Leaving York around lunchtime we cruised to Naburn Lock.
A lovely afternoon cruise. Moored up at Naburn and walked up to the pub for a couple of pints.
The Blacksmiths arms. http://blacksmithsarmsnaburn.co.uk/
Stayed for the weekend and revisited the Blacksmiths Arms for a delicious carvery on Sunday. It was a busy day at the Lock with the Canal & River Trust (aka CRT) in evidence promoting the waterways. Another baking hot day!
All is not well in paradise … chilly atmosphere. I walked Minnie at about 10.30 p.m. and there was a truly eerie atmosphere around the lock, probably not assisted by chilly atmosphere on board! Watched today's boats penned through lock. Paradise restored :)
Monday we headed back down to Selby. The Lock keeper penned us through the lock at 5.30 p.m. to get the right tide so we were hanging around all day.The Ouse was flowing fast against us so we crawled along even though we were cranking it! On the day, the river was full of broken trees and very low and murky. It was not the pleasant cruise we have grown used to! Releasing boats on to the river is timed by the tide so, for the first 2 hours, the water was low (which slows the boat down) and the river was still moving against us, then it turned and suddenly we felt the difference – motoring along. Made it to Selby after 3.5 hours. Not setting any records!! I rang the Lock keeper as we approached Selby to discover they had been trying to contact us by radio because we were taking so long!!
However, when we reached Selby Lock ..... check it out! Like a Boss!
(Caution …. strong language throughout!).
Having safely moored up in Selby. Jobs to be done .... oil changed, fridge cleaned, oven cleaned, windows cleaned - enough cleaning, time for a pint! Into the Three Swans, £2 a pint, very palatable!! We bumped into a boater we had met at Broughbridge, company and funny stories!
In Selby the canal was still full of duckweed which smells really bad! Much of it was dying which, I think, is what caused the smell. The CRT were working hard to skim it off, through the Lock and out into the Ouse where it disperses with the tidal flow! We set off nonetheless and as we made slow progress up the canal it gradually thinned out. Halfway up the canal there is a single 48 hour mooring in the middle of nowhere. The mooring was free so we tied up and roasted in the baking sun!
The air was thick and humid. It was too hot to do anything!! I'm sure I will look back on this unimaginable state of affairs and won't be able to glimpse a memory of the intense heat! We sat with all the doors and windows open to create a draft and watched "Film Stars Don't Die In Liverpool". A good film, bit of a tear jerker!
Storms and rain overnight and in the morning then it turned into another really hot day spent mostly inside the boat because of the intensity of the heat. Made a curry - always good in a heatwave. Onion, carrot, squash and butter beans. Sweet and delicious. Early evening we took Minnie for a badly needed swim!! We were wiping her down with damp cloths all day to control her temperature!!
Woke up at 9.30!! Wow! Lie in! Strikes me that it's the moving this journey is about, the constant change. Mooring up in one place we both get twitchy after a couple of days. May be different depending where we are but, so far, that's the narrative.
Time to move on. The blood moon/eclipse was on the following Friday so we wanted to be somewhere with a dark night sky.
We set off and passed.through Haddlesey and back on to Aire and Calder Navigation. Turned left just after Bank Dole Lock, the bleakest of Locks I've seen so far. Lock keepers cottage windows bricked up, some kind of unpeopled Industrial site, an old caravan and broken glass all around.
Past Bank Dole Lock we are on new water. Still very windy and then ..... the heavens opened!! Made it to Pollington and moored up. Too windy and damp to go further. Up to the Kings Head for a couple of pints http://kingsheadpollington.co.uk/ and home to bed. The Landlord and bar staff are really friendly and the beer’s good. It’s the only pub in Pollington but clearly popular. Minnie was gifted one of the Landlords’ dogs’ chews! Happy puppy.
We Stayed in Pollington for another day. No local shops so I walked to Sonaith on a lonely, quiet road. With every step, hating the thought that some random psychopath will find me easy pickings. I worry about stuff like that and days are gone when I'd be embarrassed when someone asks 'scared of what?' or like what's going to happen or even just 'really?'.
In the evening we watched TV/media stuff separately. It is essential to learn to live separate lives in small spaces when necessary! One of us will set up in the 'living room' end of the boat and the other will have an early night.
The following day we headed on to Goole and stocked up on provisions. It was a long, largely straight cruise up to the docks. Once the shopping was done we turned around and headed back again towards the Black Horse https://review.anecu.com/black-horse-hotel/. Not to our taste!! Minnie not allowed In, limited selection of beers.
We had planned to stay put but, decided to move on. Still seeking that elusive dark night sky! Beautiful cruise up to Barnby Dunn along the New Junction canal.
The New Junction Canal was opened in 1905 so it is relatively 'new', as indicated by the name! It is straight for its' entire length, approximately 5 miles, and the surrounding countryside is quite flat. You'd think it would be boring but I loved it. It has 5 swing or lift bridges and two aqueducts. The locks and bridges are all mechanised so it's just a case of insert the key and press the various buttons. Such joy! To the north it crosses the River Went and to the south the River Don. The River Don aqueduct has nothing but a railing to prevent boats from going over in to the river below!! There is a guillotine lock at either end and they operate as flood barriers when the River Don is in flood.
At Barnby Dun we were met by boaters waving at us. Very friendly? No! It turns out the swing bridge is out of order due to a power cut! The boats are queued to go through in both directions. We moored at water point - nowhere else. The power came back on at 11.00 p.m. so we went through, swapping sides with a boat booked to go through Keadby Lock and out onto the tidal Trent at 7 a.m. Good luck with that! We sat on the well deck and stared at the blood moon and a highly visible Mars!
Early rise with Minnie for towpath walk to St Olaves church and graveyard. Through the glass park. Barnby Dun is a great spot for walking. There is the 50 acre glass park where the old glass factory was demolished and a large nature reserve on the other side of the canal where the old power station used to be. However, the plan is to move on towards Sheffield. The Bridge keeper advised we wait until an anticipated commercial vessel has passed. My first glimpse of the Exol Pride - it transports oil between Hull and Rotherham and routinely does two trips a week. I wouldn't want to meet it on a blind bend!!
