Batchworth

Batchworth, Grand Union Canal – Thursday 25 April 2013

Hibernation is over!  On Tuesday I finally decided that it was time to blow the cobwebs away and head out again – the boat has been cleaned and re-equipped with the stuff put into storage for the winter.  Then off to ‘pump-out’ and re-fuel.  After waiting an hour (lunch break) I was told they were waiting for a delivery of fuel so back into Packet Boat Marina for another day.

Yesterday I went to check that the delivery of diesel had arrived before moving, then round to the fuel point to fill up and head off.

At Cowley Lock there was a boat coming down (the owners had just bought it) so I helped them through then went on past the moored boats along this stretch.  Uxbridge Lock was in my favour and with a gate open so straight in and through.  The next one is Denham Deep where the level rises by 11 feet and it is the deepest on the Grand Union Canal.  I waited for a ‘Day Boat’ who was being shown how to operate the lock then we shared and off we went with me looking for somewhere to moor.  A long stretch of steel piling (my preferred mooring) looked good but there was a sand bank preventing me getting closer than 3 feet to the bank so I had to move further on eventually mooring near Widewater Bridge.

The weather has been superb – warm and sunny all day.  It is only when you have moored that you discover there is no service on phone or internet.

25 April 2013 - Moved on at 08:00 and passed through Widewater and Black Jack’s locks with no-one else around.  Copper Mill lock has a strong cross current (it is used by canoeists for practice) and there was a new shiny widebeam in the lock.  She is called Lily Pad and her owners had only put her in the water on 24^th so didn’t want to scratch her.

Then on through Springwell and Stocker’s locks and moored near the Tesco at Batchworth.

There were a couple of showers during the night otherwise another fine sunny day (so good I had taken my shirt off).