Hungerford to Woolhampton

Sun 16^th Jul  Hungerford

When we emerged this morning, we had intended to give one of our cards with our contact details to Barry and Jan on Narrow Escape. We found they had left early, but they had left their email address on a piece of paper at the stern. We thought we might catch up with them in the next day or two.

We went to the 1030 service at the Church on the Rock, which takes place in the Croft Hall.  The talk was about forgiveness, and the reading was from Philemon.  Their musicians were away, so we had CD’s to lead our music.

Croft Hall

We had a very enjoyable lunch at the Tutti Pole which has special connections with the Hocktide ceremonies in the spring  http://calendarcustoms.com/articles/hungerford-hocktide-festival-tutti-men/.  We were pleased to discover that it has Christian owners.

We then went to Tesco to do some shopping so that we could get away promptly in the morning.

At 4pm we took part in a modern worship service at St Lawrence, which was excellent. Some very good musicians led us through some up to date worship songs and there was a short talk.

Worship team at St Lawrence

Back on the boat we had a cream tea, and then watched the Lone Ranger, a film starring Johnny Depp. Very tongue in cheek, and lots of fun.

No boating today

Mon 17th Jul  Hungerford to Kintbury

Moored in Hungerford

We made the planned early start, and emptied two cassettes at the sanitary station and partly filled the water tank.

Hungerford Lock

We saw two crayfish on the cill at Dun Mill Lock

Dun Mill Lock

We had a very pleasant cruise, spotting buzzards, a kestrel and a red kite.  We also saw a water vole swimming across the canal in front of us as we approached Kintbury.

Kintbury had a few mooring spaces available, and we moored just beyond Narrow Escape, and gave them our card.

Stupidly we had forgotten to run our washing machine as we cruised along so we had to run the engine again to do our laundry.

We discovered online that the butcher is closed on Mondays, so we delayed our visit there until the next day.

We had lunch on board, and then James walked along footpaths to Avington to see the Norman church there. It was all locked up, with no notices visible. On returning to the boats Jan told him that he could have collected the key which is kept hanging up outside the door of the cottage nearby. 

Chinook

Avington Church

Red Admiral

4 locks, 2 miles

Tue 18th Jul  Kintbury to Hamstead

Kintbury mooring with Narrow Escape

It was very hot again today. The first job was a visit to the butcher for some sausage rolls, a huge pasty, and some sausages.  We also picked up a few items in the village shop next door.

Narrow Escape had moved forward to the water point, and then gone down the lock.

We did much the same, taking our time, as we had made no arrangements to travel with them today.

We saw four kingfishers on the next stretch, and then were surprised to see Narrow Escape waiting by Dreweatt’s Lock.  The railway line accompanies the canal along much of its length, and as we drew level with them a steam train went past on the line. We couldn’t see it as there were trees in the way, but we heard it and saw the steam. So we shared locks with them again.

Hamstead Lock

We had planned to moor somewhere between Hamstead and Benham Locks, and so had Barry and Jan, so we were all very pleased to see that there was a length available by the weir, and both boats could fit in.  The bonus was a wider area under a shady tree where we could sit. Later we got out our gas barbecue and we shared a meal together.

Shady spot with Barry and Jan

Barbecue

James put out his crayfish traps, and caught 7.  He re-baited the traps before we went to bed.  There was heavy rain later.

Rain

4 locks, 3 miles, 7 crayfish

Wed 19th Jul  Hamstead to Newbury

James got up early and discovered he had done well with the four crayfish traps: two had seven in, and the other two had eight – thirty is a good catch in one night.

Reflections

We left Narrow Escape moored there for a further night, and we carried on towards Newbury on our own.

At Guyers Lock we found a silly notice suggesting that we should not use the gate paddles until the lock is half full.  There are no other paddles.

Guyers Lock

 Silly notice

When we arrived at the swing bridge at West Mills, Hazel pressed the buttons as instructed, and the barriers came down, but then the lights went out.   We couldn’t get the key out, and nothing worked.  We called CRT and they said they would send someone to look at it.  Meanwhile, the residents came with a special key to enable them to raise the barriers manually so that cars could cross.  There is only one way in and out of this small residential area.

West Mills Swing Bridge

James started devouring the huge pasty he had bought in Kintbury, when John Froggatt came to assist with the bridge and we gave him some tea. 

Huge pasty

Another boat came the other way and suggested we try the reset system of holding the open and close buttons at the same time. Brilliant! It worked!  The barriers came down and the bridge opened.

We moved onto the mooring just above the lock, and at that moment the guys from CRT arrived.  They said there was a fault anyway, otherwise it wouldn’t have shut down on us. We suspected the heavy rain might have caused a problem.

James went off to Aldi for some wine, while Hazel went to explore the other shops. She met Barbara Froggatt in Edinburgh Woollen Mill.

James bought some shoes in a shop that Hazel had found, and we went for a meal at Cote Brasserie.

Back at the boat, James was cooking crayfish when David and Frances Hawkey arrived and we all had tea on board.

3 locks, 2 miles, 1 swing bridge, 30 crayfish.

Thu 20th Jul  Newbury

James spent most of the morning sorting out the crayfish, and freezing them, before we went round to join David and Frances for a very pleasant lunch.

David and Frances Hawkey

We visited the Newbury Museum in the afternoon. There is quite a lot to see.

We walked along the towpath to see if we could find Peter and Lin or John and Barbara. We found their boats Gospel Belle and Ichthus,  but no-one was on board.   We found out later that they had come to Gabriel, and found that we weren’t there either.

We had coffee in Prêt a Manger before visiting Tesco to stock up.

We had communication with Jan from Narrow Escape about arrangements for travelling together tomorrow.

Andy Cooper, with daughters Miriam and Rachel came to find us, and we took them for a short boat trip down through the lock, past Victoria Park, and we moored near Gospel Belle.  They looked as though they enjoyed the experience.

 Boat trip

When they left after drinks and nibbles we went aboard Gospel Belle for a chat.

1 lock, 1/2 mile

Fri 21st Jul  Newbury to Woolhampton

Moored lower down in Newbury

We had a text from Narrow Escape to say they were on their way. They stopped for fuel, while we left to get the lock ready. Peter came along with a windlass to help us all through. Narrow Escape and Gospel Belle are both moored on the Somerset Coal Canal at Dundas.

Passing Gospel Belle

 Passing Ichthus

There were very few other boats around, so it was good to share the locks and swing bridges again. It was very breezy and the poplars were over at an angle.

Ham Mill and Lock

Poplars bent in the wind

Glorious ragwort

A narrow gap through the reeds

When we were just leaving Monkey Marsh Lock, Phil arrived. He is often to be found there, helping boats through. We also saw him at the Old London Apprentice on Folk Night.

Sharing with Narrow Escape

When we arrived at Woolhampton we took the last two moorings, just squeezing in.  Paws 4 Thought was also there, so we went to chat to Tony and Pat.

We also had a good chat with Dave and Tracey on a widebeam called Sexy Beast.  They had moved back from Marbella to live on a boat.

James went to investigate pubs, shops and railway stations. The shop was closed although it was not yet 4pm. There was no list of opening hours on the door.

Mikron Theatre’s boat Tyseley was moored outside the Rowbarge. Sadly they are not performing here until Tuesday, by which time we will be elsewhere.

Mikron Theatre

8 locks, 6 miles, 4 swing bridges

Sat 22nd Jul  Woolhampton

Today when we arose to invite Barry and Jan to join us later for a cream tea, we discovered they had left. They sent us a farewell email later.

It rained heavily throughout most of the day. We had lunch on board and caught up with jobs in the afternoon.

Just after 7pm we heard a lot of revving of boat engines, and James went to see if it was Paws 4 Thought or Sexy Beast, both moored between us and the lock. It was neither. It was a boat possibly trying to get into the lock, but the gates were shut. This is where a strong stream comes down and sweeps boats away if they don’t know what to expect.  They were struggling to stop their boat being pushed onto another that is moored there, with big fat tyre fenders all along the side.

Moored in Woolhampton with Sexy Beast and Paws 4 Thought

James didn’t have a windlass, but the lock was empty, so he opened the gates for them.  They ended up mooring on the lock bollards where they shouldn’t be, but it was late and it was unlikely any other boats will come through this evening. They will need to have another go in the morning.

Tony and Pat came for drinks on Gabriel after dinner.  They plan to leave in the morning.

No boating today

Next:  We plan to take the train back to Newbury for church in the morning, followed by the Newbury Canal Festival. Then on Monday we head towards Reading and the Thames, turning right to get downstream to the Wey Navigation to visit old haunts and good friends.

Devizes to Hungerford

Tue 11th Jul  Devizes to All Cannings

As we were about to depart, a wide beam came past us, and we decided to follow, and stop for the facilities if they continued.  As we were pulling out, past Dawn Run, another wide beam also pulled out further back. When we reached the facilities moorings, we saw that the first wide beam was moored there to take on water. We decided to move on rather than be held up, as they tend to have large water tanks. We could stop at Pewsey tomorrow for water etc instead.

Leaving past Dawn Run

Widebeam on the water point

As we proceeded through the cutting we spotted a cruiser covered with a flimsy plastic sheet, and someone sleeping on the bank under a propped up fence panel.  Everyone has a story. It would be interesting to know this one.

Sleeping rough

We soon left both wide beams behind as we left Devizes and started the long (14-miles) pound towards Wootton Rivers.

We had intended to stop on the 2 day moorings at All Cannings. When we arrived there, we found the moorings were full, so we reversed back under the bridge, and moored up in a space we had noticed.  We couldn’t get the bows in, but the stern was in enough to put the plank out.

2 day moorings full

Moored out from the bank

The lady from Narrow Escape came past with their dogs and said they were moving on from the 2 day moorings soon, and would we like their spot?  By then we were moored securely, and we thought it would be quieter where we were, rather than amongst the other boats, so we declined the kind offer.

We had heavy rain later, and through the night.

Raining at All Cannings

0 locks, 6 miles, 2 swing bridges

Wed 12th Jul  All Cannings to Wootton Rivers

When we got up in the morning, Hugo was soaking wet on his back half, but the brainy end was dry, so we guessed he had slipped partly in down the wet bank.  He was also covered in grass seeds, burs and miscellaneous items. There were mouse remains on the back deck.

We retrieved our mooring pins and plank quite easily, as the boat was slightly stuck in the mud and didn’t move.  We set off once more through the Vale of the White Horse.

White Horse

Lady’s Bridge is very ornate and was erected as part of the agreement for the canal to cut through land belonging to Lady Susannah Wroughton. The Wide Water was also created for the same reason, to make the canal look like part of a landscaped garden.

Lady’s Bridge

We stopped at Pewsey to empty cassettes, dispose of rubbish, and fill up with water. The elsan unit was unusable, as it was blocked and overflowing.  After some debate we found a manhole cover, and emptied two cassettes there. Apparently the unit had been out of order for two weeks.

We moored at Wootton Rivers near a tree full of noisy rooks.  We found Narrow Escape here as well, and we arranged to share locks with them the next day.

Rook Tree

1 lock, 9 miles, 1 mouse

Thu 13th Jul  Wootton Rivers to Crofton

The two locks at each end of the summit pound, 53 to 56, were padlocked from 10am to 4pm to conserve water. We had one lock to negotiate before then so we departed at 9.30 with Barry and Jan on Narrow Escape.

Barry and Jan

We discovered that two hire boats had been unaware of the time restriction, and had arrived at Lock 53 in the late afternoon hoping to get through, and they had moored on the lock bollards.  They were therefore to be the first boats through. One was 72ft, and they discovered that they couldn’t get through into the lock together, as the gates would not open fully. So they went through one by one.

When it was our turn to use the lock, we knew they were going up to the winding hole to turn and come back again, so we left the top gates open, instead of closing the gates and draining the lock as instructed on the notice.

We soon caught up with the hire boats, one of which had turned, but they kept steering into the bank because they weren’t used to the use of the tiller. The other one was trying to turn at the Burbage Wharf winding hole. They had several attempts, and they weren’t helped by a canoe moored in the wrong place.  Eventually someone else had arrived to help them round, and they let us pass.

The first hire boat in the bank

 Trouble turning

The Bruce Tunnel soon followed, and we spotted a crayfish at the water’s edge in the cutting.  We also saw a sandpiper flying past us. After this summit level the locks start to descend all the way to Reading.

 Bruce Tunnel

Emerging

Approaching Crofton Top Lock

The six Crofton Locks followed, taking us down from the summit level. We met three boats coming up, all of which had turned the locks against us as instructed, and thus wasted a lockful of water each time.

When we arrived at the visitor moorings, the pound was extremely low, so much so that we could not get in close enough for James to get back on board. We phoned CRT at Devizes and told them the problem. After a while we managed to get the bows in close enough for Hazel to pass the plank to James and we moored up with the stern sticking way out into the middle of the channel. 

Sticking out at Crofton visitor moorings

Two guys from CRT arrived a little later and ran some more water down, so that we could get the stern in close enough for the plank.  Hugo’s cat flap is at the stern, so it is much better for the plank to be at the stern as well.

A man on a widebeam who was moored there tried to leave, but was stuck firmly on the bottom and could not get away.

We got out the chairs and tables on the grass, and shared a bottle of wine with Barry and Jan from Narrow Escape.

9 locks, 4 miles.

Fri 14^th Jul  Crofton to Froxfield

Hazel had a disturbed night from all the trains rattling past on the other side of the canal.  They used the canal to bring the materials needed to build the railway, and then the railway put the canal out of business.

This morning the water levels had risen, and Gabriel was in to the side, with the plank right across the stern, and the ropes slack.

Slack ropes

We departed at around 9am, while there was still enough water, and continued down the locks through the Bedwyns.  Strangely there seemed to be plenty of water around, washing over the weirs.  At Bedwyn Church Lock we discovered that only one of the top paddles was operational, and the bottom gates were leaking badly, so the lock took a long time to fill, and considerable strength was needed to get the top gates open.

Bedwyn Church 

Bedwyn Church Lock with Narrow Escape

Any guesses what this was for?

Our target destination today was Froxfield, and we found some lovely flowers near Froxfield Middle Lock. There was a colourful bank of willow herb, plus some unusual white flowers and also some pink ones. Sadly we are not very good at plant names.

There was also some ragwort and we found some cinnabar caterpillars. Will this be the only sighting this year?

Willow herb

White flowers

 Pink flowers

Cinnabar caterpillars.

James went for a hurried walk to see the almshouses at Froxfield.

Somerset Hospital (almshouses)

We shared one of Barry and Jan’s bottles of wine this evening.

9 locks, 4 miles.

Sat 15^th Jul   Froxfield to Hungerford

We had planned to leave with Narrow Escape at around 9am, but it was raining slightly so we decided to delay for a few minutes. We left at 9.30am, with four locks to negotiate before Hungerford.

We put the hood up at one point because we had a second rain shower. Neither had been forecast.

Cobblers Lock

At Cobblers Lock we were pleased to see that the lock cottage there was being lived in and restored, even though there is no vehicular access. At Hungerford Marsh Lock we swung the swing bridge, and opened the lock for two boats coming the other way, as it was almost empty.  Then it was our turn, and there was another boat waiting to come up by the time we had finished so we left them with the swing bridge to close again.

Hungerford Marsh Lock

 A boat with metal art

We moored above the lock in Hungerford, by the church.  After lunch Hazel went shopping, while James caught up with the blog. When she returned, we both went to support an event going on in the field nearby with stalls, live music etc. It was in aid of the British Legion. We had tea and cake, and James bought a pre-owned pair of binoculars for £10.

St Lawrence Church Hungerford

James went looking for suitable eateries around the village and found that many of the old pubs had been turned into antique shops.

Antiques

In the end we went for a curry. The food was fine, but the man serving was a bit strange.

“Would you like to order drinks?” 

“Yes please, two pints of Kingfisher.”

“And would you like popadums?“

“Well, we’d like to see the menu first, as we may have a starter instead.”

He disappeared off, and returned two minutes later, without menus. 

“What was it you wanted to drink?”

“Two pints of Kingfisher.” 

“Would you like popadums?” 

“Can we please see the menu first?”

He went off again, returning triumphantly with two menus.

“Would you like popadums?” 

“We haven’t had a chance to read the menu yet.”

Two minutes later:

“Would you like popadums?” 

“No thank you”

“Are you ready to order?”

“No, not yet” It was quite a long menu.

A few minutes later, we had made our choices, and we caught his eye.

“We are ready to order now”

He alerted another waiter, who was passing, to take the order.

“Would you like popadums........?”

4 locks, 2 miles, 2 swing bridges

Tomorrow – Church on the Rock, and they meet in the Croft Hall. Then on towards Kintbury, Newbury and Reading.