Mike Stevens' UK Inland Waterways Pages

TRIP REPORTS : THE FELIS CATUS II YEARS

LONDON AND BIRMINGHAM,
SPRING 1998

[Click here for information about the boat.]

We didn't do much boating early in the year, and even missed our normal Easter cruise, partly because the weather was rotten and partly because I was unwell. Nor did we do any work on the boat's increasingly tatty paintwork. I did visit the boat briefly at its mooring at Hillingdon Canal Club, when I was in the area to give a lecture.

We started the day by delivering Canalway Cavalcade posters to the Dolphin, the General Elliot & Uxbridge Boat Centre. We then moved the boat up to the clubhouse and watered. We moved off at 09:51 to Denham Yacht Station where we had a pump-out and left some more posters. Then we went South to Fray's wharf where we picked up Libby Bradshaw's boat Panacea to tow her (breasted) to Little Venice for Cavalcade. We stopped at Tesco, Bull's Bridge for provisioning, then, on the Paddington Branch , at Willow Tree Marina to deliver Cavalcade posters & handbills.

We set off again, noticing how slow towing is. At the Black Horse, Greenford we had planned to deliver Cavalcade posters but the pub was closed for a major re-fit. Our next poster delivery was to the Grand Junction Arms, Harlesden. After leaving there we got an armchair between the bows of the two boats. It wedged so firmly and so suddenly between the boats that our centre ring, to which Panacea was braced, broke off. We moored up on the Paddington visitor moorings at 19:51, last in line of the boats waiting for Cavalcade. There were lots of people there that we know.

CANALWAY CAVALCADE

At about 20:00 we moved into Browning's Pool and on to our usual Cavalcade mooring by Warwick Avenue Bridge. We had to moor outboard of BW's Water Sage which was there to unload the BW marquee & contents. This meant a last-minute change of plan for which way round to moor. While winding, Wendy picked up a bladeful (or had it been there before?)

I went home back at sparrow-fart to reprint the Press Pack labels which had the wrong date on them!

Once BW had set up their marquee, I did a complicated manoeuvre to let Water Sage out and turn us round again. Then we were working at Cavalcade as usual, FC2 being the Press Office.

Wendy & Orinthia went off home about 05:00. I went back to sleep and wasn't woken by BW moving Water Sage out from inboard us. Then I was busy clearing up the Cavalcade stuff in the cabin . At 11:00 I moved round to the Paddington visitor mooring and finally went home at around lunchtime.

IWA SOUTH LONDON BRANCH'S PARLIAMENTARY CAMPAIGN CRUISE

We left Paddington visitor moorings at 12:24. As we were leaving, Eric & Sally Naylor (& friends) on Chérie were just off to the pub: they said they might join us later. The weather was good but not forecast to last. We winded just past Formosa Street bridge and crossed the Pool to join the Regent's Canal, We stopped below Kentish Town lock for shopping. There was a cruiser moored below the lock which turned & set off in the other direction.

After the shopping we hung around hoping for Chérie to catch up with us, but another narrowboat from Sileby arrived first so we shared with them. Unfortunately they were only going as far as Battlebridge. Later we caught up with the cruiser and shared with them to Limehouse, their base.

We arrived at Limehouse Basin at 19:28 and moored to the wall near the lock. Wendy went off home (for wrok the next day). Later Chérie & Galatea moored outboard of us. There was lots of chat about plans for the next day's cruise: mainly with Dave Harris who was to be Cruise Commodore.

It was sunny with not too much wind as we assembled for the skippers' briefing at 09:30. Our crew (Lesley, David & Mary, all from IWA South London Branch) arrived during the morning, as did Derek Pearson from Canal & Riverboat magazine (our sponsors) who was going with Libby Bradshaw on Brian & Margaret Oliver's nb Zavala. Reg Beagley from the Inland Shipping Group, who was due to come, rang to say he couldn't make it.

We set off at 11:25. There were 11 boats on the cruise altogether, 10 starting from Limehouse and one joining us from South Dock. First locking out was one boat, which tied to a barge in use for work on the pier. Then came four of us who rafted up on the outer pontoon as the inner one was occupied by an incoming vessel from Calais. Instructions were to set off in procession order as the gates opened for the third locking, which we duly did, led by Ian Ferguson on Panacea (crewed by Maureen & Brian from KESCRG), then FC2, Zavala and the rest of the convoy. We maintained slow running (not much above tick-over except when I needed a burst of full revs to avoid being swept onto a buoy) to try and keep the group together. Before Tower Bridge we'd just about got the spacing I'd been hoping for (in time for the webcam on HMS Belfast) when the trip-boat Abercorn needed to turn across the river, cutting through our line and creating a great gap.

Above Lambeth bridge we and Zavala turned to come into Lambeth pier against the tide and tied up there at 13:07. In theory we were to meet Bill O'Brien MP but he failed to make it, so we socialised with our sponsors. Dorothy had brought refreshments and we were joined by Richard Hill, photographing from ashore for C&R. We set off again at 14:30. Libby decided to go back to Limehouse with Zavala & Derek. We turned again and headed for Brentford. David & Lesley each had a spell at the helm. We turned into the mouth of Brentford Creek and joined Grand Junction Canal.

Ian, Maureen and Brian on Panacea were waiting for us above the Gauging Lock. We set off up the locks behind a pair of wide-beam craft (from Adelaide Dock) towing. They were short-handed so we lent them some crew. We were accompanied by a Wyvern hire-boat as far as the top of Hanwell, We managed to get them, Panacea and FC2 together into all but the first lock by putting Panacea at an angle across the sterns of the other two.

We passed Bull's Bridge Junction at 21:03 , by which time it was darkling, but not fully dark until a bit later (certainly by the time we reached Cowley lock). It stayed warm until quite late. We left Panacea at her mooring and pressed on to ours. We ran out of fresh water! I'd obviously been too zealous to get the boat's nose well up and/or had underestimated how much tea & coffee the other 3 could drink! We reached Hillingdon Canal Club clubhouse at 22:45 and were greeted at the mooring by Ron, the harbourmaster. We did a quick pack-up and went home by taxi.

Later that week, Wendy & I came up for the Friday and Saturday to do some cleaning & maintenance on the boat. We seemed to have an airlock (or something) in the water system. Dave & Gina Young dropped in to collect the Branch Game which we'd had ever since Cavalcade.

SUMMER HALF TERM : START OF THE RUN UP-COUNTRY

I don't seem to have taken any more photos until we reached Birmingham.

We'd meant to come on the Saturday, but, both feeling off-colour, left it until Sunday. At 09:03 we brought the boat up to the clubhouse mooring to load the luggage. We tried to cure the airlock (if that's what it was) without success. Orinthia was grumpy & unsettled. We set off at 9:32 and headed to Harefield Marina for a pump-out. Our pump-out pipe was blocked. The twit on duty had few ideas what to do so we decided to wait until Berka, as we planned to ask them to sort out the water problem anyway (and the fridge, if it hadn't started by then). We bought gas & coal.

The next stop was at Batchworth sani. station where we emptied the part-potti which was showing signs of age. We ought to replace it. Later, as Lot Mead lock was against us we decided to wait for a partner. This turned out to be Albion, a time-share boat from Stratford Court Cruisers at Willowtree Marina, with a pleasant family who knew what they were doing. We managed to start the fridge. We moored at Lady Capel's wide at 18:30, a pleasant mooring, with Albion. We barbecued. Not sure whether Orinthia went out at all.

Albion was away first, and we were further delayed chatting to the lengthsman, not setting off until 08:37. At Hunton Bridge top lock we were caught up by Eric & Sally on Chérie with two friend, Alan & Brenda. Orinthia seemed more cheerful. At Nash Mills bottom we caught up with Albion (who'd stopped somewhere for breakfast) and locked with them as far as Sainsbury's, where Wendy shopped. Chérie also stopped there for shopping.

We set off again with Chérie. They planned to stop at The Albion, but it had shut down (refurbishment or permanent?) so they went on to the Fishery Inn. As we moved out from Fishery Lock, Fridjhiet (spelling?) moved off ahead of us and we locked with them to Bottomside. They moored between there and Topside. We moored outside the Crystal Palace, Berkhamsted, at 16:57 and had another barbecue, this time pork chops in a spicy marinade. Then I went to The Boat with Eric & Alan. It rained during the evening.

We moved off at 9:07 and winded by Berkhamsted station with some difficulty, as Wendy didn't remember where the wide spot was. We went to Castle Wharf, to be told that they couldn't deal with our problems straight away as they were turning round boats (can happen any day of the week now). Later they called us to the wharf and Frank sorted our problems. He cleared to loo pipe with an air-hose. The blockage was caused by wet-wipe loo paper. The water problem was (a) a nackered pump and (b) scale from the tank clogging the filter.

At lunchtime we set off again, locking with Masquerade, from Whilton. This had a steerer of idiosyncratic conversation, but a competent crew on their way home from the Lee & Stort. We moored for the night at Bulbourne lay-by at 15:40, before the winding hole. Wendy refilled the greaser. A nasty smell in the well-deck was rotting vegetation among the anchor chain and under the deck matting. There was very fierce thundery rain overnight.

We set off at 8:26 and waited a while at the top lock in the hope of a partner, but had no luck. We did meet a few boats coming up the flight. It was still raining. At Marsworth BW depot we disposed of rubbish. We stopped at the top of Seabrook locks for a hot drink (and in the hope of a partner).

We found Ivinghoe top lock half-open & a boat across the pound below. A 14-year-old lad had fallen in and been trapped between boat & bank, ending up with a suspected broken leg. We 'phoned an ambulance (after looking at the map to find out how to tell them to find us). Wendy got the farmer to un-padlock a gate. The ambulance was pretty prompt. They thought the leg may not be broken. The rain was now trying to stop. Berkhamsted hire-boat Griddlebone had arrived, and we set off with them once the ambulance had left. Griddlebone stopped at Leighton Buzzard and we went on to moor before Stoke Hammond lock at 18:08. It was a deep mooring, the weather was sunny, we saw swallows, and ate steak & mushrooms in brandy sauce.

We set off at 06:21 in bright sunshine, but it was bitterly cold & windy. At Cosgrove sani. station we got rid of rubbish, including the porta-potti, having bought a replacement at the camp shop. As Wendy returned from shopping, two RSPCA men arrived to capture a Canada Goose that had been reported as having a leg badly injured by a ligature of what was probably fishing line. The goose was across in the field, so I poled the front of the boat across as a bridge. The whole flock took to the water. We & a Wyvern boat corralled them and the bird in question took to the hedge beyond the towpath, where one of the RSPCA men was able to catch it. A job for a vet: they don't know whether the foot will be saved.

It was now too late to go anywhere else, as I had to get back to London for a meeting that evening (IWA Region Committee), so we went just round the corner. before the Barley Mow where we had a quick drink before I went by taxi to Milton Keynes station.

A static day in which Orinthia explored neighbouring gardens.

We arranged by 'phone to rendezvous at the foot of Stoke Bruerne locks. Wendy set off single-handing at 08:50, slowed by a hearse-race from Yardley Wharf. I was waiting by the time the boat arrived at the foot of the locks. We locked through with with a fairly new boat, Goosander III, crewed by a couple of retired working boaters. "We had a pair of Big Woolwiches for Waterways. I was never a real Grand Union boater because I was born on a Fellows Morton boat at Leighton Buzzard."

Blisworth tunnel was very wet and we crossed several boats in it. We had to queue for Whilton bottom lock for about 20 minutes, then shared with a Concoform hire-boat, 2-handed & experienced. Above Buckby locks we had difficulty finding a mooring and ended up at 19:01 on the long-term moorings in a slot that the next boat told us had been vacant for some weeks. We had the people from the informative boat on board for a drink before supper (another barbecue).

We woke to the sound of rain, but it cleared up during the morning. We set off at 6:48 and had Braunston tunnel to ourselves. It was dry. We locked down the Braunston flight with Secundus Navis, 4-handed & experienced. We went through Braunston Stop and Braunston Turn and joined the Oxford Canal. We suffered a hearse-race along this section: it might have been the same boat as the previous morning. At Napton Junction we joined the Warwick & Napton section of the GU.

We stopped at Calcutt wharf for pump-out & diesel. We met singularly little traffic for the rest of the day. At the top of Stockton locks a pair of boats had just started down, so we waited around until some uphill traffic appeared to make life easier. As we went down the locks we met Sally walking up. She told us that Eric was in the Two Boats. We moored just before the Two Boats and I had a drink with Eric and some friends. The we cleaned ship before Eric & Sally gave us a lift to Rugby station.

MID-SEASON WEEK-ENDING

We arrived from home a bit later than expected, as we managed to miss the train we'd planned on. A lot of rain was forecast, but it was sunny as we arrived. We moved off at 17:50 The locks seemed stiff & heavy. We wondered whether this was because it was Friday after work. We tied up below Radford bottom lock at 20:13 on a pleasant mooring that we'd used before. We barbecued some trout. It was getting quite cold later in the evening, so we lit the stove.

We awoke to rain, and were glad of the stove. We moved off at 06:05. Past Leamington, we came to The Moorings, bridge 43. Two pubs face each other across the cut. The Tiller Pin is the same side as the shopping complex but has no moorings, so we stopped at The Moorings on the other side. Wendy cooked breakfast then shopped. Sainsbury's here has 24-hour opening Friday / Saturday. The rain stopped for a while. We rang Sherborne Street Wharf to book a mooring. We were on our own up Cape locks. At Budbrooke junction we joined the Warwick & B'ham Canal section of the GU.

We caught up with a pleasant partner for Hatton: Mulciber from Godalming, crewed by a couple on an 11-week cruise aiming at both Stratford and Lincoln. They are friends (he is an ex-colleague from the Fire Brigade) of Don Stephens at H.C.C.. We were slowed up the flight by a slow boat ahead. It was raining on & off. The slow boat stopped for lunch part-way up the flight and we made better progress.

By Hatton top lock the rain was pretty heavy. Mulciber stopped: it sounded as though they'd stalled their engine on a heavy object. It was very wet in Shrewley tunnel. We passed through Kingswood Branch. The lock on the Branch was back in action, so there was a choice of routes round the island. Ben suggested this is the smallest ring in the country with any locks.

We went as far as The Boot, Lapworth, and tied up at 15:34. The moorings were empty when we arrived! We were glad to stop, even though earlier than usual, because Hatton and the rain took their toll of our energy. No barbecue tonight! Ben & I went to the pub before supper. More boats arrived during the evening, one of them unnecessarily tying up on the lock mooring.

We woke to an overheated cabin because we were burning Phurnacite at the time and I hadn't got the settings quite right. We ate frumenty before starting at 07:25. The rain seemed to have exhausted itself. We had a very good run up the flight with no other traffic around and ate breakfast on the move once we'd cleared the locks. We made a beer stop (for Ben & me) at the Horse Shoe, a pleasant conversational pub, so it was a bit longer stop than we'd planned. Continuing, we thought that the top end of the Stratford seemed rather better dredged than in the past. So did the Worcs & B'ham when we joined it at King's Norton. It was pleasant cruising by then, in dry weather.

We passed Worcester Bar and Old Turn Junction and turned into the Oozells Street Loop. The new buildings on the towpath side were now occupied and had boats on their (private) moorings. Development was happening on the other side. We reached Sherborne Street Wharf at 15:57. There was also new development here, part-funded by the European Regional Development Fund.. The conversion of the old FMC warehouse hadn't preserved much of its character but does sport the FMC name. There were good new moorings round the basin, and we were given a side-on mooring. Earle (the boss) remembered us from previous visits. Ben went off home, taking our spare key as he plans to call in next weekend to deliver a crate of good beer (Holden's) to keep us supplied during the BCN Marathon Challenge. We cleaned up & then called a taxi to the station.