Chocks away Biggles

Reader here we are all present and correct, the spring cruise has  finally started and will run seamlessly into the summer without you hardly noticing.

News first.  Now who remembers these two?

For those of you who don't, this is beloved youngest daughter Verity and her Kiwi husband Mitch, these two departed these shores after Mitch living here for fifteen years, Verity went around the world when she was eighteen and brought Mitch home with her as you do.  Well they are now giving NZ a whirl and yes you've guessed it, they are expecting their first baby due later this summer.

I, as all mothers would want to am going out to be there and to Lendahand.           (I'd have gone with or without an invitation, but I do have one.

David isn't, he is staying here to mind my mother and of course play golf.

David has asked me how long I'll be gone and I say I'll almost certainly be home again, by christmas, maybe.

Thoroughly thrilling news, you just can't have enough babies in the family says I.  This will be our fifth grandchild.

"Guess who's having a boy?" she trilled down the phone,

"A boy? How wonderful" says I, delighted,

"Not me!" Its a girl,

"A girl how wonderful" says I.

All this brings me back to the point, that this spring summer cruise is to be a bit shorter than previous summers.

We departed Great Haywood the other day and for the first time in two years headed south.  Its been warm these last days and well I have almost forgotten what it feels like to have the sun on your skin.  Sun cream was slapped on bare skin, sun hats too retrieved from the back of cupboards and away we went.  

Approaching Great Haywood lock.

In Colwich lock

The cottage here is charming, I'm not sure why WaL is pointing uphill.

I bet this lot have been squelching about in mud before this weekend. 

Nice bit of carving and what a good idea to chop down a willow tree.

Here's his nose.

It was in the later part of the afternoon and we had in mind to moor up in a quiet spot in the sun, David didn't fancy Worsley Bridge on the Trent and Mersey just past the end of Shrugborough Estate, so on we chugged.  

The old "Pig Farm" where in the past we and many others brought cheap diseasel from a moored up work boat used to have a couple of quiet spots but this has changed as the pigs have been replaced by private moorings, on we chugged, there's on spot with armco just big enough for WaL a short distance but of course by 4pm on a sunny Friday it was already taken.

On we chugged and tried to get on just before the aqueduct over the river Trent north of Rugeley and although several boats here and there we tried twice but it too shallow.  So boringly we went around the sharp bend and moored in Rugeley itself.

We sat in the cratch with the sides rolled up and pretended we were miles away from it all.

Supper was chicken curry, now I wouldn't ordinarily post a recipe but this really was a QUICK one even if David had dug it out of the freezer this morning.  It was quick when I made it so give it a whirl.

HERE