Friends and Cocktails

After a bit of fannying around this morning, we made our way along a pretty great stretch of canal to Market Harborough.  Its about 5.5 miles there to Union Basin where we were meeting friends. The sun shone as it has most of this last week.  I had my eyes peeled all the way for Kingfishers which nest along here, but I was disappointed today.  I learnt from an expert that at this time of year they are not feeding their young so are not out as much.  You really do appreciate TV's slow motion cameras when you do spot one as in a blink of an eye they are gone in a flash of blue and orange.

The reeds glistened in the sunshine 

Leaf soup. Bungs yer prop up a treat.  Not at all annoying.

We came to the swing bridge just outside Foxton village.  Its a cantankerous old bridge this one, weighs a ton and hates being pushed around.  I was struggling with it and just then a friendly lady walked by and offered to help, thanking her as she hopped to and got the ball rolling, she told me that CART had done work on this bridge, however when she does her 4 mile walk here every day, she often helps boaters with it. 

We arrived in the basin, and turned around,

This is an old Bonded Warehouse now a rather nice restaurant.

We we looking all around to see where our friends boat was....

Spotted it yet?

There she blows!

NB Yarwood.  HERE    The boat was blindingly shiny, but yes you've guessed it, Lesley said it needed polishing......!
We moored up just outside the basin on a nice vacant straight section with our own water tap laid on.
Handy.

We invited them for cocktails and supper and it was rather good too.  Waitrose's current monthly recipe cards for red salmon risotto and black forest fruits calfoutis. Went down rather well, as did Lesley's Brandy Sponge, I do love a woman who splashes the brandy around a bit, hic.