Back to Base

We waited for our friends aboard N. B. Kernow to catch up with us this morning and then we toddled off together in convoy to Wigrams. I say in convoy because it was very busy along this stretch of the canal, we were last in a long line of boats all heading toward Napton Junction. While we were moored up, about half of the passing boats didn't slow down at all and most of the rest only dropped back to half throttle once they'd got here, and then opened up again before having passed. No respect at all, but our spring line put a stop to all the bankside bumping which occurs without it.

I took our friends Dave and Anne to Braunston to collect their car and when I got back I polished TQ to within an inch and now she looks like a new pin.

Front and...

...Rear.

I have to say, we have experienced the best weather ever aboard TQ this holiday. Usually for us the rain is horizontal, and the temperature rarely rises above 10 Celsius, but this time we've hit it right. Hopefully our fortune has changed.

Tomorrow we take the long sprint all the way back to Zunny Zumerzet.

Out with the old, in with the new.

A maintenance day today, but first we slipped our moorings in Braunston after Lin went shopping again and I polished the Starboard side. We only moved a couple of hundred yards to stop at the water point to fill up and I went into Midland Swindlers Chandlers to get a spark ignition switch for the hob and 5 litres of oil. A very nice chug in the morning sunshine landed us somewhere between Bridges 100 and 101. I fitted the ignition switch and then painted the flue flange while Lin did some washing and then I waited for the engine to cool down before I changed the oil and filter. I also changed the primary fuel filter and gearbox oil.

New one on the left. Have a guess how much...

View to the North

View to the South

New fuel filter, there was no water in the dregs, the fuel was clean.

All finished.

Lucy has been so good, not a word of complaint, though she gets us up at 05:00 in the mornings, which isn't a bad thing.

Lucy showing an interest in the great outdoors.

Oh! I nearly forgot, the spark ignition button cost a whopping £14.75.

Just look at this lovely sunset...

A meeting with friends.

We had an easy morning and slowly cruised to Braunston where we met up with Dave and Anne from Narrowboat Kernow. Lunch in the Boathouse was the order and we strolled down the main road from the 14 day moorings. We had a right session, lunch outside under the parasol, but the girls left early to do some shopping and Dave and I had another pint and we eventually left at around 17:00. Where did that day go?

What a lovely day!

Perhaps our fortune has changed, we don't get weather like this when we're aboard TQ. I woke at 05:00 this morning and left Lin "struggling" with her velcro back. A peek out of the side hatch revealed this...

A misty morning on the cut

After we had bacon butties for breakfast we slipped our moorings and pootled off up to wind between The Old Oak and Bridge 74. On the way we stopped and moored next to N.B. Kernow and had a chat with friends Dave and Anne and we planned to meet up again in Braunston tomorrow for lunch.

Once winded we wended our way (I should be a poet or a literary - on second thoughts nah! maybe not) back to somewhere just short of Barby Moorings by Bridge 75 and had lunch. I cleaned some brass in the afternoon and installed this...

A key rack to stop the coat hooks from being cluttered.

Later, at around 17:00 we made our way back and moored near Bridge 85 (we think).

Here's some more pix from today...

Barby Moorings gradually filling up but still not much in the way of facilities.

Looking back along the Barby Straight on the Oxford Canal.

I like to moor TQ up with a spring line...

...It stops speeding boats from spilling your tea and breaking your crockery.

I often wonder what goes on iside that empty head.

More tomorrow.

Quite a successful day.

We had some heavy rain this morning, but fortunately it was all gone by the time Michael Allen the BSS examiner arrived. Yes, the dreaded Boaters MoT, and it wasn't as bad as I thought it was going to be. I did some research into this beforehand and there are pages and pages of impossible to comprehend text. Michael was quick to put me at ease and the test was over inside the hour. It seems 99% of all that is written doesn't apply. Anyway, the upshot is, TQ passed with flying colours.

Items inspected include the gas system, hob, grill and oven. Our Bubble Stove was checked to make sure it was bolted down and is sealed properly, fire extinguishers, type, quantity and Kite mark, ventilation mushrooms and bulkhead grilles, batteries, wiring, fuel system etc. etc.

Later we departed our mooring and headed to Braunston in brilliant sunshine only to be heavily rained on just before the junction. We could see it coming from a ¼ mile away and then it suddenly arrived, so it was out with the brolly until we sheltered under Bridge 88 and waited for it to subside. We found a mooring soon after and have settled in for the night.

Here's some pictures of today:-

We always end up cruising in the rain, and then we wait... and we wait.

We left Wigrams early in the morning to be at Calcutt by opening time. Well, it's a long way to go, all of half a mile, but as soon as we were away it started to rain and slowly became heavier as we moored up on the wharf. Not long after the sun came out and I went into Reception to say that TQ had arrived and was ready to have the detent ball and spring replaced in the gearbox. The engineer Dave arrived and said it'll take 10 minutes and went to lift the deck board when his walkie talkie called and someone called him away on another job! For the sake of 10 minutes (it was actually only five) we were left waiting for nearly four hours! Where is the sense in that? I have a little phrase I use... "The Management are always right, even when they know they're wrong".

After we paid up at Calcutt we decided to cruise toward Braunston and wind at the winding hole just short where the private moorings are. We stopped for tea with about two miles to go as it was a lovely evening, and then cruised back to Wigrams  much later. We have a BSS examination in the morning. Talking of which... I've sealed the Bubble Stove, and in the morning I have to empty the gas locker of everything but gas.

Sealed.

The half way point

Today I'm half way through a two week holiday, spent so far rebuilding our bathroom into a shower room. It's been one of those jobs where you open a can of worms, literally with the state of the floor boards, and the joists didn't fair much better, so the whole lot came out right down to bare earth. Everything has been renewed, the plumbing, drainage, soil pipe etc. etc. Now there are tiles on the wall, the basin is fitted and working as is the toilet. But I've had to leave it all to go on holiday!
Not that I'm complaining, you understand...

Well, I've torn myself away from all that to spend the second week aboard TQ. Lucy, our cat has come with us and she's settled in really well, so no complaints from her.
This week there are some jobs to be done, tomorrow we cruise all the way to Calcutt to have a detent ball and spring fitted in the gearbox, and on Tuesday we're having the BSS examination done. Already I've repaired the hob ignition button - it was full of fat and needed cleaning, but really needs replacement. I'll see if I can get one later in the week.