At last the river and yacking.

I was reminded last night, in a most Head Mastery way that the cost of staying in the sun yesterday was an early start today.  I swear he said 8am, but this was the subject of a disputation and he started off at 7am.  

It was a glorious morning, oh here comes another Head Mastery lecture on how all early mornings are like this one......

I tell you he's a brute.

Last nights mooring.  A boat had moored up in the afternoon with two children on board so he pulled WaL on ropes away from them before starting the engine, maybe not a brute.

Anglo Welsh base here at Wootten Wawen, lots of boats still here.

Darling little aqueduct here, not very scary.

So onward and it was freezing when out of the sun.  We had winter thick fleeces and gloves on.  Around the corner and on a bit was this;

A very elderly couple moored in front of us had told us about this marina, he said it was supposed to be ready this July......  He wasn't sure it would be.

Very sadly, he said this canal is getting too much for them as they have got older, the locks are impossible for them, he got his son to help him onto the Stratford, they will pootle about and then have help off it again.  Frankly I have found it really tough too.
CART Action please.

I knew there was a bigger aqueduct coming up, but I wasn't really expecting this...

Or the fact it had no side.... Gulp!

I wanted to look over this side but was yelled at "Get your head out the bloody way"

This smile denies the fear of us both, David about heights and me about precipices. 

The wind had picked up and was blowing us, what felt like over the edge, but it was only against the side.  So we scraped along a stretch of it, trying to get away....

I took this without actually looking.

I like our reflections on the trees here.

Thank god we're off.

This bridge was a challenge for David, it looks like a regular one but in the blinding sun reflecting off the newly polished mushrooms, but its not built "Straight", its at an angle and he didn't hit it.

I have resumed the post of Captain in charge here.  Now I am learning, but blimming heck, so has he.  Newly released from the bounds of silence at the bottom of a lock he never stops yackerty yackerty yacking.  He was all behind like a dogs tail at one point.

We were coming down these last few locks into Stratford proper, when this happened.

Note summer T shirt now on.

Well to be completely fair, it had happened to about 5 or 6 locks on the way down, the bottom gates not opening properly, but this one different in that it wouldn't budge past the photo.

David had already gone on to prep the next lock which was around the corner out of sight leaving me in the care of the lock keeper and one volunteer, and one chap who was having a 

Taster Day, well the Lockie went off to get a long poley/rakey thing and I didn't see him again.

I was about to get my book out, when the phone rang, David "Where are you".....

Well then one of the men was messing about with the gate, and as if he had done nothing at all, it opened as easy as pie!  Don't you just hate it when that happens?

More yacking.  See this bottom gate?  It's cantilevered due to the bridge, I had been warned by other lady crews.  It took three men to heave it open. 

Into Stratford Basin, very short pontoons and very bust nearby road meant we decided to go straight onto the river.

First getting slightly wedged in the lock with large crowd to witness, large cheer when cleared.

Royal Shakespeare Company Theatre.  

We cleared out the fridge last night supper was a big Spanish omelette.