We are returning to the boat today after yet another stint on dry land and for the most part it has been dry! Infact, in London on Friday, it was positively humid and hot, with an unpleasant stickiness. In contrast to a weekend we spent earlier in July, at a farm in Gloucestershire, when wellies were definitely the fashion statement of the weekend. We had gathered with about 200 christians in their 20s and 30s for a spiritual top-up, most of whom gamely camped. Our age and stage let us off the hook and we shared a bnb in the nearby village, which proved impossible to find in the dark. The village was tiny and yet for some reason had a complicated road network that we could not fathom and we literally drove around in the car for fifteen minutes, eventually returning to the farm and restarting the journey! It was an amazing weekend, connecting with a generation far younger than our own and welcomed for our age and experience. Quite a novel concept in this day and age and in our culture, to actually be sought out for our wisdom and thanked for our time and concern. It makes me wonder how secure many young adults feel in this fast paced, constantly changing world and if they are living without a supportive network around them, especially of older family members, no wonder there is such a mental health and lonliness crisis of epidemic proportions. It’s a challenge to us all to build bridges between the generations and to show kindness to one another.
Talking of kindness, we were moored up just before the Devizes flight at Caen Hill and arranged to meet my sister and family at a great little cafe called the Roudy Cow, with renowned and delicious ice cream. We walked to it via a couple of footpaths, which on the return journey were not nearly so obvious to find. R was walking past a couple of modern houses searching for the footpath when a lady came out of one of the houses shouting abuse at him for trespassing. Explaining he was trying to find his way, she gave him short shift and pointed back the way we had come. Sure enough, we found the very unobvious path, which actually looked like someone’s driveway. I was struck by the discordant way we were treated and felt truly sad that this lady aeemed so cross at the world. I’m sure there was more to her discontent than a couple of walkers losing their way at the boundary of her property. Contrast that with us enjoying a cup of coffee yesterday in our local coffee shop near to the flat, where we got chatting to a couple of Texans who had just arrived in the UK on a business trip. They left ahead of us and when we went to pay, we found they had already paid for our coffees! An unexpected kindness that warmed the heart.
Our journeying in the Devizes area has been a delight. The Long Pound, devoid of locks, meant that we covered the fifteen miles relatively smoothly, and even in the drizzingly rain, there was still so much beauty to be seen in the hedgerows and wild flowers festoning the canal side. In some places the fauna narrowed the navigable canal to only one boat width, which left me wondering how I would react if a widebeam (double width boat) came towards me. Passing places were few and far between. Add to this the many boats moored at some stretches of the canal and you realise that even without locks, speed is not an option! Tickover speed is necessary, unless you want a mouthful from an irate boater and rightly so. It is surprising how much movement occurs to a moored boat, through the displacement of water, from a passing vessel.
So, we are now the other side of the 29 locks that divide the K&A. Before doing them, you feel rather daunted. At least I did. Infact, they were a breeze. That was because we managed to gather together many hands, making light work! We had planned to do the flight last Monday with the infamous BBT, who happily travels the country to meet us with his windlass. However he wasn’t happy when he saw the Monday weather forecast and persuaded us that it would be preferable on the Wednesday. How right he was! A heavy downpour on Monday would have seen us soaked through, whereas Wednesday was a beautifully dry day. In addition BBT brought along another boater friend, Gr, who was a great asset to the team, having worked many locks in his time. My nephew’s mother in law, Tr, local to the area, was intrigued to see how the flight operated, so windlass in hand, she had a baptism by fire as we did lock after lock after lock!! Our final team member was a former lodger of ours, so he was definitely the muscle needed to open the stiff lock gates! He further endeared himself to us all by arriving with a lemon drizzle cake, that he had freshly made that morning! Wisely, he left his 18 month son at nursery. He had planned to bring him but thought better of it and much as I would love to have seen him, I felt mightily relieved! The crew arrived by 1030. If a boat had come alongside us prior to that, we would have started the descent, as two boats in a wide lock saves water being lost. However as no other boat was in sight, we took the opportunity to enjoy a cappuccino at the Caen Hill cafe, whilst making sure everyone made use of the ‘facilities’, common practice in boating life. Fortified not only by lemon drizzle cake but also homemade shortbread provided by Tr, we made short work of the locks and within 2 and a half hours we were enjoying lunch at the bottom of the flight. A further six locks and we moored at Sells Green where the only mishap of the day occurred – Gr couldn’t find his reading glasses anywhere. Either they were the sound of a ‘plop’ we heard whilst cruising along or they fell out of his shirt pocket, as a result of slipping whilst securing the boarding plank. Either way, it was a rather inopportune end to Gr’s day, especially as his journey home entailed a couple of lengthy train journeys and he couldn’t even pass the time reading! We were impressed that he had joined us all the way from Chichester!
For us, the day ended retracing our footsteps along the towpath to a boat owned by another couple on the Canal Ministeries team. Throughout covid, they had run a vaccine boat, in order to enable boaters to get their vaccinations. They kindly gave us supper, which was much appreciated after such a strenuous day for R. I was on my feet all day at the helm but most of my energy had been sapped through instructing and exhalting the crew!
We had to leave the boat to attend a family wedding, which wasn’t too onerous as we had parked a car nearby. However on our return, car-less, we realised the nearest train station would also involve a large taxi fare. My sister and bro-in-law kindly came to the rescue by picking us up from the train, giving us a bed for the night and then taxied us to the boat. We were even welcomed to the ‘Over 60 lunch club’ they attend twice a month in their village. £6 for a two course, home cooked meal, including sherry, wine and chocolates! There are some benefits to growing old!
NarrowboatTLC 