Late Late Late

 Apologies and all that for my tardiness, but there is a good reason.  My poor mother.

Easter was planned, we'd even been shopping!  Then at about 8pm one evening before Easter a phone call because my mother had pressed her personal alarm.

Off we went, David already in his JimJams, to rescue my mum who we both expected to have fallen, but no, with chest pain, blue fingers, white as a sheet myself and the ambulance crew thought heart, a scan or two and a night or three in A&E it proved to be gall stones, two of them.

Nine nights in all and my mother is now the self appointed ambassador for our new hospital, the food, all the staff and the NHS in general.  When I was visiting all staff be them doctors nurses or porters waved to her and she back to them.

She came to ours for a couple of nights and then back to hers, she lives alone and she's 95.

I'm pretty proud.

So as I have hinted in a previous post we were to have met up with NB Caxton and NB Hogarth for a jaunt right the way down to Tewkesbury but this has had to be abandoned for this year.  

David and I are now shorter on time, I didn't really want to be on the river as keeping the car handy is far more problematic in case I have to be home again for my mum.

So as the other two boats decided to wait for us, Caxton's crew have delayed their return from France and Hogarth's crew are enjoying spring at home in their garden, David and I have a quick fortnight now to go, well wherever we wanted, then home to check on my mum (golf will be in that mix), then fingers crossed for a rendezvous with the two boats.

The Staffs and Worcester canal to Stourport, the Caldon canal, the Coventry canal and the Trent and Mersey canal were all in the discussions and the Trent and Mersey won.

It's a nice case of a week out, see how far we get and a week back.  That is the limit of the deadline, just how I like it.

Looking fabulous but overall I prefer the white blossom.

Glorious morning when we left our mooring.

Approaching the entrance to the left.

A swan who usually nests thereabouts giving two poxy Canadian Geese what for, but they came back for more.David coming into Great Haywood lock.

David coming into Great Haywood lock.

And here he is leaving.  I walked down to Colwich lock.

Is this a wee violet growing on the lock gates?  Too pretty to be pulled out.

Yellow pretties

Purple pretties.

and pink pretties

Gorgeous cottages almost at Colwich lock.

The beginnings of Cannock Chase, a signal to me of leaving properly.

Going over the River Trent at Rugeley

Best name for a long time I've seen.

So that was our first day out, 4 or 5 hours to get past Rugeley.

Supper was that salmon pasta dish at 500 calories that has become a firm favourite.  Actually left overs we brought up with us but I forgot to bring the Christmas turkey curry that's still in the freezer...... from 2024.