a tunnel by boat before and personally I was pooing myself!  I turned on all the lights inside the boat and Yog switched the headlight on before we made our approach.  There was no putting it off, we were running out of light and there was nowhere to moor before the bridge, so it was now or never.  Ive taken a video that I need to work out how to edit so its not too boring and when Ive managed it I will post it on the blog. The tunnel itself was totally cool, and not nearly as scary as I had imagined it to be. :0)

Normal Service Resumes

Tues 27th March 2012 - 


Donna cycled down to see us again today.  You have to hand it to her, cycling all that way just for a coffee!!

There is light at the end of the tunnel today, there was a tweet that we should get some information regarding the locks re-opening by lunchtime. The lock closure is back down to the area between Sturts and Actons  so we have everything crossed.  Every time my phone makes a noise, Yog looks at me like a kid on xmas morning waiting to be told he can open another present!

He sits on the sofa giggling to himself, this is never good.  'What?' I ask.
'Nothing'  he says in a SO not nothing tone of voice.  'Its bad' He goes onto say ' but I don't suppose you know where my latex severed arm is do you?'


Moving swiftly on, my mate Pamela also got so frustrated she even phoned BW to try and find out what was going on! lol I can just imagine the conversation that went on...'No, I don't have a boat, my friend does and she is stuck and its all your fault for not opening the lock for her!....' 

But at 4.08pm it happenned.  I checked my tweets for what seemed like the hundreth time  and nearly jumped out of my skin when I saw the words: The Regents Canal is now open again.  Thanks to @wordonthewater & everyone else for your patience.  Has been frustrating for everyone.'

I think we had both got used to the idea that we wouldn't be moving anytime soon so it came as a bit of a shock but within 2 minutes, I was on my bike and Yog was on the tiller, paranoid that they may change their minds overnight so we were going now, right now!!

Back through Old Ford Lock and upto Actons, I got there just as the BW guy was unchaining the gates.  Texted Pam the good news only to get the reply ' I told them to open the lock!!' lol

So, the journey had started again, near enough a week to the day that it came to an almighty halt.  

We were quite stressed out whilst going through the effected pound, seeing as what had been going on there for the previous week and I think we both felt a lot of relief that we were finally on the move again.  The sun was still shining and we had a couple of hours of daylight to get as much distance as we could between us and Actons Lock.

First 2 Days

Moored at Waltham Cross on Sunday 18/03/12 

We left Fieldes Wier on Saturday morning and had a pretty uneventful cruise down to Cheshunt where we moored up for the evening.
In the afternoon we had a walk up to the High Street in Cheshunt for Yogi's first and last ever charity shopping excursion!! LOL he did do really well but I could tell after the second shop it was fry up time or we were going home and I was going to have to cook.  So the fry up won!!
We went to a little cafe opposite the Post Office, I had scampi and he had fry up. He was MOST impressed, and if you know Yog, that is no mean feat to impress him!!


The next day we carried on and stopped briefly in Waltham Cross for a bacon sarnie and a cup of tea before heading into so far uncharted waters as this was the furthest point we had been to in the past.

Picketts Lock, the toll is a Bounty Bar!!

This is the point when I started to cycle the towpath to set the locks up for Yog, this giving the double benefit of getting me fit and not knackering Yog.  Win/Win you would think, until I realised I had basically agreed to cycle over 200 miles and set up over 200 locks for him!!  Hey Ho, I like a challenge, and it will be good exercise for me so am going to give it my best shot.


We chugged along really well, through Ramney Marsh, Enfield and Picketts Locks.  I liked Picketts Lock as the Lock Keeper had fixed a box to his garden fence advising that the toll to go through the lock was a Bounty Bar, unfortunately I didn't have any sweeties on board so if anyone goes through there could they leave an extra one from me :0) 
Then came Stonebridge Lock, where I saw one of my Internet buddies Jessica :0) Excellent to put a face to a name as we frantically waved at each other as Yog chugged us past, no time to stop unfortunately :0( I got back on the boat at this point for a rest.  As we came out of the lock I saw another boater who I had met before at a couple of the Lee and Stort Boaters Meetings, we had a chat between boat and towpath for a while then he charged up to Tottenham Lock and set it up for us, absolute gentleman.  Am pretty sure his name is Tony but started to doubt myself after we had left so I couldn't check (If your name isn't Tony I apologise xx) 

Fires Lit and this is home for the night, must ask
Yogi to clear the roof .....

The end of the day was spent moored up by the gates of the Middlesex Filter Beds Nature Reserve. Some brief details are available here: thttp://www.londongardensonline.org.uk/gardens-online-record.asp?ID=HAC032

By the time we got here it was starting to get dark so this was the designated mooring spot for the evening.  I worked out that I had cycled 7 miles today and was pretty pleased with that.


I also learnt how to work out lock miles which is how you work out how long each journey should take you basically its (miles+locks)/3=time.  I thought it was a pretty good way of getting an idea of how long each leg would take and to see where you would be mooring each night.  

When will this Ever End :0(

Shit!!

Sat 24th/Mon 26th March 2012


Nothing much to add really, have cycled to the lock daily to try and find out whats going on, have got the hang of Twitter in case there is any uptodate information on there as well as scouring the internet for new information.  


We feel as stuck as the poor bugger in the photograph! 

Still Stuck! and Hacked Off!!

One of the Blocks of flats at Mile End

Thurs 22nd/Fri 23rd March 2012


We are both starting to get proper stir crazy!!  Have had a cycle about up and down Roman Road and Mile End Road, not impressed to be honest.


Yogi pumped the tyres up on my bike yesterday, which is lucky as someone nicked my bicycle pump last night so am not a happy bunny.


The main topic of discussion is either: Do you think they have opened the lock yet? or Do you think they have found the rest of her yet?  
Have been feeling very torn between feeling really sad for the girl and her family for the terrible situation and feeling really frustrated that we are stuck in the main place we didnt want to be and there is nothing we can do about it.


They extended the lock closure to include Johnsons Lock as well so things are not looking like they are going to be coming to any kind of conclusion just yet.

Stuck

Things ain't all that bad

20-21st March 2012

Even though we are stuck here for the foreseeable future, the weather is very warm and sunny and I found a shop that sold Desperados!! There was quite a lot of police in little boats going up and down the river looking for body parts as well as walking the towpath with BW employees.  One of which stops Yogi while he was on the back doing man stuff to ask ‘ You haven't found a head by any chance have you?’

Apparently the divers had found 2 legs so far so they were heading in the right direction.  (No pun intended).    

My mad mate Donna came to visit me today.  She cycled here!!  Given, when we were texting she didn't actually realise I was in London, she thought I was still on the Lee.  But seeing she is such a keen cyclist with more than a few screws loose, she cycled 30 miles to meet me for a coffee anyway. I suggested that she could start long distance cycling and meet me once a week each time I would be further north but she wasn't having any of it!! lol - Love you Donna, you nutter!!!

Probably the only wall without any graffiti on it!!

Cycled down to Actons Lock to see if there was any news, Yog had spoken to one of the BW workmen this morning and they didn't think the lock would be open for at least a week :0(  The Policeman I found said pretty much the same thing.


On my way back from the Lock I popped into a friends Book Barge at Broadway Market, 'Word on the Water'.  Its a dutch barge converted into a book shop and it is STUNNING!!  Highly recommend seeking it out if you are in the area.  I found a book with fruit recipes which I cant wait to have a play with.

Someones Got Our Skeleton!!!

19th March 2012 - Cont....


Well, we sat at Actons Lock till 4pm Monday, when the police advised us that the lock would be closed for at least a week while they looked for the remaining body parts.  They released us from our spot and said we would moor on the lock landing as there wouldn't be any traffic going through the lock for quite a while.  So we moved forward onto the lock landing.  This spot lasted apx 15 minutes, there were people sitting on the benches outside our windows with cans of Tenants or similar and there was no way I wanted to stay in that particular spot for the evening as it seemed to be somewhat of a gathering point.  So Yog somehow managed to turn us around.  How he did it I have no idea, but he was very wide eyed and there were a lot of 'Oh Dear's coming from the back of the boat so I stayed at the front LOL

Captain Nasty Gets Spotted

We reluctantly made our way back the way we came, looking for somewhere to moor up and wait out the closure.  As we were passing a large blue dutch barge in Vicky Park, a blonde lady popped her head out to enquire about the lock closure.  We told her what we knew and went to go on our way when she burst out 'Oh its you!!' 

'Pardon?' I said, slightly confused

' I was going to tell Ronni someone else had a pirate skeleton on their boat, but its You!!'

It was another Internet Buddy (from the Lee and Stort Boaters Facebook Group), Sally Hone had recognised Captain Nasty on the front of the boat and was rushing off into her boat to let me know I had a pirate skeleton like the one I had???? lol

We continued towards Old Ford Lock still laughing about the pirate incident, slowing when we saw a large red narrowboat barely managing to turn around above the lock to get some water from the water point.  He took a while but he managed to squeeze round, with the help of a punting pole.

At the lock I met another of the Facebook Group who suggested we go and moor near the University, which was near Mile End Rail Bridge.  We didn't have anywhere else to go so that's where we headed.  We found a space with a bit of grass for Buster to wee and poo for his chews on and that was us. 

Stuck in the one place that Yogi had insisted there was NO WAY we were staying in for any amount of shopping or crumbles..........LONDON!!!

You Cant Stop Here!!!

View of the Gherkin from Hertford Union C

Monday 19th March 2012


We left the Filter Beds  bright and early apx 7.45am and headed off into the mist of the morning.  Our aim today was to get to Battlebridge Basin, as we had booked a mooring outside the London Canal Museum.  The cost was just £8 and we thought it was worth it for the security and facilities etc.  But as you will find out all did not go to plan. 

The day started beautifully, bright and sunny, no wind and no locks till the Hertford Union.  We decided that when we got there , I would jump on the bike and cycle forward to set them up ready for us.  This worked really well.  Yogi spotted a little shop at the second lock so I stocked up on bread and milk whilst he waited for the lock to fill.  Which took ages because the lock gates were leaking badly (BW are aware).  By 10am the third lock was done and we were at the junction with the Regents where we  turned right to head towards towards Old Ford Lock.

Canal alongside Victoria Park

I thought the area here was very pretty and well looked after.  There were rubbish, elson and water facilities there and Victoria Park stretched out behind the buildings, so it made it quite picturesque.  We passed Victoria Park and all the boats moored along the towpath there and made our way towards Actons Lock.  This is where things started to go awry…….

On our approach to the lock we could see a policeman standing just in front of the mooring point, and some police tape blocking off the towpath, the policeman was directing people off of the towpath up onto the road.  As the lock was against us, we carried on our approach to the mooring point  where a couple of suited people were offering each other chewing gum. 

Police at Actons Loc

They looked visibly shocked to see 66 foot of narrowboat heading straight towards them getting ready to moor up.  Apparently, waving of arms, pointing and shouting  ‘You cant stop here!!’ Was their way to communicate to us that we shouldn't be using the mooring point as it was a crime scene they hadn't had a chance to tape off yet!!!

It is quite difficult to explain to a policeman why your boat cannot stop immediately when instructed to, but Yogi made a very controlled effort and explained that 20 tonnes of boat doesn’t just stop when you tell it to, and no, we can’t turn around as we were too long. And why was there no warning further up the river that this was going on?  ‘Ah’ they said ‘Fair point, you had better tie up against these railings then’ which we did.  Once we were secure, Yogi went outside and spent a while having a chat with the policeman who was standing directly outside our kitchen window.  

Unfortunately, one of the BW workers had spotted a severed arm which was suspected to have belonged to the late Gemma McCluskie who had been murdered and decapitated.   Her torso had been found in this area a couple of weeks before and her brother had been arrested on suspicion of the crime.  It is a terrible story,  and her mother is very ill.  I truly feel for her and the rest of her family. 

Not long after we arrived, a lot of police appeared at the lock, divers and people wearing different coloured protective suits.  We wondered why each person had on a different colour and watched the grizzly scene unfolding in front of us.

So, we had managed to accidentally cruise into a crime scene.  The police took our details and advised us we had to stay there for the moment.  And stay there we did, all day. If we had arrived 30 minutes earlier, we would have got through.

Introduction

This is our Narrowboat Silver Blue on the day we got her.  We love her dearly and couldn't wait to go travelling on her.  My name is Ronni and the other half is Yogi, we live together aboard with our Staffie Buster (AKA The oldest puppy in the village).


I have been living on the river for apx 6 years and Yogi apx 10.  Up until now we have mainly cruised on the Lee and Stort between Hertford, Bishops' Stortford and Waltham Cross.  General commitments have kept us confined for those times but now we are free and we are off!!


We decided at the the beginning of the year that 2012 was the year for us to go travelling and from January, through to February we sold as many of our possessions as we could, including 2 boats, my camper, his car and various other stuff that had been collected through the ages.  


By the beginning of March, with a lot of luck and a lot less stuff by then, we had our Black Prince aka Silver Blue!!  We managed to raise enough to buy her from one of our friends Martyn, who we are most grateful to for helping us achieve our goal.   Yogi had always wanted one for going cruising on and Martyn selling his boat at this time just helped us get there quicker.  
Thank you Martyn x x x


We were also fortunate enough to have known the owner previous to Martyn and knew how well she had been treated and looked after.  She was originally a 10 berth hire-boat made in 1999.  Her paintwork is a little tired but all in all she is a beauty and we love her. The past 8 years she had mostly been used as 'man cave' and had been the host of a few riverside parties I have NO doubt!! lol


Now she is going to have the quiet life, chugging along for 4-5 hours a day and resting in the sun in the afternoons.  Gradually making her way to Yorkshire taking in the sights on her way.