Stoke Bruerne to Braunston

Wed 9th May  Stoke Bruerne to Nether Heyford

We shared the final two locks with a hire boat called Cotswold. They were intending to stop for a coffee at the top, so they moored on the bollards, while we went past Misty Morn and Ichthus and moored on the piling.

Kathryn was just finishing adjusting the halyards on the flagpole, and we went into her cottage for a drink in her basement kitchen. Among other snippets of conversation she gave us a recommendation for a boat painter in Weedon. It will be two years hence, but these guys have long waiting lists.

Having said our goodbyes to Kathryn (until October, when we pass through again), we said more goodbyes to Chris (Misty Morn), who was delighted to learn that no wide boats are scheduled for the tunnel tomorrow morning, as he wants to go through at 7.30am.

Hazel and Kathryn

We made our preparations for the tunnel, including wearing waterproof gear, and putting our tunnel light in place in the flagpole socket in the bows. We set off ahead of another boat that was coming up behind from the locks, but as we rounded a corner, there was another boat turning in the winding hole, and he set off into the tunnel in front of us.  James didn’t want to follow behind another boat, especially with another boat behind us, so he pulled in to the side, and waved on the one behind, which was called Longships. We have seen him a few times over the recent two or three days.  So Longships went into the tunnel, and we waited for about 7 minutes before going in ourselves. 

Blisworth Tunnel

When we were halfway through, we realised that we catching up with Longships, who appeared to be almost stationary, although the lack of light plays tricks.  We stopped for another ten minutes, waiting for him to get away.  We moved on when we realised that another boat had come in behind us. This tunnel is usually a little wet, but today it was very wet, with water cascading down from the ventilation shafts and leaking through the brickwork.  By the time we emerged from the tunnel, we had caught up again with Longships.  Just after Blisworth village he beckoned us past.

Emerging

Blisworth

18 miles to Braunston

Arriving at Gayton Junction, we turned right to use the facilities, but we saw that the rubbish bins were overflowing, and the elsan point was closed off. Kathryn had told us that someone had emptied used engine oil into the chemical toilet disposal, and specialists had been called in to clean the system.  There were also two more boats waiting, so we abandoned the plan, and moved on further.

We found Sacre Blurr moored up, but with no-one aboard.

Sacre Blurr

Just past the junction there is a good example of a turnover bridge, designed so that towing horses don’t need to unhitch when the towpath crosses to the other side of the canal.

Turnover bridge

Some interesting clouds today

We went past Bugbrooke and moored at Nether Heyford, as far from the busy train line as we could.  We walked into the village, which has lovely mellow stone and thatched buildings. We visited the butchers, and the One-Stop store for some essential things and wandered back to the boat.

Moored at Nether Heyford

We put up the hood as the wind was picking up and rain was forecast.

2 locks, 9 miles

Thu 10th May  Nether Heyford to Long Buckby

This morning started chilly and windy.  Just as we were about to leave, a boat came past. We let them go, as we had several stopping places today and the first one was only a few minutes away.  We saw Longships just round the corner.

Longships

It used to be called Spiderworx, but is now just a one-man operation. We met Colin Dundas, and he showed us his workshop and the boat he was painting.  First class workmanship, and a really high gloss finish. Phil Speight was also there, the most well known traditional sign writer around. We had never met him before, but we have seen his books and read articles about him. 

The next stop was at Rugby Boats for some diesel, and while we were there, Tony went by on Euston 73, from Aylesbury.

Euston 73

Then on to Weedon, where we stopped again and found Steve, a boat painter recommended by Kathryn. His results looked tougher and more durable. We have to decide soon to ensure a place on his waiting list.

This canalside effigy resembles a friend from our previous church

A new meaning for the term “Container Ship”

We paused again at Whilton Locks, where we met up with Tim on Willowbrook. He was waiting for Hilary to return by bus train and taxi from Aylesbury.  We said we would wait also, and we could share the Buckby locks together.

Sharing Buckby Locks with Willowbrook

One of the longer pounds

Lock 9

Hilary, Tim, Hazel

We moored at Long Buckby, with one lock left to do tomorrow.  The weather had changed from cold and windy to warm and pleasant.  We sat out in the sunshine with wines and nibbles (as you do).  Hugo wanted to join us, but when he discovered that Tim and Hilary’s spaniel was included in the group, he changed his mind and ran back to the boat.

Long Buckby mooring

Enjoying the sunshine

6 locks, 6 miles

Fri 11th May  Long Buckby to Braunston

We had agreed a departure time of 9am with Tim and Hilary, and we set off through the final lock of the Buckby flight. It was a lot cooler.

At the top, Willowbrook needed water, and we emptied two cassettes and our rubbish.  We disappointed to see the following signs

No recycling

Nearest recycling centre

These facilities are meant to be for boaters. What boater is going to walk 4.6 miles to dispose of their recycling? Sadly our carefully separated sackful joined the rest of the rubbish. There have been no recycling facilities for boaters since we left Aylesbury.

We moved on past Norton Junction, where a branch leads off to the right to Leicester and the River Soar.

Norton Junction

Just past the next bridge (Bridge 10) there used to be our favourite mooring in this area.  There were mooring rings, and a lovely view, and we were beyond the noise of the M1, the A5 and the railway. For several years now the bank has been deteriorating, and there is orange plastic netting to keep boats away, so we can’t moor there.

Orange netting

The view opposite

We continued on for two miles to Braunston Tunnel.  Thankfully this one is dry, but there is a kink in the middle where the builders had started from both ends and didn’t quite line up accurately at the join.  Today we met no boats so we made good time.

Braunston Tunnel

Leaving the tunnel

As we left, there was a boat coming the other way, and they met Willowbrook who were still in the tunnel.  The Braunston locks were busy to start with, with boats coming up towards us as we went down.  The final three locks we had to fill.

Sharing Braunston Locks with Willowbrook

Lock 3

As we cruised gently through Braunston we discovered that almost all of the visitor moorings were full.  We went past the Stophouse, and under the A45 before we found somewhere. The mooring rings were badly spaced so we ended up with ropes at strange angles to keep us secure.

Moored in Braunston

Close to the A45

Mark drove up from Aylesbury to find us, with some documents for us to sign. Just after he left, Jan and John Halford arrived on Jubilee and moored some way further on.  They came on board Gabriel for tea before we all went across to the Boathouse pub for a meal. John and Gillian Speight joined us and it was good to get to know them a little better. They have a new boat called Faithful, moored in a new marina on the North Oxford Canal. We will pass it on Monday.

John and Jan on board Gabriel

The BCF gathering at the Boathouse (Borrowed from Jubilee’s blog)

L-R Hazel, James, Gill Speight, John Halford, Jan Halford, John Speight

7 locks, 5 miles.

Next:  Breakfast at the Gongoozlers rest with Time and Hilary, Church at All Saints, Braunston on Sunday, then a cruise up the North Oxford through Rugby to the Coventry Canal

Milton Keynes to Stoke Bruerne

Sat 5th May  Milton Keynes Peartree Bridge

Our mooring near Peartree Bridge

We kicked off today with a big breakfast at the Peartree Bridge Inn. Eat as much as you like.

On the way we saw our first Canada Goose family this year.

A line of goslings (12)

 Afterwards, Hazel went off on the buses shopping, while James cleaned the starboard side of the boat – the first time since October, as we are moored stern on in Aylesbury and can’t easily reach the sides. 

The plastic chairs and tables also got cleaned, and we put them to good use later on, sitting in the shade.  There is a footpath / cycle track running parallel to the towpath at this point, with green hedges providing shade.

Hugo was very happy, and sat around under our feet, disappearing every so often when a dog was in the vicinity.  He caught a mouse in the undergrowth.

After such a big breakfast we didn’t need lunch, and not much for an evening meal either.

0 Locks, 0 miles, 1 mouse.

Sun 6th May  Milton Keynes Peartree Bridge to Milton Keynes Stantonbury Park

We walked a mile along footpaths to visit MKCC (Milton Keynes Christian Centre).  This is a very large church (about 1000 members) and they hold four services on a Sunday.  We were warmly greeted by the welcome team, who chatted to us until we went into the service at 1045.  The worship was good, and it seems there is a lot going on in this lively church. There is a mix of cultural backgrounds, and many people did not come in until halfway through the first set of worship songs.  The talk was delivered brilliantly, and was about being transformed by scripture.

MKCC

MKCC worship band

We wandered back down the footpaths, and noticed many places where they were getting ready for the Milton Keynes Marathon tomorrow – forecast very hot.

Yellow flowers: Anyone know what these are?

We made another visit to the Peartree Bridge Inn for a Sunday carvery, and were shown to the same table as we had had the previous day.

Eight ducklings

After some more relaxing in the shade, we set off when it was a little cooler, and spent 45 minutes filling the water tank. During this time James managed to wash the port side of the boat.

Out and About was moored nearby, but we saw no sign of Tudor or his girlfriend.   We finally set off at about 5pm to do a few more miles around Milton Keynes. 

We had an incident with three exuberant youngsters in their late teens.  There was a boat travelling in front of us, and as he went under a foot bridge we saw the lads throw a bucket of canal water onto the helmsman.  We were ready with a camera and were videoing as we went under the bridge, but they all hid their faces so there is nothing recognisable on the video.  Fortunately for us they had used up all their water on the previous victim.

Ten ducklings

We paused briefly to empty cassettes and rubbish at Giffard Park, before moving on to moor by bridge 75 at Stantonbury Park.

Our mooring on Sunday night

We heard the sound of a cuckoo as we moored up at around 7pm. James went for a walk to see the old church ruins nearby.  On his return he spotted the cuckoo sitting on a post. They are usually heard but not seen.

What St Peters Church used to look like

What it looks like now

Late evening sun

Cowslips

Mon 7th May  Milton Keynes Stantonbury Park to Cosgrove.

Hugo woke us up at 4am for no real reason. James took the opportunity to take a picture of the morning mist on the canal.

Morning mist

We had a very warm cruise through New Bradwell, crossing the Grafton Street Aqueduct over a dual carriageway.

Grafton Street Aqueduct

Preparations for the MK Marathon

This was followed by Wolverton, where we managed to go through without stopping for stores at Tesco.  We took a video of the extraordinary mural depicting the railway rolling stock industry.

Wolverton railway mural. Link to the video

Wolverton sculpture

Robert Stephenson’s 1834 railway bridge

Then came the iron aqueduct over the Great Ouse, where we caught up with another boat, and shared Cosgrove Lock with them.

Iron aqueduct over the Great Ouse

Looking down

Sharing Cosgrove Lock with Felicity

There were some boats waiting to come down through the lock, and this only left room for one boat at a time when we left.

Only room for one

We moored soon after at Cosgrove, where we have never stopped before. We tried to get as much shade as possible, although it didn’t stay shady as the sun moved round.

We crossed the canal by using the old horse tunnel underneath.

The horse tunnel

Inside

The other end

Daisies

We went for a meal at the Barley Mow.  Good food, but the place was very crowded as it was a sunny public holiday.

1 lock, 4 miles

Tue 8th May  Cosgrove to Stoke Bruerne.

The first task today was to dispose of our recyclable rubbish. We have seen no recycling bins since we left Aylesbury, and we now have a sackful of paper, bottles, plastic, cardboard etc.  James walked back to the facilities block by Cosgrove Lock, where he saw a Canal and River Trust sign saying “Recycle and reuse”. Then it said that the nearest recycling bin was at the Barley Mow the other side of the canal. So he went back through the horse tunnel to the pub, and in the garden he found a recycling bin – for clothes!!  So the sack ended up back on the boat again.

Two boats went past, and one was called Barley – James had spoken to them briefly last night and again this morning.  We took another 15 minutes or so to put down the hood, lower the TV aerial and get everything ready before setting off.

As we went under the very ornate Solomon’s Bridge we saw some better moorings on the left which were much more shady. Next time...

Solomon’s Bridge

There followed a delightful cruise through lovely countryside. With sheep and lambs, cows with their calves, blossom everywhere and stunning yellow fields of rape.

Canalside cows

Blossom

Yellow fields

Grafton Regis Church

As we approached the bottom lock at Stoke Bruerne, we spotted Ichthus moored up, but no sign of John and Jane Pescod, last seen in the pub at Wilstone.  We sent them a text to say we had passed, and were going to be in Stoke Bruerne.  We also sent a text to Kathryn to say we were on our way up the locks.

There was a boat called Sacre Blurr just going into the bottom lock, so we shared with them. They had a crew of four, so someone was always going ahead to set the locks – most useful.  A couple were asking questions at one lock, and we gave them a “How do Locks Work” leaflet.

Sharing Stoke Bruerne Locks with Sacre Blurr

After five locks, we saw an ideal mooring in the long pound, with shade, and a narrow path into a field for Hugo, so we stopped. Sacre Blurr carried on as they needed to get to Gayton Marina.

It was nice to chat to a Christian couple from Blisworth who had seen our Canal Ministries sign.

We decided to walk up to the village, where we met Kathryn briefly. She was busy trying to organise a warning sign to stop people climbing on the wire animal sculptures on the woodland walk near the tunnel. A man had cut his leg badly when he jumped on the horse.

We went for a coffee in the museum cafe, and while we there, John and Jane came past on Ichthus. We established that they were mooring up a little further on, and we went to catch up with them when we had finished in the cafe.

While we were chatting to them, Kathryn came past with her new sign. We had agreed to meet later for a curry.  We also got chatting to a guy called Chris on a boat called Misty Morn, which, unusually, had stainless steel rubbing strakes. We had seen him earlier, moored in the long pound.

John and Jane Pescod

Back at the boat, James set to work to remove the duck poo from the roof. They had evidently roosted there last night.

The result of having ducks on the roof

We returned later to the village for a very enjoyable curry at the Bruerne Spice, which has a good reputation and where we have enjoyed several meals in the past. Kathryn is well known there as she lives only three doors away.  We caught up with all the boating news as Kathryn seems to know lots of people and finds out what is happening.

Wildlife highlights of the day: swallows, goldfinches, chaffinches, linnets and bats.

5 locks, 6 miles

Next: Coffee with Kathryn in the morning, followed by a journey through the wet Blisworth Tunnel on our way to Braunston by Friday.