The first boat to pass us this morning was the wooden boat Maid of Oak, recently sold by our friends Peter and Julie.
A little later, we were starting to get ready, when a hire boat came from behind. We asked to share the locks, and we went down the first lock with them. They were Swedish. On arrival at the second lock, we saw that there was one boat going in, and the working pair we had seen yesterday was moored on the piling behind them. We didn’t want to jump the queue, so we stopped and waited for the swedes to join the other boat, a single hander. It turned out that the pair were also waiting their turn, so we let them go next. BY then another boat had arrived, so we shared with Ruby Louise.
We were held up a while when we discovered that two scout boats were coming up, and they had set two locks in front. We were waiting by one lock which was set against us, surrounded by scouts, while their boats had not even reached the next lock down, where the pair were also held up. It added 45 minutes to our journey time.
Scout boats
The ivy was in full flower, and we spotted several butterflies.
We parted company with Martin and Julie on Ruby Louise, after the final lock by Whilton Marina. We carried on, hoping to find somewhere away from the sound of the M1. We saw that the new bridge at Weedon was now open. It crosses the canal and the adjacent railway. We passed the boatyard at Weedon where we have arranged to have our boat painted in spring 2021.
There was a boat by Weedon Wharf using the winding hole to turn, and then they travelled in front of us on tickover. They should have let us pass while they were still in the winding hole. We had intended to stop for fuel at Rugby Boats, but there was nowhere to moor, and there seemed to be a queue, so we carried on. The boat in front of us finally pulled over to moor, and we passed them, and moored with a pleasant view near Nether Heyford. Ruby Louise went past later.
7 locks, 6 miles. Dep 0910, arr 1345.
Mon 7th October Nether Heyford to Stoke Bruerne
We had a wet boat this morning, and we dried off the cover as best we could before we set off for Stoke Bruerne.
We passed Ruby Louise moored up, and found our own mooring just before the disabled bollards. We walked forward to find Kathryn reversing to her mooring on Sculptor. She was involved in some filming for Channel 5’s Barging Round Britain.
We sat out some rain, and in the afternoon we noticed the film crew were out again.
Kathryn came on board for a meal later and told us all the gossip.
0 locks, 9 miles, 1 tunnel. Dep 1035, arr 1410.
Tue 8th October Stoke Bruerne to Cosgrove
A hire boat went past heading for the locks, much too early for us. We followed a little later, and waited at the top lock, hoping for another boat to share with. Julie was out walking the dog, and said that Martin would be bringing their boat down very soon. So once again, we were sharing with Ruby Louise.
Once again we were held up, this time by a solo boater who had set several locks in front. He also would not accept help, insisting on getting off the boat and hauling it into the lock.
We parted company with Martin and Julie and the foot of the locks, and we carried on, stopping for lunch at the Navigation Inn, as we had never visited before. We thought it would be fairly empty on a midweek lunchtime, but were amazed to find that most of the tables had been booked, not by boaters from the adjacent marina, but by business people, and well-dressed ladies who lunch. It is a notch or two up from the average pub grub, and we had a very pleasant meal.
We moved on to Cosgrove where we moored on rings for a peaceful night before Milton Keynes tomorrow.
7 locks, 6 miles. Dep 0925 into top lock, 1045 out of Bottom lock. 1210 arr Navigation Inn. 1325 dep, arr 1345 Cosgrove.
Wed 9th October Cosgrove to Giffard Park
Last night we happened to watch “Building Britain’s Canals”, which featured Blisworth Tunnel, Kathryn on Sculptor, Stoke Bruerne, The Cosgrove Aqueduct, and the old railway bridge at Wolverton, all in our recent and imminent cruising plan.
The boat covers were completely dry this morning. No mopping up to do. We left Cosgrove and cruised gently down to the lock, which was in our favour. There was no-one to share with.
Once through the lock, we could see a breasted up pair approaching. It transpired that it was Joules Fuels, pausing at various boats, so we closed the lock gates. We needed to wait for them as they were refueling a boat, opposite a wide one, and there was not enough room to pass. No problem, as we were not in a hurry.
Then
we crossed the Cosgrove Iron Trunk Aqueduct, built in 1811, along the lines of
Pontcysyllte, with a no-barrier drop to the River Great Ouse below.
Iron Trunk Aqueduct
At Wolverton we passed under the 1838 Stephenson railway bridge, also featured in last night’s TV programme. They could have made more of the fascinating history of railway train building at Wolverton. We moored on rings at Wolverton Park, and went to visit Tesco and Asda.
We set off once more through the outskirts of Milton Keynes, stopping for the day near Giffard Park. No sign yet of Tudor on Out and About, who is usually around here.
1 lock, 5 miles. Dep 1020, arr 1120 Wolverton. Dep 1300, arr 1415 Giffard Park.
Next: moving to Peartree Bridge tomorrow, and venturing by bus into MK for shopping. On Friday we catch a train to Suffolk, returning with our car on Sunday. On Monday we drive to Aylesbury to leave the car, returning to MK and the boat by bus, before cruising further south.
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