On the Avon

 Saturday August 21 at Pershore

Today started with heavy rain, with a promise of more! The water is still hot from yesterday, so the shower has been used. 

Thankfully, the rain has cleared somewhat by 11am, so maybe the wedding today may be lucky. We can hear the church bells ringing gaily now. 

It’s been a good chance to catch up on the blog. Liverpool FC are playing Burnley today at lunchtime, so we (John) may try to watch.

Liverpool won 2-0, we chatted to the happy wedding guests in the pub garden, and went for a walk in the early evening. Lovely!

Shakespeare’s Avon

Friday August 20 Tewkesbury to Pershore (11 miles, 3 locks)

John woke up very early, read then went back to bed, so no surprise we breakfasted late. The moorings by the flats were full up last night, but the large Edward Elgar hotel boat and others had left already. 

John backed Annie towards the lock, and we hovered while a tiny boat came down and Liana went online to buy an Avon license (still £50 for a week) from www.avonnavigationtrust.org, as you can’t buy it from the lock keeper now. 

In the lock, he hooked our ropes to place them around bollards fire and aft for us. He also asked for the receipt number which had been emailed to John, so make sure your phone is charged up if you follow us here!

The lock was filled slowly and we exited and passed through the historic stone King John’s Bridge, beside which the ancient pub is being tastefully refurbished.

The boatyard looked to be closed beside the busy Tewkesbury Marina. With the washing machine and then the dishwasher doing their stuff, we enjoyed the much improved idyllic riverside views here on the Avon, after miles of Severn willows and banks.

John thought about visitor moorings at Swans Neck (on a tight bend) , by the lovely old six arched red sandstone Eckington Bridge (full) and at the shady Comberton Quay (full), but we carried on to Pershore Lock and moored on shiny new metal pontoons just by the weir. These are excellent Avon Trust/Angel Inn 24 hour visitor moorings.

A short walk through the Angel Inn garden and pub arch brings you to the town centre, with beautiful displays of flowers everywhere. We had a scenic walk around, passed the abbey and John had another Guinness before we returned to Annie, past the wedding tent being set up in the pub garden for tomorrow.

Severn cruise upriver

 Thursday August 19 Gloucester to Tewkesbury (14 miles, 2 locks)

John wore his new, trendy QUBA top!

After breakfast, John rang the Gloucester Docks lock keeper, we readied Annie and entered the lock before 10am to go upriver. We loop bow and stern ropes around steel cable risers (vertical and attached to the lock sides) to hold the boat steady while water rushes in or out.

As soon as we left the lock, which was easy with just a gentle current, John saw a big blue Kingfisher, our first for a while. He saw another as we chugged up the narrow channel two miles to Upper Parting, where we joined the main River Severn. 

This is where the unnavigable river disappears over a weir, where once there was a lock taking boats down onto the tidal Severn, a mile or so to the old Hereford and Gloucester Canal at Over Basin.

The river is wide, fringed with willows and serpentine here, with few places to stop. 

The Raw Bridge Inn looked closed, but the Yew Tree Inn was open. On the way, we passed half a dozen oncoming narrowboats. John rang the only river lock when we got close. Once through Upper Lode Lock, we squeezed in to Tewkesbury haven beside a coxed four, whose young cox was being tested by an examiner in the safety boat accompanying it. We moored past the lock about 1.30, beside the flats, like last time (a bit awkward to climb up onto the wharf, but ok).

We do so like the unspoiled Tudor buildings here, so had a walk around the town.

Gloucester

Wednesday August 18 Quedgeley to Gloucester (4 miles, 0 locks)

Weather fine, not particularly sunny, but dry and warm in the sun. Liana took rubbish, John checked the engine and gearbox oil, and we set off for Gloucester Docks. One of the bridge keepers waved a green flag, as the lights were not working! Good to have a backup plan! We passed Rich and coal boat Roach refuelling a narrowboat on the way, plus a red ex-lightship now used as a B&B!

We emptied loo cassettes and filled the water tank at the CRT services by Llanthony Bridge. The bridge keeper had disappeared, so we had to hover for ten minutes with another narrowboat after we rang them. 

John moored Annie as usual, backing in to the corner pontoons, as this gives us a great view of the whole Dock area from our cratch.

After a left over pasta lunch, we headed to the Gloucester Quays, where John bought a rugby type jersey in QUBA, plus a shirt and t shirt in Weirdfish - he’s becoming a fashionista!!

After a Costa coffee and a £1.99 Guinness plus lime & soda in Wetherspoons, we had chicken Kievs on the boat, cooked slowly in our too slow oven! Scones, clotted cream and jam were yummy. 👍

Cratch and Cutie

 Tuesday August 17 Cute grand daughter and  cratch repairs

Today we took our cratch cover 35 miles to R&J  Sails at Clevedon. Zips were resewn to the vinyl backed acrylic material, as thread had rotted, partly due to tension caused by shrinkage. We sprayed the zips with silicone lube spray to reduce friction. A decent repair job was done, but we will need a new cover soon. He recommended PU coated acrylic canvas, which doesn’t shrink, and redcoat with Fabsil  paint on waterproofing every two years.

We spent a few hours with Jo, Mark and our grand daughter Hope, who is growing fast and demanding plenty of milk from mum!

Ocean journey

 Monday August 16 Stroudwater walk

This morning we motored to St Cyr Church, Stonehouse, near Stroud, and walked from the church to within sight of the M5 motorway, following the largely newly surfaced towpath.

Once past the scenic churchyard, we crossed the modern Ocean swing bridge to walk beside the wide Ocean stretch of canal. An audio information point goes on at length about it. We walked on, under the railway. What a pity they culverted the canal. 

We passed a CCT volunteer vegetation cutting. 

Bonds Mill has a swing bridge with a weird bridge house, complete with WW2 pillbox on top! The mill was a shadow factory in WW2.

 Newtown Lock, now gated and being finished. 

Blunder Lock is also complete, but Pike lock is ungated, at the moment.  

We crossed the road next to Pike Lock, passing the CCT western depot. We chatted to CCT volunteers here, just outside their western depot, and followed them to the derelict Dock Lock.

We carried on past Dock Lock to a bridge from which we could see the M5. 

One day soon the canal will pass under the M5, using the River Frome under bridge

We had lunch at the CCT lock side cafe in Stroud, visited the shops and bought small nails and quadrant beading to secure the cratch window. Later, John fixed the beading to the triangular cratch window.

NE on the Gloucester Sharpness Canal

 Saturday August 14 Sharpness  to Saul (8 miles, 0 locks, 6 swing bridges, Engine Hours 4530)

We motored to Purton, where Liana disembarked to take our car to Saul, where she waited, ensconced happily at the Stables, with a decent coffee. John enjoyed the cruise, meeting paddle boarders and the large Edward Elgar holiday boat on the way.

Once moored at Saul, we ate at The Stables and spotted the coal boat Roach moored, so rang the number displayed to organise refuelling tomorrow morning.

The strong wind caused one boater to bounce off bank and other boats, when drifting broadside down the canal with the wind. It happens.

Later, John watched Liverpool win their first game of the season 3-0. 👍

Sunday August 15 Fuelling up and heading for Gloucester (4 miles, 0 locks, 3 swb)

A sunny day, but a strong wind made manoeuvring difficult, like yesterday.

First thing, braving the wind, Rich on NB Roach reversed to breast up and fill Annie up with 125 litres of Diesel. We replaced our empty 13kg gas bottle, too, for about £35. Roach covers the River Severn, Worcester Birmingham canal and Stratford canal areas.

Once sorted, we headed towards Gloucester. Liana got off after a mile or so, walked back and drove the car to Quedgeley.  I moored Annie at Quedgeley again, where it is easy to park the car in The Pilot Inn car park (we eat and drink there during our stay).

John refitted the refurbished cratch window and sealed in the Perspex. Good job!