Setting off on our Summer Cruise to Yorkshire unfinished

Thur May 26 A relaxing cruise to Strawberry island again

Today we awoke late, feeling refreshed, chatted with some Yorkshire boaters about going  down the Trent and up the Yorkshire Ouse, coping with the tidal flow. John reversed Annie back to the Service station and moored briefly to empty loo holding tanks. Ours are like those caravan cassettes, but black. The loo is a vacuum system, and John copes with emptying the cassettes by reckoning he saves about £3 in pump out costs (the price of a pint!) for each one he empties: He says it's quite motivating! Setting off on a now familiar trip, Liana waited for the large trip boat, then operated swing bridge and lock at Thorne Lock, then various bridges on the way to Bramwith Lock. We passed numerous fishermen. Two boat crews were enjoying the hospitality at the Stainforth pub, too. John noticed that there were still two surviving sets of colliery pit head gear visible to the south. On the way, we passed several boats travelling, including Sobriety, from Goole Waterways Museum.
The mild, calm, sometimes sunny weather made our journey through Barnby Dun lift bridge and long Sandall Lock almost idyllic, after yesterday's drenching.
Reaching Strawberry Island Boat Club, we were welcomed warmly, as usual, and Bob found us a mooring for the next couple of nights, while we catch up on charity work for Lions, etc,  at home, before returning soon and heading for Sheffield! Yes, Tinsley locks are now open, we are assured!

Wed May 25 A breezy, damp voyage down the Trent and onwards to Thorne


Tue May 24     Setting off on our Summer Cruise to Yorkshire!

Today looks like another lovely blue sky day. I am up early, mind busy thinking about both our trip and our pleasant Lions Club meal meeting last night, when we badged up new members Paul and Christine Scrivin. We all thought of our friend Phil Smart, suffering from a broken patella, too. After our all too brief return to RWBC at Clayworth, the plan is to retrace our steps to West Stockwith today, then pass through the tidal lock down onto the River Trent at 12 noon tomorrow, around High Tide, and travel down to Keadby on the Ebb Tide, arriving about 2.30. Weather permitting, we might travel further towards Thorne, to our favoured mooring near the Canal Tavern :)

Passing through Gainsborough, we popped in to LIDL to stock up on reasonably priced quality food (30% cheaper than Tesco, in many cases, we think) from all over Europe. The Basque cheese is really nice, for example! Lunch becomes a cheesy, olive strewn, pepperoni sandwich, lettuce affair ..... and did I have a small sip of wine?

The sun shone in between the clouds, but oh dear, what a grey day at times, unlike last Sunday! The rain was mainly light, but the breeze kept temperature low, unfortunately. However, none of this affects the natural beauty of our Chesterfield Canal! The hawthorn trees weeping with garlands of creamy white blossom, the bluebell woods and buttercup meadows, wildfowl of all sorts and so much more, all leave me feeling so lucky that I can travel through such a wonderland.

Reaching West Stockwith about tea time, we moored up in the basin, as usual.