Tuesday May 15 2018 Setting out
from Clayworth to West Stockwith
We
have been very busy redecorating bedrooms, gardening, sewing and
erecting a garden shed, plus clearing and sorting out our Summer
House. John has worked on the boat, fitting new batteries, painting
and buying bits for a Solar Panel kit to fit soon. Liana has made
loads of doctor's scrub hats and dolls clothes, too. Church, bell
ringing, Lions Club activities, embroidering have kept us busy, too.
Liana has worked hard to give John lovely 65th
Birthday celebrations with a holiday for us both in Stratford, where
we saw Macbeth and had a river cruise (of course!). We had a great
day with family at Anne Arden's House. At home, we had a meal for
14(!!) which Liana cooked for brother Phil & Jackie and some of
our dearest friends. We had more friends round for tea before we all
managed to win second prize in this month's Lions Quiz. Retirement?
Love it!!
Hardly
surprising, then, that this morning saw us packing for the boat,
shopping and buying red diesel for Annie before we set off, finally,
exhausted, at 2pm! Shorts, sandals and T shirt weather. Liana sat in
the sun enjoying the lovely scenery, spotting loads of fish. John saw
a huge Pike near Wiseton, where the canal is rather overgrown and
shallow. Don't expect to speed on the Chesterfield: Plan for 2.5 mph,
relax and enjoy the trip. The pretty moorings before Drakeholes
Tunnel were empty. On such a warm, sunny day we saw no boats, just
dog walkers. Hawthorn May Blossom was exuberant, while the bright
yellow, strongly scented Oil Seed Rape flowers covered so many fields
in the valley of the Idle.
The wide
Gringley and Shaw locks were heavy and stiff: One Shaw lock bottom
gate wouldn't open, so we used the other. Finally, we met a
narrowboat moored at Misterton: John had a chat and a rest, while
Liana popped for an extra pint of milk from the coop here (there is
an excellent butcher opposite it). Both Misterton locks worked ok: I
guess our muscles are out of practice. Mooring in West Stockwith
basin near the trip boats Robin Hood and Maid Marian, John greased
the stern gland, as usual, while Liana prepared Fajitas for tea. We
had an early night, setting the alarm for an early start tomorrow.
Wednesday May 16 2018 Up the Trent to Torksey
Liana slept not
too well: surely one small wine glass shouldn't make John snore THAT
loud? A 6.30am alarm saw John checking the oil and water. Skies are
lowering, as we say in Lincolnshire – cloudy and thinking of rain.
A strong, cold wind made John wear yellow waterproof trousers and
jacket under his life jacket – a good move, keeping warm, even
though rain kept off, thankfully.
The Boating
Association guide to the Tidal Trent is excellent help, as is our
friend and fellow Retford & Worksop Boat Club member John Lower's
book “Narrowboat on the Trent”, with his 40 years experience on
the Trent, published by the Chesterfield Canal Trust.
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| passing the Gainsborough Visitors pontoon. Turn to face current to moor. CRT key needed |
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| Gainsborough bridge |
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| Liana with Annie, waiting to go up Torksey Lock |
John did a VHF
radio check with Jim, the West Stockwith lock keeper, and used it to
contact Torksey lock. Unusually, we had to wait on the pontoon while
FOUR boats came down the lock. To our surprise, two boats appeared
from the river to moor with us, having come upstream from Keadby, on
their way to Nottingham.
Locking up, we
were advised to moor by the tearoom (open 11-4pm except Mon &
Fri), where we filled up with water, dumped rubbish and had delicious
sausage rolls and beetroot and chocolate cake (it's tasty!) with
decent coffee.
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| Annie moored by the services at Torksey, on the Foss Dyke |
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| looking towards Torksey Lock |
While Liana took the bus to retrieve our car, John did
a few jobs and admired the RN engine of NB Emerelda, who locked down
so she could leave early tomorrow. After a short walk and the second
half of the Fajitas, it was TV and an early night again: all that
fresh air tires you out!
Thursday 17 May A Social Day on the Fossdyke
Cool but sunny,
Saxilby was inviting. We spotted The Tea Room opposite our moorings,
over the footbridge, so rang sister Dianne to pop over for a light
lunch together, and to view the boat.
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| Annie at Torksey |
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| Saxilby's decent visitor moorings are beyond this railway bridge, on the right |
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| we walked to visit our friend Andy Onion's grave at Saxilby Church |
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| Liana with my sister Dianne |
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| Dianne meeting Annie :) |
We toured the village to visit
our friend Andy Onion's grave at the church. Villagers were friendly
and the flower folk decorating the church were doing an impressive
job.
Lunch at The
Tea Room with Dianne was really good: creamy celery and stilton soup,
superb French onion soup with that bread with cheese floating on top,
tasty Quiche, salmon and cream cheese sandwiches, etc – excellent
quality for a reasonable price: We will come again!
Onward to the
Pyewipe Inn by the Lincoln ring road, where we picked up Liana's
friend Liz Boucher for a short leisurely cruise in the sun to
Lincoln Brayford Pool and back, while they caught up with each
other's news. We passed the Brayford Belle trip boat, hooting
happily. The visitor moorings by the CRT services, just before the
Brayford, were full of what looked like residential boats, as we had
been warned by a boater at Torksey. Why CRT and Lincoln Council have
not sorted out secure visitor moorings in the main Brayford Pool,
after their publicised wish to attract visitors down the Trent, is
beyond me.
After a quiet
afternoon, we tried the modernised Pyewipe Inn with friends Helen &
Kevin plus Karen & Nick, having a cheery evening as we enjoyed
the meal. The diet starts tomorrow ….
Friday 18 May on the Fossdyke
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| back up the Foss Dyke |
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| at Woodcocks near Burton Marina: Food and Fun for Families! |
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