Day 30 onwards - Braunston to Atherstone

 

Important port of call just north of Braunston at Barby Marina for a pumpout
Like most marinas, the entry is only just wider than a boat - this is because they pay a fee per foot to the Canal and River Trust.  It's very breezy today and this is an exposed spot. Denis steered in, executed a tight 180 degree turn (not easy in a 62' boat in wind) and moored up outside the facilities hut on the right with Catnap's bow facing the exit
A waterside snack
Admiring the scenery

Our favourite 'Italian' mooring at Hillmorton, this time with Belted Galloways or 'Belties'
Pink evening light
Canal bridge art at Rugby
Simple boat signage
An aerial (actually from the top of the engine house chimney) view of Hawkesbury Junction from 1985. The Oxford Canal comes in from the left, via the shallow 'stop lock'.  Then we turn 90 degrees in front of the white building, The Greyhound pub, under the cast iron bridge and another sharp 90 degree turn into the one way channel at the bottom of the photo.  All sounds fine, except it's one of the busiest places on the system AND the canal is particularly shallow in places due to water shortages.  In reality, we turned right after the bridge, had to keep left to avoid a boat waiting to go round and picked up a large branch on the prop!  Engine made a protesting bleep, steering was temporarily lost, but we managed to limp onto a mooring further along still with the branch in tow.  A few bursts of reverse and it was free - thankfully no need to disentangle it
Very handy for a well earned drink

Just before bridge 13 at Bedworth.  Denis jumped off with the bow rope, as the bridge was blocked by a fuel boat aground and unable to move back or forward.  After about half an hour, the crew managed to pull the butty (unpowered boat towed by the main boat) through, laden as it was with sacks of coal and gas bottles.  The powered boat held back and waited for us to go through the bridge, then had some trouble going through itself, as it was also fully laden

Fuel boat creating quite a wash as it inched through the bridge to join its butty
A different fuel boat - it shows how extremely low in the water they can be when full!
Man has gardening mishap... ducks superbly unconcerned
Rothen workboats, this time triple moored - and there's an oncoming boat. Waiting for it to pass, we go aground again!
More dredging is needed pretty much everywhere on this stretch, but we didn't expect it to be happening as we pass - driver gave us a cheery wave though
He's shifted a huge volume of mud from just this stretch below the wall
Springwood Haven Marina - it has a canalside wharf for diesel etc, so no faffing about with narrow entrances!  We got everything: diesel, pumpout, gas bottle, antifreeze...

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