Newark

After a night in Nottingham we continued east on the Nottingham Canal and rejoined the River Trent opposite the Nottingham Forest football ground.  We had intended to stop at Holme Lock but after pulling over we noticed some signs advising the visitor moorings were not available.  The Lockie told us the boats on permanent moorings were moving onto the visitor moorings during some initial work on the hydro-electric generator which is to be installed.  We carried on to Stoke Lock to find the moorings had all been taken and so went on to Gunthorpe and although it was busy there was space for us.  

On Sunday Shaun, Laura and the kids came over and brought with them some sanding discs.  After all our hard work sanding down Brent III we'd used up our supply.  We all enjoyed an excellent meal at the Unicorn Hotel which is conveniently across the road from the moorings.  

On Monday we moved on to Hazelford Island, famed for it's blackberries.  This year the bushes were laden and we quickly had enough for a blackberry and apple crumble. Hazelford is also famous for it's rabbits but the population seems to be diminished and Kev found the reason for this when he spotted some mink droppings.  The weather was fine so we removed everything from the roof, including the solar panels, and painted on an undercoat.  

We left Hazelford in the fog and as we approached Newark we were surprised to see some rowing boats emerge through the mist.  They were probably surprised when we blew our horn in warning.  

At Newark we hoped a mooring with an electric point would be free and we were in luck; 2 boats left the moorings shortly after we arrived.   This enabled us to leave the solar panels off and complete the roof with two gloss coats in light grey.  We also painted both sides in cream and added a red band over the roof handrail so we were pleased with our progress.  

On Sunday Sarah came over to see us and, as we both have new cameras, we went for a walk with them before enjoying lunch and a lazy afternoon chatting.  

Newark Town Lock from the castle

By Wednesday morning we'd been at Newark for 8 days and decided it was time to move on before Just Beer really did become Kev's local.  We arrived at Cromwell in time to go through the lock and onto the River Trent.  As we headed north Kev spotted an unusual sight and grabbed the camera for a photo of a low-flying vulcan bomber.   The plane was part of a fly-past on the following day to commemorate the 25th anniversary of the end of the Cold War. 

A vulcan bomber flew over as we sailed down the Trent

After a pleasant journey we moored up outside the lock at Torksey and very carefully returned the solar panels to the roof.  It was nice to be away from civilisation again and some spectacular clouds at sunset preceded a clear starry night.  

Torksey sunset

Our journey from Nottingham to Torksey

Full Circle

From Alrewas we travelled north-east to Burton-on-Trent stopping twice on the way.  It hasn't been a good year for sloes so when we saw a black-thorn bush bearing fruit we quickly pulled over, much to the amusement of boaters coming in the opposite direction.   Our second stop was for Morrisons before we moored up at Shobnall Fields.   Here we noticed a pigeon bathing in the canal.  It repeatedly flew down onto the water, had a splash about and then flew out.  

A bathing pigeon, an unusual sight but the goose doesn't seem impressed.

The canal was busy as we travelled to Willington so when we left there we had an early start.  We still found ourselves in a queue for the first lock but were pleased to see a free mooring at Ragley Boat Stop, a popular pub serving excellent meals.  

Relaxing at Ragley Boat Stop

On Sunday we had a visit from Nic, Gaz, Shaun, Laura, all the kids and little Ted.   We enjoyed a lovely day and of course a meal in the pub.  

Little Ted and Brinny in a photo taken by Gaz

At Sawley we put in some hard work on Brent III, sanding down the roof and remaining side panel ready for painting.   When Kev sanded round the skylight he found the roof was very rusty so we had an extra job removing the skylight and grinding out the rust before treating the area.   Our final task at Sawley was to hose off all the dust and luckily Sawley's waterpoints have a very strong pressure.  

Brent III in the early morning mist at Sawley

From Sawley we sailed down the River Trent to Trent Lock (marked with a green blob on the map), the junction of the Rivers Trent and Soar, the Erewash Canal and Cranfleet Cut .   As we turned onto the Cranfleet Cut we came full circle; on 18 May 2014 we sailed out of the Cranfleet Cut to head down the River Soar.  Since then we've travelled 520 miles and come through 398 locks.  

The short Cranfleet Cut by-passes an unnavigable section of the River Trent which we rejoin as a wide river.  From here we sailed on to the Beeston Cut that took us into the centre of Nottingham.  

Arts Festival

The Trent  and Mersey took us through the small town of Stone where we stopped overnight before continuing through open countryside.  As the Bank Holiday weekend approached the boat traffic increased and as we moored up in a quiet spot a familiar boat came towards us,  Victoria Plum, whose home mooring is Viking Marina.  Don pulled over and we had a good natter before a heavy shower had us running for cover and Don continued towards Stone.  

Cows paddling  on a rural stretch of the Trent and Mersey

It's a shame the weather has turned cold and wet this month and we've been glad of the gas central heating.  We were pleased to see a trader selling coal at the side of the canal but surely we shouldn't need it in August.   But the cold weather did us a favour.  While looking for warm clothes in our under-bed storage I spotted a damp patch and further investigation revealed the small water filter was leaking.  Luckily nothing had been damaged and Kev easily fixed the leak.  

The next small town was Rugeley which has a new large Tesco store next to the canal, ideal for stocking up.   The once busy Morrisons in the town centre was obviously feeling the impact of the competition; when we called in their 'reduced to clear' shelves were full and even included cans of beer!

Fradley Junction connects the Trent and Mersey to the Coventry Canal and several locks resulted in a queue of boats.  Once through we moored up next to Fradley Reservoir and nature reserve.  The path round the reserve makes an interesting walk revealing numerous bird and bat boxes, a hide with a thatched roof and some wood carvings.   I took the new camera but didn't need the zoom for the huge wooden dragonfly at the entrance. 

Wooden dragonfly in Fradley nature reserve

 By chance I walked Bess and Brinny up to the next village  along the canal, Alrewas, and discovered it was their biennial arts festival week.  The next day I went for a look round and followed the arts trail around the village.  The route was marked with colourful bunting and fabric pictures and quilts hung from gates, fences, trees and even canal bridges.  I enjoyed a spinning demonstration and looking round the art, textile and photographic exhibitions held in various halls along the route.  

Detail from a wall hanging in Alrewas arts festival

   

Nursery rhyme characters make a jolly display 

Our journey from Wedgwood to Alrewas