Day 109 .... 29.08.13 .... Shardlow

Here we are back on the Trent and enjoying going on the wide spaces, having re-provisioned at Shardlow.  The first self-service red diesel pump we have seen and a decent price. 

Lovely journey, although short,  up to the junction of the rivers and the canal. ..................

........................... Canal looking picturesque though  .....................

.......................... just after Maggie took this picture at the blind flood lock we met a wide beam coming down and had to reverse smartish.  Always the case on blind bends ................. and then at the next bridge........

............... a somewhat large old narrow boat.  This is an old working boat converted to live-aboard. Another smartish reverse !!
Got moored up in Shardlow and Darren, the welder came and gave our side hatch a few good smacks with a large hammer and lo and behold the hatch is back in pristine condition position-wise but in need of a touch up of paint.
We are spending the next couple of days doing a few jobs on the boat prior to going further up north before the run back down to Crick and the sale of the boat.

Day 108 .... 28.08.13 ..... Sawley

Went back down to Sawley and got the trolley out to go for a shop.  Had to go further than we thought since the shop we were aiming at had ajammed roller and could not open.!! Bizarrely we saw a policeman watching someone trying to jemmy the roller blind off the main door.  Credit to the manufacturer it was proving difficult !!! 

Later on got the bikes out and went down the Trent that we had passed up on a very good path.

................. this is the start of the Erewash Canal which only goes a few miles up but is very picturesque at its juction with the Trent and Soar .......................

........ this is the view backwards from the photo above. I am getting quite attracted to this power station.

On cycvling a mileor so up the erewash

Day 107 .... 27.08.13 .... Shardlow 4

Spent another day in Shardlow hoping that the chap who is going to do the welding on the hatch would give us a call. 

The evening had been fixed for William, Ceri, Megan and Thomas to come over and have a visit to the boat before the 10th Wedding Anniversary do.  It was great ot see them and we walked along to the Clock Warehouse where we had a good meal

................ the instruments on the boat proved popular

Day 106 .... 26.08.13 .... Shardlow 3

We had seen a sign yesterday for a car boot sale and this morning we thought that we would wander round and see what it was like.   It proved to be a bit bigger than we thought ............ but nicely parochial

....... and not full of professional car booters.  Not being used to these we had a wnader around ....

...... Maggie bought a book and I ............

................ was tempted by a 1930's autograph book ...... didn't buy it.

Then on to a lovely little museum about Shardlow maintained by a hugely enthusiastic lady, who I believe had sourced most of the information. Very interesting.

.........she and her husband had even built this mock up of a working boat's living accomodation.

Unfortunately after this the phone jammed....... so we

Day 105 .... 25.08.13 ....Shardlow 2



This morning we moved the boat back about a hundred yards to some more secure mooring rings and had a great day being practical.  Maggie in the boat and myself in the man cave and engine bit. Later we had a wander around the village and found this rather Spanish-looking place.  Delapidated on the outside but very trendy on the inside.  ............ 



........................ some very interesting furniture and clothes....

............. the window says it all.   It was actuallyvery busy when we went in .... but it is a holiday weekend.  We thought that some of the items were somewhat pricey.  I bought a card.............

.............................. on the way back to the boat the Malt Shovel looked enticing.  A Marstons pub seving Pedigree which cannot be too bad !!!!!!!!

Day 104 .... 24.03.13 .... Shardlow

One of the first excitements of the day for me ('tis a sad existence) was going under the M1, for I have often gone over the river en route to William and Ceri's and always wondered what it was like on the river.  Now I know !!

.......................................................... like this picture of a chap who I let overtake us ! Everyone overtakes us and then we catch them up at the next lock ! ............

........... this is the junction of the River Trent and River Derwent and the Trent and Mersey Canal.
Ilike the branches in the foreground .......................

...................and here is the birthplace of NestaMay in this wet dock at Dobsons Wharf in Shardlow.  Much has changed in the 10 ensuing years...... the chap who we dealt with has gone broke twice and has now retired from doing so and is apparently  working for the Church !!!

......................... this building used to be a mill and is now needless to say a pub...

Day 103 .... 24.08.13 .... Sawley 4

Today has been taken up by the boat going in to have a service and so we backed into a little space with our nose on the wet dock for Bill the mechanic to do his stuff

This he certainly did making an efficient, quick and clean job of doing the servicing and repacking the Stern-tube in about an eighth of the time it would have taken me. To be recommended to anyone in the Sawley region.
Tomorrow onwards to Shardlow !!    

Day 102 .... 22.08.13 .... Sawley 3

Another great sunset and another night in Sawley...   the boat is going to be worked on tomorrow a.m.

In the meantime we had a nother day of doing.  Maggie painted the back doors and I threw away even more paperwork.  We shopped and then met William and Ceri for a meal at the Harrington Arms which was very good. 

 .................. the weather was comfortably warm although it is starting to spit.  Possibly a bit thundery.

Great to see both of them so well.

Day 101 ....21.08.13 .... Sawley 2

A superb sunset last night and a very calm evening ............................

......................... today stationary and Bill the mechanic came around to make a list of the three things that need doing to the engine and to get the parts ordered.  Maggie took advantage of the good weather and stationaryness of the boat to get re-painting the hatches. 

............another wander around the marina opposite to see if we had missed anything.  Quite a few boats !!
Looking forward to tomorrow .... we are meeting William and Ceri to go for a meal.  Friday the boat is being serviced and the stern tube re-packed.    

Day 100 .... 20.08.13 .... Sawley

Setting off towards the Trent junction, one could not help but feel sorry for the church spire at Ratcliffe-0n-Soar being somewhat dwarfed by the power station and the the wires. Still the countryside is trying hard!!

 After about an hour of meandering cruising, reached the junction of the River Trent, Grand Union and Erewash Canal.  Quite impressive and still very expansive but flat.

......................... a backward look at the Grand Union/River Soar .............

The river diverges here with a lock one way and the wiers another. We pulled in to empty etc. and fill up with water, then went through the manned lock.  We are carrying on on the river proper for another two miles or so.  There are far more cruisers around here than there have been anywhere else apart from the Thames of course.............

.......................... have booked in a mechanic to have a look at the diesel filter and the stern tube tomorrow a.m.   On wandering in to the village of Sawley to find a paper we stopped at this pub which had a very good deal on, so for the first time, had a Golden Years deal !!! Not sure if the word "mature" applies to either of us but there we go.  I should also point out that I have not started drinking capuchinos !!! You never know though.

Tomorrow a boaty doing day ............. more of which then.

Day 99 .... 19.08.13 .... Kegworth

Spent a very genteel four hours cruising along the River Soar to Kegworth, which has been a very pleasant surprise although very flat.   The above pic is Normanton-on-Soar Church and we really felt as if we were on a slightly smaller Thames .............................

Houses coming down to the River

........... this gives a good idea of the flatness and how easily it floods.........

....................... more lilypads and a rather fine house but no frogs yet!!

.......... even the planes going into East Midlands Airport are like the Thames!!! Not so numerous though
Had a walk after we moored and this is a spectacular power station we shall be passing tomorrow on the way to Sawley Marina and Shardlow ..................................

this pic of a small marina around the corner from where we are shows how high the water can get. Even the club house is on stilts.

Tomorrow a 6 mile journey and a new waterway .... theTrent and Mersey.