TRIP REPORTS

SOUTHWARDS FROM BIRMINGHAM,
March & April 2006

(Part 3 : Milton Keynes to Berkhamsted.)

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We resume the story after a short stay at Fenny Stratford.

It was a chilly day when we started at 10:39, with rain threatening. At the top of Fenny Stratford lock we stopped to use the water and rubbish points. Our next stop was at Willowbridge Marina, to go into their Chandlery and buy a few odds and ends but we couldn't find a tall chimney that fits. On our way again, a kindly boat with a Welsh name waited for us at Stoke Hammond lock. They'd left a mooring near Droitwich because of problems (vandalism?) and were heading for Apsley Marina - by tomorrow lunch-time! We shared Soulbury locks with the same boat and crossed in the flight with old friends Mike & Lynda Ede on Harpoon, which they were taking to Rose Boats for a re-paint. They advised us to consult the Leighton Buzzard mooring warden (Malcolm on Narrow Escape) for a safe mooring for the few days we planned to stay there. We moored at the top of the locks at 14:05. I sampled the pub but wasn't impressed, so we ate on board.

We started at 11:56 to go to Leighton Buzzard Tesco, shopped there and at Homebase and Wendy consulted Malcolm who advised us to use Mike & Lynda's mooring. At 15:30 we moved up to the water point to take on water and get rid of rubbish. Then we winded and came back to Mike & Lynda's mooring, coincidentally next to Imagine, which used to be owned by the Baroi family, whom we knew from Canalway Cavalcade and Hillingdon Canal Club (where we used to moor, and from where we know Mike & Lynda). A pleasant spot.

On the Tuesday afternoon, Wendy met Mike & Lynda at Tesco and arranged for them to come for a drink the following evening, which duly happened. On Thursday Wendy found the Leighton Buzzard Theatre and got us tickets to see Ayckbourn's How the Other Half Loves on Friday evening. On Friday Mike arrived back after a difficult day at the Museum, just in time for a quick meal on board before we went to the play, which was very well cast & directed and which we thoroughly enjoyed.

We left the Leighton Buzzard moorings at 9:54. I backed the boat down to the winding hole by the water-point, then had problems with the wind while trying to wind. At one point I got the boat's nose stuck in a tree and broke two of the chains for the front fender. We took on water and mended the near-side fender chain before setting off again at 10:59. It was very windy on the long open stretch, which made for some tricky boat-handling at the locks and made us glad of our bow-thruster. We tied up past Marsworth Church Bridge. We'd thought of mooring as usual near the (former) Ship Stores, but there was a gathering of boats with a crowd of young people who told us they were planning a loud party, so we went on through the bridge to find a mooring. We ate at the Red Lion - still as good as ever.

We started at 11:00. It was a day of sun, wind and rain. We saw white violets on the off side of many locks in the Marsworth Flight. At Bulbourne junction we turned off into the Wendover Arm and went all the way to the new winding hole at the end of the recently-restored section . The old part of the Arm is still pretty shallow, which creates all the more contrast when one comes to the new section beyond Tringford stop lock. On the arm we met a boat whose steerer professed to be one of my internet readers. We winded ar 14:03. The winding hole at the end of the new section is very spacious, and I managed to turn without coming near the anglers. Mike Anson saw us there but didn't have time to stop & chat. As we exited the arm, I discovered that the horn wasn't working.

Back on the main line, we went into Cowroast Marina in search of a pump-out, diesel and chandlery, but they'd closed for the day. We wanted to stay on their service mooring until they opened in the morning, but they didn't want us to as they were taking boats in and out of the slipway first thing.We moored just outside the marina opposite nb Cedar, which was without Cyprus. Owl & Hampton were away from their moorings. We had free-range duck legs for dinner - much tastier than breast, we thought

I overslept, then we had to wait quite a while to convince ourselves that Mandy was on board, then Tilly went out. Eventually we attempted to set out but got into conversation with David Daines on Cedar. Cyprus is up-country somewhere being fitted with an under-cloth conversion because since David's back injury some time previously he can no longer get comfortable in a cross-bed. At 12:13 we went back into the marina for diesel, pump-out and chandlery. At last we got a tall chimney that fits, but it had to be a single-skin one as the standard liner doesn't fit our collar. After his lunchbreak a chap from the engineers there came to test the circuit for the horn. Power is getting to it OK, so it must be the horn itself that has died. We were uner way again at 14:45, running single, and had a bad road until Gas Two. We moored outboard of Berkhamsted on Bryan & Lindy's garden at Castle Wharf, Berkhamsted, at 18:00, and they came on board after supper for chat & drinks

I went off at about 08:30 on Tuesday to go to the museum. Lindy invited Wendy to dinner on Wednesday evening. Good craic on Thursday.