"What a charming wife you have" says I.

 So the reason we went in the car today to Llangollen is firstly David loves it there and it's his special day and secondly my foot has had to make us change our plans, I can't see any point in us going to Llangollen in the boat when I can hardly walk around and the basin is up a hill.  With with reluctance we have decided to turn WaL at Frankton Junction, that is where the Montgomery canal joins this one and retrace our steps.

David fetched the car to the layby right here and off we drove down lanes with grass growing in the middle, always a bad sign to me.

Well soppy Google took us on a short cut (Doesn't it always?) and we ended up trying to make a right hand turn onto the A5 which took us far far longer than the short cut would have saved but that's progress for you and my silly fault for not going by the map.  I always say David and I prefer a map and an argument to Google.

Sadly the Eisteddfod was last weekend, today was a Saturday, the first weekend of the summer holidays and it was sunny.  These factors all made for tricky parking close to the centre, the fact that Davids favourite place The Corn Mill was chockablock and who else has noticed the wasps this year?  Well there were more wasps than people today.

We walked to another place for a riverside drinks hoping to return to the Corn Mill when we figured most people will have eaten and gone.  

Last visit here I went into an art place looking for a card for my sister and came out with a gorgeous tall pottery vase, yellow  with hand painted flowers on.  I found the shop by accident that time, but next door were the most abundant and colourful flower boxes.  We found the shop and I chose a wee floral bud vase in pinks and David chose a coffee mug.  Obviously no woman in their right OCD mind could have one mug so we brought a pair, pink and blue, his and hers.  Sadly the only surprise I got him I'd left at home.

Our daughter Koo wanted me to throw a surprise party for him....  Of course I asked him straight away and he positively shrank at the thought.  We will celebrate with all the family later in August when we are home.

The view from the town bridge of what I thought was a boatload of teenagers.... turned out they were older than David and that's saying something.

No one died or anything.... well today that is.

I suggested to David that we do this two years ago, I think it's something to do with him not being a strong swimmer that puts him off.

This years amazing box.

Two years ago amazing box.

Well my idea worked of delaying going to eat and when we got back David found a table in a great position on the deck overlooking the river.  We decided and he went into order.

Sorry the kitchens are overwhelmed and we are only taking orders for booked tables, we are fully booked.

Oh dear oh dear.  No plan B.

We finished our drinks in sombre mood, then David said you go in and try.

David is of the view that I can charm the birds off the trees....

Well I had a go and spoke to the Maitre D', got a table, by the window ( We watched the poor outside folks flapping the wasps) the table had to be retuned in 90 minutes and we had a delightful meal.  Seems David is right about me!

I thanked the Maitre D' profusely needless to say.

When we got back to the boat that evening and I sat down on what has become my routine...

I said actually David, shall we just go anyway?  I can buy a pack of peas from the Co-op there and sit in a cafe if it needs it.

So change of plan and we set off in the morning.

Where has all the signal gone?

The next morning after a damp start, all rain welcome,  we set off again.  The bloody foot not too bad this morning.  From here above the locks at Grindley, it's a lock free run for miles, but five annoying lift bridges to do in a relatively short distance.  I managed to do them getting off WaL very gingerly.  

I am always reminded of Pauline from NB Waterlily, she is a young slip of a thing and with gay abandon leapt off  her boat on the Thames, slipped down a hole, broke her ankle, husband Neil had to carry her back onboard, (That alone would have killed my husband carrying me, I think he'd of dragged me) and then get her to the nearest hospital.

Did the first bridge, no problem, did the second as it was under repairs and chained open. At the third David just about avoided a private boat haring towards him and the uplifted bridge.... the other boat finally reversed to avoid a collision and after WaL had gone though called to "Sorry I supposed I should of waited!!"

Third bridge was down but a single hander was there and waiting for another boat to come and operate it for her... I was slightly miffed as I would have quite liked someone to do one for me, but there was virtually no pull in space for a single hander to operate it, for non boaters, single handers have to tie up on the wrong side, here there was no space just one bollard to tie your front rope to, scramble off the boat, operate the bridge, scramble back onboard, drive the boat through, tie up the back of the boat on to one bollard, scramble off through the nettles, lower the bridge and chug away.

After all the bridges my foot was aching. 

I had been trying to book flights, I haven't told my mother yet but we are going back to New Zealand after Christmas to visit our daughter Verity, son-in-law Mitchell and the baby Xanthe, frequently flyers to this blog with remember that I went our last August to help after her birth, well she's almost a year now, we'll miss her party but...  

The internet along this canal and from what I can remember the Shropshire Union canal was hopeless last time we were here.  During the course of the phone call to the agent, we were cut off several times.  I said to the agent that if necessary David would drive me to a bigger town tomorrow so I could get signal.

So we arrived at Ellesmere.  David took the bike and did a flit to Tesco while I sat with ice on bloody foot and tried to download the required App into which all the tickets and boarding passes (and payment!) must be made.  Call me old fashioned but I like the ticket in my wallet....

Now I know it's hard to see but this is armco, these are trees that we believe have been cut back previously and now sprouting with vigor.  Unchecked (Or killed off) this will surely damage the armco.

I think I said that we were moored up in a town and the penny dropped with the agent that we weren't at home, I bet she thought I was mad saying David will drive me to get signal!

We moored a little further on outside Ellesmere, by a house in which lives an ex-boater.  He likes having the line of moorings and indeed chatted to David for some considerable time.  He mows the towpath here, has a big Buddleia which was covered in butterflies, has regular moorers on and there's a long layby too for many dog walkers and boaters too.

A mooring made in heaven.

Quite a lots of examples of this along this section.

The first lift bridge done.

So can you see the nose of the boat that was approaching, at speed, to the bridge and finally reversed....

What a darling bijou pied-a-terre. 

What the heck it that?

A close up, I'm pretty sure it's a giant pasta maker.

I like ducks, I used to keep Aylesbury ducks but I've never seen black ducks.  I might get some David.

Despite being overcast it was very very warm today and I felt for this guy wrapped head to foot in thick plastic.

Frozen peas, there was quite a bit of this going on, it actually did work.

Fabulous mooring, solar, mowed grass.

 

Supper was salmon pasta.  David really likes that one.  

Tomorrow is his BIG birthday, we are going out for a jaunt after we have watched the first British Lions match.

Leaving Wrenbury

 My foot.

Now the back story to .... my foot.

Last August when I returned from New Zealand after caring for our youngest daughter, her new baby and husband Mitchell, my foot started to hurt, actually both of them.

I thought it must be something to do with flying, swollen ankles and new shoes, but I didn't have swollen ankles.  I ignored it pretty much.  I bet a few of you can guess.... agony in the morning getting out of bed, it slightly wearing off, then after lunch and a sit down agony again.  Plantar Fasciitis. 

Saw a physio, got the spiky ball, got the stretchy elasticated support sock and still it persisted.

Eleven months later is better but not gone..... Until today.

I stood up and cried out in pain but a different pain, a new and exciting pain.  

Marvellous.

I was supposed to be doing to lift bridges but as I got off the boat oh so gently and limped I got back onto the boat and stayed onboard to the bridges.  I managed to limp to operate them keeping my heel raised and my toes down.

Well I took pain killers and had it up on the seat and it was bearable to limp at the locks although I must say David begged me to let him do them.

First lock of the day.

Now look carefully and you will see a bird in the water, it flew low over the boat and landed in front of WaL, I thought it was a duck, then it popped up right beside the rudder for seconds, diving down and reappearing by the rudder again.  Very hard to catch in photos but it was keeping up with us underwater at 3 miles an hour.  Remarkable.  Stayed with us for several hundred yards too, I saw it gobble two fish.   

Finally leaving us at a bridge hole. 

I think a Cormorant.

Coming up at Grindley Brook.

We pulled in at the services, David did several loads of detritus from the back lockers, he found something "He couldn't find for ages"  obviously he's one of those men that look with their eyes shut but I didn't say that. 

I had taken to the sofa and was popping more pills.  I pretty much stayed there for the afternoon.  

The view from the boat tonight.

David moved WaL down the visitor moorings to a gap in the trees for the solar, rain due tomorrow morning.  Foot will be better by then I'm sure....

Supper was that tasty salmon and pasta dish we love.

Movement

We have a hole in our cratch cover.  Very annoying, but it's actually undoing stitching not a tear.  I had called the maker but they were not going to be coming to Great Haywood for weeks.  So we have come away with it.

I got the name of "Cratch Cover and Canopies" from the nice people at Swanley and called them.  Today we unplucked the cratch cover, picked off the spiders and bird poo, folded it as best we could and took it in the car back to Nantwich Marina where this company are based.  Well Reader what fabulous people and they fixed it while we waited.  Bish bash bosh.  I had thought while it was in there David and I could go food shopping in Nantwich but no seconds later we were on our way.

I can't recommend them highly enough.

So now we popped into the chandlery there and brought a new nose fender as WaL's is old, bashed, falling apart and held on with one of Joe's old bootlaces.  

Then food shopping, whizz whizz and back to WaL to stow it all away in the fridge.

Then big treat of the day, visiting Marbury and The Swan pub.  So we have come here as part of David's Big Birthday celebrations.  There are lovely long moorings here but taking advice from other boaters about the numbers of Horseflies around on these meadow moorings, we decided to dodge that and pass Marbury by.

The food is wonderful here, the service, the garden all lovely.

The walls of the pub are covered with many pictures that I liked, here are a few.  

The first reminds me of Wimbledon.

Walking around the village after lunch we came by the church, if you go behind it there is a bench.

We sat.

Looking over this small lake, there's David on the bench, and the bench is on a grave or vault.  I hope the occupants don't mind.

Back to Wrenbury and we are cruising tomorrow!

Beaut sky tonight.

Heatwave, swelter and dogdays.

 We've had a couple of sweltering hot days and sticky nights.  Its such a waste of good weather, I'd prefer 10C cooler and then be able to sit out or even walk a little.  Who likes 28C?

Well we decided to move on today but left really early, like others, to beat the heat.

Two or three locks to do.  This place caught my eye, if you don't have small children, like fishing or peace and quiet and the passing of narrowboats this could be for you.

This below looks so gorgeous, I do love a gateway or a pathway, I've a feeling I took a snap of this last time too.

So romantic....

 We arrived in Wrenbury, David was convinced that the trees would be in our favour....  So we crawled along the visitor moorings and then blow me down, a space.  The boat behind had a work bench out and was doing some vital task with wood, it was a tight fitting spot, I was all ready to ask him if necessary, could I help him to move his boat back a foot, but instead he took the middle rope and pulled us in with 6" each end to spare.

Result.

We both wanted to watch the Ladies Singles Finals between the young Amanda Anisimova from the USA and Iga Swiatek from Poland, that was all great as I sat in the warm cratch waiting for the start that has been for millions of years 2pm, but this year was 4pm, I thought I heard an owl.... Yes I did and then another, my bird app "Merlin" identified them both as a Tawny owl and arguing with it a Little owl.  

Very memorable.

Well the signal was dodgy here but we watched the 6:0 6:0 final feeling a tad under sold.

Supper was warm egg and cheese salad.

The next day was to be really hot again, I was getting bored of it.

David got back from his cycle at well I don't know I was still asleep.  Amanda, my friend and single helm just now on the other side of the country messaged to say she had done her 5 miles already at 7am.

I got up intending to get my own 10K steps,  David advised me of a shaded lane so off I went, from Wrenbury to Marley Green and back.  I kept up a good pace, was pleased with my progress, I took water and finished that.

Oldest and most attractive house of the day in Wrenbury.

Nice shaded lane but the trees didn't last the whole way.

Another of those unmanned pedestrian crossings but no trains.

Us in the afternoon waiting for the Gentlemen's Final at Wimbledon

After that dismal book I gave up on I started this and was
instantly gripped.  This is the third of a trilogy that I loved.

 

Men's finals was also gripping and I was in the position of wanting neither Carlos Alcaraz or Jannik Sinner to lose.

Supper was to empty out the fridge of all salad pots.

PS  Saw this....HERE  

Still hot.

 We crept off the next morning, we had an appointment at Swanley Marina at 9am.  We were a few minutes late due to the number of moored boats along the way, under trees, I couldn't blame them either.

When we got to Swanley the man was waiting there, as events had panned out he had been awake that morning at 5am but had delayed his journey to Hastings (On the south coast ) to see us.  Madness really as my David was awake, up and off before 5am and we could easily have met him then.

Anyway more of that later.  We were in full sun there for a couple of hours and I was already flaking....

We set off again primarily in the search for shade from the afternoon sun, with good 4G as the tennis was on that afternoon. 

A couple of locks to do, which was fine, I walked on to the second and talking to the young male crew member, I asked him where they had been moored previously, Oh out in the countryside above Wrenbury.

Were there horseflies' by any chance?

Yes, dreadful he replied, we've been bitten all over!!

Now Adam had said they had found horseflies' too, so thank you Adam for the heads up.

As we went along we were checking our phones for signal...

Lisa I've got it here!

Moored up, under trees and the boat was fairly cool.

Nothing much more happened that day.  There was lounging, map studying, the boiling of eggs and I managed to do a bit more unpacking of clothing.  I never do all that in one go.

But it was here later that afternoon that I gave up on my Online Book Group book choice.  A prize winner but absolutely not for me, I carried on until page 60 but that was enough.  

I doubt I could give it away to any of my friends.

Latitudes of Longing by Shubhangi Swarup..... let me know if you'd like this near pristine copy.

Supper was beef salad.

The sun did come around the trees between 4pm and 5pm and golly it was still hot then.  We slept with the waterside hatch doors open and the back sliding hatch and only under a sheet.

Phew.

This was the mooring under trees.

 

 

Mum it's ain't half hot here....

Well well how are you Reader?  We are very well thank you and back on WaL raring to go.

Before we came away I was visiting my mother (Don't tell her I told you but she will be 95 next month) anyway when I got back I was informed by David that he had booked a couple of nights in my favourite place, that is to say the Buxton hotel.  

But I have to tell you that this month is David's significant birthday so I called this his treat not solely mine.

This is the first time we have visited in the summer and oh boy did we pick a lovely day to go walking.

That line above David's head is the main road to Great Haywood.

We were going towards Solomon's Tower, a folly. 

Walking away from it back to Buxton.

The view from the tower of Buxton.

A day later and we drove away in mist and cloud.

So we arrived back at Tattenhall Marina where WaL was staying in our absence.  Loaded up, watered up and off we jolly well popped about an hour away back to the Shady pub and nice moorings.  One side of the bridge there is open and sunny with almost zero 4G and the otherside of the bridge with tall trees has good enough 4G, so how does that work?

Leaving Tattenhall Marina.

It will be an early harvest, just look behind that pink boat...  

Sloes formed already and since I took this I have seen purple ones already although you should not pick them until after the first frosts.  Frosts... I wonder if we'll even get one?

Our mooring that evening, yes taken from the pub.... hic.

 The next morning we set off early to get through the four or five is it locks, I walked along to the first lock around the corner to be greeted with the sight of a couple putting their shoes and the tiller in place.

Marvellous.

Would you like to share the locks?

Oh yes they both replied delightedly.

So grand it was.  We did the Iron Lock separately as that particular lock is distorted so only single boats can use it.  Then joined up again for the last ones.  Charming couple, Tracy and Mike, only had their share of the boat for three years but by golly he was a good helm.  Turned out he was an ex-RAF pilot so he was good at manoeuvring.

Tracy and boats in the lea of Beeston castle.  She didn't keep that jumper on long, it was boiling before 8am.

No not the Amazon but the tow path here, I'm convinced that the huge insect bites on my legs came from here. 

David waiting below for the lock.

 Well we did Bunbury locks together.  Having talked to a CART employee early that morning and him telling us that the water levels here are "okay" but it should be saved as much as possible...

When we got to the double staircase there was a boat coming out, so the locks, so it was set for us to come in the bottom lock.  I walked up to see the situation and there was a single boat on the landing.  I said that we were coming up, we could do three but not four boats, 

that's aright I'm coming in.

Well if you don't mind waiting just ten minutes or so then that boat approaching behind you can come in too...

No I'm coming in!

So Reader this would mean that the approaching boat would have to repeat the lock sequence on his own thus using unnecessary water.

I was staggered and bent David's ear about it for the rest of the day.

We said goodbye to the Mike and Tracy here, we are going to Hurleston Junction and they back to their marina, Overwater, just along the way.

By now it was boiling, sizzling hot.  All talk was of finding shade.  We passed a good spot but by the time I'd said it and David had said "Wot 'ere?" it was too late and the moment lost.  Just like when a man is driving and the woman says can you pull into the next ladies loo, it's Oh I forgot, oh I didn't see it, oh you should have said earlier...  Every woman has had this.

Anyway although I wasn't crazy about doing the locks up onto the Llangollen Canal in this heat, as we approached them I waved to the volunteer at the bottom lock and he prepped it for us so straight in.  As I turned to move up to the next lock all the attendant lockkies had already done the same so each lock had the gates open.  It was marvellous.

I thanked them profusely of course.

We went along to look for shade and found some, just behind NB Briar Rose, with Adam and Adrian onboard.  We had dwinks later on WaL, Reader you may remember that we finally met them both for the first time last year despite all our friends already having met them.  So nice to catch-up again.  I'm just sorry I didn't take a photo.

Supper was breaded fish and peas.  Good to get a bit more space in the fridge.