12 October 2023

We woke to almost clear skies and lots of sunshine this morning. Thank you weather gods!

Our tasks were allocated and once again and I’m a bit concerned about who is actually driving this ship!! I was Galley Slave, Grahame drew Cabin Boy, John 1st Engineer (making him the highest ranking officer) and Judi was the Mutineer, so things could have gotten interesting!! The plank was readied, just in case!!!

It was so nice to have the sun on our faces again after yesterdays shocker. However, there was more of a chill in the air and although sunny, I wasn’t reaching for my t-shirt and shorts.

We left our mooring at Barbridge, and it wasn’t long before we arrived at the Hurleston Junction and turned onto the Llangollen Canal. Please don’t ask me to pronounce it!!! We’ve had several lessons but everyone’s version seems different and still unpronounceable!! There’s lots of “back of the throat” sounds which our Australian accents just can’t seem to replicate.

Ellie waited patiently while we prepared the locks. She looked pretty pleased with herself as she bathed in the sunshine.

We were in a queue of three boats heading up the canal this morning meaning that progress was slow through the series of locks. Each lock had to be opened, closed, emptied or filled and opened and closed once more.

Being third in the queue means we open and close an awful lot more than we need. Most crews help each other out and whilst waiting our turn compare travel tales and give and take suggestions on the best places to stop for groceries or pub meals or to even moor for the night. Most of the travellers are retirees, some with their own boats and some like us, renting. Some are happy for a chat, others not so much. It’s always interesting!

We came across this monster lurking in one of the locks. It was filled with cargo to be transported down the canal. We have met these cargo barges on previous trips but this was our first this time around.

Lots of boaters have there pets, mostly dogs, on board with them and we often get to say hello while waiting. I’m not sure if I could cope with a big, hairy, wet dog in such a confined space, but they all seem pretty chilled about it.

We were confronted with several pedestrian bridges and one road bridge along the canal today. Our first for this trip. Not sure, how they would be operated until we arrived, Grahame went armed with windlass and supplied keys just in case. It turned out that the pedestrian bridges required the windlass and they were quickly opened for Judi to drive through. The bridge simply raised up on one side.

The Road Bridge required a key to be inserted in the operating system. There were three boats to pass through and we tried to be strategic and avoid stopping traffic in the little village. Just as the gates came down and the road bridge was raised , a van and several cars turned up. I’m sure they were thrilled to have to wait while we all passed through the narrow opening. We lowered the bridge and opened the gates as quickly as we could. But I definitely avoided making eye contact with the drivers.

Halloween is big here in the UK and lots of pubs and shops are decorated in spooky stuff already. Today, we came across a farm decorated an set up for a (money making ??) spooky adventure!

The Willeymore Lock Tavern, perched right beside the canal looked like a potential lunch pit stop and despite some locals sitting in the beer garden watching the boats go up and down the lock, the pub was now closed and didn’t open again til 6 pm. “Late lunch stop” idea canned, we dined on apples and cheese instead.

Not sure where we cross the Welsh border, we kept a lookout but the only clue we have to date is a little bit of Welsh on the lock arm. Whether we actually crossed into Wales for a bit remains unknown. Maybe tomorrow?

We arrived in the small village of Grindley Brook after a good day on the water. We were hungry and thirsty and in need of a Pub.

We covered a fair bit of territory today in order to make up for our broken lock debacle if a few days earlier. We are slowly making up for some lost time and still have our eyes on “The Prize”. We knocked over 12 locks and opened and closed many more while helping other boats move along the canal.

We dined at the “Horse and Jockey” with its alleged ghost. We asked the lovely young waitperson if we could see it, or at least share some spooky stories with us. She had no idea what we were talking about!!! So much for guide books.

Euchre results. Win to Jen and Grahame (yippee). Current score John 4, Grahame 3, Jenny 2 and Judi 1.

Feeling gooood!!!!