When FB first went public in the UK I signed up, tested it, invited a few friends and family and wrote about it for a computer magazine. A few years later I decided it was getting too invasive and managed to extricate myself from it. It wasn’t easy to delete posts but I managed it … Read more »
Author: Phil
Greenhouse
I haven’t posted for a (long) while but many (OK, two) people have asked how the greenhouse roof will fit so here’s an update. Our downsized house has a small garden, made even smaller by a previous owner extending the house. For serious gardening Linda has an allotment but she wanted a greenhouse at home … Read more »
Day 52 – (much later)
The final day was rather uneventful. I went through the all the locks to Godmanchester with Nick, then U-turned onto the town moorings for lunch while he carried on. It rained on and off during the morning though I managed to dodge most of it passing through the locks during dry spells and closing Seren’s … Read more »
Day 51 – Teaching Ducks to Fly
I walked to the petrol station in Outwell shortly after 7.00 and it was already getting hot. Walking back carrying 10l of diesel in a steel can was getting hard when a car stopped and gave me a lift. So plenty of fuel to complete the trip. The run from Outwell to Salter’s Lode was … Read more »
Day 50 – Middle Level Blues
Yesterday I booked passage through Stanground lock at 10.00 so first I went to the sanitary station in Peterborough, possibly the dirtiest sluice I have ever seen and only a little over 12 months since it was installed. Then to Asda for some veg for a curry. From peterborough Embankment it’s about 10-15 minute cruise … Read more »
Day 49 – Peterborough
Oundle to Peterborough isn’t that hard but the extremely hot weather didn’t help. The map shows an EA water point at Fotheringhay so that was my first target. Fotheringhay is a very pretty and posh village with plenty of mooring space. All of it chargeable, £5 per night, £2.50 short stop and even £2 to … Read more »
Day 48 – Down to Oundle
I phoned EA at 8.00 and the river manager Ian Cook told me he needed to speak to te engineers, and they weren’t on site yet so he had no news. Phone back at 1pm. So I went for a walk to Woodford village. It’s one of those chocolate box villages that Northants seems to … Read more »
Day 47 – I’ve had better
Cruising slowly out of White Mills everything felt great. The water in the marina is clear and deep, Seren’s prop had been cleared, the cooling system was gurgling nicely. And then we came out onto the river. Or ditch. Shallow and very weedy. There are six locks from White Mills to Wellingborough and I was … Read more »
Day 46 – Sarah & Family Visit
I’d arranged to meet Sarah & family at Weston Favell lock, near Northampton Boat Club. Last year we organised a meeting at lock by a club and although the club had visitor moorings it had no provision for visitors arriving by car. This time I stopped on the Washlands Mooring which is accessible by the … Read more »
Day 45 – Northampton Arm
The Northampton Arm of the Grand Union is an oddity. It’s narrow unlike the main line but apes some of the main line design details, particularly the locks. Most narrow locks have walkways, planks basically, on the downhill side of the double lock gates so when you open one you can stride across to open … Read more »