Back to Keadby

After a couple of days at Gunthorpe we sailed on to the next moorings which are at Hazelford Island.

On the moorings at Hazelford Island.   CRT's crane is on site because they have been working on the high wall and the boat heading downstream is the St John's trip boat Crusader. 

The island used to be home to a thriving population of rabbits but when we walked along the grassy paths it was obvious their numbers had dramatically diminished.   There were still plenty of smells to excite Bess and Brinny who enjoyed a good run round. 

Bess keeping an eye on Brinny from her spot in the shade

During one of our walks I spotted a bright butterfly which I haven't been able to identify.

The brightly coloured butterfly

On Sunday we moved on to Newark passing a variety of birds at Averham Weir. 

The posts at Averham Weir make a convenient place to preen

Newark is convenient for shopping with a good market and I couldn't resist some arts and crafts purchases from various shops.  Kev picked up an ebay delivery from Argos and of course called in at Just Beer.  Flocks of sparrows live in the bushes lining the river wall and some sat long enough for a photo.  

Fluffed up in the wind at the side of the Trent

On Thursday we pulled off the pontoons and over to the opposite bank which is conveniently near to Morrisons.  After shopping we left Newark heading north for Cromwell Lock.  

The pontoons at Newark

We stopped at Cromwell over the weekend and caught up with some maintenance jobs.  We also fitted some extra eyelets on the gunwhales to hang more fenders to protect our paintwork and bolted on some additional mooring cleats.  These will be useful as mooring bollards and rings aren't always conveniently spaced for the length of the boat.  

On Monday we went down through Cromwell Lock onto the tidal section of the Trent.  The water levels were very low exposing the shoals which extend into the river and can be a hazard to boaters. 

A gravel shoal which has built up on the inside of the bend in the river

We had a good run to Torksey where we stopped on the pontoons overnight.  The next day we had a 7 am start in order to make the most of the outgoing tide.  It was misty as we set off but shortly afterwards the mist turned to a thick fog which was alarming because we could barely see the banks.  Kev was able to keep on course and gradually the fog cleared.  

Sheep walking along the bank in the fog 

Despite the fog we had another good run and on arrival at Keadby turned into the lock to find the invasive floating weed is back.  Up on the canal we carved a path through the green carpet and pulled up for the day.  

Our journey from Gunthorpe to Keadby

Back to the Trent

We left Branston under blue skies but the clouds weren't far behind. 

Dark clouds follow us as we head towards Burton-on-Trent 

On our way out of Burton-on-Trent we came down Dallow Lock, our last narrow lock this year.  The next day we left Willington and soon found ourselves in a queue for Stenson Lock. 

We've moved Brent III up the queue ready to go in the lock with the boat in front.  The white building is a cafe whose customers sit out on the veranda watching the boats in the lock. 

Once through the lock we kept our fingers crossed for space on the moorings at the Ragley Boat Stop pub.  We were in luck and stayed a couple of days enabling us to enjoy their excellent meals.  

On Friday we resumed our journey and were joined by another narrowboat at the first lock which was lucky; Weston Lock is renowned for it's heavy bottom gates but it was easy with two of us.   We shared the next few locks and were both able to moor up at Shardlow which was surprisingly quiet when we arrived.  

Moored up at Shardlow, this was the last time we had to drop the wheelhouse for low bridges.

Sawley was our next stop as we travelled the now familiar route north. 

A vivid sunset at Sawley

Volunteer lock-keepers took us down through Sawley Lock onto the wide River Trent but this first stretch of the river is short; after a mile Cranfleet Cut bypasses Thrumpton Weir.    I also had an easy time at Cranfleet Lock as 3 more volunteers manned the lock and let us out back onto the Trent.   We stopped on Cranfleet pontoon and then my work began.  Brent III's paintwork needs some protection and Kev thoughtfully brought a gallon of polish which, with some elbow grease, had Brent III gleaming in the sunshine. 

Sailing into Nottingham we were surprised to see a line of empty moorings.  The boaters who had taken root on the visitor moorings had clearly been persuaded to move on.  We stopped overnight and restocked at Sainsburys before continuing through Nottingham with it's mix of old and new buildings flanking the canal.  

A Nottingham wharf filled with seats and flowers for the Canalhouse Bar.  The warehouse in the background once belonged to Fellows, Morton & Clayton, a well-known canal haulage company.

At Meadow Lane Lock we left Nottingham Canal and will be on the River Trent for the next 70 miles.  The Trent trip boats were lined up on their moorings as we passed.  

The Trent trip boats on their moorings.

Our first stop on the Trent was at Stoke Bardolph where I enjoyed a good walk with the girls who appreciated the smell of rabbit more than the view over the lagoons.   We then moved on to Gunthorpe and Kev, always an early riser, told me about the mist at dawn but I only saw it on the photo he took on our second day there.  

Kev's photo of boats in the mist on the Trent

Our journey from Branston to Gunthorpe 

August Bank Holiday

After Minworth the Birmingham & Fazeley became a quiet rural canal and we spent the next night alongside a large RSPB reserve at Kingsbury.  Our journey north then took us under Drayton Footbridge which has a tower at each end containing a spiral staircase for access to cross.

Drayton Footbridge with it's doorways into the towers

We stopped at Fazeley Hill Marina to top up with diesel, at 57p per litre + duty it was the cheapest we've seen for a long time.

At Fazeley Junction we turned north-west on the Coventry Canal and pulled over shortly afterwards for Sainsburys.  We'd noticed the canal was very busy and the next day boats were moving early.  As we set off we knew there were some boats ahead but then a boater coming in the opposite direction told us we were the 10th boat he'd seen in 1.5 miles.  Time to pull over and the next opportunity was near Hademore. We soon found we were also near to the high speed rail line.

High speed train coming under a road bridge

The low banks at Hademore were ideal for us to restart the long task of Brent III's paintwork.  During breaks in the rain we were able to rub down her starboard gunwhales exposing streaks of her previous colours.  She didn't look pretty when we left on Monday morning but we were pleased to have made a start.  We were heading for Fradley Junction and when we arrived we were surprised to see the moorings were almost empty but that didn't last long at this popular destination.

The Canal & River Trust buildings and yard opposite our mooring at Fradley

From Fradley we moved on to Branston Water Park moorings where the canal runs alongside a wildfowl reserve.  This was an excellent spot to stop for a few days to avoid moving during the busy bank holiday weekend.  The nearby Toby Carvery provided sustaining breakfasts before we resumed painting Brent III.  To paint the bow we dismantled the cratch and removed the front fender which sent a dozen surprised spiders scurrying away into the grass.  It's a shame the spiders living inside the boat don't scurry away, it's a bit unnerving when they suddenly abseil down from the ceiling.

Painting in progress.  Before we left Branston we completed a top coat to the bow to match the gunwhale 

Taking a break from painting we walked down the towpath to gather some sloes and then made up this year's sloe gin.

On the Bank Holiday Monday we awoke to heavy rain which persisted until lunchtime.  We decided to move on then, just a mile further down the canal so we were closer to Morrisons for a shop.

Our journey from Minworth to Branston